4th Gen Was HGSS an improvement on DPPt?

[Aquacorde]

The Pokémon franchise as a whole is always looking to change and improve. So I was thinking- what things changed between DP, Plat, and HGSS? What did they improve on in such a short time between games? They're on the same platform, made with the same bases and in the same style. Sure, DPPt and HGSS are a little difficult to compare in the grand scheme, but let's take a look at the details. Do you think Platinum and HGSS brought more to the table? What did the earlier games lack that you saw in later games? What would you have liked the later games to have kept?

Note: this is not about your favourite of the five games. There's a thread for that already. This about the improvements and fine-tuning you see between these five games (so let's not talk about GSC either k)

 

[pokemonranger109]

I absolutly positivly believe it was an Improvement because not only is it my favorite pokemon game, but you can catch more pokemon like ones from Hoeen, Sinnoh, and all the other regions you can catch 15 legandarys. (Say I am wrong and I will list them XD seriously....) Finally it adds new aspects such as the Pokeathon or what I call the Pokemon Olimpics. There are more daily and weekly activitys. Finnaly SO MUCH POST GAME! I love post game things.

 

[curiousnathan]

I definitely think HGSS were improvements on DPPt, but also kept the nostalgia factor of GSC which is an added positive. Out of the two I definitely prefer HGSS mainly because of its expansive storyline and graphics. On the topic of graphics, I feel as though GF jumped from chunky (yet still pretty) aesthetics to more refined aesthetics which I particularly loved.

In addition, the mini games in HGSS such as the Bug Catching Contest and Poke Athlon) I found to be way more enjoyable than Pokemon Contests in DPPt. And then there's the little things like the permanent sprint button and the faster surfing speed (introduced in Platinum) that I found really made HGSS just that little bit more fun and less frustrating.

HGSS are definitely an improvement on DPPt, but each series of games can be considered fantastic in the own right.

 

[CliCliW]

Both series are awesome, but HGSS did improve a lot of things!

Speed: After playing HGSS, Diamond and Pearl are sooooooo sloooooow. It's ridiculous.

The Menu: I loved the way the pause menu was on the touch screen

The Graphics: idk, I just feel like there were nicer graphics in HGSS

The minigames: More or less what others said really on this one :) I loved the Pokeathlon so much! :D

 

[Sun]

It's a slight improvement in my opinion, breeding mechanics, graphics, running shoes and a few minor things but more than that i'd actually prefer Pt(not DP) over HgSs tbh.
For instance the Pokemon Box Storage is more convenient in DPt.
While most people enjoy their Pokemon following them, which I did too in the very beginning, I found it annoying.
The phone call rematch feature is a big nono to me, I'd rather use the VS Seeker or battle the Gym Leaders in Buck's Restaurant...
I found most of the buttons in HgSs too 'blocky' like the item bag, I think the bag in DPt's actually better than HgSs.

Conclusion: It's definitely an improvement, though a slight one.

 

[blue]

Not necessarily, don't get me wrong both DPPT and HGSS are some of the best Pokémon games to date. For me though I preferred Pokémon Diamond & Pearl over Heart Gold & Soul Silver, Sinnoh appealed to me much more along with the storyline and the Pokémon available in-game.

 

[DarkPoke001]

I think conpared to Diamond Pearl and Platinum, HeartGold and SoulSilver was 1 graphical step forward, 2 content steps back, why you ask? HG/SS had 8 more gyms? be that as it may, DPPt had a much deeper and richer storyline to associate with, whereas, although meant to be remakes of the Gen II games, they could have added a lot more, yes there's pokeathlon and the safari zone, but what happened to the pokeradar, the handy widget on the botton screen, now the menu is there... it looks nice but SURELY Nintendo could have though lt something up, it is good however that on both games (HG/SS) you can catch the mascot (Ho-Oh/Lugia) which was only available to Platinum before not Diamond and Pearl... overall i think it's a fantastic fresh look on the Gen II classics, but could have had some extra features to put the icing on the cake :)

 

[Typhon]

I don't necessarily know about this one. Yes, HG/SS had many more features, and fixed many glitches etc. But D/P/Pt was unique. You could say Platinum was an improvement to fix the slowness in D/P, putting aside the Distortion World. And yes, they did introduce a ton of sprites in HG/SS, which some of them were great and some not so great! xD

HG/SS felt too different from D/P/Pt for me to say that it's an improvement. But it's definitely good small improvements which are really useful, like the fast surfing. God it was slow in D/P! 0_0

 

[LoudSilence]

HeartGold/SoulSilver were the best games since Gen 2 IMO, got plenty of reasons why:

1) I absolutely loved the connection between Kanto and Johto, it felt like a huge world and not some isolated piece of land with yet another set of gym leaders and a champion to some Pokemon League you don't know or care about. The continuity felt really cool.

2) The story of the fallen Team Rocket trying to find their lost leader. The only true criminal gang without some weird delusions about their actions being for the betterment of the society. Just straight up bad guys who did things for themselves

3) The rival was not just some goofy "oh let's fight we're best friends" character like every game since Gen 3. He was a real rival in the true sense of the word. He was also someone who only cared about power and saw anything else (including you) as an obstacle to that. He stole his starter and actually turns out to be Giovanni's son! Honestly, how much cooler could he get?

4) The Pokedex and bag navigation is brilliantly streamlined and accessible, they botched both of these up badly with Black/White and their sequels

5) You don't have to hold B to run!!

6) Best interaction with your Pokemon in any game since Pokemon Yellow and until the current gen (X/Y). You really could feel connected to them

7) Best Pokemon variety until X/Y

8) Black and White attempted to fully animate sprites and they turned out really really ugly and pixelated, especially from the back. This was the most perfect the sprite work ever got before X/Y

9) The post-game is probably the largest out of all the gens, I can't even remember how many hours I've sunken into it and I'm still nowhere near completion. I just had to stop to actually play the new ones :p

I could go on and on. Seriously the best games ever in the series

 

[sulley]

I believe HGSS improved a lot over D/P.
The speed of the battles is greatly improved
The menus are easier to use and work well with the touch screen.

Also you can have your favourite pokemon follow you!!!!