Fans of Pokemon have long been united by their love for fantastical cockfights, their active support of Darwinism, and their obsessive-compulsive collecting. When Pokemon Diamond and Pokemon Pearl launch in April on the DS, the far-flung Poke-nation diaspora will take another step towards unity, finally able to voice their love unabashedly to each other no matter how many leagues lie between them. In theory, at least. As you might expect, players will need to enter each other's Friend Codes in order to enable the chat feature, so in all likelihood most of the chatting will be done amongst the previously acquainted. Players can either connect and play over a local wireless connection, or they can log on to Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection to challenge Trainers worldwide.
Diamond and Pearl also feature some new Wi-Fi Connection locales to address some of your more pressing Poke-needs. The Global Trade Station functions as a Pokemon Craigslist of sorts, allowing you to post Pokemon you want to trade on a board and browse the offerings that have already been posted. This could make catching 'em all a sight easier for those inclined to barter.
