The incredible soundtrack has never sounded better.The Grand Underground fills out the sub-par Gen 4 dex.
Aside from The Grand Underground – and the connectivity with the current games in the series – there’s very little reason to play Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl over your original DS copies. If the remit of these remakes was to remain faithful to the original Gen 4 pair, we wish they’d also stuck to the pixel-art aesthetic. They’re also very clearly in the shadow of Pokemon Legends: Arceus, the upcoming open-world-like Pokemon game that has fans hoping it can take the series in exciting new directions beyond 20-year-old mechanics. While some of the slower elements of the original games have been fixed, and The Grand Underground makes up for the comparatively weak Pokédex, Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl’s new art style and a few other stumbles make this pair of games a somewhat disappointing retread of Generation 4. This not only fixes a big problem in Generation 4 - the lack of Fire-type Pokemon - it also manages to include some of the Platinum Dex that has been omitted from the main game. In Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl, it’s been renovated with new biomes, which contain roaming wild Pokemon. The Grand Underground is a reimagining of the same system from the original games, wherein players could explore, mine for shards, and meet other players. Where Pokemon do spawn in the overworld, however, is in the all-new 'Grand Underground'. We had really hoped we’d gotten away from this antiquated system for good, but unfortunately not. In a really disappointing step back for the franchise, Pokémon no longer spawn in the overworld in the wild - instead, it’s back to random battles in the grass when you’re walking the roads of Sinnoh. Some smart quality of life changes include the new HM system, which means that Surf, Fly and other moves that were relegated to the lone Bidoof in your party are now handled by… a Bidoof – but this time it’ll just appear when you need it, and no longer take up a party slot. If you’re tired of that formula, these games will do nothing to sway you. You’re travelling from town to town collecting badges and trying to foil a plot to harness a Legendary Pokemon. The core of the game is the same as it was 15 years ago. Why should we take this big antagonist seriously when he looks just as (un)threatening as any other trainer? It also robs some NPCs – who were intimidating and serious in the original 2D games – of their tone completely. While battles have arguably never looked better – with some incredible arenas and backgrounds for your Pokemon to compete in – the overworld looks cheap in comparison. Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl feature a 3D 'Chibi' art style for their overworld, making all characters look like emotionless Funko Pops, and it was a real mistake. However, instead of a Game Freak-helmed remake and love letter to the generation, ILCA, the studio handling Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl, has changed the art style for the worse and failed to include many elements from the generation’s best game, Pokémon Platinum. Generation 1, 2 and 3 have all received stellar reimaginings, and Generation 4 felt like the odd one out.
Since I was learning the entity system as I went along, don’t expect it to be very tidy, but it can hopefully be of use to anyone wanting to learn how to do similar things in Hammer.There’s a strange feeling of obligation to these remakes. To watch again, just reload the map.įor those interested, I’ve also included the vmf file.
Hit the left button to start the singer off on his way, or hit the right button to watch the movie from the animated camera. This doesn’t work in OB games, so don’t try running it in Gmod. The movie is a map file which runs from beginning to end almost completely automated.Įxtract this into your Half-Life 2 Episode 1\episodic folder and run the map ingame by typing “map daydreamtrackrelease” in the console. I made this almost completely using Hammer and Half Life 2: Episode 1. I decided to finish it off and upload it rather than let it hide away from you guys. “This is a machinima I did a while back, but left on my hard drive for a bit. Apparently the map can be downlaoded and “played”. Anyway, it works so well because of the situation. Compared to most of the crap that’s on YouTube that gets hundreds of thousands of hits, this is a masterpiece. It’s a trasvesty that at the time of writing it’s only received 38,000 views. MUSIC: What a Day for a Daydream – The Lovin’ Spoonful The Replay Experience Experiment aka TREE.