High: Its Pokemon, on the DS, with two screens!

Low: The Touch Screen isn't used to full potential, and the Poketch at the best of times is useless.



When I finally decided to purchase one of the new Pokemon games I approached it with a degree of reluctancy, after all, I hadn't played a Pokemon game in more than 5 years. What would it be like? How much would it have changed from the originals? Would this be one huge overhyped mess?

Having now pumped more than 15 hours into the game, I can assure anyone who hasn't got a copy of the game, my last question above is not at all true. In fact, Diamond has to be ranked as one of the best games I've played this year. Everything from the graphics, to the music, to the gameplay Nintendo has got virtually everything spot on.

Diamond and Pearl are now set in a new location, named Sinnoh, but the start follows the same procedure as most of the other handheld Pokemon games. Find the Professor, get a Pokemon for a bit, Professor is so impressed he gives it to you to keep and so on. In fact, a lot of the game feels similar to the other handheld Pokemon games, but is this a bad thing?

As ever, beating the 8 gym leaders and leveling up your Pokemon through battling wild Pokemon or other trainers is the main quest, but one of the main plus points for the long game lovers is the amount of side quests that are available, but unfortunately some of these can be similar to older games, like beating out a tower full of evil trainers working for Team Galactic or helping another trainer who needs help. (Sound familiar?)

The first thing that you really notice is the graphics upgrade, they're still pretty basic, but look a lot sleeker than the older games. The improved 3D environments are a pleasant addition to the game and the new weather conditions like rain and snow really add to the overall experience. Battle animations though are in need of an upgrade, they still the 2D sprites with moves that just flash across the screen to look like they hit the other Pokemon.

Of course, now that Pokemon is on the DS, there is now a whole new world of potential options opened up with the DS' touch screen, but for me, the developers haven't put enough time into really utilizing the touch screen. During battles the screen is used for choosing your Pokemon's moves and outside of battles the screen is used to display your 'Poketch', an interactive watch with various features. During your journey you can also collect cards to add new features to the Poketch, and while some of the features, like the day-care monitor (used to check how your Pokemon are doing in the Day-Care centre) can be useful, most are downright useless, like the notebook, where your notes aren't saved, and the counter, to help you count up to 9999.

Now, so far it may sound like I really hate the game, but the things above I just had to get off my chest, and all really are just minor gripes that don't really affect your enjoyment of the game.

There are of course a lot of positives as well, several small but needed features have been added. The ability to compare moves and check older moves when deciding to teach your Pokemon a new move is a good addition. The huge new addition to the handheld editions of Pokemon is of course the addition of online play. Players can now battle and trade using Nintendo's Wi-Fi connection, and there is also the option for players to chat with each other using the newly released headsets. Unfortunately, as of yet I haven't been able to test out the online play due to some problems getting connected to my router but most reports suggest that the online play is solid, and the mode of course adds a large degree of re-playability to the game. The only downside to the online play is that you'll have to scour internet forums looking for other gamers to trade friend codes with, as both of you must add each other to your online friend list to be able to trade/battle.

The music, of course is as addictive as ever, most of the songs are remixes of tunes from older Pokemon games, so instantly you'll be able to recognize some of the series' signature tunes.

On to the gameplay now, and once you're engrossed in the game, it's that addictive, you won't be able to put the game down! There's so much to do in Sinnoh, so if you're bored of battling then you can go explore all the different routes and caves, or enjoy one of the many side quests, like trying to complete your Pokedex, or entering contests. The beauty contest, while rather pink and camp is quite addictive. You choose the category and toughness you want to enter, and you then choose the Pokemon that you want to enter. The contest then begins, and you must participate in three different disciplines, dressing up, dancing, and acting. Stars, Points, Hearts etc are accumulated and at the end the trainer who's performance bar is the highest wins the contest. The Battle Tower is another good feature, and has players battling to win points to spend on prizes in the Battle Shop.

There are also tons of new Pokemon in the game (493 in total), and most of them are pretty cool and interesting, and some also make very good additions to your party.

Closing Comments:

Despite a few minor negative points, Pokemon Diamond and Pearl are for me the best games in the handheld series, the amount of side quests and things to do is unreal and with the addition of online play, Diamond and Pearl will be one of the most popular games this year. The final question, is rent or buy? Renting would be doing the game an injustice as there's just too much to do in the short space of time you have when you've rented the game, so for me, it's a definite buy.


Pokemon Exclusive to Diamond (See Pokemon Pearl Exclusive List)

#086 Seel
#087 Dewgong
#123 Scyther
#198 Murkrow
#212 Scizor
#246 Larvitar
#247 Pupitar
#248 Tyranitar
#261 Poochyena
#262 Mightyena
#304 Aron
#305 Lairon
#306 Aggron
#352 Kecleon
#408 Cranidos
#409 Rampardos
#430 Honchkrow
#434 Stunky
#435 Skuntank
#483 Dialga


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Reviewed By:MWG Reviewed On: Fri, 24 August 2007 16:05:56 Read:

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