Pokemon Diamond, Pearl Review: Gameplay Impressions, Esports and Speedrun Tips

Pokemon goes back to its classic roots with Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl on the Nintendo Switch.  

A remake of the Pokemon Diamond and Pearl classics from 2006 on the Nintendo DS, the pressure on the updates is immense. It's not only a winter release on a system with a staggeringly amazing library, but those classics also redefined and reshaped what we know as Pokemon today. 

Not only is this is the first mainline offering in the series since 2019's Pokemon Sword and Shield, they are the first mainline games not developed primarily by Game Freak, with Nintendo giving the duties to developer ILCA. 

With such a resoundingly strong base and some smooth modernized decisions by the team behind it, Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl offer up a must-play experience for series veterans and newcomers alike. 

Graphics and Gameplay

Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl offer a breathtaking trip back to the Sinnoh region.

It's simply outstanding to see some beloved areas recreated with the power of the Switch. Whether it's Floaroma Town's breathtakingly colorful landscapes or trudging through chin-high snow up north, each of the unique locales from the original is stunning, even if it isn't punching the nostalgia button for newcomers. 

In fact, it still stays 100 percent true despite translating everything to 3D. The camera angle, speed of travel and even memorable soundtrack for each area gets presented in the most modern way possible within this gorgeously selected art style. 

The overworld art style, especially in terms of characters, might be divisive. The smaller, short-armed and short-legged look will be off-putting to some, especially when those same characters are drawn normally in battle sequences. But it keeps some of the spirit and feel of the original.

Back in the day on handheld systems, that's truly how characters looked in the overworld as 2D sprites while also being drawn normally otherwise. It just feels right, and trying to go uber-realistic with character models would probably look terrible in the Pokemon world (where houses are too short and skyscraper-tall monsters aren't actually presented that way, anyway). 

Battles use full 3D models for all involved, including the star of the show—the Pokemon. The move to 3D and modern attack effects on the screen are a welcome addition to the otherwise classical-feeling experience. 

Trainers also get the 3D treatment to more iffy results. It's funny to see a duo of trainers from the same team have the exact same defeat animation one after another. But it's charming rather than prompting the feeling that "this is glitchy and should get patched." 

Elsewhere in battle, move lists for each Pokemon now describe how effective the move will be, if at all, against an opponent. That seems to unlock after trying it at least once and is another modernization that helps speed things along at a fun pace—no more putting a console down to Google what the heck Lucario is weak against. 

Unlike Pokemon: Let's Go, Pikachu and Let's Go, Eevee, the battles with random monsters aren't avoidable because players can see them walking around the overworld. The game thankfully keeps the original, tried-and-true method of random encounters in grassy areas. 

Maybe the most controversial feature is the Exp. Share, which can't be turned off. It lets all of the Pokemon that didn't even participate in a fight or capture earn experience, too. Back in 2006 and earlier, in order to train up a team, players had to grind out fights with each team member at the front of a battle. It would seem like this sort of feature removes some of the grind and difficulty. 

But the team behind the game has done something right from a delicate balancing standpoint because it doesn't trivialize the difficulty by any means. In fact, some of the nostalgic roadblocks remain—a certain early gym leader's Pokemon is still giving out massive beatdowns and sending teams back to the Pokecenter free of charge in 2021, and it won't take veteran players long to figure out who. 

Not far behind in importance, though, is the shakeup to HMs. Instead of slapping as many HMs on one Pokemon as possible (come on, everyone had an HM slave in past games), moves like Fly, Surf, etc. that navigate the world now have "wild" Pokemon come and do it for the player when prompted. It's a smooth way to modernize the mechanic and, in most player's cases, frees up move slots, if not provides a sixth Pokemon on the team. 

In attempting to weave in some of the original's features, these updates offer up the Poketch. It's an emulation of what the second screen on the DS used to look like, letting players fire up HMs, check friendship statuses and more. It's a little silly, if not intrusive in 2021. A touch screen and the features presented were a big deal back in 2006—not so much now. 

Note that this doesn't touch much on the how and why of overworld progression. The same path, pacing and fun gym puzzles from the original releases make it in and were part of a classic set of games for a reason. This is a fun romp on the gameplay side that is smartly balanced and great looking, perhaps more so than it was during the original release. 

Grand Underground and More

Beneath Sinnoh's surface is the Grand Underground, an updated take on the original games' Underground. 

It's a sprawling area with different biomes and Pokemon that appear in the overworld, just like in the newer games in the series. Players can build bases, unearth items that help certain types of Pokemon spawn in the tunnels and it and boasts online play, too. 

If players weren't a fan of Raids and the mini-open worlds in more modern releases, they probably won't be in love with this, either. But it's a nice thing to have that is totally skippable. It's hard to complain about having an entirely new world to explore underneath the main game itself, especially for those desperate to carve out the most robust Pokedex of all. 

Speaking of the Pokedex, the list of included Pokemon feels expansive, but not overly so. There will be a vocal portion of the fanbase that decries the lack of including every single Pokemon ever, but it's safe to say this feels manageable and fun to collect. That serves as a backdrop behind the same old story, where the team of baddies tries to pull off a master plan at the same time the player's character leaves their small town in an effort to tackle eight gym leaders. 

These remakes are also just a breath of fresh air in this department besides simply having a manageable collection task. Players who yearn for the classic feel of the series and aren't big on all of the complex things added as of late like Gigantamax forms and Mega Evolutions will feel right at home with the simplicity of it all.

Or, for players who don't want it simple, there's still a complex and surefire competitive scene brewing once again. Back in 2006, while major online games like Halo 3 were blowing up at the time, paving the way for what we have today—not to mention streaming platforms like Twitch—the original Diamond and Pearl releases were right there. Which is to say, online battles on the Switch are sure to be a big part of the gameplay loop. 

These remakes also heavily lean into customization while harnessing the upgraded graphics. 

Ball Capsule customization stickers are back and earnable for accomplishing various feats. These actually produce new animations when throwing out a ball in battle. 

There's also a shop that lets the player change their appearance, which gets reflected in the minimal animations they appear in during battles. Side activities like Super Contest Shows and romping through Amity Square with a player's team following behind return as well, giving immersive things to do in the world besides grinding levels and collecting things. 

As expected, the game runs great in handheld mode or up on a big screen. And a laundry list of modern-feeling options lets players tailor the experience to their needs, such as text scrolling speed and whether battle animations play at all. 

Esports and Speedrunning Tips

It's only fitting that remakes of these classics produce a massive competitive community. 

The original Diamond and Pearl, besides being the first to have online battles and trades, introduced the physical/special split, which was a groundbreaking innovation for the series that jump-started the uber-competitive battle scene that still continues to this day.

And continue it shall, as thanks to services like Discord, platforms like Twitch and so much more, the esports scene is sure to be booming quickly after release. The simpler mechanics compared to modern games—but with the same depth that made the classics hotbeds for competitive scenes—might bump viewership more than the modern games. 

As for speedrunning, the obvious applies. Cranking up the text speed, turning off battle animations and spending nearly every bit of currency earned on repels and health items is the key to a fast time. 

Granted, players will need to memorize where to go when and how (though the pause screen does just straight-up tell the player, too), plus how to tackle puzzles quickly. But mandatory trainer battles will provide enough experience necessary to beat the whole game, so the trick is otherwise finding the right team and using repels to avoid random fights while also ignoring non-essential buildings scattered throughout the world. 

Serious runners will eventually need to get into the nitty-gritty to compete for world-record times, such as using a specific Pokemon with a specific move (example: paralyze gym leader's final Pokemon on first turn) in certain spots. 

But when first starting? The basics above will actually produce a pretty shocking time. The trick is to master the rest—world records from the original games check-in just under the four-hour mark. 

Conclusion

Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl are just great Pokemon games. 

It helps that the source material changed the iconic series forever, of course. But this is a really smooth retelling of the tale, with just enough in the way of modernization to make things feel great without going overboard and muddying the experience. 

While the art style might not end up being for everyone, it's hard to imagine most players revisiting these games won't have an ear-to-ear grin once the soundtracks get pumping and the gameplay loop kicks into full gear. 

Maybe more so than modern releases like Pokemon Sword and Shield, this is the perfect jumping-on point for new players, too. It's showcasing where the series has been and where it's going without getting bogged down in the complexities of experimental additions to later games. 

Simple but deep as a player wants it to be, Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl are remakes done perfectly and, though it might take a long time given the wealth of content here, it should end up having fans demanding even more revisited classics just like this.