Pokémon Alpha Sapphire Standard Edition - Nintendo 3DS

As I played Pokémon Alpha Sapphire and Omega Ruby, my memories of certain trainers’ one-liners and their Pokémon teams came rushing back from my time with the original Pokémon Sapphire and Ruby in 2002. Experiencing this classic role-playing game again in beautified 3D was truly a nostalgic trip, from the cute friendship-themed plot to the touching end-credits sequence. However, as a remake, it does represent a big missed opportunity to fix several significant balance issues and mechanical problems — the difficulty I had going back after playing the much more modern Pokémon X shows how far Pokémon games have come in 12 years.

I'm a longtime Pokemon fan. I still own my original GBA copies of Ruby and Emerald. The reason I bought Alpha Sapphire is because I originally played Ruby and wanted to try something different this time. It's great seeing Hoenn remastered in 3D. For anyone who's played pokemon, the concept is still the same. Start off in your hometown, get your 1st pokemon from a pokemon professor, start your journey to become pokemon league champion, get a rival, beat some gyms, couple sidequests along the way, beat the elite four, become champion, and enjoy post-game (or start over). Yet for some reason, I can't help myself but to buy into it year after year. I'll make this review short by outlining some key things to consider before buying this game. - No battle frontier - No character customization like in X/Y - Lots of legendary pokemon to catch post-game - Nostalgia for days - lots of throwbacks and references to the original RSE - Upgraded flying system. You now have the option to fly to specific routes/places on top of cities. (i.e. route 121, Safari Zone, etc.) - More mega evolutions if that's your thing. Also primal evolutions - Same shiny rate as X/Y - Wally. That is all. - The pokemon league aethestics were amazingly well done by gamefreak. Shout out to them on that. - Mirage spots replacing original Mirage Island from RSE - PSS is back along with O-Powers wonder trade and all that good stuff - New dexnav feature apart of the pokenav which has that pokeradar feel to it. Its nice that gamefreak added something like this considering there was no item like this in the original RSE. Pokeradar wasn't until Gen IV. - Streetpass integrated into buzznav (another pokenav feature which has a love/hate relationship with most pokemon players currently; not all players have great streetpass reception) - Delta Episode (post-game story) is amazing - Learn little more about pokemon game universe (how some games might be connected to ea other i.e ORAS and X/Y) I don't want to say much more about this without spoiling so I'll leave it at that. - Apparently too much water Point is, if you're a pokemon fan, you should definitely buy one of these games. Even though this is the Alpha Sapphire page, I recommend buying whichever one you feel suits you best. There are guides that will explain to you the differences between omega ruby and alpha sapphire.

Can't believe Pokemon has been around 20 years and it's still this good. I picked this up for my son who recently got into the whole Pokemon phenomenon and I have to admit we had so much fun playing together I picked myself up a copy later as well. I used to play a long time ago when it first came out but reliving my youth with my son is so much fun. The gameplay is cool and this year with all the giveaways for the 20th anniversary I have a feeling we are going to be playing for quite some time.

Here's the full review I wrote on Nintendo Enthusiast for those interested... After only fourteen hours playing through Pokémon Alpha Sapphire, I was stunned to see the credits rolling down the screen. After all, the Hoenn region had always been my favorite, and I recalled spending at least thirty hours reaching the end of Emerald the last time I had played it. I figured that since I was tasked to review the newest Pokémon title, I would want to get the review out in a timely manner. As such, I sped through the game trying to get the review up as fast as possible. I was stalled in my mission, however, as after completing the game I began engaging in all the extra content hidden within the Generation III remakes. This is where the Pokémon games have always shined, and continue to shine: Not the content on the surface of the game, although that too is still incredibly addicting, but all the extra content layered underneath. Pokemon ORAS June 10 screenshot 4 Exploring the World Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire begin as any other Pokémon games do. Your character arrives in a new town, meets the professor living right next door, and embarks on an epic journey with his new level 5 Pokémon. Every Pokémon title has always done an adequate job of instilling a true sense of adventure when playing through the game; however, for me the Hoenn region takes the cake. There are so many different locales in the Hoenn, from deserts to mountains to marshes and more, that every minute in the Hoenn region feels like a new moment ripe with the prospect of new Pokémon. The one issue that the original Ruby and Sapphire had was that exploration across large bodies of water or extensive caves would lead to extensive random encounters, making exploration more like a tedious endeavor. In the new remakes, however, it seems like Game Freak addressed several of these issues. First and foremost, it seems like enemy encounters are far more infrequent than they were in previous Pokémon games. If I truly wanted to get through an area as fast as possible, I could pass through without any sort of difficulty and a surprisingly small number of enemy encounters. ORAS also diversifies the possible Pokémon that players can hit during random enemy encounters. In fact, by the time I finished the game I had not seen a single Zubat, and had only encountered a select few Tentacool; both Pokémon are generally known for being very insistent on popping up unasked for during random battles. Exploration opens up even further in the later part of the game, when players begin acquiring a new set of tools to explore the vast reaches of the Hoenn. Although most people are already familiar with the HM surf, the ability to Dive and scale Waterfalls oftentimes is equally, if not even more, exciting. Being able to dive below the water adds a whole new dimension to exploring the region, as many caverns hide new Pokémon to catch and undiscovered items to collect. Additionally, Pokémon ORAS introduce the completely new mechanic known as “Soaring”. This ability allows players to fly throughout the Hoenn region on either a Latios or a Latios. At first glance, it would seem that the Soaring ability is a waste of time, as it is much quicker to simply fly wherever need be. Soaring does add some gameplay and exploration elements, however. Not only are there Pokémon that can only be caught by encountering them while Soaring, but there are whole new sections of the Hoenn region that are exclusively accessible only with the Soaring ability. Pokemon OR-AS Mirage Spot Endless Refinements With each new Pokémon entry come new refinements and improvements to the interface system. I am happy to announce that not only is Pokémon ORAS’ interface system far superior to anything that has ever come before it, but it will probably stand as one of the best Pokémon interface systems ever created. Sitting right in the middle of the new interface is “Dexnav”, which has several features which makes finding, catching, and battling Pokémon much easier than before. Dexnav is built on the understanding that it knows everything about Pokémon and the Hoenn region. The application can tell you where all Pokémon are located, and whether all Pokémon in a specific area have yet been caught. If you are looking for another version of a Pokémon that you have already caught, Dexnav can show you exactly where the Pokémon is, revealing its hidden abilities and special moves. No longer do you have to keep track of all the NPCs that you have battled and are looking to re-match, as Dexnav will tell you exactly who is ready for a re-match and where they are. Did you plant berries, who knows where, in the outskirts of the Hoenn? Dexnav will not only tell you where these berries are and how they are growing, but it will offer an option to fly right over to the berries to harvest them. Never has my life as a Pokémon trainer been so easy; Dexnav tells me everything I need to know about where Pokémon, trainers, and berries are. Pokémon ORAS even lets me simply fly anywhere in the region I like, even directly on routes, without first having to arrive at a city, making traveling even quicker. These interface changes are not only a welcome addition to the franchise, but they seem like common sense after so many years without them. Pokemon ORAS June 10 screenshot 3 Becoming the Very Best Completing a Pokémon game and defeating the Elite Four is only the beginning of a much larger adventure in Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire, as there is so much extra content that will suck hours and hours from your life even after the credits roll by. Immediately after completing the game, ORAS moves into a “Delta Episode”, which is a relatively short, one hour episode that is oddly reminiscent of something akin to DLC. Players go through a short storyline, eventually saving the world once again and encountering several legendary Pokémon. It is nice that this Delta Episode is free; however, the fact that this is just the first episode is rather telling of Nintendo’s future DLC plans. After the Delta Episode concludes, the Hoenn becomes completely open for exploration. There is a massive number of legendary Pokémon to find and catch. It is unfortunate, though, that there are more than 250 Pokémon that are completely unobtainable in ORAS; however, ORAS is not the only Pokemon game to have a set of Pokémon that must be transferred over from a previous entry. Pokémon ORAS also sees the return of Pokemon contests. These contests are a great diversion and allow players to excel in a competition other than just battling. There are various ranks and difficulties when competing in Pokémon contests, and oftentimes moves that may not seem that good in battle really shine through in a contest setting. Alternatively, those that do excel in battling can find their way over to the Battle Resort, which is much like other Battle locales in the past. Players play through countless 3v3 matchups, collecting BP points that can be spent on various items. It is unfortunate, though, that Pokémon ORAS does not have a Battle Frontier. The Battle Frontier was one of my favorite parts of Pokémon Emerald, and it would have been excellent to see the area return for Generation III remakes. pokemon secret base A Pocket Monster There is only so much I can say in a review to praise how great Pokémon ORAS truly is. Sure, I could ramble on about collecting ribbons, or about EV training Pokémon, or about breeding IV Pokémon, and much more; but, at the end of the day my rambling does not make ORAS any better of a game. Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire got an amazing re-make treatment, improving the music and graphics, while also completely overhauling the interface into a much more modern format. I do wish that the Battle Frontier made a return, and that there were more Pokémon available to catch without having to transfer them from other games, but ultimately Pokémon ORAS stands as an amazing title for the 3DS handheld.

I have to say this brings back so many fond memories of my child hood and playing pokemon. Alpha Sapphire looks amazing with the new graphics and while it may just be a remake of the original I am still enjoying every minute of it. Haven't had any problems with the game either, and the ability for them to be patched is cool.

I've been playing Pokemon since the red and blue versions on the Gameboy and have thoroughly enjoyed every iteration. Omega Ruby is no exception. It is a great game that is fun to relax with. The environments look great and the only negative is that the 3D effects only work during Pokemon battles, which tend to drop frames.

Having played both the original version on the Gameboy Advanced and this version for the 3DS I can say that the improvements made to the game play and graphics make this version worth purchasing. All the features from the original Ruby and Sapphire return such as Beauty Contests and yet the gameplay in Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire have been enhanced by inheriting gameplay elements from XY with Megastones, Pokémon Amie, Super Training, Horde encounters and Wonder Trade as well as adding completely new elements unique to this game such as cosplay Pikachu and the Pokénav Plus. Also note if you are and adult thinking about purchasing this game for your young child and are not familiar with the Pokémon games they are very text heavy so if your child in unable to read well he or she may not be able to fully enjoy this game if they are playing by themselves.

I'm a giant fan of the Pokemon games, so when the new ones came out, I had to get them. It's a great game with a plot similar to the originals (Ruby, Sapphire, and Emerald), but with better graphics, more pokemon to catch, and better trading options.