Pokemon’s new take on Diamond & Pearl has been a complete success but a small glitch concerning the second battle with Barry has players scratching their heads.
The Pokemon games offer one of the most reliable experiences in the history of gaming and the rival system is no small part of that legacy.
Whether it’s Blue, May, or Avery, players know what to expect each time they run into a rival on the road – or at least they’re supposed to.
This unexpected glitch with Barry in Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl stands out from the pack because of how it instantly took a normal fight off the rails.
Barry’s secret weapon in Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl
The glitch occurred during the Hearthome City battle with Barry. This is the second time the player character and rival face off.
While Reddit user ‘nilewater’ was expecting to launch into a normal rival battle – which in this case would mean battling a Grotle to counter their own Prinplup – Barry switched the game up a bit and deployed a Prinplup of his own.
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For those who don’t know, a rival’s pokemon is generated according to whatever starter a trainer takes in the beginning of the game. This means that the rival should always have a type advantage in at least one portion of the battle, provided that the trainer sticks with their starter.
So instead of fighting Buizer and Grotle to go along with Starly and Ponyta, the trainer was left to deal with a Chimchar counter lineup of Roselia and Prinplup.
While it’s not clear what caused this, one user suggests it could have something to do with the Grand Underground.
“People have reported that the game confuses the names of their pokemon with other people’s pokemon, something about games profiles being read wrong.”
This glitch isn’t the end of the world, but it’s certainly a nasty shock for anyone expecting to steamroll their next encounter.