Game review: Pokemon Diamond & Pearl(J. version)


Pokemon Diamond and Pearl are the latest and highly anticipated Pokemon games for the Nintendo DS. Even long before they were officially released, they were one of the hottest and most talked about topics among Pokemon and video game fans. I’m sure even most anime fans have heard about the hype that these games have received as well. The games were officially released in Japan on Sept. 28th, and my copy of Pearl that I had preordered arrived on Oct. 4th(see scans I made above.) I’ve been playing it fervently ever since, but I finally decided to take a break from playing it and write a review of it instead =P Now, I’ve been a major Pokemon fan for nearly 8 years and I’ve played every generation of the games that have come out, so you’re probably going to think I’m biased when I say this, but Pokemon D&P totally rock.

I’m sure that most fans agree that each generation of Pokemon games are better than the ones that came before, so the shift from the Game Boy Advance system to the DS really makes D&P score way above the other games as far as graphics, features, and interactivity. Just so you know, I’ll be speaking from the perspective of someone who’s been a fan of the Pokemon games for many years. But I think that even non-Pokemon fans might find this review interesting. After all, Pokemon was a huge influence in the beginning of anime’s popularity outside of Japan. It still continues to be a cultural icon in Japan, and even in the US and other countries too. The Pokemon games have revolutionized the Nintendo world as well, and Diamond and Pearl have probably been the most acclaimed yet =)

Graphics

All I can say about the graphics in D&P is “fantastic!” First off, the sprites of all 500 pokemon(yes, there are 500 pokemon now!) look great. The pokemon move before they go into battle, just like they do in Crystal and Emerald, but the animation has improved a whole lot. I remember in Emerald how the sprites look a bit “pixelated” and distorted when they move, but that’s all gone in D&P. Everything else about the graphics have improved as well; the attacks, the battlefield, the trainer sprites, the animation shift between RPG mode and battle mode, the contests, the Poke-Dex, everything!

And as for the RPG mode graphics, I think they’ve improved even more than the battle mode graphics. They’re practically N64 quality on a handheld system ^^ The GBA games introduced some weather and terrain effects, such as rain, tall grass, and sandstorms that your character has to get through as well as battle in. But D&P takes weather and terrain to a whole new level. Your character now maneuvers through fog, blizzards, thick mud, deep snow, tall grass and forests, hail, and rain storms. Not only weather, but time of day is also apparent, with different lighting in the game for morning, noon, late afternoon, evening, night, etc,. There’s even some 3D effects, such as your character riding over the hills of Cycling Road overlooking the route below, or walking through different floors of a gym or over a bridge and being able to see what’s below.

New pokemon and new features!

And of course, as with each generation of new games comes 100+ new pokemon. The 4th generation pokemon aren’t the best group as a whole, but there are plently that are very cool and cute. You can see sprites of all the new pokemon here.

As for new features in D&P, I don’t even know where to start! First off, you get this new item called a Poketchi used via the DS touch screen. You can use it to tell time, count how many steps you’ve taken, see the pokemon in your party, do simple math calculations, and even draw using the stylus. There’s now 92 TMs and 8 HMs to get, as well as a bunch of new held items, evolution stones, and of course attacks. Also, attacks are now classified a bit differently depending not so much on type, but how physical they are(for example, though Bite is a Dark attack, it’s now classified as physical because it uses the pokemon’s fangs.) Some old attacks now do different things as well, which kind of throws me off sometimes(like Surf now damaging your partner pokemon as well.) New berries too, which can do many different things, such as increase the power of an attack or make pokemon receive less damage from a certain type of attack. There are also slight variations among the way male and female pokemon look and how they evolve.

Storyline

Story-wise, the game is pretty much the same kind of stuff as the others. You catch pokemon, train some of them, battle trainers and gym leaders before taking on the Elite Four, all the while visiting towns and exploring places, helping some people along the way, collecting useful items, competing with a rival trainer, and stopping the schemes of some shady organization(Team Galaxy in this case.) And like the other pokemon games, there’s still a ton more to do after you complete the main storyline of beating the Elite Four and stopping Team Galaxy. There are many more places to explore as well as the task of catching all the pokemon. But if you’re already a fan of the games like me, then there’s no getting enough of this stuff. But if you’re someone who’s only played the early pokemon games and have long since lost interest in the franchise, give D&P a try if you think what I’ve said about it sounds fun. I’m pretty sure it’ll revive your interest in Pokemon, at least a little bit anyway =)

Anyway, I haven’t covered one of the most important new features of D&P – its Wi-Fi connection and ability to globally trade and battle pokemon, possibly with people all around the world! And also the ability to trade pokemon from your old GBA games to D&P. I plan to do coverage of these things as I explore them more, so check back ^^

No Comments… read them or add your own.

  1. Max says:

    I’m getting Diamond in 10 days! I’ve had atleast one game from each generation that they came out with, theres so much I wanna know, and 10 days is a long time haha, I was wondering if we could be friends on there,and your review was really good, it makes me wanna get it now! =]

  2. liban says:

    Can i trade pokemon without wi-fi?

  3. Yumeka says:

    No, you need a wi-fi or other wireless connection in order to trade pokemon from your D&P game to/from someone else’s. But you don’t need it to trade pokemon from the old GBA games to D&P though. You just need to complete certain events in the game.

  4. Jes says:

    Hey! Great review! Loved it! I really cant wait for D & P to come out in 8 days! Its gonna be the best game ever!!! Really loved your review! Loved the way your wrote it!

    Jes

  5. cool kid says:

    A good review… im getin pearl in a week. i cant wait ima be crushin wit my team of cool water pokemon.
    yea me!!!!

  6. DAVID says:

    IM GETTING THE GAME IN 6 DAYS!I CANT WAIT MY STARTER IS GOING TO BE PIPLUP.

  7. Chimchar says:

    awsome review i get the game in 6 days cant wait. i just want to know who some of you guys are starting out with. i personally like chimchar best. When i complete my team i bet i could take all of you guys.

  8. Chimchar says:

    als oi think the wifi addition is a great addition to the pokemon franchise

  9. Yumeka says:

    I chose Pochama/Piplup in my Japanese Pearl version. I’m planning to get the English version of Diamond and choose Naeteru/Turtwig. Then finally, I’ll probably restart my Pearl version and choose Hikozaru/Chimchar. That way I’ll eventually be able to go through the game using all three starters. I’ve always done that with all the previous Pokemon games ^^ It’s a good thing to do if you want to complete the Poke-Dex eventually, and also to have all three of these strong pokes on any one team.

  10. jomama says:

    Yeah, In 2 days Im getting both and im gonna tranfer that egg from pkmn ranger with my friends and since you trade on the web Its going to be great!!!!!!!!!!yes

  11. Jeff says:

    HELL YEA MAN 2 MORE FRIKIN DAYS IM AGET IT HERE IN CUMMIONG, GA!!!!!! AMA GET IT SUNDAY AT NINE IN THE MORNING!!!!!!!

  12. fife says:

    o yeah i am gettin the game TODAY O YEHA I CANT WAIT!!! IVE BEEN BEGGIN FOR IR 4EVVA!!! i am gunnu have pipulp be my starter. jsut one question tho. can u have ur pokemon walk beside u and wit u when u like r walkin around in the game?????????

    ~fife~

  13. seth192 says:

    What events do u need to do to get the ability to trade to older games

  14. Yumeka says:

    In order to trade pokemon from your GBA games to your D&P game, you need to complete a few things: beat the Elite Four and obtain the National-Dex. Then you can go to a place called Pal Park and transfer your pokemon. You can find detailed info about Pal Park here.

  15. Rai says:

    oh wow so you can try and catch your old pokemon from the gba game, that’s so cool

  16. Blake Fancy says:

    Why dont the pokemon company make a Mewthree on a game and how about a Pokemon that looks like a crocodile and also a new evolution for tentacruel!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  17. Blake Fancy says:

    When the pokemon company makes anew game i hope they make that game one of the baddesest game with around 300 new pokemons and all old ones maade them a little bit stronger.

  18. ger says:

    i think the starting pokemon is cool….i like the monkey….oh and the graphics…………..

  19. CANADIAN GUY says:

    how many pokemon total are in the game?

  20. Yumeka says:

    493 pokemon total in D&P! =)

  21. nate says:

    did u know the bonoculars in the safari biulding u can see where the pokemon are them go into the safari zone and catch’em where u saw em

  22. nate says:

    for pearl version the pokemon you find in the grass in the safari zone are Azurill,Marill,Skorupi,Croagunk,Carnivine,Wooper,Quagsire,
    Psyduck and golduck.

  23. Lou Bega says:

    Can tell me how to get the mystery gift for jpn version pokemon diamond/pearl?

  24. Yumeka says:

    I’m not really sure about the Mystery Gift, but I’m pretty sure you’ll need a Wi-fi connection. Then you’ll probably have the option to do it either at the game load screen, or when you go into one of the extra rooms in the Pokemon Center.

  25. Lou Bega says:

    i mean, how to get it. or ENG ver can get it by telling the man on the 3rd floor “Everyone Happy” followed by “WiFi Connection” but jpn ver cnt . cos got no eng word to type .

  26. ok i am REALLY confused how do i get to the 8th gym leader??? It aint cheating its rubbing it in my friends faces!!! :S oh and yes its true. Girls DO like pokemon!!!

  27. monster says:

    where can i get a moonstone
    i only need 8 more pokemon to get my national dex and i need a clefable

  28. marshstomp says:

    omg i cant wait this has made me want it more lol i gonna die if i dont get it soon and also this probly took lot of effort nice job XD

    woo! go pokemon!!!!

  29. Christopher says:

    I LOVE the discription of D&P! Now I really can’t wait to get the game when I get the money!

  30. GrimReaper says:

    pokemon diamond and pearl is the S#!T. it is the best pokemon yet.

  31. dude says:

    i need a female burmy to get my national dex and i’m willing to trade my shiny lv.31onix for it if anyone is interested my friend code is: 5455 6444 432.

  32. Alexthechamp says:

    My favorite pokemon is pachirisu not only is it cute but it packs one hell of a punch! I beat the elite four with it

  33. Where the heck can I get a few moonstones? does anyone have any idea?

  34. Mark says:

    Getting Mystery Gift to appear in the Japanese version…. I’m working on it. Min’na means “everyone” and shiawase means “happy”. Wi-Fi means “Wi-Fi” (lol – it’s in the “!” group when searching alphabetically), tsu-shin means “communication” and there’s also a word for “union” (those last three are in the “Union” catagory, which is where you’d find “connection” in the English version.) I’ve tried “min’na shiawase” with both “Wi-Fi tsu-shin” and “Wi-Fi union” but neither worked. I’m going to try switching them around (eg “shiawase min’na”) to see if that works and I’ll get back to you. Of course, if you don’t know Japanese – I couldn’t type out the characters on here – you’ll need to find a Japanese-English dictionary at a bookstore or library to figure out which characters represent those sounds. (For instance, min’na is 3 characters: mi, n, and na.)

  35. Marcio says:

    Hi, does anyone know how can i get a fez moonstones ? Pls i really need it, e-mail me asap, thx

  36. Mark says:

    You can only get a Fez Moonstone on That 70’s Show. :D

  37. Yannick says:

    Someone probably answered this a long time ago but for rebbeca shipperbottom,to get to the eighth gym leader you have to beat the 7th Gym Leader,Watch your rival’s @$$ get kicked by a Galactic commander at lake acuity and then go to the top of mt. coronet/spear pillar to get Palkia(Pearl) or Dialga(Diamond) then the path to Sunnyshore city will be revealed…I just came to this website so I might be doing this more to give some tips if anyone needs it….People who get pissed off at me too bad.

  38. loaded says:

    what pokemon r the best to take on the elite 4

  39. Flower Girl says:

    Hey I’m fairly rubbish at this compared to what the rets of you guys sound lol but i have always been into pokemon. How can i get any evolution stones?:S like the normal ones lol. I heard their in the underground but how do i get there?

  40. Amy says:

    You get stones from people, just talk to everyone in the city and some people give you stones (:

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