A new trailer for Pokémon Legends: Z-A has revealed a surprise new Mega Evolution for the fan-favorite Lucario, and announced a new side mission that will unlock an encounter with Mewtwo.
Today’s reveal of Mega Lucario Z is a first for Pokémon Legends: Z-A, in that it adds a new secondary Mega Evolution path to a species which already had one.
The move flings open the door to other creatures already capable of Mega Evolution also getting new alternate designs (something which previous datamines had suggested was indeed likely).
Maximum aura. 😤👊 The newly discovered Mega Lucario Z debuts in #PokemonLegendsZA – Mega Dimension! pic.twitter.com/Lzdhlz52eG
— Pokémon @ Lumiose City 🥐 (@Pokemon) December 2, 2025
Indeed, The Pokémon Company appears to be hinting at other, alternate “Z” Mega Evolutions coming in future, as it states that this new class of creatures is remarkable for needing less time to fire off moves, albeit with the trade-off of burning through Mega Power at a faster rate.
“A newly discovered form of Lucario, Mega Lucario Z was determined to be a Mega Evolution based on how its form changes through exposure to a Mega Stone and its increase in power far outshining that of an average Lucario,” an official blurb for the new design reads.
“The long fur around Mega Lucario Z’s head and waist, as well as its fan-shaped tail, make it difficult to get a full view of Mega Lucario Z’s powerful movements. In close combat, this can work to visually disorient opponents. Areas of its body, such as the backs of its hands and its shins, have been hardened with steel energy – allowing it to deliver powerful blows by concentrating its strength precisely into these hardened parts.”
Already, fans are speculating over which other existing Mega Pokémon might now get Z variants (and again, if you’ve seen the datamined speculation, you may have some ideas).
Mega Lucario Z joins a growing menagerie of Mega Evolutions coming as part of Mega Dimension, the upcoming paid DLC for Pokémon Legends: Z-A due for launch on December 10. The expansion is headlined by two new Mega Raichu designs, and also includes Mega Zeraora, though unlocking it will be a “little difficult”, apparently.
Separate to that, all owners of the game can now access a fresh side mission which leads to an encounter with Mewtwo, and allows players to Mega Evolve it into the creature’s existing Mega Mewtwo X and Mega Mewtwo Y designs. Just turn on your game’s Mystery Gift feature to begin the new mission.
IGN’s Pokémon Legends: Z-A review returned an 8/10. We said: “Pokemon Legends: Z-A finally feels like Game Freak hitting its stride in Pokemon’s 3D era, with a fun setting to explore, a well-written story, and a total battle system overhaul that works surprisingly well.”
Video game sales data firm Newzoo noted that Z-A “underperformed compared to Legends: Arceus,” which may suggest some hesitance around its move to a real-time, action-based combat system, or perhaps caution after the state of Scarlet and Violet’s launch. Nintendo’s official sales figures show Pokémon Legends: Z-A sold almost 6 million copies in its opening week. Pokémon Legends: Z-A, which debuted on October 16, sold 5.8 million units worldwide, with around half of those bought for Switch 2. This means the first Pokémon game to feature real-time Pokémon battles is the fifth best-selling game of the franchise in terms of first week sales. By comparison, that’s more than Pokémon X/Y and Let’s Go Pikachu / Eevee managed in their first weeks, but not as much as Pokémon Scarlet / Violet, Pokémon Legends: Arceus, and Pokémon Sword / Shield managed.
Tom Phillips is IGN’s News Editor. You can reach Tom at tom_phillips@ign.com or find him on Bluesky @tomphillipseg.bsky.social
