Pokemon Gen 4 remakes, Legends Arceus release dates revealed

Pokemon trainers now know when they’ll have the chance to return to the Sinnoh region.

Nintendo and The Pokemon Company have confirmed the release dates for generation four remakes Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl, as well as spin-off adventure Pokemon Legends Arceus. The release dates for all three games were confirmed on the official Pokemon Twitter accounts Wednesday.

Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl will launch on November 19, 2021.

The game will be a faithful remake of the original Nintendo DS games, with a similar graphical style but with the modern Pokemon gameplay system. It was revealed to a mixed response in February with many fans saying it was an aesthetic step backwards for a series that was already visually and audibly behind the times.

Fans that don’t like the look of Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl won’t have to wait too long to find an alternative way into the Sinnoh region, however.

Pokemon Legends Arceus will arrive on January 28, 2022.

Pokemon Legends Arceus looks ready to take the series in a very different direction. The game is meant to be something akin to a Pokemon origin story, showing some of the first trainers and the original Pokeball. 

The game will seemingly put a greater focus on open world movement like that seen in the Wild Area in Pokemon Sword and Shield. Battles will also take place within the world, rather than each encounter having a camera wipe before entering an arena. Finally, the game will be the first chance to capture mythical Pokemon Arceus since a 2010 giveaway event for the original Pokemon Diamond and Pearl games.

Why is Arceus so powerful?

Within the Pokemon mythos, Arceus is described in the Pokedex as having existed before the start of the universe and having created the world. Pokemon Diamond and Pearl legendaries Palkia and Dialga were described as controlling time and space, and Arceus was seemingly meant to be in that same vein.

That said, Arceus in the Pokemon lore is a bit stronger than the actual Arceus players can catch in the game.

Arceus is quite powerful in the game, boasting a combined 720 base stats with 120 in each individual stat. This is a good bit more powerful than standard legendaries like Mewtwo and Giratina, who have 680 combined base stats. 

All of them pale in comparison to the Eternamax version of Eternatus that appeared as a boss in Pokemon Sword and Shield with 1,125 base stats. Arceus’ base stats tally is also matched by those of Crowned Zacian and Zamazenta.