New findings have appeared out of the Nintendo Gigaleak, this time dealing with some beta builds of Pokemon titles. While a lot of the information is still being dug through, some interesting details stand out above the rest. Those details include the 0.0.2 build of Let's Go Eevee, and the prototype of the original Pokemon Diamond and Pearl.
The Nintendo Gigaleak was an internal data breach of confidential files kept in the company's archives, dealing with things from internal documents to even as far as entire games' source code. The leak was huge, which is why those who have the files are still going through what's in them for the more interesting parts.
Datamining in the Pokemon franchise isn't new, though recently more information has been uncovered for what they've referred to as the "0.0.2 build" of Pokemon Let's Go Eevee. It's hard to say what this build had since the data is locked to dev-only Switch consoles. What those with access have been able to share, though, was that it was very fittingly barebones in structure, lacking things like a proper skybox and dodge animations for the Pokemon.
Alongside that was a prototype version of Pokemon Diamond and Pearl, which revealed the beta names for Turtwig, Chimchar, and Piplup. Early in development, they were known as Sproutle, Scorchimp, and Ploopil. It seems a lot of Pokemon names weren't finalized in the prototype, as other screenshots see Piplup's Japanese name being used, along with Azlef's. The same went for a few NPCs such as Cyrus (who kept being called "boss,") and Lucas' name being spelled as "Lukas," showing those hadn't been decided on at the time as well.
For Pokemon fans, the leaked details serve as great insight into how these games were developed, and what could have been if different choices had been made. Since Nintendo's not a company that takes the time to preserve details about its titles easily, now these documents belonging to the respective fan communities of these IPs means they won't let lost to time ever again.
For some, the news may raise more questions than others. For those who aren't a fan of the successful Let's Go series, it may be a bit upsetting to hear that the games were always intended to be the catch-a-thon that they are. Meanwhile, fans are taking Chimchar's beta name of "Scorchimp" and wondering if Scorbunny was just Chimchar again but a rabbit. The look inside Pokemon development definitely will peak fan's curiosity, especially since more details may surface as the dataminers continue to dig.
Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl release on the Nintendo Switch on November 19th, 2021.