Definitivamente é um remake de respeito.

Me impressionei com a qualidade grafica desse jogo (vale mencionar que joguei via citra com resolução 8x) mas todo o level design definitivamente recebeu o tempo e a dedicação que merecia.

No mais é o Pokemon Ruby/Sapphire que conheçemos com poucas mudanças, recomendo para os fãs da série.

It's definitely a respectful remake.

I was impressed with the graphical quality of this game (it's worth mentioning that I played via citra at 8x resolution) but the entire level design definitely received the time and dedication it deserved.

Other than that, it's the Pokemon Ruby/Sapphire that we know with few changes, I recommend it for fans of the series.

I was the prime age of 7 years old, vulnerable to the indoctrination of Pokemon Red/Blue when it was released in 1996. I was obsessed, I recently had my Pokemon Blue save file backed up and battery replaced by a company to ensure my many many hours of gameplay and 151 Pokemon were safe. Then I was gifted Pokemon Yellow for my Birthday with a Yellow Game Boy Colour and loved it just as much, the small changes to align the game with the TV show was enough to make it feel like a brand new game all over. Then Pokemon Silver came out, I enjoyed it but to be honest I cannot ever remember completing it. A few years ago I tried Pokemon SoulSilver and binned it out of frustration. It was too much like Blue/Red that I found myself putting together the same team from generation 1 and going nowhere near the new pokemon introduced in the game. I’d declared myself done with the franchise when I also saw the modern Pokemon designs and how absolutely bonkers they were. That was, until I got the itch again…

WARNING: If you are a big fan of the Pokemon games then I don’t think this review is for you. I am one of those 151 Pokemon lovers and nothing beyond so if you are a diehard fan I wouldn’t recommend reading any further as it may end in anger/frustration.

Sticking to the Chronological releases, Ruby and Sapphire were next. I chose to play the remake of Ruby as I really wanted it to look and feel as different as possible from the early generation games.

The game got off to a good start with me as it’s my first Pokemon with cinematics and it forces the player to learn the new Pokemon introduced into the series. A lot is the same from the previous games, the structure of the gameplay and story feels like it was taken from a template. You start off as a brand new Pokemon trainer in a small town. You still pick one of 3 starter pokemon, fire, grass or water. You still travel from town to town fighting gym leaders and chasing off a bad organisation, this time it’s team aqua and team magma. Depending on which game you play you will see either one of the antagonists. The goal of the main game is to beat the elite four and become the Pokemon champion however there is a lot more to be achieved outside of the main story such as collecting all Pokemon, designing a secret base and completing all side quests.

The graphics are lovely, using the engine from X & Y to bring new life into the older games. I would have killed as a wee boy to see Pokemon in such details as well as their attacks being played out with animations. The touch screen management of the inventory and Pokemon is great as it helps speed up healing and managing your team. Mega Evolutions are another carryover from X & Y and are pretty cool, bringing new stages of evolution to your Pokemon.

After I was halfway through the game I started to lose enthusiasm for it. I was enjoying the game and was keen to play but it didn’t excite me. It was different from the early games but also still quite similar. I did my best early on to grind levels, catch all Pokemon that I could but after a while that enthusiasm waned. I still caught Pokemon and levelled up but never went out my way to do it. I looked at a guide for all the legendary Pokemon available in this game and thought “fuck that”. Even the post-credit game available I had no interest in. I was genuinely just glad to see the end credits so I could move onto the next game.

It's worth mentioning that the story events and cinematics later on in the game are quite cool with the legendary Pokemon reveal, I just wished these cutscenes and events would have happened more often throughout the game.

What could have contributed to my limited enjoyment was playing on the 3DS, a smaller form factor than I’m used to. I think I prefer a large screen, sitting back, and being immersed by a fantasy world. Not hunched over a handheld device. I’m also aware that this isn't exactly the best Pokemon game to play as well.

Pokemon games are good, they are fun, easy to pick up and put down and can be very social if you know other people who are also into them. I can’t help but to feel that they are best enjoyed by fans of the franchise and not a casual or new gamer. Not like they wouldn’t understand the gameplay, it’s the lore that takes as passion for the series to appreciate.

I’ve not thrown the towel in again yet for the Pokemon games, I still plan to play Brilliant Diamond, then I will make my conclusive thoughts. Omega Ruby was fun to play but it just lacked excitement. I don’t feel I'm in a position to recommend the game or not, I enjoyed it for the most part and I’m glad I played it. I just didn’t come out the other end with a smile on my face.

great!!ish!! definitely largely because, as far as I'm concerned, hoenn is the be all and end all of pokemon. simply adore just about every single aspect of this place and just about every one of the creatures inside of it, too much water be damned. it's really nice to see such great designs in a 3D space, and the locations themselves have a good sense of atmosphere. I think this place works simply because of how... worldly it is. diverse biomes that just WORK. we also get some good updated mechanics and systems that the nerds can tell you more about... but definitely a supplementary experience. character models are a little weird and there's just simply nothing that matches the original gen 3 experience. really liked it though and was happy to experience the world again in a new way.

shout out to RANDLE (sceptile), GULLIVER (pelliper), DEZZY (manectric), BALDUR (groudon), RABBIT (linoone) and BARRACOWDA (camerupt) for being my final team, loved you all