Mega Evolutions, temporary transformations that fully-evolved Pokemon can unlock in the middle of battle, have been absent from the mainline Pokemon games for over seven years. Fortunately, Pokemon Legends: Z-A not only revived this beloved battle mechanic, but it also gave brand-new Mega Evolved forms to twenty-six different Pokemon, all of which originate from a variety of generations, not just the sixth one.
As one would expect from these amazing transformations, every single new Mega Evolution in the game is extremely powerful, and their massive strength is perfectly reflected in the new and groundbreaking real-time combat system. Needless to say, Pokemon Legends: Z-A is filled to the brim with fascinating Mega Evolutions, but the following examples are the absolute strongest ones to debut in the new game (so far).
Mega Meganium
Benefits Heavily From Its New Secondary Fairy Type
- Types: Grass/Fairy
- Base Stat Total: 625
Meganium has been dismissed as a dull-looking Starter Pokemon with a disappointing stat distribution since its debut in the Second Generation. There’s no doubt that it was in dire need of an upgrade, and its new Mega Evolution finally elevated this highly underrated Grass-type Pokemon.
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Mega Meganium not only looks a more beautiful than its base form, but it's also significantly stronger, mainly because its added Fairy Typing has increased its offensive and defensive abilities (although it now has a double weakness to Poison-type attacks). Additionally, its Special Attack stat rose from 83 to a whopping 143, meaning that it can unleash special moves like Petal Blizzard and Dazzling Gleam to knock out its opponents in mere seconds.
Mega Emboar
Even Though It Wields A Fiery Spear, Its Defenses Got The Biggest Buff
- Types: Fire/Fighting
- Base Stat Total: 628
Emboar is an obvious outlier among Pokemon Legends: Z-A’s starter trio, not only because it originates from Generation Five instead of Generation Two, but also because its base form already has two types: Fire and Fighting. This has always been a powerful Starter Pokemon that hits hard and can receive multiple hits in return, so its new Mega Evolution follows that same philosophy, seeing as it doesn’t change its typing, nor does it affect its stat distribution in a drastic way.
Mega Emboar wields a beautiful fiery spear in reference to its main source of inspiration, Zhang Fei. While the addition of this new weapon obviously means that its Attack stat has been increased (from 123 to 148), curiously enough, the stat that received the biggest buff was its Special Defense, which went from 65 to 110, the exact same as its Defense. Mega Emboar may be slow, but in exchange, it's now more powerful and durable than ever before.
Mega Greninja
It Seems Ash-Greninja Was Not Enough
- Types: Water/Dark
- Base Stat Total: 630
The fact that the three Kalos Starters—Chesnaught, Delphox and Greninja—didn’t have Mega Evolutions, even though they originate from the generation in which the mechanic was introduced, never sat well with Pokemon fans. Fortunately, Pokemon Legends: Z-A rectifies that mistake by giving them cool-looking Mega Evolved forms. Unfortunately, they can only be obtained by fighting other players in online ranked battles across three seasons, so Mega Greninja is the only one that has been available since launch.
The existence of this form is especially weird, considering that Greninja already had access to a transformation that made it more powerful, Ash-Greninja. However, since that form was pretty much deleted from the games back in Scarlet and Violet, it seems Mega Greninja is here to take its place. This Mega Form keeps things simple boasting slightly higher Speed and Special Attack stats. On the other hand, Legends: Z-A's lack of abilities drags Mega Greninja down significantly; Protean was a big reason Greninja's base form became a mainstay in the competitive scene back in its debut generation.
Feraligatr
A Powerful Dragon With A Big Set Of Chompers
- Types: Water/Dragon
- Base Stat Total: 630
Feraligatr has the strongest Mega Evolution among the game’s starter trio, not to mention that it’s even more efficient in combat than Mega Greninja, with whom it shares the same base stat total. The main reason why Mega Feraligatr is so incredibly powerful is its brand-new Dragon typing, something that fans have been seeking for decades.
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This Mega Evolved Pokemon can use Dragon-type moves (like Dragon Claw or Outrage) and actually get STAB from them. That's not all, because its Attack stat was buffed by an additional 60 points, so it can definitely deal a lot of damage to its opponents. Hopefully, whenever Mega Feraligatr is made available in a game with Abilities, it’ll get access to something good that can take advantage of its play style, like Strong Jaw or Sheer Force, and make it even more destructive.
Mega Eternal Flower Floette
The Only Non-Fully Evolved Pokemon Who Can Mega Evolve
- Type: Fairy
- Base Stat Total: 651
Pokemon Legends: Z-A did something very weird but very fascinating with AZ’s Eternal Flower Floette because, despite the fact that this is technically not a fully-evolved Pokemon, it can still Mega Evolve (whereas Florges can’t). This, of course, can be explained by the fact that this particular Pokemon is special and plays a major role in the game’s story, especially during its final act.
Eternal Flower Floette’s base form is already way stronger than a regular Floette, but its Mega Evolution makes it even more powerful by adding 100 points to its base stat total, meaning that it’s on the same level as a Legendary Pokemon. On top of that, Mega Eternal Flower Floette boasts a Special Attack Stat of 155, one of the highest in the game. Plus, it has access to its own signature attack: Light of Ruin, a destructive Fairy-type special move with a power of 140. The only downside is that Floette receives some recoil every time it uses Light of Ruin, but it’s still worth it.
Mega Starmie
The Weirdest Mega Evolution Is Also One Of The Strongest
- Types: Water/Psychic
- Base Stat Total: 660
Mega Starmie went viral on the internet even before Pokemon Legends: Z-A officially released, and it’s not hard to see why: it looks so ridiculous that it's downright laughable. It’s basically a Starmie with longer legs and more human-like movements. Yet despite its strange design, it is also one of the strongest Mega Evolved Pokemon introduced in this game.
Unlike base form Starmie, Mega Starmie's Special Attack is higher than its Attack, which works perfectly for it, as it can use excellent moves that it gets STAB from, like Aqua Jet, Liquidation or Zen Headbutt. This Pokemon’s surprisingly solid battle prowess can be corroborated by anybody who has completed Legends: Z-A’s story, because the Rogue Mega Starmie is the star of one of the game’s toughest boss fights.
Mega Dragonite
The Original Pseudo-Legendary Finally Got The Mega Evolution It Always Deserved
- Types: Dragon/Flying
- Base Stat Total: 700
Many pseudo-legendary Pokemon—like Tyranitar, Garchomp, or Metagross—have received Mega Evolutions the moment this battle mechanic debuted back in Generation Six. So, naturally, many fans spent years begging Game Freak to create a Mega Evolved form for Dragonite, the original pseudo-legendary from Generation One who never received any new forms. Fortunately, Pokemon Legends: Z-A finally heard them, seeing as Mega Dragonite was a huge part of this game’s marketing.
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Base form Dragonite is a pseudo-legendary Pokemon with a base stat total of 600, so it should be no surprise to learn that Mega Dragonite is one of the most overpowered Pokemon in the entire game, with a whopping base stat total of 700. This friendly-looking dragon is now faster, more durable and, most importantly, wields a Special Attack stat of 145, meaning that attacks like Hyper Beam, Hurricane, or Draco Meteor hit extremely hard. If Mega Dragonite gets its iconic Multiscale ability in future games, it will definitely become one of the most broken Pokemon in the entire series.
Mega Zygarde
Gives Mega Rayquaza A Run For Its Money
- Types: Dragon/Ground
- Base Stat Total: 778
There’s a reason Mega Rayquaza is often considered the most overpowered Pokemon in the history of the franchise: giving an already powerful Cover Art Legendary an additional form that makes it even stronger is a recipe for disaster. It seems Game Freak wanted to replicate that controversy, because the Cover Art Legendary of Pokemon Legends: Z-A, Zygarde, also received a brand-new Mega Evolution, which appears during the game’s climactic final battle.
As one would expect from looking at its gigantic cannon, Mega Zygarde possesses the highest Special Attack stat in the entire franchise, with 216 points in total. However, its other stats are still quite high, especially its Speed and HP. On top of all that, Mega Zygarde has access to a brand-new signature move called Nihil Light, which has a base power of 200 and can ignore the target’s stat changes, making it one of the most powerful attacks in the game. The only question left is which ability Mega Zygarde will have in future titles, because if it receives one as good as Mega Rayquaza’s Delta Stream, it’ll undoubtedly become one of the most overpowered Pokemon ever created.
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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
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