LogInWhile most are making fun of Game Freak's approach, others are trying to understand the reasoning behind it.
Ahead of the release of Game Freak and Nintendo's Pokémon Legends: Z-A, set to take place later this week, the game has stirred plenty of discussion over on Twitter, with hundreds of users questioning the developers' unusual approach to creating the title's version of Lumiose City, the main setting where the entirety of Pokémon Legends: Z-A takes place.
As shown by several users, the entire city – with its roads, squares, and dozens of buildings – is just one single model, containing 355,002 vertices and 252,799 faces.
Once this information surfaced online, many users criticized the design choice, pointing out that it requires the game to load the entire map at all times, prevents culling, and puts unnecessary strain on the console. Most believe this approach is the reason why Pokémon Legends: Z-A's map is lacking in the tall buildings department, except for the Prism Tower, which, as seen in the images, is not part of the model.
At the same time, some have noted that, questionable as this approach may be, it does have some benefits, stating that using a single model for the entire city can reduce draw calls, minimize material instances, and enable faster rendering, albeit at the cost of a long initial load. For now, it seems the only way to find out for sure whether Game Freak's unconventional technique will help or hinder Pokémon Legends: Z-A's optimization is to wait for the game's release on October 16, 2025.
So, what are your thoughts on that? Is this approach chosen by the devs a blessing or a curse? Let us know down in the comments below!
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