Pokemon fan creates “breathtaking” Diamond & Pearl remake in Unreal Engine

Daniel Megarry
Pokemon Diamond and Pearl Unreal Engine remake

One very talented Pokemon fan has recreated two Diamond & Pearl locations in Unreal Engine, and it’s given fans a peek at what the future of the series could look like.

Now that Pokemon Sword & Shield has been out on Nintendo Switch for over a year, attention is starting to turn to the next release from developers Gamefreak, largely rumored to be remakes of Nintendo DS games Diamond & Pearl.

While it’s likely that any Pokemon remake in the near future will resemble the style and gameplay of Sword & Shield, one creative fan has shared their own idea of what the Gen 4 remakes could look like if they used the Unreal Engine.

Pokemon Diamond Twinleaf Town
How Twinleaf Town appeared in Pokemon Diamond and Pearl.

Pokemon Diamond & Pearl remade in Unreal Engine

Reddit user papabeard88 took to the Pokemon subreddit to share their recreations of two locations from Diamond & Pearl: The player’s hometown Twinleaf Town, and the game’s first wild area Route 201.

The two areas have been given a modern makeover that looks far more realistic than the pixelated graphics that fans are used to from the 2006 games – although the artist shot down hopes that a game that looks like this could appear on Nintendo Switch.

Pokemon Twinleaf Town Unreal Engine
Twinleaf Town looks hyper-realistic in Unreal Engine.

“I tried to go for a mix between Pokemon Sword and Shield and World of Warcraft with a little bit of Breath of the Wild,” they explained of their design. “This version of Twinleaf Town would definitely NOT run on a Switch.”

They may not be able to run on Switch, but papabeard88’s designs have given fans an idea of what a super-realistic open-world Pokemon game could look like on a future console.

Pokemon Route 201 Unreal Engine
Route 201 recreated in Unreal Engine.

“That’s actually breathtaking! THIS is what we expect for Gen 9 graphic wise! Godly work man,” wrote one fan, while another joked: “I’ve waited long enough for a Diamond/Pearl remake. I’ll take whatever you can give OP. You are now Gamefreak.”

The concept images also got fans debating whether or not they’d actually like to see a game featuring this hyper-real style of graphics. Some loved the idea, while others argued it looks too different from the Pokemon games they know and love.

Pokemon Route 201 Unreal Engine
The path between Twinleaf Town and Route 201 in Unreal Engine.

“Honestly I wish Nintendo and Gamefreak would just go balls to the wall with at least one installment of a Pokémon game already,” a Reddit user wrote. “Something like this with a 3D open world, real-time battles, and Pokémon in plain view. My heart yearns for this.”

We probably won’t get a Pokemon game that looks like this for a long time, due to a combination of both creative choices and the Switch not being powerful enough. But it’s something fans definitely want to see.

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About The Author

Daniel graduated from university with a degree in Journalism and English Language, before spending five years at GAY TIMES covering LGBTQ+ news and entertainment. He then made the switch to video game journalism where he produces news, features, and guides for Pokemon, Fortnite, Nintendo, and PlayStation games. Daniel also has a passion for any games with queer representation.