Today, during a Pokémon Presents video presentation, Tsunekazu Ishihara — president and CEO of The Pokémon Company — announced the new Pokemon Brilliant Diamond, Pokemon Shining Pearl, and Pokemon Legends: Arceus – video games coming to the blockbuster series that spans 25 years.
Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Pokemon Shining Pearl will launch in late 2021, and Pokemon Legends: Arceus will launch in early 2022. All three games will be available exclusively on the Nintendo Switch.
In 2006, Trainers were introduced to the Sinnoh region with the release of the Pokemon Diamond and Pokemon Pearl games on the Nintendo DS. Players can once again visit the Sinnoh region in Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Pokemon Shining Pearl, which are faithful remakes of two iconic Pokemon games.
Pokemon Legends: Arceus will introduce fans to the Sinnoh region of old – before the existence of Pokemon Trainers and Pokemon Leagues. It’s in this long-gone era that players will embark on an entirely new adventure to create the region’s first Pokédex.
“Trainers caught their first Pokémon in 1996 and began an adventure that has lasted 25 years. Through eight regions, many different platforms, and countless Pokémon encounters, they have strived to be the very best,” said Mr. Ishihara. “We hope that fans of all ages will enjoy creating new memories while exploring the Sinnoh region in these new games.”
POKEMON BRILLIANT DIAMOND AND POKEMON SHINING PEARL
Developed by ILCA, Inc., and directed by Junichi Masuda (GAME FREAK) and Yuichi Ueda (ILCA), Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Pokemon Shining Pearl enable fans to experience the original story and game features from Pokemon Diamond and Pokemon Pearl in a fresh way. The original games have been faithfully reproduced and colorfully revitalized for Nintendo Switch.
The sense of scale of the towns and routes has been carefully preserved, and fans who played the original games will recognize many familiar places. These games are updated with the easy-to-understand, player-friendly conveniences introduced in recent Pokemon core series video games, in addition to up-close-and-personal Pokemon battle scenes.
Trainers will choose either Turtwig, Chimchar, or Piplup to be their first partner Pokemon before setting off on their journey. Along the way, they will be able to encounter the Legendary Pokemon Dialga in Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and the Legendary Pokemon Palkia in Pokemon Shining Pearl.
Turtwig
Category: Tiny Leaf Pokémon
Height: 1’4″
Weight: 22.5 lbs.
Type: Grass
Ability: Overgrow
Made from soil, the shell on Turtwig’s back hardens when it drinks water. Turtwig lives along lakes, and the leaf on its head will wilt if the Pokémon is thirsty.
Chimchar
Category: Chimp Pokémon
Height: 1’8″
Weight: 13.7 lbs.
Type: Fire
Ability: Blaze
Chimchar lives atop craggy mountains and can agilely scale sheer cliffs. Even rain can’t extinguish its fiery rear end, which is fueled by gas made in its belly.
Piplup
Category: Penguin Pokémon
Height: 1’4″
Weight: 11.5 lbs.
Type: Water
Ability: Torrent
Because it’s very proud, Piplup hates to accept food from people. A skilled swimmer, its thick down protects it from the cold as it dives for over 10 minutes while hunting.
Dialga
Category: Temporal Pokémon
Height: 17’9″
Weight: 1505.8 lbs.
Type: Steel/Dragon
Ability: Pressure
Dialga appears in Sinnoh-region myths as an ancient deity and has the power to control time. It is said that time began to move when Dialga was born.
Palkia
Category: Spatial Pokémon
Height: 13’9″
Weight: 740.8 lbs.
Type: Water/Dragon
Ability: Pressure
Described as a deity in Sinnoh-region mythology, Palkia has the ability to distort space. It is said to live in a gap in the spatial dimension parallel to ours.
POKEMON LEGENDS: ARCEUS
The fun of exploring while catching Pokemon and filling in a Pokédex has always been a core part of the Pokemon video game series. Pokemon Legends: Arceus was developed with the desire to deliver an experience infused with new action and RPG elements that go beyond the framework established thus far, while honoring the core gameplay of past Pokemon titles.
As Trainers explore the natural expanses in Pokemon Legends: Arceus, they’ll encounter Pokemon that call these grand vistas home. To catch wild Pokemon, players can study the Pokemon’s behaviors, sneak up to them, then throw Poké Balls.
Players can also battle wild Pokemon with their ally Pokemon. By throwing the Poké Ball holding their ally Pokemon near a wild Pokemon, players will seamlessly enter battle. This new gameplay angle is intended to provide Trainers with an immersive experience.
Pokemon Legends: Arceus brings Trainers to the vast Sinnoh region as it existed in the past, long before the setting for Pokemon Diamond and Pokemon Pearl was established. Rich in nature and with Mount Coronet towering at its heart, this is a Sinnoh unlike anything Trainers have experienced before as they embark to create the region’s first Pokédex.
As they start off on their adventure, Trainers will be able to choose either Rowlet, Cyndaquil, or Oshawott as their first partner Pokemon. These three Pokemon arrived with a Pokemon Professor, who encountered them on research excursions to various regions.
Rowlet
Category: Grass Quill Pokémon
Height: 1′
Weight: 3.3 lbs.
Type: Grass/Flying
This Pokemon from the Alola region uses photosynthesis to store up energy during the day and becomes active at night. It can silently glide to its target and begin pelting it with vicious kicks.
Cyndaquil
Category: Fire Mouse Pokémon
Height: 1’8″
Weight: 17.4 lbs.
Type: Fire
Cyndaquil, a timid Pokemon that is often curled up in a ball, is from the Johto region. The flames on its back flare up when it’s surprised and can also be used to protect itself when attacked.
Oshawott
Category: Sea Otter Pokémon
Height: 1’8″
Weight: 13 lbs.
Type: Water
Oshawott is from the Unova region and has a scalchop on its stomach. It uses the scalchop to retaliate against attacks and to break open hard Berries.
Arceus
Category: Alpha Pokémon
Height: 10’6″
Weight: 705.5 lbs.
Type: Normal
Arceus is said to have shaped all there is in this world.
NEW POKEMON SNAP
New Pokemon Snap is a previously-announced video game in which players will take on the role of a budding Pokemon photographer in the Lental region. There they will work with Professor Mirror, the region’s expert, on an ecological survey to photograph Pokemon thriving in nature. The game will be available on April 30, 2021 (pre-order at Amazon) for the Nintendo Switch.
Wild Pokemon thrive on the islands of the Lental region, where environments can differ greatly, making for a variety of habitats where different Pokemon expressions and behaviors can be observed. Players will be able to get their attention by playing a melody or throwing fluffruit.
They’ll also be able to use an Illumina orb (an invention of Professor Mirror’s) on Pokemon to witness something out of the ordinary. They can even use their camera to run scans, which can help them find hidden Pokemon or inspect their surroundings.
As players keep researching a course, their research level there will increase, and they may discover Pokemon acting in different ways. Trainers may even encounter Legendary Pokemon or Mythical Pokemon.
A photo’s score will be based on the subjects’ poses, how large they appear, how directly they’re facing the camera, and where they fall in frame. Each photo will get one to four stars, indicating how common or rare the behavior displayed is. Players will have to take many photos to fill out their Photodex, which is their collection of Pokemon photographs.
Photos taken while conducting research can also be saved to a personal album, which is separate from the Photodex. When a course is completed, players can use the re-snap function to adjust the brightness, blur, zoom, and other aspects of their recently snapped photos. After photos are saved to the personal album, a photo-editing mode will enable players to customize their photos with stickers, frames, and filters.
New Pokemon Snap also has several online features that enable players to share photos and compete with others around the world through ranking systems.