BDSP Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl General Discussion

[Konja7]

To stay on topic to BDSP, I still am hopeful that there will be a Battle Frontier. Palmer being the Tower King (?) was central to Barry's character arc.

There wasn't Battle Frontier in DP. Palmer was the leader of the Battle Tower.

So, I guess they would mantain that.

 

[Puddle]

Since we've been on the topic of controversial grind reducing QoL changes heres one I want:
Make eggs a key item and let me hatch more than 5 at once. Don't even make me watch the cut scene just give me the "oh" notification and I check and theres the mon.

I'd love it if eggs no longer took up party slots. They could introduce the incubators from Pokemon GO into the main series. I'm breeding a lot of Pokemon in Sword at the moment to fill the Pokedex, and it's a nuisance having to deposit my whole party and withdraw Talonflame every time I want to hatch eggs.

The always-on Exp Share isn't ideal, but I'd take it over grinding any day of the week. In Pearl, my team was too low-levelled to take on the Elite Four and I didn't want to grind, so I "cheated" and traded over my stronger Pokemon from SoulSilver to help. It felt a bit anticlimatic, like I hadn't really completed the game properly.

I'm really looking forward to a Sinnoh experience where my team is ready to face the Pokemon League as soon as I arrive.

 

[olivinelighthouse]

There wasn't Battle Frontier in DP. Palmer was the leader of the Battle Tower.

So, I guess they would mantain that.

To be honest, I lost my copy of DP before I even beat the Elite 4 and spent most of my time in Sinnoh with Platinum, so I didn't know that. I didn't love Sinnoh's Battle Frontier as much as Hoenn's (it felt more theme park-y and less adventurous), so I'm sure I wouldn't mind just having a Battle Tower. Anything is more than nothing!

 

[SinnohEevee]

To those who said it won't be a near 1:1 remake, I told you so and I was right, it will be a near 1:1 remake.

 

[ShieldFan]

i must admit, i'm a tad flabbergasted. i mean, i suppose at one point i would've agreed with the terminology of a "hardcore" fanbase, but that seems like a needlessly divisive term for "i've played pokemon longer than these people so therefore i'm more important"

not to mention your post doesn't actually answer my question to begin with. ^^; it was already addressed by other posters, but i was wondering the benefits of having it off in the first place, with the biggest reason stated by @Daren to be more for difficulty reasons (although i'd still more or less argue that having the exp share off is a limitation/sort-of handicap on the player than anything else, but i concede that there's no real other way of making pokemon challenging).

I used to be one of these fans who think they're more important because they've played pokemon longer than new fans. I got into the Pokemon World in 2003-2004, when Gen 3 came out. A lot of people left the franchise behind after Gen1, and they used to make fun of non Gen1 pokemon (always bringing up Trubbish and Vanillite to back up their claims). I got older, gen 4, 5, 6 and 7 came to life and the same phenomenom happened with me. However, I realized that's what happened to me in the early 2000s, when fans older than me used to make fun of new fans and new pokemon. I think we need to learn from our mistakes and become someone better in the long run. That's it.

 

[Kallyle]

This is true, but at the same time, I don’t think all kids necessarily go into a Pokémon game looking to be challenged. Like, I think a kid could play a more difficult game for the challenge and also play Pokémon for the fun adventure with cool/cute monsters, and enjoy both for those different reasons. Other kids might not have any interest in challenging games at all - not because they aren’t capable, but just because their preference is for a more fun/easygoing experience. Maybe some kids care more about things like the collection aspect.

I agree with that assessment despite how I may have come across. My issue is more that things might get to the point where the games become too easy for them should this ‘dumbing things down’ go a bit too far. I think that kids at least want to be able to have to put in some effort. Otherwise, it would feel more like an interactive movie/visual novel. It’s more of a slippery slope situation that I’m concerned about. There’s a fine line between a game that’s easy and a game that’s way too easy, and I just don’t want TPC to end up crossing that line.

i must admit, i'm a tad flabbergasted. i mean, i suppose at one point i would've agreed with the terminology of a "hardcore" fanbase, but that seems like a needlessly divisive term for "i've played pokemon longer than these people so therefore i'm more important"

I used to be one of these fans who think they're more important because they've played pokemon longer than new fans. I got into the Pokemon World in 2003-2004, when Gen 3 came out. A lot of people left the franchise behind after Gen1, and they used to make fun of non Gen1 pokemon (always bringing up Trubbish and Vanillite to back up their claims). I got older, gen 4, 5, 6 and 7 came to life and the same phenomenom happened with me. However, I realized that's what happened to me in the early 2000s, when fans older than me used to make fun of new fans and new pokemon. I think we need to learn from our mistakes and become someone better in the long run. That's it.

I tend to agree: Pokémon shouldn’t abandon their newer players just because older ones exist. On the other hand, it also shouldn’t ignore the older player base just because the newer ones exist either. This same argument also applies to more casual fans vs hardcore fans debate.

In my opinion, TPC seem to catering to two specific groups in addition to their target demographic: very casual players and competitive players (the latter of which skews towards the older audience). The problem is that there’s more to the fan base than just those two groups, and anyone outside of those groups are either barely taken into consideration or just flat out ignored. This polarization is only getting more pronounced with each generation. They should take into consideration all of the fans without pushing others to the side like they have been.

 

[Puddle]

To those who said it won't be a near 1:1 remake, I told you so and I was right, it will be a near 1:1 remake.

I don't see it that way. All of Diamond and Pearl's main features have been upgraded in some way, and there are features that weren't present at all in the originals. It seems like it'll be a bit more conservative than previous remakes but there's enough new content to satisfy me.

In some ways I actually like the low-key approach they've taken - it's kind of refreshing. I wasn't keen on the idea of filling Sinnoh with Dynamax stadiums.

There might be another surprise or two in the game that hasn't been shown yet. The Pokemon Company has become more secretive recently - a lot of information about Sword and Shield was held back until after the release.

 

[RavenRaziel98]

In some ways I actually like the low-key approach they've taken - it's kind of refreshing. I wasn't keen on the idea of filling Sinnoh with Dynamax stadiums.

I totally agree with you at this point and I will go even further - I don't know if this was confirmed by now or if it was just a rumor but I love the thought of the game containing the original Pokedex (yet I'm aware this may be a rather unpopular opinion). However, the only thing that made me feel a tiny bit disappointed is that you (apparently) won't be able to decorate your secret base with actual furniture. That's what I heard in this matter at least. If it turns out that there will be similar possibilities to ORAS I will be very pleased.

 

[Kit Chan]

In my opinion, TPC seem to catering to two specific groups in addition to their target demographic: very casual players and competitive players (the latter of which skews towards the older audience). The problem is that there’s more to the fan base than just those two groups, and anyone outside of those groups are either barely taken into consideration or just flat out ignored. This polarization is only getting more pronounced with each generation. They should take into consideration all of the fans without pushing others to the side like they have been.

I'm dead center of the spectrum and I feel this.
Sadly it's not just Pokemon doing this and I feel so displaced in gaming these days.

 

[Jimothy]

That’s not what’s happened with Amity Square— it was a very small list of monsters in DP, a slightly expanded list in Platinum, and a seemingly greatly expanded list in BDSP.

The reason folks are upset is because these games, like HGSS, allow any of the 493 to follow you in the overworld, and there’s no clear reason why Amity following is limited at all.

 

[Minya_Nouvelle]

Honestly, I don't think we know enough to know anything about what and how many pokemon are allowed in Amity Square for certain. Unless there's a video or something I missed; the only specific information I could find comes from gameinformer:

"If you want more Pokémon from your party out and about, head to Amity Square. It’s a location that allows predetermined “cute” Pokémon to spread out around the park, causing a sort of hide-and-seek game to play out. Your monsters will find items around the area, and as you find each one, they’ll begin to follow you wherever you roam in Amity Square. With more than one member of your party at your side, the developers allow you to have a little bit of fun by adding a zoom function to the in-game camera so you can snap pictures with your partners. Bring all of your favorites (deemed cute by the Amity Square front desk attendant, of course) and make some memories."

Once again, I feel like the wording is so vague. You can't really bring "all of your favorites" if its limited to the 20 or so from platinum. It could very well be the "Let's Go" situation where any pokemon technically qualifies and they just kept the whole "cute pokemon only" for faithfulness sake. Or it really could still be limited to the platinum roster. I just wish we could get a super explicit answer on this.

Edit: this would be my theory. I just rewatched the last trailer and I noticed that they show the player feeding a buneary a 'cute' poffin immediately before showing the Amity Square section. I wonder if the trailer is implying this is how "cute" is determined this time around.

 

[Puddle]

I found an amazing video that compares BDSP and DP side-by-side. It must have taken hours to make!

Spoiler

 

[NealIRC]

1 thing we never really had in Pokemon was chemical plants (abandoned or not). Closest thing is electrical power plants. But I think the Fuego Ironworks is the closest thing. Followed by Cinnabar Mansion. So I hope they totally redo Fuego Ironworks as in completely redesign, like giving it a basement or something.

 

[Welkamo]

Since we've been on the topic of controversial grind reducing QoL changes heres one I want:
Make eggs a key item and let me hatch more than 5 at once. Don't even make me watch the cut scene just give me the "oh" notification and I check and theres the mon.

I like the cutscene that plays, but I do agree that having eggs not take up a party slot would be nice. That would be a little confusing with where the Pokémon would go, though. Like, hatched Pokémon could theoretically go to the box, but what if your box is full?

The always-on Exp Share isn't ideal, but I'd take it over grinding any day of the week. In Pearl, my team was too low-levelled to take on the Elite Four and I didn't want to grind, so I "cheated" and traded over my stronger Pokemon from SoulSilver to help. It felt a bit anticlimatic, like I hadn't really completed the game properly.

Grinding is one of my least favorite parts of playing Platinum. I have only two Pokémon that aren't underleveled, and unless I can find a Dawn Stone soon, those two Pokémon are going to carry the weight of the whole team.

 

[KirbyBulba737]

I like the cutscene that plays, but I do agree that having eggs not take up a party slot would be nice. That would be a little confusing with where the Pokémon would go, though. Like, hatched Pokémon could theoretically go to the box, but what if your box is full?

They don't hatch.

 

[Welkamo]

They don't hatch.

"Stay in the egg, Nebby"

 

[colours]

as funny as KirbyBulba's post might've been, i can actually see something where the game halts the egg's hatch steps to like, 1 or something until you free up space somewhere. =P

 

[Bolt Strike]

1 thing we never really had in Pokemon was chemical plants (abandoned or not). Closest thing is electrical power plants. But I think the Fuego Ironworks is the closest thing. Followed by Cinnabar Mansion. So I hope they totally redo Fuego Ironworks as in completely redesign, like giving it a basement or something.

That's probably for a reason. It's a kid friendly game so they don't want to show a chemical plant because of pollution implications. The only way they would do that is if the evil team was running the chemical plant and we go in there to shut it down. It won't happen in this game, I can pretty much guarantee you that.

 

[Die-Hard Dragon Devotee]

That's probably for a reason. It's a kid friendly game so they don't want to show a chemical plant because of pollution implications. The only way they would do that is if the evil team was running the chemical plant and we go in there to shut it down. It won't happen in this game, I can pretty much guarantee you that.

I mean, Pokemon XD Gale of Darkness had the Cipher Key Lair, and that place looked like it was polluting the surrounding area pretty heavily. But I guess that falls under the "evil team's running it, we go in and shut it down," rule. (JK, it defintely falls under that distinction, that's exactly what happens. It still looked pretty polluted afterwards, though.)

 

[Bolt Strike]

I mean, Pokemon XD Gale of Darkness had the Cipher Key Lair, and that place looked like it was polluting the surrounding area pretty heavily. But I guess that falls under the "evil team's running it, we go in and shut it down," rule. (JK, it defintely falls under that distinction, that's exactly what happens. It still looked pretty polluted afterwards, though.)

XD is also not a main series game and not made by Game Freak, it's more mature than most Pokemon games.