"Pokemon; when you want to enter into the world of insanity... and milking."

No pet? Pet boring? Bored of DS?! It's Pokemon. The cause of, and solution to, all of life's problems.

Since the dawn of gaming, there has been Nintendo. Soon to be churning out savage robots, it seems that all their problems lay at their roots. They felt no shame in milking the "Mario-cow" as far as it would take them.

Soon however, they realized it wouldn't last long. So they branched out, creating new cows worthy of milking, and when that failed, goats. One day, from the basement that is Nintendo headquarters, emerged a wondrous game. A game that would revolutionize RPG's and be the saving grace of no less than 3 future Nintendo handhelds. And so it was called... Mother.

What's that you say? "Mother?! This is a freakin Pokemon review!" Well, it just so happens that Pokemon is based on the series called Mother.

Since the release of Pokemon Red and Pokemon Green (Blue outside of Japan), Pokemon has appeared on all of Nintendo's handhelds, saving the Gameboy, Gameboy Colour, and Gameboy Advance, with a 2nd and 3rd generation and one less than spectacular remake. While Gold and Silver shone further and brighter than Blue and Red ever had, Ruby and Sapphire was the more like 1 step forward and 2 steps back.

Also along the way have been several "filler" games. The words Pokemon Mystery Dungeon (which I personally liked), Pokemon Ranger, Pokemon Link, Pokemon Dash, and not to mention the god-awful cartoon series, bring shudders to many peoples bones.

So how will the 4th- and possibly final (see later)- Generation of Pokemon fare? Will it be another Ruby/Sapphire? Or will it revolutionize Pokemon and all RPG's even further?

Well, it's a bit of a mixed bag. Read on...

First off, if you think Pokemon is for dorks, nerds, or is of the opposite sexuality (take a bow, 12-year olds), then I submit you this. Don't knock it 'till you try it. And of course, since you are on Gamefaqs, you are probably a nerd anyway. I promise you, if you even marginally like gaming, RPG's, or sliced bread, you will love this game. It's hard to say what it is. The "adorable" Pokemon. The literally two-dimensional Team Rocket (now Team Galactic; and now 3-D). The feel-good garbage about love which you love to vomit at. All of that and more makes up Pokemon. And while it may sound stereotypical, anyone with a subjective view must admit that this is one of the, if not the best games on the DS.

However, while the game is very good at a first glance, any seasoned player realizes that not much has changed.

One of the key differences is the number of Pokemon. Anyone who has played any other Pokemon game knows that the main objective is to "Catch 'Em All". While at first this was a manageable and doable 150 Pokemon, it has no blossomed to 492 Pokemon. Some see this as a pro, some see it as a con, especially as that many of Pokemon just look the same.

But what else is there to do in Pokemon? Do you just catch Pokemon? No, no, no. Once you catch your Pokemon, you can then use them for battling. That's right; while your cute little Chimchar may look like it can't hurt a fly, boom, it's just punched a Starly in the face. And with many, many attacks to learn, the possibilities are endless.

And as well as attacks you use in battle, there are also attacks called "HM"'s. These are used outside of battle with varying effects, from cutting down trees to clearing away fog. Again, the total of these has blossomed from the original total of 5, meaning that instead of Close Combat, your Infernape is forced to learn Rock Smash, which is awful. Choosing parties is hindered by this, as now Pokemon are chosen as to how many HM's they can learn, rather than quality.

As well as battling and catching Pokemon, there is also a vast region to explore. Called Sinnoh, you will trek across it to battle the 8 Bosses-- uh, I mean, Gym Leaders. Once defeating these Leaders, you will then battle the Elite Four. The difficulty has been upped from the last generation on these, meaning that while seasoned players will have a bit of trouble, newbies will have great difficulty.

One major difference in Pokemon Diamond/Pearl is the graphics. Instead of the nostalgic 2D, Game Freak finally used 3D. Now you can see Sunyshore City below while on a massive solar panel, or hide behind the Wind Generators at the Valley Windworks.

One major dent in the previous Pokemon games has been the story. In the original, Team Rocket just went around trying to dominate the world for no apparent reason. Since then, we've had a good story in Pokemon Gold and Silver, a rather stupid story in Ruby/Sapphire, and the story in this. Is it good? Well, while it may not win any awards, it is a major step-up. It consists of (I have Pearl, so it may be different in Diamond) Cyrus, the Team Galactic leader, trying to create a new universe for himself and Team Galactic, using the unwilling help of Palkia. A mysterious legend shrouds Palkia, involving the three lakes of Sinnoh... Watch out for the "triangle and shining orb" reference, and try and work it out before the climax.

Since the originals, there has always been great music, some of the best being in (yes, you guessed it) Gold/Silver. But I am happy to say that the music here has surpassed even Gold/Silver, leaving the player humming along all the while. As a previous reviewer has said, if there was a soundtrack for this game, I would most certainly buy it.

Another reason Ruby/Sapphire wasn't as good as Gold/Silver was that it scrapped the day and night system. This makes a glorious return in Diamond/Pearl, with two extra modes of day.

One place where Diamond/Pearl doesn't shine are the Touch Screen features. Instead of anything meaningful or worthwhile happening on it, we get the Poketch. In long form that's Pokemon Watch, and in even longer form... what does Pokemon stand for again? Lame quoting aside, this is really a waste of a screen. On your Poketch, you will get a range of options, such as a clock, a slightly different clock, a notepad where all your notes disappear when switched, a coin tosser, a roulette "game", and a Map Marker, which instead of an actual Town Map, is a lot less useful.

As well as the gimmicky Poketch, there are also a few more Touch Screen gimmicks. These include making Poffin, digging for fossils, and more. Never before would I think that I would see things like this in a Pokemon game.

One problem that has plagued all of the previous Pokemon games is trading. Rarely did you ever see anyone with both a copy of Pokemon and a Link Cable. And even if they did, they were usually bad at battling and had bad Pokemon. Well, here's the good part. Pokemon Diamond/Pearl features Internet access. This means that you can go online and trade Pokemon with other people. And even if you don't have WiFi, the DS has Local Wireless, so you won't need to take a Link Cable wherever you go now. This alone makes the game worth getting.

So, that's Pokemon Diamond/Pearl. But here's the biggest problem of all. It seems that no more changes can be made. WiFi seems to be the last big change that Game Freak can make, meaning that future generations will be bad. They got a good story. They've pushed the Pokemon amount as far as it will go. They've added WiFi. It seems that this is the end.

But, don't worry. If it truly is the end, then what a great finish this is. Diamond/Pearl is arguably the best Pokemon Generation, rivalled only by Gold/Silver. And, don't forget, there will probably be a third game in this generation, with boni (we are all genii!) and the like. What's more, I doubt there will ever be an end to the numerous spin-offs that Nintendo keep churning out.

Pros;
+ 3D Graphics
+ Return of the Day and Night feature
+ WiFi
+ 492 Pokemon
+ A decent story
+ Great music

Cons;
- More HM's
- 492 Pokemon

Blow-by-blow scores;
Gameplay; 10/10
Music; 10/10
Touch Screen Usage 7/10
Story 9.5/10
WiFi 10/10
Local Wireless 10/10

=56.5/60
=57/60
=9.5/10
=10/10

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 08/19/07, Updated 11/15/07

Game Release: Pokemon Diamond (EU, 07/27/07)