Pokemon Diamond And Pearl Remakes Are Overhauling HMs
Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl have been a long time coming. Fans have wanted a remake of the Sinnoh games since remakes of classic Pokemon titles first kicked off, and even though some are sceptical of the game’s chibi visual style, many fans cannot wait to get back to their favourite region.
Back in 2006, Pokemon Diamond and Pearl introduced us to Gen IV and took players to Sinnoh for the first time. They were beloved entries in the franchise, however, the remakes might not be as accurate a recreation as we’d expect - as one key feature is seeing a big change in the remakes.
Brilliant Diamond And Shining Pearl Are Reimagining HMs
As it turns out, the Pokemon Company have some very new ideas to introduce to the Diamond and Pearl remakes, as they have completely reimagined how HMs work.
The abilities that you’d regularly use with a Pokemon in your party, like Cut or Rock Smash, have now been changed to allow players to enlist the help of wild Pokemon to change the game’s environment. This is a great addition, as it means that there is no use in teaching the moves to your Pokemon, taking up one of their valuable move slots.
It’s a useful perk, but one that changes one of the game’s fundamental rules. Previous games have made efforts to do away with HMs, but this move is one of the most substantial ones that the series has made to finally get rid of them for good.
Could This Be The End Of HMs In Pokemon?
When the Pokemon Company announced the demise of the HM, the Twitterverse was split. Some think it's a great way to save space, while others say they'll miss the classic feature. One fan responded, "I want to use my Pokémon, not Uber. This sucks", while another added, "When BW made TM's infinite use, people complained that GF "made the games too easy" because of that. I personally don't mind if a game is easy or not. If I like the gameplay and music, then that's all I need."
Someone else said, "HMs never really bothered me. Yeah it sucked when you're far away from a PC and realize you need a mon in your box, but it's part of the game, managing the HMs added difficulty to the game. Pretty soon we'll be buying a pokemon game that's already finished for you."
Chances are that this could be the start of the end of HMs in Pokemon. They may once have been required to be attributed to Pokemon due to technical limitations, but it seems that developers have come to see HMs as an annoyance rather than a benefit to teams. After all, your starter can only do so much if you’ve forced them to learn Rock Smash, taking up one of their all-important move slots.
Many will be thankful, but some will yearn for the days of the HM - and that’s just the nature of such a change. The age of the HM is behind us - long may it live in our memory.