>>54746349I think you actually pointed out the issue: the maps are actually well suited for exploring each island in whatever order you like with progress blockers on the offshoot areas instead of main roads.
Alola itself doesn't need a redesign, just the story and the trainer battles. For example, Melemele. If you just redesign the intro to have Kukui take you down to his shack to meet Hau and Lillie and get your starter, you can then let the player roam routes 1, 2 and 3 freely, placing the story events in the offshoots like the Trainer School, R1 East, the beach, the marina, the cemetery, Mahamalo Trail, etc. Just use a series of flags to gatekeep tier 2 story progress.
Now Melemele is actually a really fun chunk of game. Fuck, that's probably how it was meant to be played!
