Pokemon Shining Pearl

 Switch
User Score
5.5

Mixed or average reviews- based on 430 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 177 out of 430
  2. Mixed: 88 out of 430
  3. Negative: 165 out of 430
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  1. Alvalos
    Nov 21, 2021
    8
    Are they perfect? No
    Are they fun? Yes
    Does it include platinum content? No Are the graphics bad? No Would you replay them again? In a heartbeat BDSP is, without a shadow of a doubt, a trip down nostalgia lane, a re-imagining of the original journeys throughout the Sinnoh Region from their initial outings in Diamond & Pearl. Story If the goal was to achieve faithful remakes of those    Are they perfect? No
    Are they fun? Yes
    Does it include platinum content? No
    Are the graphics bad? No
    Would you replay them again? In a heartbeat

    BDSP is, without a shadow of a doubt, a trip down nostalgia lane, a re-imagining of the original journeys throughout the Sinnoh Region from their initial outings in Diamond & Pearl. Story If the goal was to achieve faithful remakes of those games, then ILCA have fully succeeded in their mission. It’s just as leisurely paced as the original Diamond & Pearl, encouraging the player to take their time and take in their surroundings. The story of DP is quite grand but it wasn’t fully realised and developed until Platinum. Lots to do & explore whilst not feeling too linear with a maze-like map. In this instance however, after playing through the game, I personally feel as though the fleshed out story beats from Platinum are missing here.

    Graphics
    They’re clean, charming & capture the essence of what classic top-down Pokémon used to be. Cutesy & child-like. Sword & Shiled in comparison can look a little muddy around the edges. There were a few janky animations from time-to-time but nothing that didn’t just make me smile and giggle. They clearly take inspiration from the Links Awakening remake, and on reflection, it was probably the better route to go down than trying to re-create these games in Sw/Sh graphics. Don’t be fooled by the initial reveal trailer, the improvements in lighting, shading & character models has come on leaps & bounds since we first saw it at the beginning of the year. Everything Else
    -The roster of Pokémon is as it was in Gen 4, it actually makes for a decent challenge trying to shape a team with the Pokémon you have at your disposal. We won’t get all the Pokémon in Legebds Arceus, we didn’t get them all in Sw/Sh, why should this be any different?
    -The grand underground is a place where you could spend hours hunting through the walls or capturing Pokémon, otherwise unobtainable in the overworld for your adventure. ILCA, you did a cracking job of the underground and making it useful & accessible for everyone. -Contests have been re-defined & streamlined but IMO I would say this was for the worst. Contests in the original had substance & felt like a journey in of themselves. The new version of contests are a rhythm game - great if you’re short of time, but I didn’t feel as though I had something to work towards. Poffin making can be tedious at times! - The EXP share was a necessary edition although it should have been a toggleable option. I had it on for my whole journey and blacked out a couple of times! It negates the grind, but ideally should’ve been optional. I very much enjoyed my time with BDSP, ILCA have managed to rekindle that inner child and bring back memories of playing my original copy of Diamond back in 2007. Newcomers of the series will have a shock as BDSP is the genuine article when it comes to what Classic Pokémon is all about. A little bit tough, a grand adventure & a lot of fun. Highly recommend first time Pokémon players pick up this one rather than any of the more recent entries. ILCA catered this game to the fans of Diamond & Pearl, a love letter to what Pokémon used to be, trying not to get hung up on the more recent additions & changes in the newer games. I hope TPC continue to outsource some of their projects.    … Expand
  2. Donkristo
    Nov 21, 2021
    9
    Отличная игра. Графика, бои, анимация все радует глаз. Всё те же покемоны, что и раньше. Найти в продаже 4 поколение для DS практически невозможно, так что это единственная возможность ознакомиться с данным поколением.
  3. CasualG1
    Nov 21, 2021
    9
    A nostalgic journey from start to finish, a game recommended only for those who have not played the 4th generation on DS, or want to remember them with adorable graphics
  4. DramaticBox
    Nov 21, 2021
    10
    Same thing I had to say about BD: Sword and Shield just can't compare to the amount of genuine passion put into this set. If you want a Pokemon game that feels like the people making it actually wanted to make a good video game, I highly recommend the DP remakes.
  5. PrincessSaf
    Nov 21, 2021
    8
    While I would have preferred a remake in the style of Sword and Shield, I am not entirely against the style they chose to be closer to the originals as they were on DS. However it just feel like they did the minimum to remake the originals and to me it does not compare with the third gen remakes.

    In a way I don't think they are best for those who did not play the originals because those    While I would have preferred a remake in the style of Sword and Shield, I am not entirely against the style they chose to be closer to the originals as they were on DS. However it just feel like they did the minimum to remake the originals and to me it does not compare with the third gen remakes.

    In a way I don't think they are best for those who did not play the originals because those remakes feel worse than Sword and Shield and I don't think they are much better than playing the originals either, so I am mixed for the recommendation overall. Maybe if they were a third less expensive than main releases it would have been better.

    I still can't give it a bad score, I can't 100% recommend it, but I like it, it looks good enough, and it's based on good games, so I would recommend people to look a little into it before buying but it should be fine.    … Expand
  6. DistantKingDumb
    Nov 21, 2021
    10
    Good game, I generally love all the animations and remade models, and I think it lives up to the original game in every aspect.
  7. KarimTheTraitor
    Nov 21, 2021
    10
    The triumphant return of my favorite generation, with changes consistent with current generations and new mechanics that make the game more relaxing or enjoyable.
  8. Minato-Arisato
    Nov 22, 2021
    10
    El estado actual de Pokémon es mas que envidiable y estas entregas, tanto Diamond y Pearl, son un demostración mas, junto a anteriores juegos que también me encantaron como Sol y Luna, Espada y Escudo y ORAZ.
    Al principio el apartado técnico puede desagradar, pero cuando uno se acostumbra, interiorizas el aspecto chibi al instante y comprendes que es para dar la mayor sensación de    El estado actual de Pokémon es mas que envidiable y estas entregas, tanto Diamond y Pearl, son un demostración mas, junto a anteriores juegos que también me encantaron como Sol y Luna, Espada y Escudo y ORAZ.
    Al principio el apartado técnico puede desagradar, pero cuando uno se acostumbra, interiorizas el aspecto chibi al instante y comprendes que es para dar la mayor sensación de nostalgia posible.
    Los combates pokémon siempre son un deleite, y la historia de Sinnoh es de las mejores que haya creado el buen estudio que es Game Freak.
    ILCA ha sabido tomar la batuta mientras el nuevo titulo Leyendas Arceus esta por venir.
    Por el momento, casi todos los Pokémon de Switch me han sorprendido gratamente.    … Expand
  9. Swampert_Tube
    Nov 21, 2021
    10
    Great game, and such a faithful remake too. They kept the original tweaking glitches, which is awesome too. Really enjoyed it! On my 2nd playthrough right now too! Cynthia is still hard as well. Would play it again honestly.
  10. Buurto
    Nov 21, 2021
    10
    Game is a perfect review. Music is great. Graphics are perfect. It's a faithful remake to pearl with a few extras. Pearl remake is the best pokemon game we got after ruby remake.. the animation the weather the lightning its all great. It's a nostalgic remake without any **** mechanics Form gen 5-8 im so glad it's just gen 1-4 Pokemon.
  11. B3jn
    Nov 21, 2021
    10
    Best Pokemon game in years, a true return to form. Don't listen to other reviews, Pokemon fans always cry and are never satisfied with anything. This is a great game and well worth $60.
  12. Kratosine
    Nov 21, 2021
    10
    Un par de remakes mucho mejores que lo que fueron en su dia Let's Go Pikachu y Eevee.
    Aunque hubiera preferido mil veces un Sinnoh recreado bajo el estilo de Galar, este estilo chibi adorable y muy pequeño, en remembranza de los sprites originales, sinceramente no me molesta.
    Si bien el juego es mas fácil, no es restrictivo ni te obliga a pasar por el aro, puedes jugarlo de múltiples    Un par de remakes mucho mejores que lo que fueron en su dia Let's Go Pikachu y Eevee.
    Aunque hubiera preferido mil veces un Sinnoh recreado bajo el estilo de Galar, este estilo chibi adorable y muy pequeño, en remembranza de los sprites originales, sinceramente no me molesta.
    Si bien el juego es mas fácil, no es restrictivo ni te obliga a pasar por el aro, puedes jugarlo de múltiples maneras en busca de mayor dificultad.
    La música, los modelos y el enviroment esta muy bien rediseñado, y al jugarlo y al ser tan fiel en todo lo que se propone, produce una gran sensación de nostalgia.    … Expand
  13. Chopyhop
    Nov 20, 2021
    10
    Just glad they managed to find an art style that finally suits the pokemon series.
  14. DistantKingdom
    Nov 22, 2021
    10
    I misjudged this cute title, at first I was reluctant to the idea that the characters were so chibi and poorly defined, but it's something that you learn to tolerate and love.
    The fighting is surprisingly fun and even difficult at some points, it's faster than its original games, and artistically, the reorchestrated music and NPC's models have been revamped in an excellent way.
    I must    I misjudged this cute title, at first I was reluctant to the idea that the characters were so chibi and poorly defined, but it's something that you learn to tolerate and love.
    The fighting is surprisingly fun and even difficult at some points, it's faster than its original games, and artistically, the reorchestrated music and NPC's models have been revamped in an excellent way.
    I must thank and congratulate ILCA and Game Freak for doing such a good job.    … Expand
  15. Mando44646
    Nov 22, 2021
    9
    Best Pokémon RPG on the console. Let's Go was a terrible gimmick-fest and Sword/Shield were....just okay.

    Good:
    Visuals
    Ganeplay
    Map
    Underground

    Bad:
    Nothing new and lacks Platinum content
    3D models can be a bit odd
  16. Omega-xis97
    Nov 21, 2021
    10
    this game could have been much more if they had included platinum, i really miss distortion world in the history, but is ok
  17. Fazed
    Nov 23, 2021
    9
    The first pokemon game in a while I would actually want to play again, there are few negatives about the game main ones being the exp share always being on and the levels being lower than the originals. Other than those 2 points its very true the orginal and does a lot of things right. The changes to the underground are really fun and add a good amount of pokemon options without it beingThe first pokemon game in a while I would actually want to play again, there are few negatives about the game main ones being the exp share always being on and the levels being lower than the originals. Other than those 2 points its very true the orginal and does a lot of things right. The changes to the underground are really fun and add a good amount of pokemon options without it being too much. Also the HM system is really good for the first time, the fact you can fly using town map and also the quest log telling you what to do next is nice for not getting lost. The new move sets are great and shining hunting is varied.… Expand
  18. Starfree
    Nov 22, 2021
    8
    This game is flawed but amazing. I would say it’s as fun a platinum but platinum has more and better content, this game just looks better and has some cool things. The new underground is amazing, the music is amazing, the graphics are amazing. There are a few glitches, nothing game breaking tho. Very solid game.
  19. Skwunjo
    Nov 23, 2021
    10
    This game gets a 10/10 for being a faithful remake with some of the best in-battle graphics Pokemon has to offer. It's very faithful to the original games with major quality of life improvements. Underground has been overhauled but my only complaint is secret bases have no furniture now. It is clear that ILCA put time and effort into this game, and it's impressive as it's their first bigThis game gets a 10/10 for being a faithful remake with some of the best in-battle graphics Pokemon has to offer. It's very faithful to the original games with major quality of life improvements. Underground has been overhauled but my only complaint is secret bases have no furniture now. It is clear that ILCA put time and effort into this game, and it's impressive as it's their first big game project as they've only helped with games on the side. The music is extremely good. If someone says the game is buggy, it's because they pirated the game and weren't able to get the update. Ignore the 0ratings for they're review bombing this game and have severe cases of autism. You'll see that they mostly have the two sinnoh remakes as the only game they're scoring sometimes next to Persona or SMTV getting a 10/10. This is due to an extreme case of mental illness and they've ruined the entire SMT franchise as a whole so just ignore them.… Expand
  20. FriendlyDM2
    Nov 22, 2021
    9
    I’ve enjoyed this game a lot!

    Seeing Pokémon Diamond and Pearl in 3D like this was a lot of fun. At first, I didn’t enjoy the overworld style in the trailers all that much, but that feeling quickly faded away as I played the game. Small adjustments which have been made to the game to make some quality of life changes have been very welcome! The battle system is snappy and doesn’t waste    I’ve enjoyed this game a lot!

    Seeing Pokémon Diamond and Pearl in 3D like this was a lot of fun. At first, I didn’t enjoy the overworld style in the trailers all that much, but that feeling quickly faded away as I played the game. Small adjustments which have been made to the game to make some quality of life changes have been very welcome! The battle system is snappy and doesn’t waste any of your time!

    The Grand Underground is a lot of fun, has been made a bit more simple in comparison to the originals on the Nintendo DS and have been expanded at the same time, now including wild Pokémon to catch and train against!

    The inclusion of the Experience Share for every one of your party members shaves off a lot of time previously spent sending out your weakest Pokémon, switching to a stronger one and then finishing the battle, or being able to only train one Pokémon at a time with a single Experience Share Hold Item, which makes it a LOT easier to help evolve Pokémon for completing your Pokédex!

    All in all, I’ve been having a lot of fun with this game, though I personally see this as more of a €40,00 title, rather than a full-price one. I would have wanted to see even MORE from this remake than what we got. I can recommend this game for sure though!    … Expand
  21. MrPablic
    Nov 22, 2021
    8
    Es todo lo que buscas si quieres recordar el juego de la nds. Se ve muy bonito y los nuevos implementos y el post Game tan difícil lo hacen muy disfrutable.
  22. Askeel
    Nov 22, 2021
    9
    It's my first time playing this game, and I'm enjoying my journey.

    Will be awesome to receive any future update/event
  23. Kelv89
    Nov 22, 2021
    10
    Brilliant game. Faithful remakes of the originals with updated graphics. What more could you want? Classic pokemon
  24. Klenki0404
    Nov 22, 2021
    10
    If you liked the older style of Pokemon games this is just great. It brings backs so many memories.
  25. eeyk
    Nov 22, 2021
    10
    Why are people complaining about the graphics didn't you see the trailer? Actually i like it, it reminds me of the DS games, i hope they will make more pokemon games with this kind of graphics. It's way better then Pokemon Shield and sword.

    and if you complain about the graphics just don't play Nintendo switch i mean what do you expect exactly?
  26. sheep455246
    Mar 6, 2022
    10
    If you haven’t played ds version. This is your best choice. (Unless you particularly like the watch function)
  27. GenkiYokota
    Jan 27, 2022
    10
    Unlike ORAZ, this remake has a more reliable and conservative approach.
    Which is not all bad, in fact, it makes the game more nostalgic.
  28. kito78
    Jan 30, 2022
    10
    It’s best nostalgic Pokémon experience since omega ruby. Many people is complaining that game is too easy, but remember that game is designed for 6+ yo kids. The game will not be challenging for old Pokémon fans, but it will deliver nostalgic and chill feeling. It’s relaxing.
    The graphics style this one have is perfect for me and I do love it
  29. Melonpanic
    Nov 29, 2021
    8
    As someone who loves the franchise, but who skipped generation 4, I am finding this game to be almost the perfect Pokémon experience. The faithfulness to the original means you have the look and feel of the earlier games, which some may prefer, but with a few modern quality of life improvements thrown in, above all, the ability to sit on my couch and play on a TV! I would gladly give thisAs someone who loves the franchise, but who skipped generation 4, I am finding this game to be almost the perfect Pokémon experience. The faithfulness to the original means you have the look and feel of the earlier games, which some may prefer, but with a few modern quality of life improvements thrown in, above all, the ability to sit on my couch and play on a TV! I would gladly give this a 9 or more if this had some extra content thrown in on top of the originals and the few bugs (which I have not encountered myself) had been addressed prior to release.

    I don't really understand the criticism of the 'chibi' style overworld graphics, I think they are charming and chibi Dawn is really cute! The in battle graphics are really nice, with clean but detailed backgrounds and a really beautiful colour palette overall.

    Hope to see more re-makes in this style, would love to see gen 2 and 3 (re-re-make?) brought to the bigger screens in this way.    … Expand
  30. MrBardTimes
    Nov 26, 2021
    9
    This is a very well made remake, the aesthetics are on point, the gameplay is what you would expect from a pokemon game. ILCA did a great job with it.
    The only negative point is that for some reason someone thought it was a good idea to make TMs single use again... why? :'(
    I'm not a fan of how the pokech was implemented, as it is a bit annoying to use, but that's because it needed the    This is a very well made remake, the aesthetics are on point, the gameplay is what you would expect from a pokemon game. ILCA did a great job with it.
    The only negative point is that for some reason someone thought it was a good idea to make TMs single use again... why? :'(
    I'm not a fan of how the pokech was implemented, as it is a bit annoying to use, but that's because it needed the second screen the DS had to be use easily, and the switch doesn't have that. This isn't really ILCA's fault, but it would have been interesting if they managed to use the online phone app as the second screen.    … Expand
  31. Ishrod24
    Nov 29, 2021
    10
    What an amazing remake! Beautiful art style. Please remake Gen 1-3 in the same art style ILCA!
  32. Daitya
    Nov 28, 2021
    10
    Un buen y pulido apartado gráfico, banda sonora mejorada, un remake fiel con mejoras, escenarios preciosos en las batallas, un aspecto visual en los combates mejorado(mejor que Espada/Escudo), más postgame que el original... No sé que más decir.

    Polished graphics, upgrade soundtrack, a faithful remake with improvements, beautiful backgrounds in battles, an improved visual aspect in    Un buen y pulido apartado gráfico, banda sonora mejorada, un remake fiel con mejoras, escenarios preciosos en las batallas, un aspecto visual en los combates mejorado(mejor que Espada/Escudo), más postgame que el original... No sé que más decir.

    Polished graphics, upgrade soundtrack, a faithful remake with improvements, beautiful backgrounds in battles, an improved visual aspect in battles (better than Sword / Shield), more postgame than the original...    … Expand
  33. sheep255174
    Dec 5, 2021
    10
    Good game, I generally love all the animations and remade models, and I think it lives up to the original game in every aspect.
  34. LiirThropp
    Nov 30, 2021
    9
    Even when it's obvious they were heavily limited by Game Freak, ILCA handled these remakes very well. Let's not forget that the instruction was a 1:1 remake from the originals, so they didn't have a lot of space to innovate, but graphically it is WAY better than Sword and Shield.
    It also puts the level of complexity and exploration that we had 10+ years ago side to side with the barren    Even when it's obvious they were heavily limited by Game Freak, ILCA handled these remakes very well. Let's not forget that the instruction was a 1:1 remake from the originals, so they didn't have a lot of space to innovate, but graphically it is WAY better than Sword and Shield.
    It also puts the level of complexity and exploration that we had 10+ years ago side to side with the barren and boring gameplay of Sword and Shield.
    That said, it is a buggy mess. I happen to find this very entertaining, but it certainly won't sit well with a lot of people, especially since more than a week has gone by and no patch for the most game-breaking glitches is in sight.
    The only thing I have an issue with is the price. It is definitely not worth $60, if it was $40, it'd be perfect.
    Fire Game Freak already!    … Expand
  35. ShadowRose
    Jan 12, 2022
    8
    This is a really good remake as it stays true to the original game the only thing is that there is not much new added content for people who have played the old version.
  36. MGamer490
    Nov 29, 2021
    8
    I still remember close to 15 years ago when I got my hands on a copy of Pearl, was only a teenager at the time and didn't have a DS so I borrowed my Cousin's DS to play it. On the first night I was up until 5-6am playing it in bed rather than going to sleep, I had an absolute blast. When I heard of the remakes, I was excited to return to Gen 4, but as with any Pokemon game that releases, II still remember close to 15 years ago when I got my hands on a copy of Pearl, was only a teenager at the time and didn't have a DS so I borrowed my Cousin's DS to play it. On the first night I was up until 5-6am playing it in bed rather than going to sleep, I had an absolute blast. When I heard of the remakes, I was excited to return to Gen 4, but as with any Pokemon game that releases, I will definitely play it, because even the rough ones, they are still great games.

    Graphics - Well they have definitely been changed up a bit! At first I was against the new design, but over time it grew on me and I found it to be very cute, as did my partner who was playing Brilliant Diamond alongside me. It felt very much like the original, no major changes in terms of the layout of the game, but the graphical improvements made it feel somewhat new and refreshing which I enjoyed. The Pokemon battles themselves reflected the newer games being in a 3D environment which is what I would have expected, I will always cherish the sprite based battles but these 3D battles is the way it should be and remain from now on.

    Changes - There isn't a whole lot of changes besides a few things such as an exp share that cannot be turned off so your Pokemon will level up despite not being in battle and this can make the game pretty easy, early on I was training up to 25 different Pokemon (no lie) to keep their levels lower and have a bit more of a challenge, you can also access your PC box from anywhere after a certain point in the early game much like the newer games, so that will feel similar to the younger crowd or newcomers who are familiar with these recent Pokemon games, it doesn't bother me necessarily, it is more convenient, I just wonder if its better to have an option to turn EXP share off. You have the Poketch app as well, playing docked makes the app a little difficult to manage as it was used a 3DS tool with the touch screen in the original, so that can be a bit annoying but if you are playing handheld, no major issues besides having to load it up on screen to use it. Not many other changes really come to mind, it feels very much like the originals for the most part.

    Bugs and glitches - There were some minor issues, occasions where the screen would take a while to load, and even a situation where my partner was in a battle and she clicked on a move to use but the screen just stayed still and she could not doing anything other than close the game and re-open, having to start where she last saved, I didn't experience this issue myself but it did feel like the quality we'd expect from this series was lacking just a tad but not enough to ruin the experience.

    Common complaints - Lets just put this on the table because I am seeing negative scores purely based on these reasons - There are no major changes in this remake, there is no national desk, they didn't base it on the Platinum version etc etc. This seems to be a review bomb of negativity that will forever plague the Pokemon series because people are unhappy they are not being given exactly what they want despite clear signs of what the game is from trailers and such. I personally am most fond of my time with Pearl, but also Pearl was made with the new pokemon in mind, and the Platinum version expanded on the pokemon a bit more including ones from previous games, but I don't need them to include the whole pokedex, Pearl and Diamond was there as an introduction to a new world, a new generation of pokemon and this is the first experience people had with generation 4 so giving that experience to newcomers of Pokemon is not a bad thing. There is also the complaint that there is no major changes in the remake but I can guarantee if there were major changes, then people would complain about them changing too much. Its my personal belief that people are expecting way too much from these games at times when this is nothing more than a remake of a classic, just because it isn't based on your favourite one (Platinum) then I don't think its fair to give it a 0, you knew what to expect when you saw the names of the games advertised. So if you are like me and just want to return to Pearl and Diamond, or you are new to the series, then definitely pick this up, you will have a great time, and I never really have a bad time playing Pokemon, its always good fun.

    Final Rating - For Pokemon fans like myself who wanted to go back and play the original with updated graphics and some minor changes, this is great and I finished the game in less than 10 days just because it is so easy to play and have a good time. If you are wanting more from the remake then I would suggest maybe skipping this one as it doesn't do anything overly different to the original.    … Expand
  37. Brunosky99
    Nov 24, 2021
    8
    Gráficamente es hermoso, pero hecho de menos las mejoras implementadas en el Pokemon platino, como los cambios en los gimnasios y el evento del mundo distorsión. Sin embargo es un muy entretenido viaje con sabor a nostalgia.
  38. monarch250
    Nov 24, 2021
    9
    Nostalgia done right!

    This game is made to be very faithful to the original releases and ILCA does a wonderful job of that. Obviously many Pokémon fans would want all the original's wrinkles to be ironed out, but I don't think that was the goal here. The Art Style gets a lot of hate, but this game is gorgeous, the battle animations are great, the character models have ... well....    Nostalgia done right!

    This game is made to be very faithful to the original releases and ILCA does a wonderful job of that. Obviously many Pokémon fans would want all the original's wrinkles to be ironed out, but I don't think that was the goal here.

    The Art Style gets a lot of hate, but this game is gorgeous, the battle animations are great, the character models have ... well.... character and the shadow, reflection and water effects are the best in the series. BONUS: It also runs flawlessly on the switch!

    Long story short... this is a great game and you should buy it. Give ILCA a chance to do more, for their first kick at the Pokémon can, they did amazing.    … Expand
  39. rolegervari
    Nov 26, 2021
    10
    I haven't played Pokémon in 20 years and I'm having a blast. It feels like a classic and that's what I want from Pokémon, isometric cute chibby characters and fun music so I can play in front of my toddler.
  40. Fishcake1o
    Nov 29, 2021
    10
    Great game loads of fun def an improvement on the originals based on the speed alone Great fun definitely recommend
  41. Kreepycake
    Dec 1, 2021
    8
    I haven't played the original diamond and pearl or even platinum but after completing shining pearl I can say I enjoyed the experience, the main problem that I have is exp share as it makes the game far too easy but other than that it was a ton of fun.
  42. blisslovesotome
    Jan 4, 2022
    9
    I honestly didn't expect to like it so much! Too bad for the dubious graphical choices.
  43. I_Trust_In_GF
    Jan 29, 2022
    10
    Remake of the highest quality, it evokes nostalgia for a game that was part of my childhood on the NDS.
  44. SuperkenGaming
    Dec 8, 2021
    8
    Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl
    my first pokemon game in a long time
    I havnt played a base line pokemon game since silver way back in the day, so I was excited to hop back into the remake of the 4th gen.. and while this game is great, its just not as magic as I remember pokemon games being.. The 4th en of pokemon introduces 107 new pokemon and none of them are really any    Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl
    my first pokemon game in a long time
    I havnt played a base line pokemon game since silver way back in the day, so I was excited to hop back into the remake of the 4th gen.. and while this game is great, its just not as magic as I remember pokemon games being.. The 4th en of pokemon introduces 107 new pokemon and none of them are really any exciting, as usual you start by choosing your favorite starter, and this time youre on a journey to stop team galactic whos going to these lakes and snatching up the regions legendary pokemon… and the story is pretty straightforward and therefor not really all that interesting..
    Diamond and Pearl are very straightforward games in general, go through the routes, building up your team of pokemon which btw share exp from the start, so I had to do absolutely 0 grinding to beat this game… go to the gyms, take town the leader, get a badge, get an ability to progress through the world, an ability that you don’t have to attach to a pokemon to use, another change I love vs back in the day.. so no longer are you forced to have a party of pokemon for certain moves to progress the game, you no longer have to save spots in their move sets for a move you don’t really care about all that much..
    But that’s it, that’s the game.. 30 hours of go from this town to this town… It was enjoyable but it was also a bit of a disappointment.. this wasn’t a world or story ill remember, there are no cool mysteries to solve in each town, they all kind of blend together.. This is probably one of the most forgettable monster collecting games ive every played..
    That being said its still pokemon, its still addicting to build the best team possible trying to catch them all if you care to…
    While this isn’t a journey ill remember, its still one im glad I took
    I give Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl
    an 8/10    … Expand
  45. FluffySpartan
    Apr 5, 2023
    8
    It's okay, it's at least better as the main games of the last year's.... The pkmn attack animations are good compared to the game freak games.
    Give another team a good budget and the license for pkmn and the games would be awesome again. Look at new pkmn snap, very good quality because it's not from game freak.
  46. nusoul
    Jan 7, 2023
    8
    I don't understand the people who gave this game bad marks, this game is almost perfect as I remember it when I played it on DS.
  47. lalahand
    May 27, 2023
    8
    Initially I thought this is a **** remake, but after playing all other recent Pokémon games, this is actually the best one on switch
  48. onepiece255174
    Mar 6, 2022
    10
    This review contains spoilers. Llegué con una antorcha para quemarle la casa a IlCA estudios pero no. Este juego es entretenido, viciante. Sin darte cuenta tienes 20 horas jugando. Para ser un remake me gustó mucho, lo recomiendo. Collapse
  49. cfc1998
    Jun 27, 2022
    8
    First of all, yes this is a very simple and faithful remake of the original games, but honestly I prefer this way than seeing Sinnoh with Sword and Shield **** graphics and engine. A visual change and a few quality of life improvements are more than fine for me, but if I have one criticism of the game is not adding Platinum content, other than that I enjoyed the game a lot! The post gameFirst of all, yes this is a very simple and faithful remake of the original games, but honestly I prefer this way than seeing Sinnoh with Sword and Shield **** graphics and engine. A visual change and a few quality of life improvements are more than fine for me, but if I have one criticism of the game is not adding Platinum content, other than that I enjoyed the game a lot! The post game content is definitely the best added feature, playing the gym leaders rematches was a lot of fun.… Expand
  50. PMG-Writer
    Dec 28, 2021
    8
    Nintendo managed two successful remakes for fans and children with Pokémon Brillant Diamond and Pokémon Shining Pearl. The storyline is neat and drives us through the game. Thanks to the simple gameplay concept, both games are just fun to play and it motivates enormously to experience the familiar story and catch and train Pokémon. The graphical presentation and the background music areNintendo managed two successful remakes for fans and children with Pokémon Brillant Diamond and Pokémon Shining Pearl. The storyline is neat and drives us through the game. Thanks to the simple gameplay concept, both games are just fun to play and it motivates enormously to experience the familiar story and catch and train Pokémon. The graphical presentation and the background music are successful and round off the good overall impression. Still, there are a few weak scenes in the remakes. Those who would like to play with Pokémons again should take a closer look for "Pokémon Brillant Diamond" and "Pokémon Shining Pearl".… Expand
  51. rnd754
    Dec 4, 2021
    10
    Lovely remake! Really takes me back.
    Whenever i play this game it makes me smile.
  52. PixelatedOdyssy
    Dec 7, 2021
    9
    I love this game, I grew up playing the original on the DS and this hits the nostalgia hard. Putting that aside, these are still good games.
    Are they perfect? no
    Are they fun and true to the original? yes the good: I feel like most of the people giving bad reviews expected as drastic of a change as we saw with sword and shield, which this game was never supposed to be. It has tons of    I love this game, I grew up playing the original on the DS and this hits the nostalgia hard. Putting that aside, these are still good games.
    Are they perfect? no
    Are they fun and true to the original? yes

    the good: I feel like most of the people giving bad reviews expected as drastic of a change as we saw with sword and shield, which this game was never supposed to be. It has tons of extra pre and post game content, quality of life changes, and everything you loved from the originals. This game was not marketed as or meant to be something more than a remake that's faithful to the original. There are new legendries, extra battles, easier shiny hunting, the new XP sharing system, and the game is more challenging than the originals at a lot of points. Basically if you like pokemon or liked the original games you will like this game.

    the bad: the price, $60 or $120 for both, is steep. I think $30 would be a much more fair price for one game. There were people who experienced soft locks and bugs, I was not one of those people. Since the 1.1.2 patch, all of those issues have been fixed. I know a lot of people wish they could turn off the new leveling system, I think that should be an option as well, but I also don't mind the XP sharing system. They added a penalty for time skips, so if you change your clock time manually then all timed events (trees, berries, timed pokemon, etc) will freeze for 24 hours. I hate this penalty, as they kept in the annoying timed events like trees taking six hour to find pokemon and berries taking hours of time to grow; they should've found a middle ground. They kept the original battle tower and shop, I think this is bad because the grind to level up pokemon post game takes a long time - I like how easy it was in sword to get XP or rare candies to level up and try new teams, this is a quality of life thing that should've been added. I also think they should've kept the sword and shield shiny hunting and IV hunting methods, the new additions are good, but not preferred imo.

    the mixed: some people complain that there are glitches you can exploit to duplicate pokemon and items, I personally think these are fun and since they only effect your offline play that they do not hinder the game or other people at all. There are also glitches that let you get timed event pokemon early, since this only effects offline play, I don't see it as an issue and it lets you play the game at your own pace. The post game grind feels like its too much, in order to get legendries you need to do a lot of tedious farming, this could've been optimized better.

    Overall. the games are what they were marketed to be, a new coat of paint with a few quality of life features added. This game is far better, especially after the patch, (although its annoying they didn't fix the issues beforehand) than the user score suggests. Its worth playing.    … Expand
  53. Nintendist
    Jul 2, 2022
    10
    this game is so good and beautiful at the same time. so lovely i love it til the end
  54. nzmetacritic
    Sep 26, 2022
    8
    Hi all!

    I have bought this game recently, like 3 days ago and by far I have had the best experience ever on this game. I have the original copy on my DS version 10-15 years ago but I don't think I ever got to finish it. I loved it back then as well. If you are looking for an Nostalgic/original pokemon classic linear game. This is the game for you. I have never played any pokemon games    Hi all!

    I have bought this game recently, like 3 days ago and by far I have had the best experience ever on this game. I have the original copy on my DS version 10-15 years ago but I don't think I ever got to finish it. I loved it back then as well. If you are looking for an Nostalgic/original pokemon classic linear game. This is the game for you. I have never played any pokemon games after Gen 4 so playing this brought me back so many memories on why I loved pokemon in the first place. I love the Isometric top down camera angle of this game. I hope to see more other pokemon games in this format. A remake but in 3D graphics makes it more beautiful and inspiring to look at. Being able to explore underground and catching wild pokemons and knowing what to catch just made the game more appealing. However I love the tall grass wild feature not knowing which pokemon is battling me. It is more challenging this way. I hope they still continue this style aswell.

    Looking at the negative reviews on this game don't make sense to me. I think going open world for pokemon is also a great idea too but I think Gamefreak should definitely focus on the quality, the story, the amount of content than rushing to finish a game every year.

    Back to the review; It reminds me of ''Pokemon Battle Revolution'' and this game happening all in one instead of buying 2 separate games. I hope ILCA will continue this genre. Personally this game is what I wanted 10 years ago. I am enjoying every moment of this game, it is super fun and addicting. I would like to see Gold and silver remakes including my all time favorite Emerald.

    Negatives. Not Worth $100 NZ because it is a Remake and its literally the same game not much new things or expansions even added to it. its weird that SW/SH is the same price.
    I notice 1 thing versing the gym trainers use the same pokemons that I have fought from normal trainers. Wish for more diverse and varieties of Pokemons when it came to the gym otherwise its too easy!

    8/10 for me Good job ILCA    … Expand
  55. CreeperMW
    Oct 30, 2022
    10
    I love every single little detail in Shining Pearl even love the chibi art style, it's reminds me of old days of Pokemon I wouldn't mind if they did this for HeartGold and SoulSilver if they decide to make a port for switch.

Awards & Rankings

11
#11 Most Discussed Switch Game of 2021

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
73

Mixed or average reviews - based on 88 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 37 out of 88
  2. Mixed: 51 out of 88
  3. Negative: 0 out of 88
  1. Nintendo Insider
    Sep 9, 2022
    70
    Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl are faithful remakes of the 2006 Nintendo DS games. They probably lean too much on the safe side, not achieving an awful lot to improve on the originals other than a few quality-of-life improvements. The improved Underground sections are a welcome addition, but the missing features from Pokémon Platinum are a big let-down. All in all, though, the Sinnoh region offers just as brilliant of an adventure as it was 15 years ago and the formula that worked back then (and then some) is still as addictive to this day. If you are a fan of classic Pokémon titles, this is a no-brainer.
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  2. Nintendo Force Magazine
    Mar 7, 2022
    60
    If you're a Switch owner looking to play a Pokémon game, this pair should be your third choice after the Let's Go games and Sword & Shield. [Issue #57 – January/February 2022, p. 67]
  3. LEVEL (Czech Republic)
    Feb 18, 2022
    60
    Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl is a decent remaster transferring the fourth generation from Nintendo DS to Switch. The authors handled well the absence of the second screen, but in the case of game mechanics they could go a bit further.
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