Pokemon Sword And Shield Are Ditching Mega Evolution And Z-Moves

In recent years – ever since the series jumped to the Nintendo 3DS – the Pokemon franchise has been introducing some wide-reaching battle mechanics. First we had Mega Evolution, which allowed certain Pokemon to evolve into even more powerful monsters for the duration of a battle. Then, Pokemon Sun and Moon introduced Z-Moves, powerful attacks that any Pokemon could potentially use, but only once per battle.

Now, of course, in Pokemon Sword and Shield, we'll have the new Dynamax mechanic, which allows Pokemon to grow to enormous sizes for three turns and use a selection of powered-up moves. With the introduction of Dynamax (Dynamaxing?), fans are naturally wondering if Mega Evolution and Z-Moves will be returning in Sword and Shield. It's a legitimate question, because Mega Evolution stuck around even after the focus shifted to Z-Moves in Sun and Moon.

Unfortunately, the answer to that question is "no." In an interview with Famistu (as spotted and translated by the tireless folks over at Serebii), Sword and Shield producer Junichi Masuda and director Shigeru Ohmori confirmed that Mega Evolution and Z-Moves will not be in the new games.

Pokemon fans in general seemed mostly indifferent toward Z-Moves, but the community at large was pretty fond of Mega Evolution, so this will be sad news indeed. Dynamax will be the sole battle mechanic present in Sword and Shield, for better or worse.

We've had a couple of iffy revelations about Pokemon Sword and Shield during E3. Aside from the confirmation that Z-Moves and Mega Evolution won't be in the upcoming titles, Game Freak has also confirmed that the Pokemon that appear in Sword and Shield are limited to only those that are in the Galar Pokedex.

We don't know which Pokemon made the cut, but regardless of that, we know that not all of them will and that has some fans upset. What do you think of the fact that Mega Evolution and Z-Moves won't be in Pokemon Sword and Shield? Head down to the comments section and let us know!