Among other additions and new features,Pokemon ScarletandViolethave done a lot forPokemon’s characterization. After several generations of the player’s rivals and allies feeling somewhat undercooked,Pokemon ScarletandVioletgot things back on track with a strong group of friends assigned to each of the three major storylines. Nemona, Arven, and Penny are so compelling that one of fans' biggest story complaints is that the three rarely share screen time. As a result,ScarletandViolet’s writing and character designs have been some of the most well-received in aPokemongame for a while.
That’s not to say prior games failed in this regard, but that their results were more mixed. The quality of the story tended to dictate how well the rivals and close friends were received, with them benefiting directly from participation in better narratives.Pokemon XandY’s storyfeatured a large friend group, and together withPokemon SwordandShield’s imbalanced rival trio make for commonly cited examples of failures alongside their games' plots. On the other hand, Lilly and Gladion fromPokemon SunandMoonbenefit from being deeply involved in their games' impressive narrative. However, that doesn’t quite extend toSunandMoon’s main rival Hau, and his Gen 8 successor Hop doubles down on Hau’s flaws. Still, context is important, and whileSwordandShieldmight have failed him,ScarletandVioletmay have presented the perfect context to salvage Hop.
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Pokemon Sword and Shield Failed Hop’s Good Ideas
On paper, Hop’s story inSwordandShieldlooks interesting byPokemonstandards. He is another one of the friendly rivals that sprouted fromPokemonGeneration 3 onward, though he has a better motivation than most. WhileSunandMoon’s Hauwas related to his island’s Kahuna and was just going along with the region’s customs, Hop is the younger brother of the reigning Galar Champion Leon. It’s for that reason that he sets out alongside the player, striving to defeat the Galar League and prove that he’s just as good of a champion as his brother.
Things don’t work out for Hop, however. He fights the player more than any other rival in the series, and loses every time.Pokemon SwordandShield’s Hopalso falls to another rival named Bede, and despite gradually working through the Gym Challenge, he suffers a lot of emotional turmoil along the way. To Hop’s credit, he makes it to the tournament semifinals before ultimately losing to the player, and then participates in the battle against Eternatus with the opposite version’s box legendary. In the end, however, Hop is the only main character in the finale who didn’t meaningfully accomplish his goals.
While the constant battles against Hop can be annoying, it’s interesting watching him evolve throughout the game. He is initially arrogant thanks to being Leon’s younger brother, but is quickly shown his place and falls into a funk. In the middle of the game, he switches most of his Pokemon team out twice, and ends up with a tempered disposition in his last couple of battles. Hop proves to be no slouch, especially in his post-game fight where he usesZacian or Zamazenta, but with his rivals all becoming Gym Leaders or the new champion, the trainer is left to realize that he doesn’t have a future in Pokemon battling. Thus, in a surprise twist, he opts to switch career paths and become a Pokemon Professor instead. Hop finds closure, just not where he expected it.
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How Hop Would Have Thrived In Pokemon Scarlet and Violet
For their stories' many flaws,Pokemon SwordandShieldhad good ideas regarding each rival and how they should evolve across a playthrough. Problems came in how they were presented. Bede and Marnie didn’t get enough time to show their personal development, and Hop ended up with a ton of easy fights that made him come off as annoying. Combined withSwordandShield’s many launch issues, like the tendency to hold the player’s hand and bombard them with cutscenes involving Hop, it’s clear to see why this character suffered in his home game.Pokemon ScarletandViolet’s more open progression would have solved some of that, but would also have placed Hop in a more interesting context.
Hop could have still served as the player’s neighbor and rival acrossScarletandViolet, but he could have also played some other roles. Chiefly, he would compete with the player while serving as Arven’s travel partner, dragging the withdrawn upperclassman into other story paths. A rival who appears in all three storylines would run the risk of overexposure, but showing the naive and brash Hop interacting with many characters could have added new dimensions to him. Reducing his battle count and giving some to Nemona would have helped, and he could have potentially raced the player at certain points along thePath of Legends story. The idea of having Hop still be the Galarian Champion’s brother in Paldea would also be interesting, as he could see Champion Rank as a stepping stone to getting entry into his home region’s League.
Naturally, Hop would have spent most of his screen time pursuing the Victory Road assessment. The notion of him completing every Gym faster than the player could have been kept, but with the caveat of him struggling against Nemona. Differences between Hop as a fellow competitor andNemona as a Champion Rank trainercould have been reinforced through gameplay, as Hop’s fights would have still been fairly easy. Comparatively, Nemona’s teams would have been upgraded into small teams focused on advanced strategies. This could have taught the player competitive tactics while also emphasizing how strong Nemona is compared to the player and Hop.
Ultimately, Hop would have failed in his Elite Four run and would have challenged the player for the last time outside the Pokemon League building, like Gen 3’s Wally. During the final sequence inArea Zero, Hop could have been inspired to try taking over the position of Paldea’s Pokemon Professor, possibly with his friend Arven’s encouragement.
Hop causing more meetings between the main characters could have firmly established him as the emotional core of the player’s friend group, all while subtly emphasizing his potential as aPokemon Professorthrough observations he made while traveling. While he still worked in his original context, Hop could have thrived in and enhancedPokemon ScarletandVioletin surprising ways.
Pokemon ScarletandVioletare available now for Nintendo Switch.
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