Why Pokémon Diamond and Pearl became the most anticipated remakes

Pokémon is a deeply beloved franchise, but its long-lasting success was never a guarantee. After incredibly popular releases in the ’90s and early 2000s, The Pokémon Company released two games that pushed the series into the modern age — Pokémon Diamond and PearlThey were first to connect to the internet when they were made available for Nintendo DS in 2006. To many, these titles were touchstones for so many first-time Pokémon players, and laid the groundwork for a new generation of fans.

When The Pokémon Company initially announced the remakes, which are now playable on the Nintendo Switch, the fandom came to life. Online responses ranged from classic to modern. exaggerated “LET’S GoOOOoOOOOOOO,” to condemnation and disgustIts cutesy style of art. These passionate responses reflected a fandom that’s been asking for the remakes of DiamondAnd Pearl, or “Sinnoh remakes” as they’re called by fans, for years. They’re so highly anticipated thanks to a generation of nostalgic players, along with a purist fandom that seeks to bring Pokémon back to what it “should” be. Beyond that, these classics’ internet connectivity created a thriving meme culture that lives on today.

The remake was long anticipated by the fans, who have waited for it since its original release. Since the original, it has been more than 15 years. DiamondAnd Pearl on the other side. The time difference between the remakes and the original is shown below. Pokémon Ruby And SapphireAnd Pokémon Gold And SilverIt took them approximately twelve years to complete the first one, while it took nine years for the second. However, this waiting has served only to increase anticipation. DiamondAnd Pearl have long held a special spot in the fandom, because the games make an assertion about Pokémon’s staying power. Namely that “Pokémania” — a term used to describe the Pokémon boom of the ’90s and early 2000s — wasn’t going anywhere. Pikachu, his friends and co-workers were there to stay.

The hit video games were released in the following year: Pokémon GoldAnd Silver, some told producer Junichi Masuda that Pokémon was on the outs. “Everyone was saying, ‘That’s it. The Pokémon fad is over! It’s dead!’” Masuda said in an interview with Game Informer. But Game Freak, the primary developer behind Pokémon games,And Masuda took these claims as a challenge and created a three-game plan from 2002 to 2006 — starting with Pokémon Ruby and SapphireEnding with Pokémon DiamondAnd Pearl to refresh the Pokémon franchise, and show that it could be a lasting, international brand.

The new releases have been welcomed enthusiastically by the fans. Steve Black Jr., host of Pokémon podcast It’s Super EffectiveStreamer and Polygon on how the games renewed his interest in this franchise. “The original DiamondAnd Pearl are special to me because it restored my confidence in not being ashamed in what I loved,” Black told Polygon over Twitter. “I was one of the kids bullied out of liking Pokémon when RubyAnd Sapphire came around,” but DiamondAnd PearlHe returned to the series.

Pokémon is largely a franchise that’s powered by nostalgia, And Pokémon Brilliant Diamond andShining pearlThese remakes are designed to appeal to all the players that grew up playing these games. What makes these remakes special goes beyond what they’re doing; they’re special because they represent a sort of generational reset within the franchise, as each title brings new first-time players into the fold. It also didn’t hurt that the original DiamondAnd Pearl also got a boost because of how wildly successful the Nintendo DS was — to date, it’s the best-selling handheld console ever with more than 154 million units sold. The games were loved by a distinct and large audience of first-time gamers, which makes them primed for nostalgia.

Image: The Pokémon Company/YouTube

“Pokémon was gigantic around generations 1 and 2, but Pokémania died out around generation 3 and was considered no longer ‘cool’,” pixel artist and streamer Tahk0 told Polygon over Twitter. “This led to what I personally believe was the true ‘second generation’ of kids who got into Pokémon because they got a culturally fresh start with Gen 4.”

DiamondAnd Pearl were long-time Pokémon fan Josh K.’s first foray into the franchise. “Personally, being 9 years old when they came out, Diamond was my ultimate obsession,” he told Polygon, via Twitter. Josh K. cherished the time spent playing the game at camp and school with friends. Since he was so young, and the internet wasn’t as available to him, it still felt like the world of the game was big and mysterious. “When somebody told me about Arceus, Shaymin or Darkrai in 2007, I didn’t believe them until they showed me on their own DS. These games still had the last bit of video game secrets and mystery for me,” he said.

DiamondAnd Pearl were the first set of Pokémon games to allow people to connect to the internet. The original fandoms were among the first Pokémon players to create and contribute to meme culture around games, as each one came out. Left and right, fans posted jokes about the lack of fire Pokémon or the crushing strength of the Elite Four leader, Cynthia’s Garchomp. One of the most liked tweets in response to the remake announcement, was a repost of the 2011 “Cybergoth Dance Party” video that combined the once-popular meme with Cynthia’s battle theme and her team.

Not all hype revolves around the intense personal connection people form with the game. While the Pokémon fandom is certainly not a monolith, there is an increasingly vocal sub-group of fans dedicated to preserving their idea of what a Pokémon game “should” look like — for example, each subsequent Pokémon game should include every Pokémon that’s ever come out, and in more extreme cases, good games must have good-looking trees. Although these requirements can be confusing, this form of interaction was born around the publication of Pokémon SwordAnd Shield, in an event known as “Dexit,” where fans voiced their anger online over the lack of Pokémon in the games, accused developer Game Freak of lying, and floated conspiracy theories as to what happened to the cut Pokémon.

“I think the hype around [Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl]The general dislike for SwordAnd Shield,” Grant Stoner, a writer and Pokémon fan, told Polygon over Twitter. “Fans wanted these games to rectify the mistakes of the previous titles, even though DiamondAnd Pearl weren’t as favored as Platinum.”

Others just feel that it’s good to get a standard Pokémon game from an earlier era.

“From what we’ve seen with other remakes and new IPs, Nintendo has the power to make these games flourish and bring in fresh faces to the Pokémon scene, but very often the quality just isn’t up to par,” Saira, a lifelong Pokémon player, told Polygon over Twitter. “Because this is a remake and not a remaster, a lot of us simply want Nintendo to do the gen four games justice and bring back the iconic music, the minigames to play with friends, and everything else that we’ve grown to love about Pokémon.”

Regardless of where you fall, it’s clear DiamondAnd Pearl played a pivotal role in Pokémon’s legacy. It helped to create an online fanbase and set the stage for what would be one of most popular series. As Tahk0 put it, these two games were the first “fully ‘Pokémon’ (as we know it now) Pokémon games.”

Rest is history. It was not just a franchise that survived, it also continued to achieve new heights with spinoffs such as the mobile app. Pokémon Gocontinued success commercially with the mainline Pokemon games. The Pokémon fandom has a seemingly endless well of fans it can pull in, and the original DiamondAnd PearlThe original carrier of this ambition was games.