'Pokémon Brilliant Diamond' And 'Shining Pearl' Will Have Non-optional EXP Share, Causing Fandom To Have Opinions
We're just over a month away from the release of the Gen-IV Pokémon Remakes, Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl, which means gaming outlets with previews are reporting their findings and causing Pokémon fans everywhere to have opinions.
Throughout the day, "EXP Share" has trended on Twitter because Serebii reported in their preview that the game will utilize non-optional EXP share.
In the Pokémon series, Pokémon normally gain experience points and level up by appearing in battle. EXP share is a feature that allows Pokémon who do not appear in battle to gain half the experience points of those who do, allowing them to level up quicker. This allows the player to avoid the risk of putting an under-leveled Pokémon into battle, where it could faint and not gain any experience points. Some players have argued that EXP share makes the game too easy, but for most of Pokémon's history, the existence of EXP share has been a matter of player preference, as players could toggle it on and off.
This changed in Pokémon Sword and Shield, which removed the option to turn off EXP Share. This was one of myriad issues that caused the games to divide the fanbase, and its return in Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl has similarly caused a brouhaha among Pokémon fans on Twitter.
Developers ILCA have seemed to take a "pick and choose" approach to updating Diamond and Pearl for 2021. Mandatory EXP Share is a quality-of-life update consistent with modern Pokémon titles. ILCA has also mercifully removed HM moves from the game, a hindrance that essentially forced every original Gen-IV trainer to go through Sinnoh with noted "HM Slave" Bidoof.
However, the preview reports for BDSP also revealed that single-use TMs will return in the games, a feature that hasn't been in a Pokémon game in fifteen years. Pokémon generations V-VIII all allowed for TMs to be used infinitely, giving players the option to craft a team with the move-set of their choosing. Making TMs single-use could mean a Pokémon gets a valuable TM early and a trainer is essentially locked out of giving another Pokémon that move for the rest of the game. Serebii notes there will "be opportunities to get more" TMs, leading some to speculate a TR system like the one employed in Sword and Shield could return.
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jacob BLackburn
Why not just remove levels all together. forced on XP share, tons of rare candies, exp candies and a partner trainer exist just to make the the stream of levels come with less effort.
At this point the idiom "beating around the bush" is not apt enough.
Gamefreak has already removed all the impact that the gameplay feature known as levels could have on the rest of the gameplay. So why bother with the pretense.
Just make all the mons the equivalent of level 50 stat wise, have them be able to change their 4 moves whenever using a key item, have them evolve based on how many times you use them + other factors, and have stat boosting moves retain their stages feature.
But at this point what point do Levels in Pokemon serve?
They don't disinsentivize you from tackling stronger trainers – You are always surrounded by trainers and mons around your level and you can't sequence break enough to matter
You level so fast that you never get to "feel" what it's like to have a level 20 Pikachu compared to a level 50 Raichu
If by some great feat of planning you are underleveled your partner trainer is there to be your steering wheels
In fact why not just remove the non storyline battles?
The only reason battles existed in the first place were to get you xp to get levels to be able to take on a gym leader on equal footing but there is no point in that because its just shy of being a cookie clicker mixed with a walking sim.
shogungari
So…basically just give us Pokemon Showdown?
jacob BLackburn
Not even that's too complex for the children of the future and still has levels. Needs MORE streamlining
Timey16
Any form of XP Share has basically been a standard in party based RPGs for ages now no?
Like anyone in your party, even if not active, earns XP in let's say Final Fantasy, or Dragon Quest, or Xenoblade, etc.
So it's probably just them adopting to a genre standard.
But this to me says it could maybe still be optional… or find ways where leveling makes less of a difference to the stats, so overlevelling is not a problem. Or your straight up no longer get ANY XP when your level is too far ahead, while more if it's less (Sun and Moon did that).
RemChi
Theres a difference in older games concerning EVs, in which your EXP shared pokemon all got EVs so you didnt want to run it while EV training. I dont know how it works in SW/SH, but thats a reason.
IN addition, SW/SH is pitifully easy, with exp share making your pokemon consistently overleveled.
Not having EXP share means you've got to throw out pokemon that werent fit for the situation to earn EXP, and sometimes your pokemon were underleveled and you had to actually think. Whitney brings back memories of having a pokemon thats ~5-6 levels higher than your team and absolutely wrecking it.
With EXP-Share, thats not a problem. Your pokemon will all be overleveled guaranteed.
Jon the Wizard
I leave it on, but I'd like an option to turn it off.
King Crimson
I personally prefer to leave it on because I hate grinding every party member individually but I don't get why it is so hard to just make it a toggle in the menu. What do you gain from removing that choice for people?
Pokejoseph64
Well that’s a bummer
Not a dealbreaker, but still wtf
RemChi
Heres a deal breaker, they have the exp share on so you're forced to never grind even when you want to play the game with less EXP.
But they keep TM's 1 use, which makes the game grindier if you want to use them.