Pokémon Diamond and Pearl came out about ten years ago. Yes, the land of Sinnoh was released for Pokémon enthusiasts to explore in the years of 2006 and 2007.
This was no ordinary Pokémon game, garnering more fans than even your typical Pokémon adventure. Why? Maybe because it was the first game to implement the global trading system, also known as the GTS. Or maybe it was the introduction of the special versus physical attack system. On the other hand, there was also a load of extra things to do like cooking Poffins for your Pokémon, taking them to the park, contests, the underground, and even just cleaning your gym badges.
Connectivity was a huge aspect of the world of Sinnoh. There was a duel-slot mode where you could put your old Game Boy Advance game in one slot and Diamond or Pearl in the other and transfer Pokémon. That may seem normal today, but back then, transferring Pokémon between games like that was huge!
Like with most of their games, new Pokémon were released such as the fan favorite, Lucario. Let’s also not forget the new Eeveelutions like Leafeon and Glaceon. The game also introduced popular legendaries such as Darkrai, Giratina, and Cresselia. The Pokémon aside, one of the most memorable characters was probably the dark dressed Elite Four Champion, Cynthia. She was the first female Elite Four Champion!
What more is there to say about these games? A lot actually. Check out this list.
25 Getting Arceus With The Azure Flute
Arceus is a big deal in the Pokémon world considering that its backstory assigned it as the ultimate creator of the Pokémon universe. Despite such a hefty title, it’s still a Pokémon, so players could still catch Arceus.
However, most players of Diamond and Pearl had to cheat to even see Arceus.
The legendary resided in the Hall of Origin, and players needed a particular key item to summon Arceus. Unfortunately, that key item, the Azure Flute, was never distributed by Mystery Gift as once planned.
24 Draco Meteor Was Named By Fans
Known as one of the most powerful Dragon-Type attacks, Draco Meteor is still used today as a competitive and powerful move in Pokémon battles. What average fans do not know is that the move was not named by the developers. It was named by Japanese fans.
The name of what would be the strongest Dragon-Type move was part of a contest for CoroCoro magazine, a publication known for its promotion of video games and toys. The name Draco Meteor won the contest.
23 Korean Versions Had No Slots
Pokémon games often had gambling corners. These places were no luxurious Las Vegas casino, but they had slot machines where you could collect coins and trade them for prizes.
This was not the case in the Korean versions of Diamond and Pearl though. In Korea, there is a gambling ban.
However, the game corner is Diamond and Pearl did not get wiped off the Sinnoh map. Instead, the slot machines were replaced by “game machines.” The dialogue and other text was altered to change slot machines to “game machines” as well.
22 Surf Move Glitch
Japanese versions of Diamond and Pearl housed a particular glitch around the Water-Type Pokémon move, Surf. Due to a programming mistake, Aaron’s room in the Pokémon League has a door that can be surfed through.
This gave players some crazy access to other game content such as Newmoon Island and the Flower Paradise without the event exclusive item that was usually required. This meant that the players could catch Darkrai and Shaymin. On the negative side, players could also get stuck in the void between the areas.
21 Wayward Cave: Hidden Entrance To Catch Gible
Areas in the Pokémon world, especially caves, often possess hidden entrances. These are chances for finding items and catching rare Pokémon. Diamond and Pearl’s Wayward cave is one of those areas with a hidden entrance.
The entrance is sought by fans because it’s the only way to catch the rare Dragon-Type Pokémon, Gible.
For those who do not know, the hidden entrance to the Wayward cave is under Cycling Road. This reveals a basement floor with obstacles such as bike ramps and mud slopes.
20 Cleaning Your Gym Badges
Diamond and Pearl made sure to utilize the Nintendo DS’s touch screen capability. They sometimes did this in the smallest of ways. Pokémon players could look at their gym badges and as an additional little activity, they could clean the badges.
That’s right, clean the badges. The point was purely for aesthetic reasons. After a while, the gym badges would get dull. If the player rubbed their stylus on the badges though, the dull badges would get squeaky clean up to the point of glistening.
19 Drifloon Only Appears On Fridays
The adorable balloon ghost Pokémon, Drifloon, had a unique set of requirements for the player to capture. First of all, they had to defeat Team Galactic at the Valley Windworks. That is the easy part since you have to do that anyway for the game’s plot.
What not all players know about is that Drifloon appears at the Valley Winndworks only on Fridays.
Not at morning or night either, only during the day. Why Friday? No one knows but according to its Pokédex entry, Drifloon takes children. Maybe Friday is when most kids are out playing?
18 Getting The Legendary Darkrai
Like Arceus, Darkrai is a difficult legendary for players to obtain. If not through a glitch or cheating, players had to keep their eyes and ears open for events. Some events were not even based in Diamond and Pearl. In January 30, 2009, Pokemon Ranger: Shadows of Almia had a Darkrai event where Darkrai could be caught and transferred to Diamond and Pearl.
Other events included getting a Membership Key to access an area in an inn at Canalave City where Darkrai can be caught.
17 The Masuda Hatching Method
Getting shiny Pokémon has never been easy, though many strategies have been created in an attempt to make the ordeal easier. One such method was created by the Game Freak Director himself, Junichi Masuda, who programmed Diamond and Pearl. Hence they the method is called the Masuda method.
Typically finding a shiny is a 1/8192 chance in Diamond and Pearl.
Masuda made it a 1/2048 chance. This was accomplished through breeding two Pokémon from two different games in different languages. The chances are still very minor, but the difference is huge when looking at the numbers.
16 Catching Spiritomb
Spiritomb is another one of the Pokémon of Sinnoh that cannot be caught by regular means. The player had to get an Odd Keystone, a rare item that can only be found by digging in Sinnoh’s underground. They would insert the Odd Keystone in a mysterious well called the “Hallowed Tower” on Route 209.
Then the players had to talk to other players in the underground 32 times. Note that the 32 interactions did not have to be with 32 whole different players, so that’s a mercy. Then Spiritomb will appear when you next interact with the Hallowed Tower.
15 Getting To Meet Giratina
Next to Darkrai in terms of the most dark-themed Legendary, Giratina was also introduced and catchable in Diamond and Pearl. No event needed. What the player had to do was beat the Elite Four, and then and find a location called “Turnback Cave.”
The cave is located through the Spring Path at will appear on Route 214.
Of course, the cave is full of puzzles, doors, and fog. What’s cool is that in-game text implies that the cave actually exists between worlds.
14 Getting The Regis And Regigigas
The trick with finding Regigigas was that you needed Registeel, Regice, and Regirock (known as the “Regis”). What made this difficult for fans was that they needed to have caught these three Pokémon in the Emerald, Sapphire, or Platinum games. They are uncatchable in Diamond and Pearl.
If the player manages to catch them in those games and bring the Regis to Diamond and Pearl, Regigigas appears at Snowpoint Temple. The Legendary will only awaken if the player has the Regis in their party.
Art was done by Novere.
13 Rotom And The Haunted Mansion
Like others listed, Rotom is only accessible after defeating the Elite Four in Diamond and Pearl. What’s fun is that the Ghost-Electric Type Pokémon can be found in a haunted mansion called “Old Chateau.”
It’s in the room with a TV inside.
With Diamond and Pearl having night and day like many of the Pokémon games, Rotom will also only appear after 8 p.m. What did you expect from a ghost? Interacting with the television will summon Rotom. Try not to let it faint! It’s your only chance to catch one.
12 Turning Your Trainer Card Black
A staple of the Pokémon experience is your trainer card, showing your ID, gym badges, and Pokédex Completion. In Diamond and Pearl, there is a system where the trainer card changes color depending on what you complete in the game.
All trainer cards start out red but progress to blue, bronze, silver, gold, and black. Progress to change colors include defeating the Elite Four, having a capture the flag mini-game underground, completing the National Pokédex, and getting 100 consecutive wins in the Battle Tower.
11 Global Trading System Is Introduced
The global trading system, also known as the GTS, was a game changer for Pokémon games. With the GTS, players could put their Pokémon up for trade and ask for a specific Pokémon in return.
For some players, this was the only way to get event-locked Legendary Pokémon.
This made evolving certain Pokémon like Haunter or Machoke easier since some could only be evolved to their final evolution through trade. This was also the beginning of players putting up level five Caterpies while asking for Mew or Dialga. It’s worth a shot, right?
10 New Battle System: Special And Physical Move Types
Before Diamond and Pearl, Pokémon special attacks and defenses were determined specifically on Pokémon move types. For example, all Rock-Type moves were physical. When Diamond and Pearl came out, all move types became diverse with both special and physical moves. Players had to relearn how they understood Pokémon moves.
Luckily players could easily look check if their move was special or physical in the status menu. In past games, players could only find out through websites and guides.
9 The Sinnoh Region Is Based On Hokkaido
Ever thought certain regions in Pokémon were a lot like some places in real life? For example, Kalos was obviously France. It’s not as well known to non-Japanese fans that many regions, including Sinnoh, are based on regions in Japan. Kanto even borrows the name from the Japanese region it’s based on.
Johto is based on Japan’s Kansai region.
Sinnoh is based on Hokkaido, the northernmost island of Japan. According to Inverse, “Modern Jubilife City is much like Sapporo, Hokkaido’s largest urban center TV tower and all. Mount Coronet...mimics the Ezo Mountain Range, one of Japan’s biggest skiing destinations.”
8 Connectivity Renaissance
Diamond and Pearl was the beginning of Pokémon games being able to connect to one another. Some quick examples include topics already reviewed on this list such as the Global Trading System, transferring eggs from Pokémon Ranger, and transferring Pokémon from previous games.
There are other examples though. For players with a Wii, they could store their Pokémon in a farm-like environment on My Pokémon Ranch. If Wii owners also had Pokémon Battle Revolution, Diamond and Pearl could connect to that game as well.
7 Was The Best Selling Nintendo DS Pokémon Game
Between other Nintendo DS Pokémon games like Black and White, Soulsilver and Heartgold, and Pokémon Ranger, it was Diamond and Pearl that sold the most copies.
About 17 million copies were sold, that’s two million more than Black and White and five million more than Soulsilver and Heartgold.
Anyone could debate why this is the case. It could be because Diamond and Pearl were the first games to come out for the Nintendo DS, so there was more hype for a nostalgic game on a new system.
6 Many Items Were Never Used
Hackers have discovered a lot of Key Items in Diamond and Pearl’s code that are never used. One item has already been mentioned in this list, the Azure Flute for the Arceus event that never occurred. Items found in the code included a Contest Pass, Loot Sack, Magma Stone, Red Chain, Rule Book, Seal Bag, and S.S. Ticket.
Some items such as the S.S. Ticket and Contest Pass are familiar to Pokémon players since such items were in past games. We can only imagine what developers may have planned and scrapped.