Why Pokémon Diamond and Pearl is Better Than You Think
Re-examining Gen 4 and its undeserved middle child status
Pokémon Diamond and Pearl, which came to market in 2006, was released to little fanfare. Even though they outsold all other Pokémon titles upon launch in both Japan and abroad, the generation meant to grow up on Diamond and Pearl has shown nowhere near the same amount of continued support that the original Pokémon games received. Many people felt that Diamond and Pearl failed to improve upon the beloved Ruby and Sapphire while also not introducing new ideas. Pokémon Black and White only pushed general opinion further down as well, as its modernization of the Pokémon formula overshadowed its older sibling.
Generation 4 was the textbook middle child — not particularly offensive, but not interesting either. The wake created by the recent Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl remakes provides the perfect opportunity to explore what made Gen 4 so underrated and overlooked, especially with the hindsight of how the Pokémon franchise turned out in the future. So what does the island region of Sinnoh have to offer?
