Pokemon Releases Two New Trailers About Its Upcoming Games

Two brand new trailers were released today on the Official Pokémon Company’s YouTube channel, one for the upcoming Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl games, and one for the highly anticipated Pokémon Legends: Arceus. Both trailers revealed new information about the upcoming titles. Of course, spoiler warning for both games going forward.

Starting off with the Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl trailer, the new developers appear to be remaining quite faithful to the original games. Some NPCs like Riley and Cheryl made an appearance in the trailer, and it seems they will follow the player around for the same sections of the game that they originally did. The trailer also showed the return of poffins, but added a fun mechanic of letting certain Pokémon follow the player around and take part in creating poffins, much like the Pokémon Camp and making curry from Pokémon Sword and Shield.

Also, the new Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl trailer showed off the Pokétch, a classic tool from the original games. This appears to be the return of a step counter and other various gadgets, as well as the use of Hidden Machines, or HMs, like Cut and Fly. The Pokétch will call upon the help of a wild Pokémon to utilize the HM move, allowing the player to progress.

Next, there is the new trailer for Pokemon Legends: Arceus, which has a lot more to unpack. First, the player seems to be able to tame or attract rideable Pokémon like Wyrdeer and Basculegion by playing a flute. Coincidentally, the flute also appears to play the same short jingle that would play when the original Pokémon Diamond and Pearl were loaded up on a Nintendo DS. The ability to change the trainer’s appearance was also shown, and it’s clear that players will have a massive amount of variety to change their clothes and hairstyle in the game, which is a nice touch to give each player a more distinct experience.

The new trailer also showed off the ability to take photos with Pokémon and some sort of crafting mechanic. The player was shown using an Oran Berry and a Medicinal Leak to create a Potion, which is an item normally purchasable from any Poké Mart. It’s not yet clear how in-depth this mechanic will go, but it certainly opens the door for ideas never before seen in a Pokémon game.

The new Pokemon Legends: Arceus trailer also introduced Wardens, unique characters who protect special Pokémon. One of these wardens is protecting a Noble Pokémon called Kleavor, which turns out to be an entirely new evolution for the Kanto Pokémon Scyther. Kleavor, the axe Pokémon, has axes for hands and is a Bug and Rock type Pokémon. The player will be tasked with putting an end to Kleavor’s rampage by throwing some items at it and eventually fighting it with a Pokémon of their own. It also seems that there will be more Noble Pokémon in Pokémon Legends: Arceus, but what it means to be Noble, and what other Pokémon will fall into that category is yet to be seen.

Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl release for the Switch on November 19th, 2021 and Pokémon Legends: Arceus releases for the Switch on January 28th, 2022. Both games are available for pre-order now.