Moon/Sun What do you think about Z Moves in Pokemon Sun/Moon?

[Marc]

So far all of the Z moves I used either missed or didn't do as much damage as the one person who used it against me which KO'd my Magnemite ;~;

What do you guys think about Z moves in Pokemon Sun/Moon?

 

[3905]

They're fun to use in game but I'm having a hard time seeing how some Z move will be allowe in competitive play

I'm looking at you, Catastropika....

 

[2205]

I think that the animations are over the top and quite too long? At least you can use them only once per battle but it's a bit annoying ._.

 

[Hayleia]

I think that the animations are over the top and quite too long? At least you can use them only once per battle but it's a bit annoying ._.

I was about to say that. I already disliked the option to either have all animations or none without anything in between, but it's even more annoying with Z-Moves now

(I play in French obviously, but that option is something like "Battle animations: With/Without").

 

[2205]

That's the thing, I'd like to have the regular animations, but get rid of the z-move ones >< I love the regular ones, but not these, they are just too much =/

 

[DinhTGS]

What I think of Z moves is that they are awesome because Pokemon gain a very strong attack . Like for instance pikachu it's Z move is gigavolt havoc which is great . Gigavolt havoc does a very huge thunder bolt that is very powerful . Z moves are awesome because Pokemon get a new move .

 

[Mr. Kream]

I'd actually prefer for their ban, but I also don't think that will happen. Z-moves break the balance of what's already a very unbalanced meta, so I'm not for that. I also feel like they're impossible to prepare for, and add a bit too much to the game considering that there's a variant for each move.

 

[kkkkk]

I think they are stupid because the trainer's postures are all very bad and stupid. They look like dancing !
It is a pokemon battle not a contest about the more stupid trainer.

 

[Shan]

I dont like the Idea of z moves... they seem a bit... out of place. They seem like they don't belong, and are either pointless, or too over powered to be allowed in competitive play, or normal play in general.

It is also hard to imagine that splash, the once dreaded move, actual has a use. Its just... nintendo... you ruined an amazing meme.

 

[moonflower]

I don't think Z-Moves are that bad.
Of course, the animation is very long but they look cool too. It's somehow good that they aren't overpowerd, so the Z-Move wont one-shot everything.

Over all, I prefer the normal attacks.

 

[Starry Windy]

I think Z-Moves are alright, because they are the ultimate moves that can only be launched once per battle. Besides, they're looking pretty neat when executing it. Initially I thought how the players dance to be quite odd, but lately I'm quite warming up with it.

 

[Taiiny]

It's definitely broken for the single player story. But I feel like it's a little less broken than Megas, since Megas could be more versatile in use, but never the less, Z-Moves definitely can carry you through the story. I'm not well versed in the competitive scene, but from what I can tell, they're petty much useless, aside for status Z moves in occasion. My major gripe with them is probably that after a while, the game completely forgets they exist and just hand them out like it's Halloween. It would of been nice to have some more back story, or have the UBs have their own special Z-moves. It just felt like they were less fleshed out than Megas.

 

[4771]

tbh the z-moves are just another gimmicky idea that needs a lot more work before they're actually good. while they can be really good through the story, the attacks themselves just really aren't worth losing an item slot over in competitive battles. sure, you'll get a move that does a ton of damage, but u can only use it once and it's still open to resistances. and like sunny said, the animations for them can be really long and get boring after u see them a few times, basically forcing u out of using the other attack animations unless u wanna waste 30 seconds a battle just watching the same attack every time. a lot of people don't even use the actual attacks anyway, just the z-statuses for all the extra bonuses they get. and it doesn't help that the z-moves themselves really don't have much of a place in the story. the megas are there bcz of a strong bond between a trainer and the pokemon. z-moves are there bcz trainers want their pokemon to kill stuff.

TLDR: z-moves (specifically attacks) are a time-wasting gimmick that still need some work to actually be good competitively.

 

[Danny]

I think introduction of z moves in pokemon sun and moon was quite a suprise for me ,since i was expecting more new mega evolution in pokemon sun and moon . Z- moves gave really nice boost to comptitive battle too and animation of every z move is freaking awsome.

 

[MindzEye]

Is this what they call a "bump"?
I found these Z-moves to be overly decadent with their animations, and as a held-item user I think it's also a space-hog.

It's not such a bad premise really: a super-strong move you use once per battle, different crystals for different z-moves.
What I think didn't sync well was how most moves become the same z-move. (Bad enough it's so long, but the same one over and over? Ugh!)

Tiny speculation here, because I'm a gamer and stuff. Here's some ideas to improve the z-move.

1. The z-move itself could just be a fifth move, which you could gain with z-crystals. (which would, in my theory, act like TMs, but once-only, and it cannot be replaced by using another z-crystal.) You could still change the z-move by learning another one through Lv up. It would be of a similar type to the z-crystal you used, and you can refuse to change it just like with normal moves.
2. Tourneys, challenges, and some modes of online-play would prevent the use of z-moves. You could use it freely in story mode, and in battles among close friends, however.
   
3. Having chosen the z-crystal, your pokemon's stats would change according to the z-crystal you used - a fighter
   z-crystal would up atk and def, or a water z-crystal could allow the pokemon to learn some water moves, stuff like that. (And, just for those guys who love pokemon variation, some could even change appearance with the z-crystal they were given. Eevee for example.)
   
4. And just for those guys who like to skip, pressing the A button would skip the attack's animation. (I'm thinking you could do with with other attacks too. Three options could exist for animations instead of two: view, skip, or skip with button-press.)

 

[Zukrad]

So, I have read every post in this thread, and imo, most people are either really overreacting to them or really underrating them

Z- moves are good in competitive. They are not broken enough to be banned completely, nor they are useless to the point of being... well... useless

These work like the gems in gen 5 (which were pretty good back then), but with a few nerfs/buffs

Buffs:
- Often stronger than gem boosted moves
- Goes through protect (doing 25% of the damage)
- Perfect Accuracy
- Can't be Knock Off'ed or Trciked
- You can use them whenever you want, unlike gems which activate automatically once you use the attack of the type
- Can be support moves as well
- Have no drawbacks (Z-moves lack of stuff like stats drops and recharge turns)

Nerfs:
- Only one per battle (gems worked once per item, so every Pokémon in the team could use them. You could Recycle them iirc)
- They don't boost Acrobatics nor Unburden after using them
- Have no secondary effects (Z-Scald can't burn the opponent)


There are three ways of using Z-Crystals: Wallbreaking Z-moves, Lure Z-moves and Status Z-moves


Wallbreaking: These are the ones that are the most similar to 5th gen gems.

A common example is Figthing Gem Terrakion. A +2 Gem Close Combat Terrakion OHKOed Defensive Skarmory after Rocks, which is really nice for a Pokémon like Terrakion. Now, a +2 Fightinium Z or Rockium Z Terrakion does the same job. Another example is Flyinium Z Salamence, which gives him a strong Supersonic Skystrike which allows him to break a defensive opponent more easily, and helps it to start a sweep with DD + Moxie. This type of Z-move are less dangerous in comparision to the others

Lure: These ones work like Hidden Power or Nature Gift, but better
- Tornadus can OHKO Rotom-W, one of its most common checks, with Z-Grass Knot
- Thundurus can destroy Hippowdon with a Z-Hyper Beam at +2
- Power Herb Heatran got a buff with Grassium Z, which hits much harder

These type of sets can eliminate a certain check, by luring it and killing it. The difference with these and the Wallbreaking ones is the fact that, often, the base move is unusable.

Status: These ones are the most interesting, and more dangerous, but not necessarily broken
Many Pokémon got quite buffed with these moves.

Celebrate/Happy Hour/Conversion/Forest Curse/Trick Or Treat/Purify/Hold Hands give the user +1 in every stat (except accuracy and evasion), which gives many of them quite the late game potential
Z-Belly Drum gives you +6 attack AND heals you completely
Z-Memento now has the secondary effect of Healing Wish
Z-Heal Block gives the user a +2 boost, which is great for Pokémon like Palkia, which is not a completely waste against PDon
Z-Weather Move is great for Pokémon like Manaphy and other mons that abuse weather, by giving you +1 speed


With all of this, I really like gen 7's meta. It allows the player to be much more creative than in the past two gens, which is nice. It adds more Pokémon to be used, without addig more threats to be counted for (If you have a Charizard X check, you can check Salamence)

I'm really looking forward on how does the meta shape

They're fun to use in game but I'm having a hard time seeing how some Z move will be allowe in competitive play

I'm looking at you, Catastropika....

If only... if only Pikachu was actually usable...

 

[Ichimaru]

Z moves can seriously change the outcome of a battle,the animations are cool but the trainer poses are well... but i do like how they made z moves out of some moves that do nothing like z-splash and z celebrate making use of those moves even more.