Coming back after leaving during Generation IV

Generation IV fixed the physical and special split

Diamond and Pearl went on sale in Japan on 28 September 2006 and added 107 species for 493 in total. Every damaging move got its own physical or special category, which is the rule every game since has kept. Stealth Rock, Toxic Spikes and Trick Room arrived, along with Life Orb, Choice Specs and Choice Scarf. The Global Trade Station allowed trades with strangers over Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection. Eggs started hatching at level 1, and the Masuda method gave parents of two languages about a 1 in 1,638 shiny chance. Platinum added Giratina's Origin Forme and a Battle Frontier, and HeartGold and SoulSilver had the lead Pokémon follow the player.

Three rule changes since 2010 matter for a returning team

Black and White in 2010 made TMs reusable and introduced hidden abilities, a third ability slot that later games let you pass through breeding. X and Y in 2013 added Fairy as the 18th type, retyped Clefairy, Togepi, Marill and others, and removed Steel's resistance to Ghost and Dark. Sword and Shield in 2019 stopped carrying the full National Pokédex: each game since holds a regional list, and a species outside it cannot be used there. Along the way the Exp. Share became a switch for the whole party, Mints changed a nature's stat effect and HMs were removed. The what-changed pages for Generations V, VI and VIII cover each one.

Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl remade Sinnoh closely

Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl came out on Nintendo Switch in 2021 and follow the original map, gyms and story, including the Grand Underground. They use the newer rules on top: Fairy type, the whole-party Exp. Share and no HMs. Legends: Arceus (January 2022) is a different kind of game set in Hisui, an earlier Sinnoh: open areas, catching without battling, Hisuian forms and new evolutions such as Wyrdeer. Platinum and HeartGold or SoulSilver fans have no Switch equivalent, and those DS cartridges still play on a DS, DSi or 3DS. Choose the remakes for the route you remember and Legends: Arceus for something new in the same place.

DS cartridges still play, trade locally and send to Generation V

Diamond, Pearl, Platinum, HeartGold and SoulSilver save without a battery, so the save on a working cartridge should still be there. Local wireless trades and battles between two DS systems still work. Online play through Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection ended on 20 May 2014, which took the Global Trade Station, online battles and the Wi-Fi Plaza with it. The Pokéwalker still syncs over infrared with HeartGold and SoulSilver. To move Pokémon forward, Poké Transfer in Black or White receives them from a Generation IV game on a second DS. From a Generation V cartridge, Poké Transporter on a 3DS sends them to Pokémon Bank, and Bank passes them to HOME on the Premium plan until 25 February 2027.

Limit. Poké Transfer and Poké Transporter move one way only; once a Pokémon reaches Generation V or Bank it cannot go back to the DS cartridge.

Use the first week to replay before you transfer

Day one: choose between Brilliant Diamond or Shining Pearl, Legends: Arceus, or a newer game such as Scarlet and Violet; the which-game page sets them side by side. Day two and three: play and read the Generation VI page, since Fairy and the Steel changes affect Sinnoh favourites such as Garchomp and Lucario. Day four: power on each DS cartridge and write down what the save holds. Day five: check that you have a Generation V game, two DS-family systems and a 3DS that still has Bank and Transporter installed. Day six: move one Pokémon all the way to HOME and confirm it arrives. Day seven: build a team with the first-team guide.