Beaten: Nov 29 2021
Time: 28 Hours
Platform: Switch
Pokémon Diamond was the first Pokémon game I played, and one of the first games I got into. I’ve got a lot of nostalgia for it, even with some of the admittedly weaker aspects of that generation (the engine is sooooo slooow). I never quite played the wheels off it, but I spent a lot of time chasing legendaries around the map in the post game for sure, which I plan on doing again here. What I was honestly surprised by is how much of my love for this game wasn’t simply nostalgia, but a really triumphant style of world building and (very hot take) a dope pacing curve!
Now, as they all generally are, this remake is a mixed bag. The most obvious point is the art style, but honestly I don’t have a problem with it? Sure it’s a little cheap looking, and uh the character’s legs are way too big and they just look like toddlers when they walk sometimes, but I thought it was generally very charming and pretty accurate to the original, for better or worse.
More of a drag for me was the experience curve. You see, when you battle in this game, experience is awarded to every Pokémon in your party. That’s all well and good, and a huge qol feature for all but the more hardcore fans, but this game really wasn’t designed around a level curve like that. If you keep the same team all game, you’ll be massively overpowered until the very end. Not that it’s the hardest game in the world originally, but this really makes it a cakewalk, and not in the best way. The only saving grace is that it seems like they adjusted the elite four to be muchhh more difficult, so they’ll be just as hard as before!
Other changes are revelations. The best one is being able to access your PC at any time. You can keep a rotating team (which makes the level curve much more sane) real easily, and fill out your evolutions in your Pokédex effortlessly as well. Raising Pokémon has honestly never been this fun! (in the ones I’ve played at least)
The other change and probably the best part is YOUR POKÉMON CAN WALK BESIDE YOU NOW!!!! And they move so naturally and ahhh I love it so much! Hell in the square in Hearthome city you can take YOUR ENTIRE PARTY ON A WALK AT THE SAME TIME. THATS SO NUTS. AND SO VIBES.
And honestly that’s what this remake really gets right for me, despite the missteps. It still feels like Diamond, with all its deep mythology and real lived in world, just with the coziness factor cranked up. As long as you don’t actively hate the visual style, I’d say this is worth picking up!
Time: 28 Hours
Platform: Switch
Pokémon Diamond was the first Pokémon game I played, and one of the first games I got into. I’ve got a lot of nostalgia for it, even with some of the admittedly weaker aspects of that generation (the engine is sooooo slooow). I never quite played the wheels off it, but I spent a lot of time chasing legendaries around the map in the post game for sure, which I plan on doing again here. What I was honestly surprised by is how much of my love for this game wasn’t simply nostalgia, but a really triumphant style of world building and (very hot take) a dope pacing curve!
Now, as they all generally are, this remake is a mixed bag. The most obvious point is the art style, but honestly I don’t have a problem with it? Sure it’s a little cheap looking, and uh the character’s legs are way too big and they just look like toddlers when they walk sometimes, but I thought it was generally very charming and pretty accurate to the original, for better or worse.
More of a drag for me was the experience curve. You see, when you battle in this game, experience is awarded to every Pokémon in your party. That’s all well and good, and a huge qol feature for all but the more hardcore fans, but this game really wasn’t designed around a level curve like that. If you keep the same team all game, you’ll be massively overpowered until the very end. Not that it’s the hardest game in the world originally, but this really makes it a cakewalk, and not in the best way. The only saving grace is that it seems like they adjusted the elite four to be muchhh more difficult, so they’ll be just as hard as before!
Other changes are revelations. The best one is being able to access your PC at any time. You can keep a rotating team (which makes the level curve much more sane) real easily, and fill out your evolutions in your Pokédex effortlessly as well. Raising Pokémon has honestly never been this fun! (in the ones I’ve played at least)
The other change and probably the best part is YOUR POKÉMON CAN WALK BESIDE YOU NOW!!!! And they move so naturally and ahhh I love it so much! Hell in the square in Hearthome city you can take YOUR ENTIRE PARTY ON A WALK AT THE SAME TIME. THATS SO NUTS. AND SO VIBES.
And honestly that’s what this remake really gets right for me, despite the missteps. It still feels like Diamond, with all its deep mythology and real lived in world, just with the coziness factor cranked up. As long as you don’t actively hate the visual style, I’d say this is worth picking up!