Pokemon Brilliant DiamondandShining Pearlare remakes of the beloved 4th generation of Pokemon gamesPokemon DiamondandPearl.A remake was expected by fans for some time, as developer Game Freak has a tendency to remake its older titles. Starting withPokemon Fire RedandLeaf Greenin 2004, Game Freak has slowly but surely gone on to remake each generation sequentially. The remakes are usually modernized takes on older titles, adding a little bit more to the overall game than what was originally included.
One of the more comforting aspects aboutPokemon Brilliant DiamondandShining Pearlis that it will be treading familiar ground with its story and characters.WhilePokemon SwordandShield’sstory leaves a lot to be desired,the formulaic evil team that appears is no better of a foe than any previous incarnation by a large margin. This makes the antagonist and ultimate villain have very little payoff in the grand story. This is because in most Pokemon games, “team evil” plays a more prominent role in some larger-than-life way, and inSwordandShieldthey do not.
RELATED:Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl Have Some of the Deepest Lore in the Series
Pokemon Sword and Shield’s Story
InPokemon SwordandShield, players will notice that unlikePokemon SunandMoon,it stays true to the formula the past games are known for. This involves the player acquiring their starter Pokemon and traveling the region, earning eight badges to take on the Pokemon League. Notably,inSwordandShield, a trainer has to be endorsedby a worthy character before being allowed to take on the Gym Challenge. Leon, the champion ofSwordandShield’s Galar region, endorses the player and their rival Hop, while later on the player’s other rival Bede gets disqualified from continuing their Gym Challenge.
Gym Challenge endorsement is one of the newer world-building aspects ofPokemon SwordandShieldthat hasn’t appeared before in another Pokemon game. After the player and rival get endorsed, they go on their journey meeting rivals Bede and Marnie who much like rivals in the past become roadblocks for the player. Marnie is important because she is the sole reasonSwordandShieldhave their own version of Team Rocket and they’re called Team Yell. A group of Marnie fans follow her and cause trouble for the locals by making it difficult for other Gym Challengers to complete their journey, much like theAl Bhed fromFinal Fantasy X,though with less depth.
Pokemon SwordandShield’sTeam Yellgets into all sorts of trouble that impede the player’s progress, though not to any real degree. They are more like a band of teenagers that harass old people, as opposed to a team of galactic or even regional dominators. The worst thing Team Yell does is barricade access to a city, and it doesn’t take long for the player to overcome that hurdle. Team Skull fromPokemon SunandMoonwas more trouble for the player overall than Team Yell, and they were simply a band of thugs akin to Team Rocket. After Marnie becomes a Gym Leader Team Yell turns to cheering on Pokemon Battles instead of causing a nuisance.
Pokemon Diamond and Pearl’s Remake
Over the years, Game Freak has reintroduced its older titles to a new audience with its remakes. This has happened so far with generations 1 through 3 inPokemon RedandBlue,Pokemon GoldandSilver, andPokemon RubyandEmerald.Each of these remakes introduced something new on top of what their original blueprint had, though it looks likePokemon Brilliant DiamondandShining Pearlwill be closer to a 1:1 remakethan anything. By the looks of the trailer and the game’s description, Game Freak has gone back to the older chibi style and will keep everything as faithful to the original as possible.
This isn’t entirely a bad thing asPokemon DiamondandPearlwere very successful entries and games that fans have wanted a remake of for a long time. The remakes prior toDiamondandPearl,Pokemon Omega RubyandAlpha Sapphireare described on Nintendo’s product page as having new features such as new Mega Evolutions and Primal Reversion. There is nothing new to find that will be different in the upcoming generation 4 remakes, in fact, it is worded almost specifically that it will indeed be very much the same. At the very least,Pokemon Brilliant DiamondandAlpha Sapphirewill have an interesting storywhere the stakes are much more interesting.
Pokemon Brilliant DiamondandShiningPearlwill see the player traverse across the Sinnoh region and encounter the sinister Team Galactic. Their goal is to create an entirely new universe while disposing of the current one, the highest stakes of any Pokemon game yet.
Early on the player encounters Team Galactic as they slowly attempt to take over different parts of Sinnoh until they capture the Lake Mirage Pokemon and harness crystals out of them. With the crystals, Team Galactic creates a Red Chain that will control either Dialga or Palkia, depending on the game’s box art. Eventually, the player makes their way to the top of Spear Pillar where they defeat or capture the box art Legendary and that ends Team Galactic’s plan.
RELATED:Pokemon Legends: Arceus Starter Pokemon Explained
Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl
Even thoughPokemon Brilliant DiamondandShining Pearlwill be entirely faithful to the source material, fans who haven’t experienced the original will be in for a treat. The slow boil of Team Galactic getting closer and closer to their goal of galactic conquest is sewn throughout the narrative, similar to the Pokemon games of the past.SwordandShield’smain antagonist is Chairman Rose who isn’t necessarily evil, but a businessman who tries to solve a future energy problem but instead accidentally sets off the end times. It sort of happens quickly and is dissolved before players realize he was the main bad guy.
It will be a shame if the trend continues away from what made the Pokemon formula so interesting. The stories are never very complicated, so making the big bad no better than a rowdy band of teenagers and a business magnate without a very good story structure seems shallow.Fans can experiencePokemon Brilliant DiamondandShining Pearl’smore interesting characters and story reminding them how Pokemon used to be.
Pokemon Brilliant DiamondandShining Pearlwill be released for Nintendo Switch on November 19.
MORE:Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl Should Bring Back This Endgame Feature
