Pokemon Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl is back to reinvigorate all your best memories of the Sinnoh Region, with plenty of nostalgic locations to revisit and Pokemon to catch. The new Switch remake even includes some new Pokemon you can receive — fans call them Gift Pokemon, Pokemon you can get just by talking to different people. These rewards have been around forever, but there are a few new additions in the remake you’ll want to keep an eye out for.
The biggest addition appears in the Grand Underground. While exploring this new expanded Underground area, you can find fossils of long extinct Pokemon. You can find fossils while digging, and they’re totally random — but each fossil will give you a different Pokemon if you take it back to the Oreburgh City museum. We’ve seen some fossilized Pokemon returning to life in previous games, and I always love adding Aerodactyl to my team.
More Pokemon Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl guides:
How To Catch All Legendary Pokemon | How To Get Mew, Jirachi & Manaphy | Where To Find Evolution Stones | All Field Moves | Early Mystery Gifts | Easier Grand Underground Catching | How To Catch Rotom & Change Forms
All Gift Pokemon Locations
Gift Pokemon are Pokemon you can receive by talking to NPCs, or by trading with NPCs in-game. If you bring the NPC a special item or fulfill a requirement, you’ll get a Pokemon in return. Here’s where to find them all.
- Jirachi / Mew: Floaroma Town – Talk to the old NPC couple on the left as you enter the town. If you have a save file on the Nintendo Switch for different Pokemon games, you’ll receive one of these mythical Pokemon.
- Jirachi: Pokemon Sword & Shield save file.
- Mew: Let’s Go Pikachu! / Eevee! save file.
- Happiny: Hearthome City – Talk to the NPC near the Route 209 exit. He’ll offer to give you an egg. Take it and hatch to get a Happiny.
- Riolu: Iron Island – Can’t miss. During the story, Riley will ask for your help on Iron Island. After the quest is complete, Riley will give you a Pokemon egg.
- Eevee: Hearthome City – Return to Hearthome City after unlocking the National Pokedex. Talk to Bebe in her house to get a free Eevee.
- Fossil Pokemon: Oreburgh City – In the Grand Underground, you will sometimes find Pokemon Fossils when digging. Return these fossils to the Oreburgh City Museum and you can restore the fossils to living Pokemon.
- Aerodactyl: Old Amber
- Omanyte: Helix Fossil
- Lileep: Root Fossil
- Anorith: Claw Fossil
- Cranidos: Skull Fossil
- Shieldon: Armor Fossil
- Kabuto: Dome Fossil
That’s all the gift Pokemon you can receive — or find while digging around the underground. If you find fossils, make sure to take them to the museum for various new Pokemon rewards.
