Pokemon Black and White 2 dated for Japan, game details released

Not too long ago, Nintendo announced the production of Black and White 2 for Nintendo DS. Now we finally got a date for the Japanese release: June 23.

Along with the release date, while the North American release remains "Fall 2012," as originally noted. In addition to dating the game, there was also a nice collection of preview material released in Coro Coro magazine.

Pokemon Black and White 2 will bring fans back to the Unova region two years after the events of the first game, and give them a choice between the new male and female protagonist. The new main character sprites have a sportier fashion sense; the girl wears her hair in a style that looks like a mash-up between Sailor Moon and Princess Leia.

The game also presents us with a new rival character known as... Rival. We're not sure if that's his legitimate name, but in the mean time that's what everyone is calling him. He -- much like Cheren and Blanca -- is a childhood friend of the player's character.

The preview also introduces fans to a new professor named "Akuroma," who is researching the strength of pokemon. Rounding out the new additions, two new gym leaders, Homika and Shizui,also join the cast. There's no word on who they will be replacing, but we do know that one is a Poison-type user while the other will be making waves with their Water-type lineup.

Players will find themselves starting in a new location, Hiougi City, situated in Unova's southern region.  The Pokedex has also been expanded upon to an impressive 300, making it safe to assume there will be more new critters to capture, collect, and train.

Nothing about Black and White 2's plot has been revealed yet, so we're still unsure if it will continue the storyline of the first game or go in a completely new direction.  If nothing else, we hope it lives up to the hype brought on by its predecessor's narrative.