Common Sense Media Review
Classic Pokémon format, this one's worth catching.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 6+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Play
Parent and Kid Reviews
Based on 6 parent reviews
Based on 32 kid reviews
Kids say the game features a familiar storyline with good mechanics and a nostalgic atmosphere, while some players find it slow and glitchy but still enjoyable. Many reviews highlight the challenge and engaging elements, making it suitable for fans of the series, although some believe it's not the best entry in the franchise.
- addictive gameplay
- good mechanics
- challenging experience
- nostalgia factor
Summarized with AI
Summarized with AI
What's It About?
POKEMON DIAMOND (or the sister game, Pokemon Pearl) revisits the classic formula that made the earlier Pokemon games so popular: Collect Pokemon, battle with them, and become the best Pokemon trainer around. You and a friend find a briefcase left behind by two mysterious strangers, and find Pokemon inside. When you return the briefcase to the strangers, one of them -- Professor Rowan, a renowned Pokemon expert -- asks for your help in indexing the various species of Pokemon that live in the wild, and you agree. In order to find and catalog the Pokemon into the Pokedex, it's necessary to explore the countryside and towns, and battle the wild Pokemon.
Is It Any Good?
One major new feature is the ability to play wirelessly over the Nintendo Wi-fi connection, which allows players who aren't close to each other to battle and trade Pokemon over the Internet. They can even use the Nintendo microphone to voice chat, but will need a friend code, which means players can't choose random strangers to play.
The graphics are 2D with some 3D elements. The interface doesn't make much use of the DS touch screen, except during battle when it becomes very handy with large, thumb-friendly icons, which alleviate the need to scroll through choices with the directional pad. Pokemon Diamond and Pokemon Pearl are true to the Pokemon franchise and faithfully include most of the features of past games. Deceptively simple in concept, both games are rich in strategy, making them fun for both kids and adults who like the franchise.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about why Pokemon is such a popular franchise. Why do you like Pokemon? In this game Professor Rowan is trying to catalog all the Pokemon. Is it important to know many facts about different animals? Why are the trainers fighting each other if they aren't mad at each other?
Game Details
- Platform : Nintendo DS
- Pricing structure :
- Available online? : Available online
- Publisher : Nintendo
- Release date : April 21, 2007
- Genre : Role-Playing
- ESRB rating :
- Last updated : October 9, 2025
Did we miss something on diversity?
Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by
Suggest an Update
Common Sense Media's unbiased ratings are created by expert reviewers and aren't influenced by the product's creators or by any of our funders, affiliates, or partners.
See how we rate