The upcoming release of Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl understandably has fans of the franchise excited to return to one of its classic entries. The original titles were released in 2006 for the Nintendo DS, meaning that the new remasters for the Nintendo Switch have a lot of room to grow and improve thanks to the power of the new hardware. However, there are some elements of Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl that fans are still waiting to hear about.
One of the biggest rumors is that Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl will only include fourth-generation Pokemon at launch. Of course, fans are still waiting to see whether or not the rumors are true, but they would have a big impact on the game if they are. Fans familiar with the original games are also waiting to see how the remasters will handle the originals' use of the dual screens on the Nintendo DS. In particular, it will be interesting to see how the game handles Pokemon Diamond and Pearl's Poketch feature on the Nintendo Switch.
Poketch in the Original Pokemon Diamond and Pearl
The Poketech is a watch in Pokemon Diamond and Pearl that players find in Jubilife City, and it is used for a number of functions throughout the game. The Poketch dominates the entire bottom screen of the DS, which is why fans are curious how it will be presented on the single-screen Switch. In the original games, the Poketch has a number of apps that include a digital and analog watch, a calculator, a memo pad to jot down notes, a pedometer, a berry searcher, a counter, and a coin toss. Those are some of the more basic features of the Poketch, but even with just those, it is a solid feature that has many fans hoping to see its return in Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl.
However, the Poketch also had a number of more unique and helpful features, such as the friendship checker that allows players to see how friendly their Pokemon are with them. It also included a dowsing machine to locate hidden items, a day-care checker to see how the player's stored Pokemon are faring, a map marker, a move tester, and a matchup checker for players to test certain breeding options. While some of these features have been more integrated into modern Pokemon games, Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl will keep some of the original's older approaches, meaning many of those modern features likely won't be included. This will seemingly make players have to yet again rely on the Poketch throughout the game.
How Previous Switch Ports Have Handled Multi-Screen Features
One of the prime examples that Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl should follow comes from The Wonderful 101: Remastered. While The Wonderful 101: Remastered added new characters for players to check out, one of its most impactful changes was allowing players to use the sub-screen that the original confined to the Wii U tablet while playing on the Switch. To do this, the developers allowed players to stretch and shrink the menu and place it around on the screen where they wanted it to be. Not only was this an ingenious solution to the problem, but it also gave players more control over their experience, which is always a good thing.
Another approach that the developers could take is exemplified by one of the Switch's biggest titles: The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. The Wii U version of the game lets players access its Sheikah Slate menu at any time without pausing or stopping gameplay. For the Switch version of the title, this menu was instead normalized to a more standard pause menu that players could momentarily stop the game to access. The situation in Breath of the Wild more closely resembles that of Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl and is what most Switch ports in a similar situation have done in the past.
How Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl's Poketch Should Change
While Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl could just have its Poketch be a pause menu that players can access, it would be far better served by adopting an approach similar to The Wonderful 101: Remastered. Players should be able to size it and place it wherever they wish on the screen while also being able to switch between its different apps on the fly. This would work especially well in handheld mode, where players could just navigate it with touch-screen controls. It would be even better if players could also opt to not have it displayed on the screen at all, having it as a traditional pause menu if they don't want it taking up space.
Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl should also increase the amount of customizability options available to players in regards to their Poketch. The original games allowed players to change the color themes of their Poketch, but the remaster should take it a step further. Not only should it let players switch between a more modern or retro appearance, but there are a lot of other improvements it could make. These include being able to customize the order of its apps, as well as having more themes that could revolve around different Pokemon or characters from throughout the series. These could even be unlocked by completing the updated competitions in Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl, encouraging gamers to play through them.
It will be very interesting to learn more about Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl leading up to its release. There are still some improvements fans are hoping for, such as the Amity Square in Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl supporting co-op, but only time will tell what improvements the remasters make in the end. Either way, with the release of Pokemon Legends: Arceus also around the corner, now is a very good time to be a Pokemon fan.
Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl release on November 19 for Nintendo Switch.
