What to know
- Haunter evolves into Gengar only through trading, not leveling or item use.
- You must unlock trading first by completing an early story mission.
- The evolution happens during the trade, not after.
- You can trade back to reclaim your newly evolved Gengar.
Pokémon Legends: Z-A continues the series’ tradition of trade evolutions, and Haunter is one of the Pokémon that still needs a trade to evolve. While most evolutions in Z-A happen through levels or evolution stones, Haunter’s evolution remains faithful to the classic mechanic — requiring you to send it to another player to trigger its evolution into Gengar.
How to unlock trading before evolving Haunter
You’ll need to progress a bit in the main story to access trading. The feature is unavailable at the start of the game, but it unlocks fairly early on.
Step 1: Progress through early story missions
Complete Main Mission 3: A New Life in Lumiose City to unlock Link Play, the mode that enables trades and co-op interactions.
Step 2: Access the Link Trade menu
Once unlocked, open the Link Trade option from the pause or communication menu. You’ll find it listed under “Link Play” or “Online Features.”
Step 3: Choose your trading method
You can either:
- Trade locally with nearby players, or
- Trade online using a Link Code (requires Nintendo Switch Online).
Step 4: Set up your trade partner
Enter the same Link Code as your partner to connect. Make sure both players confirm the trade details carefully.
How to evolve Haunter into Gengar
Once trading is available, follow these steps to evolve your Haunter:
Step 1: Prepare your Haunter
Ensure your Haunter isn’t holding any key items and that you’re ready to part with it temporarily.
Step 2: Start the trade
Send Haunter to another player through the Link Trade menu. As soon as the trade is confirmed, Haunter will evolve into Gengar on your partner’s side.
Step 3: Trade back to get your Gengar
After the evolution completes, simply trade back to retrieve your Gengar. The evolved form keeps all moves, stats, and friendship data from before.
Step 4: Save your game
Always save after a trade evolution to lock in your new Pokémon form.
Where to find Gengar without trading
If you prefer not to trade, Gengar can sometimes be found in the late-game Lumiose Underground zones or certain rare spawn night areas. However, these encounters are uncommon and appear only under specific weather or time conditions.
| Location | Time | Spawn Chance | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lumiose Underground | Night | 5% | Appears near eerie light zones |
| Abandoned Metro Station | Night | 3% | Spawns alongside Gastly and Haunter |
| Shrouded Plaza | Dusk | 4% | Gengar may appear during foggy weather |
Tips to make the process smoother
- Always back up progress before sending Pokémon to another player.
- Only trade with people you know to avoid losing your Pokémon.
- Having more Gastly means you can evolve one Haunter while keeping another unevolved for Pokédex balance.
- Local trades are faster and don’t need an online subscription.
Getting Gengar the right way
Evolving Haunter in Pokémon Legends: Z-A is a nod to classic Pokémon evolution mechanics. You can’t bypass the trade — it’s the only way to obtain Gengar unless you encounter one in the wild later in the game. Once you unlock Link Play, trading your Haunter will instantly complete its evolution and give you one of the most iconic Ghost-types in the Pokémon world.
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