History VideoGame / PokemonDiamondAndPearl

** The previous generation's villains were misguided {{Well Intentioned Extremist}}s who wanted to either raise the land or the seas, and they ultimately [[HeelRealization see the error of their ways]] once [[MyGodWhatHaveIDone they realize they went too far with their plans]] by summoning the legendary Pokémon in the Hoenn Region. Cyrus is a far darker and complex villain who is an OmnicidalManiac that intends to reset or rewrite the universe (or both in ''Platinum''), and doesn't care who stands in his way as long as he accomplishes his goals. Unlike Maxie and Archie, who both saw the error of their ways, Cyrus does not and still plans to resume that goal (even when trapped in the Distortion World by Giratina).

** The P.I. Trainers are Gamblers in Japan; pay attention to how they talk about chance and how they are flipping a coin in their sprite. Their resemblance to a detective was [[LuckyTranslation purely coincidental]].

* TogglingSetpiecePuzzle: Raising and lowering water levels in the Pastoria City Gym. To reach the leader, you have to navigate a maze designed around staircases, rafts that serve as bridges, and switches that control the water level. The color of the switch indicates the exact level it will shift the level into; the order from lowest to highest is: Yellow, green, blue.

** Among the cute Pokémon introduced, Piplup stood out from the rest thanks to being a [[EverythingsBetterwithPenguins penguin chick]] and having a prominent role in the anime as Dawn's starter Pokémon. It was the secondary SeriesMascot during Generation IV, co-starring with Pikachu in several advertisements and media promotions. It even appeared in ''Anime/PokemonIChooseYou'' movie alongside Lucario as one of the protagonists' main Pokémon.

* TempleOfDoom: The Solaceon Ruins. The player can encounter and catch Unown here. Catch them all, and you can access the top floor of the ruins from a tunnel on Route 214.

** Relearning a move that requires the rare heart scale becomes unlimited after you give the move relearner 10 heart scales.

On Feburary 2, 2022, The Pokemon Company released the English version of the [[https://soundlibrary.pokemon.co.jp/en Pokemon DP Sound Library]], which allowed you to stream the music pieces of the first two games for free, and make playlists. It was shut down on May 31, but those who already downloaded the soundtrack this way can use the music for their own works as long as it is not used for profit.

** [=HMs=] (Hidden Moves) can now be used without sacrificing a Pokemon to be their HM-Slave. The app on the Pokétch allows the player to use wild Pokémon to perform HM moves. This means the player no longer has to carry around Pokémon just because they can perform the HM moves they need just to navigate the world. It also avoids the [[UnintentionallyUnwinnable unlikely-but-possible]] situation where the player could release a Pokémon with the HM necessary to leave an area and be left with no Pokemon to learn that HM, potentially getting stuck. For further convenience, you can use your map to select a location to Fly to or pressing A on an HM-required part (cutting branches or surfing). The only time you actually have to use your app is Defogging, but is rarely used.

* CrutchCharacter: See the [[{{CrutchCharacter/Pokemon}} series' page here]].

* HonorBeforeReason: As with Mega Evolutions in Generation VI and the big battles in ''Sword and Shield'' with their Dynamax evolutions, Cynthia will only send out her Garchomp at the end once it's her last Pokemon.

* MoneySink: The Metronome Style Shop features several expensive outfits, the most egregious being the Leather Jacket Style which costs 120000 Pokedollars.

** It's possible for the collision detection to end up pushing you behind two [=NPCs=] in Veilstone City, trapped in a two-block wide space. Of course, [[UnwinnableByInsanity no sane person would ever save here]], and thus it would force you to lose whatever progress you made since you last saved, but if you forget you have autosave on and go to the Grand Underground and it autosaves, you're screwed if you don't have a Pokémon with Teleport or don't have both the Fly HM unlocked in the Pokétch and the Badge required to use it.

** While ''VideoGame/PokemonRedAndBlue'' and ''VideoGame/PokemonRubyAndSapphire'' made use of a ChromaticArrangement involving the additive colors red, green, and blue, ''VideoGame/PokemonDiamondAndPearl'' use the subtractive colors cyan, magenta, and yellow.

** Floaroma Town is located north of Jubilife City, but the area itself if you use an OldSaveBonus from ''Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl'' is nowhere near that location.

** The Snowpoint Temple in this game has an unusual Bizarrchitecture. There's no stairs leading to the top of the temple, only below. And going each lower level leads to Regigias. In ''Legends Arceus'', it has multiple stairs and puzzles that leads you to the top, and lower level doors to Regigias.

** Speaking of Floaroma Town, it's located north of Jubilife City, but the area itself if you use an OldSaveBonus from ''Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl'' is nowhere near that location.

* EarlyInstallmentDesignDifference: The game and its remake's map differs greatly from its distant prequel ''VideoGame/PokemonLegendsArceus'':

* LuckBasedMission:
** If you want the TM for [[TakingYouWithMe Explosion]], you have to play the slots in the Game Corner and trigger 10 straight bonus rounds. You're playing slots, so your chain can be broken simply due to bad luck. The European and South Korean versions of the game removed the ability to play at the Game Corner, so in those versions you may randomly receive the TM from an [=NPC=].
** Super Contests, most of all the Acting Competition since bonus points are awarded based on how few other Pokémon choose the same judge. The Visual Competition, though primarily dependent on Poffin feeding, also depends on what theme you get since the opponents choose the same accessories every time (and which accessories correspond to which theme are [[GuideDangIt not always intuitive]]). The only part that isn't particularly luck-based is the Dance Competition, which can possibly make up for lost ground in the other two sections.
** The 5-Maid Knockout Exact-Turn Attack Challenge in ''Platinum'' pits you against a series of five Maids, all of whom have a single Clefairy. In order to beat the challenge, you have to defeat all five in a randomly-determined number of turns -- no more, no less. Sounds easy, right? Unfortunately, every single Clefairy has access to moves like [[NoSell Endure]] or Bounce that they can use to stall for time. Even with the most powerful party capable of single-handedly wiping the floor with the Elite Four, if your opponents use those moves often enough, you fail. Of course, your only reward for beating the challenge is another battle against someone who has a Blissey (though they shell out plenty of cash and you can steal a RareCandy from the Blissey, if you're so inclined).
** If you want to find extra Reaper Cloths beyond the ones normally found as part of play, you have to go back to Turnback Cave after catching Giratina and successfully find all three pillars in only three moves. The rooms are randomly generated, and a reliable way to predict the correct way to go from each room has yet to be found. Considering that the Reaper Cloth's one use (evolving Dusclops into Dusknoir) isn't seen as all that useful beyond filling out a spot in the Pokédex and you already get one for free, most players don't even bother.

** Getting the two new Eevee evolutions is rather unintuitive. Many players assumed Leafeon would evolve with a Leaf Stone (an item that's been around since the first games), much like Flareon, Jolteon, and Vaporeon with their respective stones. However, both Leafeon and Glaceon require leveling up in specific locations (near a Moss Rock or Ice Rock, respectively). The remakes partially {{Retcon}} Leafeon's evolution method by making it evolve from Eevee with a Leaf Stone in addition to the first method, which is carried over from ''[[VideoGame/PokemonSwordAndShield Sword & Shield]]'' since Galar doesn't have a Moss Rock. They also carry over Glaceon's ability to evolve with an Ice Stone, which was first introduced in later generations.
*** Furthermore, if you were trying to get an Espeon or Umbreon (which both evolve based on friendship), but happened to level your Eevee up in a location with one of the evolution-inducing rocks, you'd get a Leafeon or Glaceon instead.

* {{Pun}}:
** From a Skier: "As we skiers like to say, 'spur thing!'"
** Also, from a Birdkeeper with a Noctowl: "We'll show you 'owl' best!"

* IncrediblyLamePun: