>>26541285Diamond and Pearl had some of the best level design in the series, but the frame rate actually cripples it. Really, go replay it after playing any other Gen, it's almost unplayable.
As for minor qualms, the rival was slightly better than Gen 3's, but Barry didn't really bring anything new to the table, and his motivation for everything (particularly for being your rival) was undeveloped and it really weakened him as a character (although to be fair he has one of the best rival teams in the series).
Team Galactic was ruined because in the end they didn't pose an actual threat. Team Rocket nearly took over an entire region, Team Magma/Aqua accidentally started the apocalypse, but all Galactic did was find a legendary that shoots weird waves across the sky. They didn't pose a concrete threat, and most of their members were misguided buffoons, unlike Rocket, who were all cruel thugs, or Magma/Aqua, who were all striving for at least an ideal.
On paper, D/P is incredible. Considering it represented the series transition from Gameboy Advance to the DS's advanced graphics, though, it really falls flat in practice and can objectively be considered a disappointment.
