The latest trailer for Pokémon Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl has revealed some of the new features that are coming to the game, as well as some expanded old ones, including revamped versions of the Underground and Union Room. Pokémon Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl are upcoming remakes of the Sinnoh region games, which appear to use the Pokémon Platinum Pokédex but have added new content.
The new information presented for Pokémon Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl suggests that it won't include any Pokémon that weren't present in the original games. This is a break from tradition for remade Pokémon games unless the Let's Go games are counted as remakes of Pokémon Yellow, as they only contained Pokémon from Kanto, their Alolan forms, and the Melmetal line. There's also no evidence that the Pokémon remakes will use Mega Evolutions, Z-Moves, or Dynamaxing are going to be part of the game.
Wednesday's Pokémon Presents showcase was broadcast on The Official Pokémon YouTube Channel, and it revealed new information about the game. The story of the games appears to be the same as the originals, but new gameplay features have been added. The Underground from Pokémon Diamond & Pearl is now the Grand Underground, where players can create secret bases. There are new Pokémon hideaways, which change depending on the statues placed in a base. This is necessary for finding specific Pokémon.
Players can now use stickers to change the effects that play when Pokémon exit their Poké Ball. The protagonist can also have their outfit changed in a manner similar to newer mainline Pokémon games. Diamond and Pearl's original Pokémon Contests have been revamped with rhythm minigames, and the Union Room is back and can be used to trade and battle. Most importantly, Pokémon can follow the player like in Pokémon Let's Go and Sword and Shield, and wild Pokémon will additionally be shown on the map.
It seems that the intention with Pokémon Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl is to keep it as close to the original games as possible while improving what was already there. The new features look like they will be a lot of fun, especially the Grand Underground - even the Contests seem a lot more lively than they were in the original games. The clothing customization feature and following Pokémon are probably going to be fans' favorite new additions, as they represent some of the most popular aspects of the Pokémon games where they appear.
Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl will be available for Nintendo Switch on November 19, 2021.