
The player can also use his/her Pokémon to do damage to the other Pokémon. Once Pokéballs are obtained, the player can capture more Pokémon using Pokéballs. The player begins the game with no Pokémon or Poké Balls, but is given the choice of three Pokémon as a part of the story line. As with all Pokémon games for handheld consoles, gameplay is in third-person overhead perspective, and consists of three basic screens: a field map, in which the player navigates the main character a battle screen and the menu, in which the player configures his or her party, items, or gameplay settings.

The basic mechanics of the games are largely the same as their predecessors.

Pokémon Diamond and Pearl are role-playing games with adventure elements.
