I gotta say, it's very weird how the Mega Dimension DLC seems specifically catered to players like me when I am so undeniably in the extreme minority with what I find enjoyable in a Pokémon title. I'm not complaining, per se, but from the perspective of profitability, catering to players like me is stupid.
Honestly, the core gameplay loop just reminds me of Oblivion. Researching in Hyperspace Wild Zones feels a lot like closing Oblivion Gates.
A handful of standard maps that repeat for most interdimensional zones, with a few unique settings thrown in for flavor
Specific gimmicks mixed-and-matched between those maps to make them feel different without actually being different
Special materials required to progress the game without dying are only available in the interdimensional zones
At the "end" of a zone, assuming you don't die in the process of finding it, there's a special collectible with randomized benefits that will help you on your quest
You need to talk to everyone's favorite NPC regularly in order to move the storyline forward through his research efforts
If you don't learn enough about these interdimensional zones in time, the other plane of reality will eventually consume your own, and that threat hangs over your head through the whole main game
It's just Pokémon: Oblivion—but, as beloved as that game is, a lot of people don't actually like closing Oblivion Gates. It's part of the main gameplay loop and necessary to some capacity to complete the story, yeah, but that doesn't mean everyone likes that part of it. A lot of people didn't like it when the game first came out, a lot of people don't like it now. It starts as a grind that, for most people, eventually becomes a slog. Oblivion came out in 2006, so this isn't exactly new information.
Players today are less patient in many cases than players were back before the gaming market decided that games were only good with they ran at a hojillion FPS in ultra-mega-giga-super-hardcore-nirvana HD, so using such a similar mechanic as the only game-progressing function in the entire DLC is a really weird choice—although I guess ZA is full of really weird decisions all around.
I'm not without a fair number of criticisms of both the base game and the DLC, but when it all comes down to it, I've really enjoyed it. But I'm an outlier and I know it. It's nice to be the audience catered to for once, but it's a stupid decision and I really don't understand it at all.
