Summary
- Mega Excadrill in PLZA could pave the way for more Unovan critters’ Mega Evolutions or regional forms.
- Mega Excadrill’s potential addition bridges the gap for Gen 5 critters in terms of Mega Evolutions.
- Riddler Khu’s leaks suggest Mega Excadrill will pay homage to Gen 5 and 9, hinting at PLZA’s deep references.
There are many Pokemon that should come back in Pokemon Legends: Z-A, and hopefully, this new title gives enough love to Gen 6 critters more than those of other generations of games. For example, while they are from Unova, the so-called elemental monkeys should return in Pokemon Legends: Z-A so that they can have their first appearance on the Nintendo Switch after eight years. Another pressing matter is that the Lumiose City-set title should try to add more Mega Evolutions or regional forms for Gen 6 Pokemon, but that remains to be seen. As of now, one new Mega was leaked for Victreebel, and another is seemingly going to pay homage to two mainline games.
This concept is nothing new for the series, and various games ended up featuring easter eggs or tributes to past titles. For example, Pokemon Legends: Arceus featured multiple ancestors of modern-day characters as well as Ingo himself from Gen 5 games. More recently, Gen 9 games’ second DLC, The Indigo Disk, had several callbacks to Unova as a region and Pokemon Black and White. It’s precisely Gen 5 and Gen 9 that the new leaked Mega Evolution for Pokemon Legends: Z-A is allegedly set to pay homage to, and the critter that might get it is Excadrill.
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Pokemon Legends: Z-A May Add a Mega Evolution For Excadrill
Recently, renowned leaker Riddler Khu shared a post on Twitter hinting at a new Mega Evolution in Pokemon Legends: Z-A, and fans promptly deciphered the message to see which Pokemon it was referring to. Based on the comments hsinhsung9487, the first bit of the message refers to Ingo from Gen 5 games and PLA, the second to Lacey from Gen 9’s Indigo Disk DLC, and the third to a sand-related Pokemon. The common denominator here is Excadrill because Pokemon Masters Ex features a Sync Pair for Excadrill and Ingo (and the trainer also used the Ground/Steel Pokemon in Gen 5 games), Lacey uses Excadrill as her ace like her father did in Gen 5, and this is a critter very much related to sand.
As such, with references to Ingo and Lacey, both of which use Excadrill, and the link to sandstorms, it seems quite likely that this Unovan critter will get its own Mega Evolution. It makes sense considering the popularity of the mole-like Pokemon over the years, though it begs the question of whether the most popular Gen 5 Pokemon will also get one, such as Hydreigon or Chandelure. Regardless, a Mega Evolution for Excadrill could be quite exciting due to the powerful Pokemon type combo of Ground/Steel, though this may change like with other Megas in the past. It’s also a nice approach to continue Gen 9’s references to Unova, especially if no Pokemon Black and White remakes will be made.
Mega Excadrill Could Start a Chain Reaction in Pokemon Legends: Z-A
Considering that most Mega Evolutions in Pokemon games are for Gen 1 and Gen 3 critters, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that the only Mega for Gen 5 is Mega Audino. Giving a new Mega Evolution to Excadrill bridges that gap a little, and it could pave the way for even more new forms for Unovan critters. On top of that, Pokemon Legends: Z-A‘s starters include Tepig, which is from Gen 5 too, and it’s likely it will get either a new regional form or a new Mega – if not both.
Riddler Khu has been consistent with its track record of leaks in the past, though some recent tweets made it seem the insider didn’t know a lot about upcoming projects. Still, they predicted Mega Victreebel in 2024, so it’s quite likely that this will be in the game, and the same goes for Excadrill. Ever since the game’s announcement, fans have been designing Mega Evolutions for PLZA, so it will be interesting to see which critters do get one, as well as how many of them. Given the scope of the game, it seems plausible that Victreebel and Excadrill are just the tip of the iceberg.
