Pokemon Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl 1.2 update: Clones banned, Colosseum battles added

Brent Koepp
Pokemon Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl Update 1.2 graphic art screenshot.

The massive 1.2 update has been pushed out for Pokemon Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl. The new patch adds Colosseum battle features and bans cloned Pokemon from being traded.

Following the launch of Pokemon Legends Arceus, Studio ILCA has silently pushed out its biggest update for Pokemon Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl since December 2021.

The patch brings some substantial changes to the Sinnoh remakes such as a more robust online battles feature, a fix to cheating, and more.

Pokemon Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl double battles screenshot.
Pokemon Colosseum battles got more features in the latest update.

Pokemon Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl 1.2

When BDSP launched back in November 2021, players quickly discovered an exploit that allowed them to duplicate items and clone their Pokemon.

While ILCA had tried to patch the glitch out numerous times before, the 1.2 update has brought the biggest hammer to the problem by outright banning cloned ‘mon from being traded or transferred to Pokemon Bank or Home.

The patch also includes an expansion of Union Rooms and additional features for Colosseum battles.

Pokemon Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl 1.2 patch notes

Pokemon Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl Union Room screenshot.
The 1.2 Patch expanded Union Rooms in BDSP.
  • Union Room functions have been expanded.
    • The maximum number of players you can play with via local or internet communication in Union Rooms has been increased. Also, by selecting Greeting or Capsule Decorations, you can show each other your Trainer Cards or Capsule Decorations.
  • Additional Colosseum battle feature has been added.
    • Enter the Colosseum on the 2nd floor of a Pokémon Center to battle with other players using custom rulesets.
    • In the Colosseum, you can set rules, such as the number of Pokémon to send into battle as well as their levels, and play Single Battles, Double Battles, or Multi Battles via local or internet communication.
  • Pokémon Trading and Battles
    • Some Pokémon acquired via unintended methods or illicit modification now cannot be used in Link Trades or Link Battles.
  • Fixed some issues for more pleasant gameplay.

Pokemon Legends Arceus Home Transfer coming soon?

Some other additions not mentioned in the official patch notes were covered by Pokemon researcher ‘mattyoukhana‘ in a series of posts on Twitter.

“BDSP Ver. 1.2.0 that just released adds in a couple of interesting things… Legends: Arceus origin mark is now displayed for Pokémon that originated from that game. The time travel award is now complete and has art! HOME transfers confirmed/incoming?” their social media post explained.

 

While not the biggest of patches, the 1.2 Update is pretty substantial given that it arrives almost three months after the game’s release.

Despite the changes, players are still wondering when the GWS (Global Wonder Station) will be added in for worldwide trading. Some have speculated that the feature was delayed due to cloned Pokemon, which ILCA seems to have just fixed permanently.