Pokemon fans recreate Diamond & Pearl’s Distortion World & it’s nightmare fuel
Game Freak / The Pokemon CompanyThe Pokemon community was horrified after two fans re-created the Distortion World in Unreal Engine. The iconic Sinnoh region location is downright terrifying in high-definition.
One of the most mysterious locations in the entire Pokemon franchise is Sinnoh’s Distortion World. It is both a mind-bending maze of space and time as well as the home to Gen IV Legendary Giratina.
While a breathtaking achievement by Game Freak in 2008, two players gave fans a look at what the alternate dimension looks like with modern-looking graphics – and it’s pretty chilling.
Game Freak / The Pokemon CompanyPokemon Diamond & Pearl’s Distortion World gets HD-remake
The epic fan creation made waves on the r/Pokemon subreddit after being uploaded on May 5. The four-minute video shows a complete re-imagining of Platinum’s Distortion World using Unreal Engine.
Not only is every inch of the iconic location accurately created in updated graphics, the re-creation even includes level mechanics such as needing to push stones into holes to progress.
According to the thread, the project was actually created by two fans, artists Caleb Waldrop and Joseph Mora, who re-made the Sinnoh location for a school final. Considering the alternate universe is full of upside down platforms and twisted stairs, the project is insanely impressive.
The Pokemon community praised the project for faithfully capturing how creepy the level is. “It actually gave me chills because I remember how unsettling and fascinating the Distortion World is! Brilliant work!” a fan wrote.
Another said, “This looks straight out of a nightmare.” One user even hilariously exclaimed, “By the mother of arceus that looked great.”
While the Distortion World was pretty unnerving back when it made its debut on the Nintendo DS, seeing it completely re-made with a modern graphics shows just how terrifying it actually is. The looming shadow of Giratina and his glaring red eyes is the stuff of nightmares. The fact that this is a student project is even more mind-blowing.
Speaking of Gen IV, the Pokemon franchise is actually revisiting the Sinnoh region in 2021 with the release of the Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl remakes. The late 2021 projects will have players exploring the iconic 2008 titles again for the first time in 15 years. It will be interesting to see studio ILCA’s take on the disturbing alternate universe hidden in Mt Coronet.