Not long after revealing a new form of Voltorb, Nintendo and Game Freak have shared another trailer for the upcoming Pokémon Legends: Arceus. Instead of Pokémon, this one focuses on some of the new characters you’ll meet throughout the game. Namely, two organizations called the Diamond Clan and the Pearl Clan.
According to the official website, the two clans pay respects to the noble Pokémon of the Hisui region and have wardens who serve them. If you’ve been keeping up to date with Pokemon Legends news, then you’re already familiar with a couple of them, such as Arezu and Lian who are respective members of the Diamond and Pearl Clans.
The obvious connection to the Pokémon Diamond and Pearl games is unsurprising considering Pokemon Legends is set in the same region – Sinnoh – as them (albeit in the distant past). The color schemes for their clothes are also clearly inspired by the legendary Pokémon Dialga and Palkia.
The Clans’ leaders are called Adaman and Irida, who are described as being regularly at odds with each other due to their conflicting personalities. You’ll also encounter a pair of merchants called Ginter and Volo, who will sell you items for your journey.
Have we met before?
Game Freak has already teased that some of the characters in Pokémon Legends are the ancestors of NPCs from the Diamond and Pearl games, but it’s not immediately obvious with these four new faces.
Ginter could be related to one of the Gym Leaders, Volkner, since their faces are a tad similar. Ginter’s character art of him sitting in a chair is also near-identical to official art for Volkner, who is pictured sitting in the same position.
As for Volo, he could very well be the ancestor of Cynthia, the Sinnoh region’s champion. While both characters have blonde hair, Volo and Cynthia’s hair also curves so that it covers their left eye, which seems like too much of a coincidence to not be intentional.
Pokemon Legends: Arceus is to be a very different experience compared to the mainline games, embracing more of an open-world structure in a manner similar to The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. It releases for the Nintendo Switch on January 28, 2022.