The latest news on Pokémon Diamond and Pearl? Wi-fi, GBA link-up... Click inside to read more!

Japanese magazine CoroCoro has revealed several interesting pieces of information on the next pair of handheld Pokémon games, set to hit the DS and make the world Pokémon mad once more.

First off, the games have now unfortunately been given a "2006" release date, missing the end of year release in Japan originally speculated. Pokémon-wise, the games are to feature no new types (Fire, Water, etc.) but will feature new type combinations, and new evolutions and pre-evolutions of current monsters will also be availiable.

The article announces Diamond and Pearl will both be able to link up to the current generation of Pokémon games (the GBA's Ruby, Sapphire, Emerald, FireRed and LeafGreen) and monsters from previous versions can be traded in.

The games will also take advantage of the wireless capabilities of the DS and will allow 16 players to connect at once. Now that's quite a Pokémon battle.

Finally, the CoroCoro article (here's a scan from C-E reader Ahmed Z) also mentions a new project "Pokémon Ranger", a new Pokémon animé which will be launched to tie in with the new titles.

Hopefully we'll get some more concrete release details soon. We'll keep you posted.