We're only a little over a month before the release of Game Freak's Pokemon Legends: Arceus. To help drum up hype for something that has the potential to change the Pokemon franchise forever, Nintendo dropped a new trailer introducing several characters that longtime series fans might know a thing or two about.

Are you ready for Pokemon Legends: Arceus?

Unlike previous mainline Pokemon installments that are usually set in the same timeline, Pokemon Legends: Arceus takes gamers back hundreds of years ago when the Sinnoh region was still known as Hisui. Because of how far back in time it is, much of the gameplay structure and formula of Pokemon Legends: Arceus will be vastly different. There'll be no cities and the usual buildings like gyms, centers, and more. Also, instead of the usual top-down perspective, Pokemon Legends: Arceus will be a third-person game with an open-world-lite setting.

TLDR; Pokemon Legends: Arceus will be a very different Pokemon game.

Having said that, the latest Pokemon Legends: Arceus trailer doesn't delve too much into what's different in the game in terms of perspective and gameplay. Instead, it introduces the prominent clans in the region: Diamond and Pearl.

Meet the Hisui region’s Diamond and Pearl Clans, as well as the merchants from the Ginkgo Guild. 🤝

There’s so much more to discover in #PokemonLegendsArceus!https://t.co/WI1CBeipt4 pic.twitter.com/uuz4dHd6op

— Pokémon (@Pokemon) December 15, 2021

As a prequel to Pokemon Diamond and Pearl, as well as each game's remakes, Pokemon Legends: Arceus is also connected to the previous games in a lot of ways. For example, trainers with save files from the remakes, Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Pokemon Shining Pearl, can take on exclusive research requests in Pokemon Legends: Arceus. Doing this will lead to an encounter with Darkrai, a Mythical Pokemon, as well as the Modern Team Galactic set.

In addition to connections with Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Pokemon Shining Pearl, the short update also introduced the Ginkgo Guild, which is a group of merchants who operate within Hisui and sell goods to other trainers. The group's leader, Ginter, and his assistant, Volo, will supply players with everything they need throughout their journey.

In an earlier article, we found out that the Nintendo Switch was again the best-selling console in the United States while Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl were among the best-selling titles for the month. If all goes well, Pokemon Legends: Arceus could end up topping those numbers and help the Nintendo Switch stay on top as the best-selling console for the next few months.

Pokemon Legends: Arceus is set to release for the Nintendo Switch on January 28, 2022.