Pokemon Diamond & Pearl remakes will reportedly be announced before Pokemon Day

The long-awaited Pokemon Diamond & Pearl remakes are expected to officially be announced ahead of the Pokemon Day celebrations next week, in a move that should see The Pokemon Company pull the trigger as early as February 22.

The hype for the Diamond & Pearl remakes, which would see the Pokemon franchise return to Sinnoh for the first time since 2006, is at an all-time high.

It’s been years and years of waiting too. Pokemon Alpha Sapphire and Omega Ruby, which took trainers on a whirlwind tour of ever-popular Hoenn, was released in 2014. An update of the 4th gen (Diamond & Pearl) was expected to follow soon after, but seven years of waiting has put a damper on that timeline.

That wait, however, looks to finally be over.

According to insiders Centro, who have a solid history with leaks, eager trainers “won’t have to wait until Pokemon Day on the 27th for the big news.”

The tweet was accompanied by a picture of legendary dragon Dialga.

“[Trainers] won’t have to wait until Saturday,” the Pokemon insiders added, though they were unable to pinpoint an exact date or time for the expected Diamond & Pearl announcement.

This solo announcement suggests we’ll see a Pokemon Direct where the remakes are announced. Dexerto’s lead Pokemon reporter, Brent Koepp, suggested it could be “Wednesday or Thursday,” due to the fact it’s “not too far away from Pokemon Day,” while still keeping the huge news close to the big day.

Direct dates have been edging towards the end of the week, too.

Last year saw a Direct announcement hosted on a Thursday, while the two in 2019 were both held on Wednesday. Different days in 2016 and 2017 ⁠— Friday and Tuesday respectively ⁠— also suggest there’s no ‘set date’ for Directs.

• Read More: 5 things a Diamond & Pearl remake needs

Right now, Dexerto suggests you mark your calendars for Feb. 25-26; these late-in-the-week dates seem most likely for the expected Diamond & Pearl reveal.

Now, it’s worth keeping in mind this is all speculation for now ⁠— until The Pokemon Company comes out and confirms anything, it’s all up in the air.

The Pokemon Diamond & Pearl remakes being announced next week seems likely, however. Eagle-eyed trainers have already spotted a diamondpearl.pokemon.com webpage that (currently) redirects to the company’s webmaster, and a strange new Twitter account has added fuel to the fire too.

• Read More: 6 Pokemon games that could be released in 2021

Either way, the new remakes ⁠— tipped to be called “Sky Diamond” and “Ocean Pearl” ⁠— should be on their way in 2021; it’s just a matter of when The Pokemon Company actually decides to lifts the lid on the long-awaited games.