Pokemon Omega Ruby

Sean Dibble & Josh Louis

Welcome back to the land of Hoenn, where the Pokémon roam free, the Gym Leaders are tough, and where your starting Pokémonwill stay on your team forever (because they are just that good). Nintendo’s latest installment of the Pokémon series, Pokémon OmegaRuby and AlphaSapphire are remakes of the original Ruby and Sapphire from 2002. I got the opportunity to pick up OmegaRuby and play it a bit, and I’m nowhere near the end of the game, but I want to share my thoughts on the game so far.

Gameplay

Gameplay is what you would expect in a Pokémon game. You travel around the wonderful world of Hoenn, which you will come to know and love, battle other trainers with your favorite Pokémon, and catch ‘em all. In OmegaRuby and AlphaSapphire you get arguably the best three starters you can get in any game: the wood gecko, Treecko; the blazing-hot Torchic (who you might recognize as the bonus gift in Pokémon X/Y); and the adorable mud fish, Mudkip. I haven’t really played a Pokémon game in between Red (though I did dabble in Y for a bit), and this whole experience was out of this world for me. I couldn’t get over the 3D graphics and all of the new Pokémon, most of whom I didn’t recognize.

This wasn't a bad thing, though. This actually got me addicted to the game within the first few hours. However, one thing that I don’t like about the gameplay is the Experience Share item. All of your Pokémon can gain experience from battling. Granted, you can turn this feature off in the Key Items section of the player’s bag, but I felt like it took away from the game, primarily the way in which one-on-one battles took place (like they did in Red).

Our good friend at SplashAttack.net, J, had some interesting remarks about the Experience Share, though. Apparently, it functions the same way that it did in X and Y. Back in the old days, the Experience Share was a hold item which you could give to a Pokémon who wasn’t participating in battle. This would award it 50 percent of the total experience gained without it actually seeing the battlefield. However, in X and Y, they changed the way that the item worked, awarding 100 percent of the experience gained to any Pokémon who participated in battle, while giving those in your party who didn’t participate 50 percent.

This, in theory, allows your Pokémon to gain much more experience and grow at an incredible rate without much effort. However, J also mentioned that his Pokémon were extraordinarily overleveled for a significant portion of the game (and he only used four of them!). I understand why the item is in the game, but it would have made the game far more challenging if they kept it the way it was as a hold item. I recommend that you play through the game with the Experience Share turned off to get the full gameplay experience (i.e. swearing at your 3DS when something goes wrong instead of OHKOing half of your opposition).

Other fun game mechanics include DexNav encounters, which allow you to see Pokémon hiding in the tall grass on the overworld. What’s more, you can even scan the Pokémon for details about it and then sneak up on it for a surprise encounter. These DexNav encounters feature Pokémon which have hidden abilities not normally found in ordinary gameplay, or with moves normally obtainable only through a lengthy breeding process. I love everything about it, and hope they put the feature in future games. The game flows very well, and before you know it you and your Pokémon have been playing for five hours when you only intended to play for one!

Graphics

Graphically, the game is sound. You simply can’t beat these graphics on a 3DS. Puddles splash when you walk through them, grass bends with the wind, and the tall grass sways as you sneak upon that unsuspecting Pokémon. As you look into the ocean or a pool waiting to catch that Magikarp, you can see your reflection and how handsome you are. The NPCs in 3D look good and you can tell that a lot of development went into building these character designs.

The bread and butter of the graphics, though, is the battling. Again, like I said, I have not played truly since Red version and in that one the Pokémon sprites never moved and were in 2D. The 3D movement of every move you choose to do in the battle is quite breathtaking, and kept me interested and wanting to keep playing.

Unfortunately, through all of its greatness, there are a few things that they took out of X/Y which I would have liked to see make a return. The roller skates for one, I wish they kept in (even if it’s primarily due to the European influence of the game), but this is made up for by the introduction of two bikes: the Mach Bike, which rides at a blistering speed, and the Acro Bike, which allows for wheelies, bunny-hops, and a more technical ride. Perhaps what I miss most about the games is the player customization in X/Y, where you could change everything about your character. Gender, hair, clothing; you name it, you could change it. Though this is a remake and it’s understandable why it wasn’t included, it’s still a disappointment.

Even with a couple of weaknesses, the game is solid and you can enjoy the Pokémon experience to its fullest. The mechanics are solid and much-improved with the separation of Physical/Special attacks (as first seen in Diamond and Pearl several years back). The graphics are top-notch, and the story is compelling and intriguing. What Nintendo has created this time around isn’t just a remake; it’s a work of art.

All in all, I believe this is a game I will be playing for a long time to come, and I hope all of you will do the same. If you want to battle me in the future, just leave a comment on our Facebook page with your 3DS friend code and we can make it happen. I might not be the best battler, but I’m willing to accept challenges. I am also open to trading with you guys, so go out and enjoy the Hoenn region and all it has to offer.

PS: GOTTA CATCH THEM ALL (queue old theme music}

Good:

- Top notch graphics that will leave you breathless

- Greatly improved battle mechanics which streamline gameplay

- Story that will keep you at the edge of your seat

- Amazing starter Pokémon make for a great experience

Bad:

- No character customization

- Experience share leads to overleveled Pokémon, but this is easily remedied by turning it off

Scully Rating: 9.0 out of 10