New trailers for Pokémon Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl and Pokémon Legends: Arceus

Fandom reception toward Pokémon Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl 's cutesy and hefty-headed character models has been fairly divisive. Simultaneously, there's been a good deal more praise toward the substantially more detailed (not to mention anatomically accurate) approach that ILCA is taking with those self-same characters during battle sequences. The radical differences between overworld and combat models summons to my mind a similar scenario way back in Final Fantasy VII.

What does any of this have to do with today's flashy new trailer? Well, see for yourself.

Pokemon Brilliant Diamond / Shining Pearl - Team Galactic Trailer

We're just a few weeks away from Pokémon BDSP's launch, which means that The Pokémon Company International has been burning the Litwick at both ends to give us fresh details galore. This latest spotlight (re)introduces us to Sinnohian Gym Leaders Candice and Volkner before doubling down on Team Galactic's dogma and giving us a glimpse of battle with the man Cyrus himself.

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There he is. The legendary leader of Team Galactic. The man who will stop at nothing to realize his goal. Look upon the stress marks marring his face, ye mighty, and know despair.

At the tail end of today's trailer, Nintendo revealed a trio of limited-time items for players to look forward to so long as they grab the game before February 21. First up is some fashionable garb designed to trick fans of Pokémon Platinum into believing the Battle Frontier is just past that next horizon.

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If style ain't your style, how about a troublesome child? A Manaphy egg will be downloadable via Mystery Gift. And if that's still not enough, look, just take a dozen Quick Balls and scram, kid.

Pokémon Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl are coming to a Nintendo Switch near you on November 19.

Pokémon Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl

In addition to the Sinnoh-related festivities, we've also been treated to an extended look at a pair of cuties from the distant past — Pokémon Legends: Arceus'   recently teased Hisuian Zoroa and Zoroark, regional forms of the fifth-generation originals. One can't help but wonder if all these Hisuian variants met with a terrible fate in the hundreds of years between Legends and the Sinnoh we know so well.

Pokemon Legends: Arceus - Zoroa and Zoroark Trailer

Normal/Ghost isn't the fanciest-sounding type combination on the block, but in practice, it should prove to be a force worth reckoning with.

Legends' early purchase treats were also unveiled:

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I love this thing.

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I love this thing, too.

Similar to Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl's offers, players can also secure some catching tools. In this case, it's 30 Heavy Balls, and it's important to note that unlike the Baneful Fox Mask and Hisuian Growlithe Kimono, the Heavy Balls are exclusive to digital purchases.

Pokémon Legends: Arceus will arrive on January 28.

Pokemon Legends: Arceus