When it was first announced that they were remaking the third generation of Pokémon, I was more than excited. As a huge Pokémon fan, I have many fond memories of Ruby and Sapphire, and whilst I think Emerald was leagues a head, there is nothing stopping Game Freak from integrating that plot line in to these two titles. Much like they did with the Crystals plot for HeartGold and SoulSilver. That actually got me thinking about overall improvements I'd want for these remakes, and I thought I'd share them all with you.The League
One of my biggest critiques of Ruby and Sapphire—both initially and on several more playthroughs—were the gym battles. Later titles improved on this, but outside of Norman and his Slaking, you could pretty much roll through the gym leaders with ease. To resolve this, I might suggest either raising the levels and mixing the move sets around, or switching out some team members in favor of other Pokémon.
Personally, I'm in favour of switching the teams up. Do we really need another rock gym leader with a god damn Geodude? Seriously, give her a Relicanth, Aron, anything! Anything that's a rock type and from Hoenn. Some people might argue that it takes away from the nostalgia, but I truly think it'll make it a little more replayable, and I'd rather have that than a carbon copy of the originals.
The Elite 4 were not the worst in comparison of other games, but by no means is the champion of the level of Cynthia from the Sinnoh league. Overall, a couple of Mega Evolutions and some readjusted move sets can make them a force to be reckoned with!
Less Surfing
The amount of water in Hoenn definitely gave it more character than in Generations I and II, and I can appreciate a change of pace. Also I guess it played a little into the whole story of Team Aqua and Team Magma. With that said, it's not worth it when it takes away from the gaming experience.
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| So much god damn water! |
On many occasions, I found myself buying a shit ton of repels to get through the grind of going from one town to another. I'm going to be honest: I get it if they don't fix it, because it'd be hard to keep the map same otherwise. But I'm sure they can find a workaround, or maybe integrate a few other side plot elements along the way to change it up. But damn, it's tedious...
But hey, as long as they keeping the diving elements, I'll be happy!
Integrate Older & Newer Pokémon
If X and Y delivered on one thing, it was absolutely spoiling you for choice! Sure, the game was way too easy and the story sucked. But there were plenty of teams to choose from, and the wi-fi experience was better because of it. That's exactly what I want in this remake.
A lot of Hoenn Pokémon now have Mega Evolutions, which will garner more interest for several of them. However, Pokémon from newer games would again make this game more replayable, or heck, even bulk out some weak gym teams. It doesn't have to go overboard, you can save that for the post-game. But no one is going to complain about being given more variety.
Overall, Ruby and Sapphire were fantastic games that didn't have much in the way of flaws, so I don't have to many issues with the remake. But these few adjustments—in addition to what other crazy surprises they have planned—could make for a better experience in comparison to our old adventure on the Gameboy Advance.
That's all from me. What did you think about my ideas? What do you think can improve the titles? Let me know in the comments below. I'll catch you next time. Until then, check me out on Addicted to Anime.
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