Pokemon Legends Z-A's first update eases the grind for its best Mega Evolution stones, and flattens a nasty bug that stops players from catching Pokemon entirely

The Pokemon Company has confirmed two issues are set to be fixed in a future update for Pokemon Legends: Z-A and some upcoming changes to the ranked battle system to make getting Mega Stones a bit easier.

Pokemon Legends: Z-A takes place in Kalos, the region first introduced in Pokemon X and Y, and, after 12 years, finally introduces Mega Evolution forms for them. However, rather than getting the Mega Stones required during your adventure, Game Freak has decided you have to earn them by ranking up in online battles. Ranked Battles in Season 1 had players having to reach Rank K (for those unaware, ranking goes from Z-A, like the title of the game) to get the new form for Greninja, but Game Freak has changed this up to make it a bit less tedious.

In a post on the Pokemon website, Game Freak said, "To make Ranked Battles more enjoyable for everyone, we will be easing the conditions for earning Mega Stones." While Greninjite will remain as the Rank K reward during Season 1, it's going to be even easier to get your hands on Greninjite in Season 2, as it's being reissued at Rank Y (meaning you only level up once).

Season 2's main reward – Delphoxite – is also having its rank requirement lowered to Rank S, which is eight ranks lower than K (which will presumably be the requirement going forward). Plus, Ranked Battles are receiving a balance update. Soon, there will be an adjustment to the points awarded "to prevent points from decreasing based on match outcomes" and a partial "increase and add to the battle rewards received after each match."

However, it's not just online that's being updated; Game Freak has also surfaced some known issues. One such problem can cause Pokemon catch attempts to always fail, and side missions that give you Pokemon will not grant them to you "if your Pokemon Boxes become full before the first Rogue Mega Evolution battle and the Boxes menu has not been opened at any point prior to being filled." These missions are how you get the Kalos starters in the first place, so anyone hit with this won't get to appreciate the new ranked updates.

The other major issue being targeted is that "in certain side missions, if the time of day switches between daytime and nighttime at the exact moment that a move hits its target, it will become impossible to hit the target afterward, rendering the side mission incapable of being progressed further." These two issues are scheduled to be fixed in the November update, presumably alongside the launch of Ranked Season 2.

Pokemon Legends: Z-A's mindless platforming is driving me up a wall because it won't let me jump over them.