Pokemon Legends: Z-A has been out for about two weeks now, and it has split its playerbase in two with its gameplay loop. Some fans love it, and others hate it, with Pokemon Legends: Z-A's review bombing proving that it's a polarizing entry at the very least. Among the decisions that left some fans baffled and stirred up a controversy is the fact that some of the most anticipated new Mega Evolutions are gated both behind three-week ranked seasons and behind a paywall, as an NSO subscription is required to get them. One of them is Mega Delphox, which is debuting in just a few days.
Pokemon Legends: Z-A's Mega Greninja and Greninjite were the rewards for participating in ranked battles and getting all the way from Rank Z to Rank K, and it's still available until Season 1 officially ends on November 4 at 9:59 p.m. PST. Based on the changes to ranked rewards, Mega Delphox and its Delphoxite are going to be much easier to get, with a nice bonus:
- Pokemon Legends: Z-A's Ranked Season 2 begins November 5, and it introduces Delphoxite and Mega Delphox.
- Mega Delphox is obtained by reaching Rank S, which makes it extremely easier than Mega Greninja. Greninjite is obtained in Link Battles after 15 rank-ups, whereas Delphoxite only requires 7.
- Mega Greninja and Greninjite are officially coming back as a reward for hitting Rank Y, meaning only one rank-up is needed.
- Wild Zone 18 has an easy shiny hunting method in Pokemon Legends: Z-A to get a shiny Delphox ahead of Mega Delphox's release.
Mega Greninja and Greninjite can be obtained in just one to three hours of online play, meaning that Mega Delphox and Delphoxite will require a fraction of that time.
I’m So Relieved That Pokemon Legends: Z-A Makes Getting Mega Greninja Easier Than Expected
Hearing that the Kalos starter Megas would be locked behind Pokemon Legends: Z-A's online battles had me concerned, but those fears are no more.
How to Get Pokemon Legends: Z-A's Delphoxite and Mega Delphox, and Why It's Easy
Considering the rewards for reaching each rank in online battles, players are still better off trying to get to Rank A before the season ends, both for Season 1 and 2. However, the fact that Delphoxite is now tied to Rank S and Greninjite can be obtained almost immediately makes these long-requested Megas much more accessible. On top of that, Mega Greninja is one of the best Pokemon to use in Pokemon Legends: Z-A ranked battles, so even fans who won't have it at the start of Season 2 can get it very fast.
Reaching Rank S is no tall order either, and this can be done even with non-optimized teams. This is because Pokemon Legends: Z-A's ranked battles include a plethora of challenges that can be completed easily and award points regardless of the final placement. These are:
- X-Pokemon defeater: 10 points for every opposing Pokemon defeated in a battle.
- Dealt first attack: 10 points for attacking an opposing Pokemon before anyone else.
- Dealt last attack: 10 points for being the last to attack an opposing Pokemon.
- First to claim an item: 10 points for being the first to pick up an item.
- First to Mega Evolve: 10 points for Mega Evolving a Pokemon first.
- Flawless survivor: 10 points to players whose Pokemon don't faint.
- Fresh opponent hunter: 10 points for attacking opposing Pokemon at full health the most.
- Mega Evolution destroyer: 10 points for defeating a Mega Evolved Pokemon.
- Mega-Evolving master: 10 points for using a Mega Evolution to defeat an opposing Pokemon.
- Most active attacker: 10 points for landing the most attacks.
- Plus Move master: 10 points for using Plus Moves to defeat an opposing Pokemon.
- Scatter attacker: 10 points for defeating at least one Pokemon from each opponent.
- Supereffective attacker: 10 points for using supereffective moves at least 5 times.
- Three-in-a-row KO: 10 points for getting three consecutive KOs.
Battles also award 30 points for first place, 10 for second, -10 for third, and -30 for fourth. Ties take all players with the same points to the highest rank possible for that score.
How to Get Shiny Fennekin in Pokemon Legends: Z-A
For those who are wondering how to get shiny Fennekin to evolve into Delphox before Season 2 launches, there is a fairly easy and effective method. Pokemon Legends: Z-A's Wild Zone 18 is the only place where Fennekin spawns in the entire game, and it only spawns on a roof where no other Fennekin or different Pokemon can spawn.
Every Shiny You Can Find In Pokemon Legends: Z-A's Wild Zone 18
However, there are two benches right before Wild Zone 18's entrance on the roof, meaning that fans can use Pokemon Legends: Z-A's bench-resetting shiny hunting method to quickly reset Fennekin until a shiny appears. This can either be done manually by pressing A near the bench and then turning the character toward the bench after the cutscene or by using a turbo controller. Since there are multiple critters in the area, players will also be able to shiny hunt for:
- Bagon (ground level, two units near the entrance of Wild Zone 18)
- Alpha Salamance (ground level, near the entrance of Wild Zone 18)
- Alpha Lopunny (ground level, near the scaffolding that leads to the roof where Fennekin can be spotted)
- Swablu and Altaria (rooftop right after entering Wild Zone 18, only available during the day)
- Noibat and Noivern (rooftop right after entering Wild Zone 18, only available during the night)
- Fennekin (rooftop, higher than the area dedicated to Swablu and Altaria or Noibat and Noivern, can be seen from outside the entrance of Wild Zone 18)
- Eevee (spawns during the day with clear weather on a roof opposite the entrance of Wild Zone 18)
- Trubbish (ground level, on the right of the scaffolding that leads to the rooftop)
Pokemon Legends: Z-A's Shiny Charm can make this hunt significantly faster, as base odds are 1 in 4096, whereas with the Shiny Charm they drop to 1 in 1024.
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OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 79 /100 Critics Rec: 66%
- Released
- October 16, 2025
- ESRB
- Everyone 10+ / Fantasy Violence, In-Game Purchases
- Developer(s)
- Game Freak, Creatures Inc.
- Publisher(s)
- Nintendo, The Pokemon Company
