A Pokémon received its own Mega Evolution with the new Pokémon Legends: Z-A, which brought a rather unimpressive change. However, this simple design change has sparked a lot of differing opinions among players.
Which Mega Evolution is being referred to? The Pokémon in question is the Water-type Pokémon Starmie, or more precisely, Mega-Starmie, whose form debuts in Pokémon Legends: Z-A. The visual change between Starmie and its Mega Evolution is quite subtle. Mega-Starmie simply has longer legs, and this only affects 2 of its 5 legs (or 10 if you count the back star portion).
So Mega-Starmie no longer spirals through the air or water to move… it runs. On its two new, long legs.
The running animation can also be seen here in this video shared by @grubbinscrubbin on X:
The minimal yet effective design decision for Mega-Starmie has led to a lot of reactions from players, which could not be more different. User @g_zunit clearly sums up the general sentiment on X: “There are two types of reactions that I’ve seen regarding this: [Lame or PERFECT].”
Here you can see the trailer for Pokémon Legends: Z-A:
A simple change sparks a lot of opinions
How do players feel about Mega-Starmie’s appearance? The three most common reactions see Mega-Starmie as a lazy design, terrible nightmare material, or an absolute icon. Opinions on its implementation vary widely.
“Why, Gamefreak,” writes Aksu with tearful emojis on X, “Why does it have to run? In its basic form, it can achieve a higher speed by floating and spinning! That’s a significant conceptual nerf!”
Also, user Astrid comments regarding the running animation on X: “Why does this feel kind of creepy?”
On the other hand, just a few lines below this post, there is a comment from MC_Moment on X: “Okay, I definitely love Mega-Starmie now.”
Why is Mega-Starmie’s design celebrated by many fans? Mega-Starmie’s new leg length strongly resembles Patrick Star from the SpongeBob SquarePants movie, where he dances in fishnet stockings and high heels, as @yevguineapig highlights:
This very imagery makes Mega-Starmie an icon of sorts for many fans. Since the first reveal of the Mega Evolution, there have already been memes and fan art, such as that from artist @BluishDude on X.
“If it had a cool mega design, it would just be cool and edgy, but this one gives it a new personality,” writes @Gasganothium on X, “It runs a bit silly, but I’m totally into it.”
Pokémon Legends: Z-A was released today and allows players to explore the city of Illumina together with one of the three possible starters. This year, you can choose from Chikorita, Tepig, and Croconaw as starter Pokémon. If you are unsure which one to choose or want to know which of these Pokémon best matches your personality, here on MeinMMO we have a suitable personality quiz for you: Pokémon Legends Z-A gives you a popular Pokémon with Mega Evolution, you barely have to do anything for it
