Pokemon Legends Z-A timeline explored: When does it take place?

Pokemon Legends Z-A is an all-new successor to the beloved Pokemon X & Y games, which launched for the Nintendo 3DS handheld console in 2013. The game's setting of Lumiose City has been expanded drastically following the execution of an Urban Development Program that reshapes the Paris-inspired city that fans loved back then. But how far into the future is this sequel set?

Read on to know more about where Pokemon Legends Z-A fits on the timeline. Here are the details.

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When does Pokemon Legends Z-A take place in the timeline?

A new adventure awaits in Lumiose City (Image via The Pokemon Company)

Ever since its debut, it was officially confirmed that Pokemon Legends Z-A is a direct successor to Pokemon X & Y, as it is set in the same region, Kalos. It also features the return of one of the major story NPCs from the past entry, named AZ, who was reunited with Eternal Floette during the story's finale. He now runs a hotel in Lumiose City with his beloved Pokemon.

An in-game screenshot shared on X reveals that this latest entry is set 5 years after the events of Pokemon X & Y. The image depicts an NPC reminiscing about the fiasco with Team Flare, the antagonistic organization encountered throughout the Nintendo 3DS game that the protagonist dealt with. Half-a-decade sounds like a reasonable time frame for AZ to settle down peacefully in Kalos.

Interestingly, this also makes AZ approximately 3005 years old during the events of this new successor. Since the Nintendo 3DS entries did not get a third or sequel entries, as is the tradition with mainline Pokemon games, Legends Z-A looks to fill in that gap over 10 years later.

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Pokemon Legends Z-A is available on Nintendo Switch and Nintendo Switch 2 on October 16, 2025.

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• Complete Pokemon Legends Z-A Pokedex
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