Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl are remakes of the original Nintendo DS games Pokemon Diamond and Pearl. These games changed the landscape for Pokemon as a series, and are still regarded as some of the best out there. They had new perspectives thanks to the new technology in the Nintendo DS, new Pokemon, and a brand new story to enjoy. The remakes are coming to Switch later this year, and in this guide, we’re going to cover the Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl release date and so much more.
Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl Release Date
Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl launch on November 19, 2021. The games are coming to the Nintendo Switch. This will be the first mainline Pokemon remake set to launch for the Switch. Until this year, there have been other remakes and original Pokemon Games. Fans of the games and new Switch owners alike will probably flock to purchase these games because they’re Pokemon-related. This series has always sold well, and generally creates life-long fans after just one playthrough.
Story
The story of these games is pretty simple. As with all Pokemon games, players take on the role of an aspiring Pokemon trainer on the first day that they’re allowed to own a Pokemon. After an initial incident involving the local professor, the player gets their first Pokemon. From there, it’s a journey to collect more Pokemon, beat all the gym leaders, and then beat an elite group of the best trainers in the region. However, there’s a crime syndicate causing trouble along the way called Team Galactic. Players must thwart their plans if they want to complete the story and reach their ultimate goal.
There’s also a cover Pokemon, one of the most powerful in the world, to beat and capture. In Pokemon Pearl, this is Palkia, and in Diamond it is Dialga. These Pokemon are capable of ending the world if they are not calmed, and the actions of Team Galactic have stirred them up. It’s down to the player to beat this Pokemon and capture them, saving the world from almost certain doom. From there, they can head off to take down the elite trainers in the region. Once they have, they are crowned as the ultimate champion for the region. This is the initial goal of the game after completing the story. However, there is a secondary objective of capturing every single Pokemon in the game as well.
Pokemon Platinum
Pokemon Platinum was released sometime after Diamond and Pearl. It was part of a trend that the developers seem to have stopped following for now. In the previous generation, Pokemon Ruby and Sapphire, a third game called Emerald was released. This third game combined the stories of the other two, adding in a new Pokemon and some additional features. It made for a title that allowed for more gameplay and a story that is the most likely to be cannon.
There is no third game to tie together Pokemon Sword and Shield for now. But Pokemon Platinum did for Diamond and Pearl. It added two new characters. It also had a new focus on mythical Pokemon, Giratina, with new content focused on it. This game was also the only one in which you could capture all the Pokemon from both Diamond and Pearl. In the originals, you couldn’t do that, so you had to trade for the Pokemon you needed.
So far there has been no confirmation that a remake of Pokemon Platinum is on the way. While it could happen, it’s unlikely that it would release before the third game that ties together Sword and Shield. Fans want more content for those games, and they’re eager to see more of that rather than more remakes.
What’s New in Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl?
These remakes add a lot more to the games than most people realize. The first thing you’ll notice is that the graphics are completely different. While the camera angle remains the same, it’s the graphics that are better. They look a lot closer to those in Pokemon Sword and Shield. However, you can easily tell that they’re entirely based on the original Pokemon Diamond and Pearl. If you look at The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening remake, then the graphics will be incredibly familiar to you.
Battle screens are a blend of both the original Diamond and Pearl and Sword and Shield. The graphics are still better, but the intro to battles resembles that of those original games. From there, the battles move into a form that looks more like Sword and Shield than anything else. In this way, the games pay tribute to those originals without compromising the remake experience. It’s the best fo both worlds in many ways.
One of the biggest changes from Sword and Shield to Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl is the lack of Pokemon in the wild. The games use the older system of random encounters. You’ll rarely see Pokemon in the wild outside of battle. This is how all Pokemon games used to be, and it’s yet another callback to those original titles. There could also be an element of limitation here, since the remakes will use the same game engine as the originals.
Special Editions
At the time of writing, there is no special edition of these games set to launch on the Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl release date. However, it’s likely that some will be released before the games come out. There will almost certainly be a double pack version. This will combine both games into a single package, making it a little bit cheaper and easier to own them. This will also probably have a steelbook case.
With Pokemon Sword and Shield, Nintendo launched a special edition Switch Lite console. While it’s unlikely that tis will happen again with the current semiconductor shortage issue, it’s a possibility. If these are announced, they’ll be incredibly rare, and well worth buying because of it.