Pokemon Legends: Z-A Needs to Spill the Beans on One Gen 6…

Though the greatly-anticipated Pokemon Legends: Z-A is likely to be set for release a little later in 2025, fans of the Pokemon series have been able to fill the unusually long gap between releases with theorycrafting and speculation regarding the next major title in the series. With very little official knowledge of Pokemon Legends: Z-A just yet, anything from the upcoming title's precise setting to its potential connections to other games has become a frequent point of discussion. Adding to the speculation is the possibility of Legends: Z-A expanding on the lore of - or potentially even seeing the return of - one fan-favorite Gen 6 character - Zinnia.

For a few reasons, Gen 6 Pokemon games certainly stood out as some particularly controversial installments of the franchise when they launched more than a decade ago. A departure from the classic 2D sprites and a shift in art style marked a new beginning for the Pokemon series on the 3DS, but nowadays, the Gen 6 games themselves are typically remembered fondly by fans thanks to the introduction of Mega Evolution and the extremely well-regarded remakes of the original Gen 3 games, Pokemon Alpha Sapphire and Omega Ruby. It was in these Hoenn remakes that Zinnia made her first and so far only appearance in the core-series games, becoming a community-favorite character despite only appearing relatively briefly in the games' post-story Delta episode.

Pokemon Legends: Z-A's Rumored Release Window Leaves a Gap Waiting to Be Filled

Pokemon Legends: Z-A is the next mainline game in the series, but its distant release date may leave a window for other titles to rear their heads.

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By Amber Warnock-Estrada

Zinnia is One of Pokemon's Most Mysterious Characters

Despite not playing any key role in the main story of the Gen 3 Pokemon remakes, Zinnia is a crucial ally to the player during the Delta episode, helping them meet the legendary Rayquaza in order to prevent a catastrophic meteor impact with the Hoenn region. It's not by chance that Zinnia carries such in-depth knowledge of the Hoenn region's legends - she's a lorekeeper of the Draconid people, an ancient clan of Dragon tamers who inhabited the Hoenn region and worshiped Rayquaza. She's a considerably developed character considering her comparatively brief appearance in the franchise, steeped in a somewhat mysterious past that's scarcely discussed in the games at all.

For example, it's known that Zinnia had a close friend or potentially even romantic partner by the name of Aster, who is heavily implied to have died at some point in the past. Zinnia is seen wearing Aster's cloak throughout the game as a sort of memento and even named her Whismur after them. While a little more detail regarding Aster and Zinnia's history is held in the Pokemon Adventures manga, this is known to be separate from the games' narrative continuity, and thus many fans have hoped to see Zinnia return in another core-series Pokemon title, perhaps providing room for her story and character to be properly expanded on.

How Zinnia Could Make an Appearance in Pokemon Legends: Z-A

It's unlikely that Zinnia will actually make any sort of appearance in Pokemon Legends: Z-A. While the upcoming title is indeed set to take players back to Gen 6's Kalos region, and Alpha Sapphire and Omega Ruby were Gen 6 titles themselves, there's not much linking the Kalos and Hoenn regions besides the lore surrounding Mega Evolution. Perhaps more importantly, Zinnia herself looks to be in her twenties at the oldest, and while it's not technically known for sure yet, Legends: Z-A will likely take place in the Kalos region's past or future. With all that said, though, there is one plausible way that Zinnia could directly appear in Pokemon Legends: Z-A.

Again, it's not particularly likely for Zinnia to make an appearance in Legends: Z-A, but it is possible thanks to one recurring and prominent mechanic within the Pokemon multiverse - timeline travel. This is not to be confused with time travel, as timeline travel involves the transportation of Pokemon or characters between alternate universes rather than between different points in time within the same universe. The existence and interaction of different realities has been a key underlying aspect of the Pokemon world's deeper lore for most of the franchise's life, with timeline travel most recently being a key plot point in Pokemon Scarlet and Violet's story as it explains the origins of the Paradox Pokemon.

Zinnia Would Be an Ideal Timeline Traveler Candidate In Future Pokemon Games

Such timeline travelers have been identified throughout the games for years, with players able to find Looker of the International Police washed up on the Battle Resort in Alpha Sapphire and Omega Ruby in a way that suggests he was recently transported from another universe. Similarly, Pokemon Sun and Moon's post-game story features Anabel, originally a Frontier Brain from an alternate Hoenn who became a member of the International Police after being transported to a different universe. Perhaps most notable are Ingo and the protagonist in Pokemon Legends: Arceus, though they could be legitimate time travelers considering the involvement of Arceus in their case.

Regardless, it would make sense for Pokemon Legends: Z-A's story to feature some timeline travelers of its own, and Zinnia would make for a possible and interesting candidate. Not only does she carry a Key Stone, which would allow her to battle with Mega Evolution in a Pokemon game that will bring this phenomenon back for the first time in over 6 years, but she also proves in Pokemon Alpha Sapphire and Omega Ruby's Delta episode to have knowledge of parallel universes.

While Mega Evolution is set to return in Pokemon Legends: Z-A, it's not yet clear whether the battle gimmick will see some changes, or whether opposing trainers will be able to use it.

Future Pokemon Games Should Dig Deeper Into The Lore of The Draconid Clan

While this possibility definitely provides some food for thought, it's more likely that Pokemon Legends: Z-A will expand not on Zinnia's character, but rather the clan she comes from - the Draconids. While these Dragon masters are technically only known to have inhabited the Hoenn region, it is established in Alpha Sapphire and Omega Ruby that the clan had met AZ, the immortal king of the Kalos region, when he visited the region 1,000 years ago and witnessed a battle between Rayquaza and the super-ancient Pokemon. It's quite likely that AZ will appear and play a major role in Pokemon Legends: Z-A, and much of the Pokemon world's ancient history could be learned from him - including information regarding the Draconid clan.

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