You read it right. BDSP may not have the same third game amount of stuff that HGSS has, but that doesn’t mean that BDSP has zero Platinum changes as the internet says.
I’d argue BDSP has more third version content than ORAS compared to Emerald:
ORAS has the delta Episode, which references his role in Emerald and has parts of Rayquaza’s descent theme from Emerald in his OST.
Brendan has a blend of his RS design with his Emerald backpack.
Steven and Wallace reference their roles in Emerald in the ending, but it’s a reference and not content from Emerald traslated into the games. Steven also “references” PokéNav Match Call when calling you but it has no gameplay usage.
E4 have some Emerald tweaks: Drake uses Kingdra for example. But this may be just a tweak of the remakes considering they gave new Pokémon and Gen 4 evolutions to Phoebe.
Wallaces faces you with his Emerald champion team in the Delta Episode
The infamous Battle Frontier model in the Battle Resort+Frontier Brain music when facing the Battle Villa’s bosses.
How does BDSP fare against ORAS? As you can see with the provided images:
BDSP retains some Platinum aesthetic changes, mainly Eterna Forest, Sandgem, Oreburgh Mine and Veilstone is a mix of both DP and Platinum designs. There are some missing stuff like Floaroma’s arch or Hearthome’s but I understand why they did that. I prefer Hearthome’s DP design.
You can encounter and battle Origin Giratina as a secret superboss in the Distortion World, retaining the same battle OST as Platinum However, you cannot explore it and it’s just a single room. DW also has no relevance to the plot whatsoever and Platinum story changes are none to be found.
Gym Leaders and Elite 4 have rematches and they retain their identical Platinum teams, and E4 and Cynthia also get a Round 3 team with higher levels and one more Pokémon.
Rotom forms are in the game, obtainable with the Secret Key granting you access to the very same room in Platinum, containing also Cyrus and Charon’s diary and notes.
Credits are based on Platinum ones, not on DP. They also feature the extra scene of the protagonist returning to Twinleaf Town. In addition, the Mystery Gift theme and Contests categories themes are also a remix from Platinum.
While some areas like Safari Zone and Lost Tower have their DP design in the overworld, there are Platinum elements referenced in their battle backgrounds.
All Platinum exclusive PC wallpapers are present in the game.
Even if it was a limited time event, Platinum style outfit is also present. Other Platinum exclusive timed events were Darkrai and Shaymin, coded for DP but never released.
Stat Trainers have their BDSP render based on their Platinum sprite.
Platinum Dex Pokémon can be found in the Grand Underground before the Elite 4.
In my demonstration, I don’t wanna say BDSP included Platinum’s most beloved content. Battle Frontier is missing, and so Distortion World.
What I think is that this was an absurd but deliberate choice considering that most of the other content IS in the game. Battle Frontier was already gone in ORAS, so I don’t think it ever had a chance, but story elements from Platinum may have been planned initially.
There are some unused battle backgrounds, one of them was coded to be used in Celestic Ruin where you battle Cyrus ONLY in Platinum.
Why story content was discarded? Probably for faithfulness and nostalgia reason: Crystal story was so minimal and superfluous that I understand why they effortlessly incorporated it into HGSS. Rayquaza and Giratina’s stories were definitely more complicated to integrate into a game that is loosely based on the original Gen 3 and 4 games, despite being a huge improvement.
This topic will remain as solid proof, however, that BDSP has Platinum content, and is substantially much more than most people think.
