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| From: Nintendo
Category: Video Games
List Price: $34.99
Buy New: $29.50
You Save: $5.49 (16%)
New (44) Used (23) from $25.65
Avg. Customer Rating:  116 reviews
Sales Rank: 214
Platform: Nintendo Ds
ESRB: Everyone
Media: Video Game
Autographed: No
Memorabilia: No
Batteries Included: No
Age: 5 - 20 years
Operating System: Nintendo DS
Shipping Weight (lbs): 2
Dimensions (in): 0 x 0 x 0
MPN: ntr p adae
UPC: 045496738495
EAN: 0045496738495
ASIN: B000MJB0H6
Release Date: April 22, 2007
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Customer Reviews:
 A solid entry into the Pokemon Franchise, but it is not without its flaws. April 5, 2008
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
The standard formula has not been updated since the original release: catch Pokemon with Pokeballs, Battle with them, and become a Pokemon Master. Messing with that would screw over the series, and their additions to game are truly moving in the right direction, but unfortunately, this game falls flat on its face in several areas, such as the Global Trading System. But when it does succeed, the game is tremendously fun.
The core gameplay is still fun, if not repetitive; catch Pokemon, battle trainers. The re-addition of the time system, missing since its Gold/Silver debut, is also appreciated. They haven't seem to run out of new ideas for Pokemon, either: From Turtwig to Manaphy, the series has fine new additions. Annoyingly enough, Nintendo events are still clung to and it is difficult to obtain some of the rarer species. And even if it does get boring, the underground mini-game has plethora of areas to explore; you can still build your own base like in Generation 3, and it seems all the factors that made the previous games fun are in here. However, the game does not innovate enough.
For one, I would have preferred more interaction with the lower screen. Being able to choose your attacks and basic navigation with the menus using the stylus is a boon to the series. But why did they stop there? Why can't I completely use the stylus to navigate these things? And the Pokemon watch, while neat in theory, is very clunky.
But the worst aspect is the GTS and Wi-fi battles. Nintendo completely dropped the ball on this; the GTS is littered with hackers and players asking for crazy demands, like a lvl 100 Mew for a Pidgey. For trainers who want to use this function, it is largely a waste of time. And the inability to trade for Pokemon you have not seen yet is a pain. In terms of Battles, Nintendo continues to cling to their Friend Code system, which makes finding a decent battle a giant chore. While they should be praised for aiming to make it family friendly, this has made the online system inoperable.
Still, Pokemon Diamond is an enjoyable entry into the franchise. It is a solid title for the DS, but I hope they make a few more adjustments for the next round.
Lots of fun, but lots of annoyance April 1, 2008
6 out of 6 found this review helpful
The Pokemon series has always appealed to the obsessive in me. Indeed, who can resist a good chase, or the opportunity to collect literally hundreds of Pokemon. Of course, the old games pretty much required that you have a friend to play alongside you, and as I got older, it became more difficult to find people willing to devote a similar amount of effort into the game.
Now, however, with the Nintendo Wi-Fi option, all of that is a thing of the past.Now, one can trade for Pokemon around the country, or even the world. Thus, after a 6-year layoff, I decided to pick up Pokemon Diamond (which gave me an excuse to finally get the DS, which incidentally is 1000x better than the PSP that merely takes up desk space in my room). And yeah, the obsessive reared its ugly head immediately, as I then bought Pokemon Fire Red, Pokemon Sapphire and Pokemon Ranger.
But ahem, back to the game at hand. Pokemon is excellent. Although formulaic, it's always been a fantastically deep RPG experience, even without the postgame collection madness. I won't detail the plot, as it has been beaten to death in these reviews. Instead, let's move immediately to the good and bad here.
GOOD:
- Great gameplay. Yeah, the engine is a bit tired, but it still chugs along. I particularly enjoy the fact that it is easier to catch weak Pokemon in the wild with a special Pokeball.
- Good graphics. Although not the best the DS has to offer, with all the other data stored in there, they aren't bad.
- Wi-fi is nice. I have yet to experience any problems with connections or whatnot. It is annoying that some people will cheat you online (with hacked Pokemon, e.g.), but what can you do?
- National Pokedex. Come one. When they say you can now collect 493(!) different Pokemon, how can you not resist?
BAD:
- legendary pokemon. There's not much "legendary" about them anymore. I mean, there are around 13 new "legendaries" introduced in this very game. Moreover, many cannot be obtained except via Nintendo "events," most of which have yet to grace our fair shores (yeah, I know there was a Manaphy event - of course, you can get that Pokemon in other ways). This has always been an annoyance of mine, but it's particularly bad now. There are three Pokemon that simply aren't (legitimately) available at the moment, and another three which require the purchase of other games. The REAL annoyance is that there is no reason for this whatsoever - with a Wi-fi option, Nintendo could make their events available to the public at large. But whatever - Nintendo has always been annoying this way, and it won't change any time soon.
- Underground. Do I really have to mine the walls for hours to find certain fossils? Does my base really have a bunch of rocks in it that can only be moved if I find another person's base? Does anyone really have time for this? A complete dud.
- Pal-Park. Later in the game, one gets the opportunity to migrate Pokemon from older games to their pal-park. This was a great idea. Why, then, do I have to be bothered by its mechanics? Only six Pokemon can be migrated each day, and then I have to go through a "minigame" to catch them. Just let me upload them to the PC, for crying out loud!
The last two BAD remarks are somewhat nitpicky, but the first is getting outrageous. When it was only one Pokemon, it was reasonable. But Nintendo has turned their clever little satire about obsessives into a mass-marketing campaign...geared ONLY for fanboys. I'm pretty sure that we NEVER got the chance to get Mew in the GBA games, and that's annoying. Hopefully, Nintendo will use their Wi-fi to make events more public, I ain't holding my breath.
And thus, I knock the game one star.
 One of the best ever!!! March 29, 2008
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
Pokemon Diamond Pokemon Diamond is one of the funnest games that I have ever played! When I fist got it, I played it for 2 1/2 hours straight. This is a great game and I highly recommend it!!!!!
Excellent Gift March 20, 2008
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
Gave this to my neice for Christmas. BIG Pokemon fan. Loves this game, and sometimes can't be torn from it.
Kids are happy to have it on the DS March 13, 2008
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
The kids have several versions of the GBA cartridges that they play on the DS and are delighted to have a DS version so that they can play each other natively.
Only two things I can offer as cons: D & P are hard to discern among non-experts. The user uploaded images show a special Dialga/Palkia stylus for each version. Perhaps these were included in a limited edition release or sold separately, but the two I purchased recently did NOT come with it, so don't expect, or better yet, DON'T SHOW THE KIDS THIS PICTURE... you've been warned ;)
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