Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire
Encyclopedia
are the third installments of the Pokémon series of role-playing games, developed by Game Freak
and published by Nintendo
for the Game Boy Advance
. The games were first released in Japan in late 2002 and later released to the rest of the world in 2003 (North America, Australia, and Europe). Pokémon Emerald, a special edition version, was released two years later in each region. These three games (Pokémon Ruby, Sapphire, and Emerald) are part of the third generation of the Pokémon video game series, also known as the "advanced generation".
The gameplay is mostly unchanged from the previous games; the player controls the main character from an overhead perspective, and the controls are largely the same as those of previous games. As with previous games, the main objectives are to catch all of the Pokémon in the games and defeat the Elite Four (a group of Pokémon trainers); also like their predecessors, the games' main subplot involves the main character defeating a criminal organization that attempts to take over the region. New features, such as double battles and Pokémon abilities, have been added. As the Game Boy Advance is more powerful than its predecessors, four players may be connected at a time instead of the previous limit of two. Additionally, the games can be connected to an E-Reader or other advanced generation Pokémon games.
Ruby and Sapphire received mostly positive reviews, though critics were divided in their assessment of the games, especially on the gameplay and graphics. Most of the complaints focused on the fact that the gameplay had not changed much since previous generations. With the popularity of Pokémon on the decline and the rising popularity of Yu-Gi-Oh!
at the time, the games sold less than previous generations. However, they were still commercial successes: with around 13 million copies sold, they are the best-selling games for the Game Boy Advance.
, overhead perspective and consists of three basic screens: a field map
, in which the player navigates the main character; a battle screen; and the menu, in which the player configures his party, items, or gameplay settings. The player begins the game with one Pokémon, and can capture more using Poké Balls. The player can also use his/her Pokémon to battle other Pokémon. When the player encounters a wild Pokémon
or is challenged by a trainer to a battle, the screen switches to a turn-based battle screen where the Pokémon fight. During battle, the player may fight, use an item, switch his/her active Pokémon, or flee (the last not an option in battles against trainers). All Pokémon have hit points (HP); when a Pokémon's HP is reduced to zero, it faints and cannot battle until it is revived. If the player's Pokémon defeats the opposing Pokémon (causes it to faint), it receives experience points. After accumulating enough experience points, it may level up; most Pokémon evolve into a new species of Pokémon when they reach a certain level.
Apart from battling, capturing Pokémon is the most essential element of Pokémon gameplay. During battle with a wild Pokémon (other trainers' Pokémon cannot be captured), the player may use a Poké Ball on the wild Pokémon. If successful, the Pokémon will be added to the player's active party (or stored if the player already has the maximum six Pokémon in his/her party). Factors in the success rate of capture include the HP of the target Pokémon and the strength of the Poké Ball used: the lower the target's HP and the stronger the Poké Ball, the higher the success rate of capture is.
The most prominent change in the battle mechanics is the introduction of double battles, in which the opposing parties each use two Pokémon at the same time. Consequently, certain Pokémon moves can affect multiple combatants at once. Also new to the games are innate abilities and natures; the former is shared by every Pokémon of a certain species, while the latter may vary among a particular species. Abilities grant their holders certain powers in battle, such as immunity against certain types of moves or strengthening a certain type of move. Natures, like innate abilities, affect the strength of Pokémon in battle; however, they affect the stats of the Pokémon rather than directly affecting the strength of the moves. Another stat introduced in Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire is Condition, an important factor in Pokémon Contests, mini-games in which participants perform moves before a judge. Both Pokémon and their moves have a Condition, which is increased by using Pokéblocks (candies made from berries).
Like Pokémon Gold, Silver, and Crystal
, Ruby and Sapphire keep track of real-life time; this influences events like tides and berry plant growth. However, unlike their predecessors, Ruby and Sapphire do not differentiate between day and night. Also, due to the differences in the technical specifications of Game Boy link cables and Game Boy Advance link cables, Ruby and Sapphire cannot be linked with Pokémon games of previous generations.
Ruby and Sapphire are also able to connect to the GameCube
games Pokémon Colosseum
, Pokémon XD: Gale of Darkness
and Pokémon Box. In the former two, once players reach a certain point in the game, they are able to transfer Pokémon between Colosseum/XD and Ruby/Sapphire. Additionally, those who pre-ordered Colosseum were able to access the Pokémon Jirachi and see a preview of the movie Pokémon: Jirachi Wish Maker. Box, a so-called Pokémon "Microsoft Office
", allows players to store and organize their Pokémon on the GameCube. Also, in the European version of Pokémon Channel
, players could receive a Jirachi at a certain point in the game, which they could then transfer over to Ruby/Sapphire.
in Japan. The region contains nine cities and six towns along with different geographical locations, all of which are connected by Routes. As in previous games, some areas are only accessible once the player fulfills a certain condition.
Like other Pokémon games, Ruby and Sapphires gameplay is linear; the main events occur in a fixed order. The protagonist
of Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire is a child who has recently moved to Littleroot Town. At the beginning of the games, the player chooses either Torchic
, Mudkip
, or Treecko
as his or her starter Pokémon from Professor Birch. His friend, the protagonist's rival, is also a Pokémon Trainer
and occasionally battles the player. The games' two main goals are defeating the Elite Four to become the new Champion and completing the Pokédex by capturing, evolving, and trading to obtain all 386 Pokémon.
In addition to the main quest of defeating the Gym Leaders, there are side quests in which the player can aid NPC
s by fulfilling tasks (usually obtaining items); other side quests involve catching legendary Pokémon. The most prominent subplot involves Teams Aqua and Team Magma, crime syndicates who want to use Pokémon to alter the climate of Hoenn. In Ruby, the villains, Team Magma, want to use the legendary Pokémon Groudon to dry up the oceans of Hoenn; in Sapphire, the Team Aqua are the villains and they try to use Groudon's counterpart, Kyogre, to flood the region.
Shortly before approaching the town of the first Gym Leader, the protagonist first encounters the Team Aqua/Magma in the Petalburg Woods, where he or she rescues a worker from Devon (a company that manufactures Pokéballs) and recovers Devon merchandise. Upon arriving in Fallarbor Town (after defeating the third Gym Leader), the protagonist discovers that Professor Cozmo, an astronomer, has been kidnapped by Aqua/Magma. The protagonist traces them to a cave, Meteor Falls, but is too late to stop them from escaping to Mt. Chimney with a meteorite. The protagonist follows Aqua/Magma to Mt. Chimney where they are preparing to use the meteorite to alter the climate of the region. The protagonist defeats the Team's leader, however, and returns the meteorite to Professor Cozmo. Shortly after the protagonist defeats the fifth Gym Leader, Aqua/Magma again attempts to change the region's climate by stealing a Castform, a Pokémon with the ability to change the weather, from the Weather Institute. After the protagonist defeats the sixth Gym Leader, Aqua/Magma steals an orb with the ability to control a legendary Pokémon (Groudon in Ruby, Kyogre in Sapphire). Aqua/Magma then steals a submarine from Captain Stern in Slateport City; the protagonist, however, infiltrates the team's hideout, but fails to prevent the submarine from being used. Aqua/Magma, then travel with the orb to the Seafloor Cavern, where Groudon or Kyogre resides; the team then uses the orb to awaken the legendary Pokémon. Once awakened, the Pokémon travels to the Cave of Origin and causes a region-wide drought (Ruby) or severe rainstorms (Sapphire). When the protagonist defeats (or captures) the Pokémon, the region's weather returns to normal.
Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire were developed by Game Freak
and Nintendo
under the direction of Junichi Masuda
. As with its predecessors, Ken Sugimori
was the art director, although these were the first games in which he did not single-handedly produce all of the art. When asked where his design team came up with the ideas for all of the new Pokémon, Sugimori stated that they get their ideas from past experiences in their childhood involving nature, animals, and the media and then base them on insects. Even looking at the world in a different perspective sometimes provided inspiration for the creatures. "First we select an insect and after that we add essential elements to the insects to make it more like Pokemon, such as adding some hard shape to it, to be more like steel," Sugimori said, describing the process of creating a Pokémon.
As the Game Boy Advance was able to handle newer, enhanced graphics, Ruby and Sapphire were the first games in the series that allowed up to four people to share information at one time, as opposed to the previous limit of two. However, the development team used a more basic graphics engine in order to keep the game simple and not overly confusing. The team wanted the games to appeal to a large audience, so the software was designed to be easy enough for younger generations of children to play, but new features were added to bring the veteran gamers back.
Masuda stated that the basic philosophy of all Pokémon games is communication; in the Pokémon series, this is manifested in trading and battling with other people. When asked about the new concept of double battles, the developers noted that they tried to focus more on the original one-on-one battles as the main type of competition and only added the double battles as a "new challenge". They stated that if they receive positive feedback about the double battles, the feature may appear more in future generations.
The games were the first in the series that did not contain all of the Pokémon from previous generations. Sugimori stated that the team tried to include all the new Pokémon as well as some from previous generations. When asked about any features that could not be included due to technical restrictions, Masuda noted that he wanted each individual Pokémon to make up to three different cries depending on its mood.
Nintendo did not promote Ruby and Sapphire at the 2002 E3 convention; however, it launched a USD $7 million promotional campaign that lasted from March to May 2003. In addition to rewarding pre-orders of the games with merchandise, Nintendo held a contest in which participants submitted videos of themselves singing the Pokémon theme song with their own re-written lyrics; the grand prize for that event was a Lugia
PT Cruiser. Later that year, Nintendo launched the EON Ticket Summer Tour, in which 125 Toys 'R' Us stores across the United States offered the Eon Ticket for download from July 19 to September 1. Nintendo aired two television advertisement
s, "Faces" and "Names", on prime-time network, cable, and syndication. "Faces" featured Pokémon juxtaposed with human look-alikes; "Names" featured people shouting out the names of Pokémon and emphasized the fact that the games introduced 100 new Pokémon. Additionally, Nintendo collaborated with United Kingdom beverage brand Vimto
to promote the games.
charts and charted for one week. Junichi Masuda wrote only battle tunes, Go Ichinose wrote most of the town, route, fanfare & 'Spotted' tunes, whereas Morichi Aoki did the remainder.
gave them an "Incredible" 9.5 out of 10 rating and awarded them the Editors Choice Award; in 2007, the games were collectively named the tenth best Game Boy Advance game of all time in an IGN article. GameZone
also gave the games a 9.5 out of 10 rating and gave the games an Outstanding Award. GamePro
gave the games 5 out of 5 stars and named them Editors Choices. ComputerAndVideoGames.com
gave the games a 9 of 10, and GameSpot
gave the games 8.1 out of 10. Eurogamer
and 1UP.com
were less enthusiastic about the games however; Eurogamer gave the games 7 out of 10, and 1UP gave the games a B-.
Reviewers were divided in their critiques of the games, especially concerning the gameplay and graphics. IGN praised the "deep design" and noted that the addition of features such as double battles greatly increased the strategic aspect of the games. GamePro also thought that the addition of double battles "add[ed] challenge" and "made the harder battles far more strategic than before—the way the game should be". Likewise, ComputerAndVideoGames.com called the gameplay "incredibly compelling and addictive". GameZone noted that the gameplay was more refined and challenging than that of previous titles. However, GameSpot called the games "a cakewalk from start to finish" and claimed that Ruby and Sapphire "don't offer much of a challenge". Eurogamer also felt that the mechanics "[get] very tired, very fast". 1UP.com also felt that the games were formulaic and that double battles were underused.
ComputerAndVideoGames.com was enthusiastic over the graphics, calling them "gorgeous". Other reviewers were less enthusiastic, however. GamePro felt that the graphics were only "a fair bit prettier" than those of the Game Boy color games; GameZone said that the games "still [use] the simple animations and basic character designs that were created for the original, color-less Game Boy". IGN and 1UP.com noted that the graphics had received only a minor upgrade, and Eurogamer felt that the graphics had been upgraded to a "functional level at best". The audio was generally well-received: GameZone and GameSpot both felt the audio was catchy; GameZone gave the audio an 8 out of 10 score, saying that while the music "was annoying at times, [...] it's also very good. [...] I found myself humming the music when I wasn't playing". Other complaints included the removal of the time system of Gold and Silver and the inability to import Pokémon from the games of previous generations.
and the first games for a hand-held console to do so since 2000's Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters 4.If the two games are counted as one In North America, Nintendo moved around 2.2 million units by April 2003 (within one month of the games' North American release) in the region alone. Ruby and Sapphire were the second and third best-selling games, respectively, of 2003. The games enjoyed success in Europe as well. They were the second best-selling games of the holiday season in 2002; even before release, European retailers imported cartridges from the United States to meet the high demand for the games. With around 13 million units sold worldwide, the games are the best-selling titles ever for the Game Boy Advance. However, analysts noted that with "young kids...gravitating toward Yu-Gi-Oh!
" at the time, Pokémon's popularity was waning. This was reflected in the games' sales compared to those of previous generations: Red and Blue
sold nearly 27 million units worldwide, and Gold and Silver
sold a little over 14 million units.
on the box art, is the twelfth game in the Pokémon video game series in Japan, and the eleventh in North America and Europe. The game, an updated version of Ruby and Sapphire, was released in Japan on September 16, 2004; it was released in North America on May 1, 2005, Australia on June 9, 2005, and Europe on October 21, 2005.
Though the gameplay is largely the same as that of Ruby and Sapphire, Emerald introduces new features. The plot is modified; both Team Magma and Aqua are villains who are locked in a constant gang war and awaken Groudon and Kyogre respectively. When the two legendary Pokémon begin to battle each other, the protagonist must unleash Rayquaza
the legendary Pokémon (pictured on the box cover) to calm them. Some of the game mechanics are changed as well. Though double battles were clearly marked in Ruby and Sapphire, in Emerald, two separate trainers might unite to battle as a pair. After the Elite Four is defeated, the player may re-battle Gym Leaders in a double battle. Also, Pokémon sprites
are animated in battle like they were in Pokémon Crystal. Probably the most significant addition is the Battle Frontier, an expanded version of the Battle Tower in Ruby and Sapphire.
Emerald has been generally well-received. The game has an aggregate rating of 77% on Game Rankings
. Gamespot
gave it a 7.5 out of 10; IGN
gave it an "Impressive" rating of 8.0 out of a possible 10. Eurogamer
, however, gave Emerald a score of 6 out of 10. Though it praised Emerald for looking better than either Ruby or Sapphire and for having harder and longer gameplay, it criticized the game for not even being a "half changed update [...] but more of a director's cut". Emerald was the second best-selling game in the United States of ; it sold 6.32 million copies, making it the third-best selling game for the Game Boy Advance. In November 2005, Nintendo Power
reported that "Total sales [from Pokémon Emerald] would exceed the value of an actual emerald
the size of Neptune
."
In 2011, it was reported that the game was still selling in Japan in 2010 with approximately 7,724 sold that year.
Pokémon game for the Nintendo GameCube
console, bundled with a Nintendo GameCube Game Boy Advance Cable and a Memory Card
59. It was released in Japan on May 30, 2003 and in North America on July 11, 2004, but only through the New York
Pokémon Center and its online store. It is no longer available in either location. The game was released in some parts of Europe as Pokémon Memory Magic due to translation problems, and Europeans only could get the game by using points from Nintendo of Europe's loyalty program, or by buying the Pokémon Colosseum Mega Pak.
The game is essentially a storage system for the Game Boy Advance
Pokémon games that allows players to trade and store Pokémon that they have caught in Ruby, Sapphire, Emerald, FireRed, and LeafGreen
onto a GameCube memory card. Players can then organize and interact with their Pokémon on the GameCube, such as allowing them to breed. Unique Pokémon can also be acquired. Another feature allows the games to be played on the television via the GameCube Game Boy Advance Cable. Options such as taking screenshot
s of the game are available in this mode. Another addition is the "Showcase", where players can create and display game pieces of Pokémon.
Nintendo referred to the game as "the most exclusive Pokémon software ever offered to North American Pokémon fans," but it was generally considered to be unnecessary, receiving an aggregate score of 50% on Game Rankings
. Craig Harris of IGN
gave the game a "Meh" rating of 5.0 out of 10, praising the interface, which makes the organization of Pokémon much easier as compared to the Game Boy Advance interface, as well as the emulator which allows Ruby and Sapphire to be played on the GameCube. He also stated that the game was a good deal due to the inclusion of a Memory Card and Cable. However, Harris cited the "Showcase" as "entirely unnecessary and completely out of place," and said that overall the game lacked much to do. He wrote, "It's targeted specifically for the truly die-hard Pokemon fan, but it requires so many specific elements to actually be useful to anyone." Allgame
gave the game three and a half out of five stars.
Game Freak
is a Japanese video game developer that currently creates games exclusively for Nintendo. It has developed the Pokémon series of role-playing games and several other games.-History:...
and published by Nintendo
Nintendo
is a multinational corporation located in Kyoto, Japan. Founded on September 23, 1889 by Fusajiro Yamauchi, it produced handmade hanafuda cards. By 1963, the company had tried several small niche businesses, such as a cab company and a love hotel....
for the Game Boy Advance
Game Boy Advance
The is a 32-bit handheld video game console developed, manufactured, and marketed by Nintendo. It is the successor to the Game Boy Color. It was released in Japan on March 21, 2001; in North America on June 11, 2001; in Australia and Europe on June 22, 2001; and in the People's Republic of China...
. The games were first released in Japan in late 2002 and later released to the rest of the world in 2003 (North America, Australia, and Europe). Pokémon Emerald, a special edition version, was released two years later in each region. These three games (Pokémon Ruby, Sapphire, and Emerald) are part of the third generation of the Pokémon video game series, also known as the "advanced generation".
The gameplay is mostly unchanged from the previous games; the player controls the main character from an overhead perspective, and the controls are largely the same as those of previous games. As with previous games, the main objectives are to catch all of the Pokémon in the games and defeat the Elite Four (a group of Pokémon trainers); also like their predecessors, the games' main subplot involves the main character defeating a criminal organization that attempts to take over the region. New features, such as double battles and Pokémon abilities, have been added. As the Game Boy Advance is more powerful than its predecessors, four players may be connected at a time instead of the previous limit of two. Additionally, the games can be connected to an E-Reader or other advanced generation Pokémon games.
Ruby and Sapphire received mostly positive reviews, though critics were divided in their assessment of the games, especially on the gameplay and graphics. Most of the complaints focused on the fact that the gameplay had not changed much since previous generations. With the popularity of Pokémon on the decline and the rising popularity of Yu-Gi-Oh!
Yu-Gi-Oh!
is a Japanese manga created by Kazuki Takahashi. It has produced a franchise that includes multiple anime shows, a trading card game and numerous video games...
at the time, the games sold less than previous generations. However, they were still commercial successes: with around 13 million copies sold, they are the best-selling games for the Game Boy Advance.
Gameplay
The basic mechanics of Ruby and Sapphire are largely the same as their predecessors'. As with all Pokémon games for hand-held consoles, gameplay is in third-personGrammatical person
Grammatical person, in linguistics, is deictic reference to a participant in an event; such as the speaker, the addressee, or others. Grammatical person typically defines a language's set of personal pronouns...
, overhead perspective and consists of three basic screens: a field map
Overworld
An overworld is, in a broad sense, an area within a video game that interconnects all its levels or locations. They are mostly common in role-playing games, though this does not exclude other video game genres....
, in which the player navigates the main character; a battle screen; and the menu, in which the player configures his party, items, or gameplay settings. The player begins the game with one Pokémon, and can capture more using Poké Balls. The player can also use his/her Pokémon to battle other Pokémon. When the player encounters a wild Pokémon
Random encounter
A random encounter is a feature commonly used in various role-playing games whereby encounters with non-player character enemies or other dangers occur sporadically and at random...
or is challenged by a trainer to a battle, the screen switches to a turn-based battle screen where the Pokémon fight. During battle, the player may fight, use an item, switch his/her active Pokémon, or flee (the last not an option in battles against trainers). All Pokémon have hit points (HP); when a Pokémon's HP is reduced to zero, it faints and cannot battle until it is revived. If the player's Pokémon defeats the opposing Pokémon (causes it to faint), it receives experience points. After accumulating enough experience points, it may level up; most Pokémon evolve into a new species of Pokémon when they reach a certain level.
Apart from battling, capturing Pokémon is the most essential element of Pokémon gameplay. During battle with a wild Pokémon (other trainers' Pokémon cannot be captured), the player may use a Poké Ball on the wild Pokémon. If successful, the Pokémon will be added to the player's active party (or stored if the player already has the maximum six Pokémon in his/her party). Factors in the success rate of capture include the HP of the target Pokémon and the strength of the Poké Ball used: the lower the target's HP and the stronger the Poké Ball, the higher the success rate of capture is.
New Gameplay Features
Like Pokémon Gold, Silver, and Crystal
Pokémon Gold and Silver
are the second installments of the Pokémon series of role-playing video games developed by Game Freak and published by Nintendo for the Game Boy Color. The games have dual-mode capabilities allowing them to also be played on earlier Game Boy models. They were first released in Japan in 1999 and to...
, Ruby and Sapphire keep track of real-life time; this influences events like tides and berry plant growth. However, unlike their predecessors, Ruby and Sapphire do not differentiate between day and night. Also, due to the differences in the technical specifications of Game Boy link cables and Game Boy Advance link cables, Ruby and Sapphire cannot be linked with Pokémon games of previous generations.
Connectivity with other devices
Ruby and Sapphire have limited e-Reader support. Nintendo released Battle-e Cards, a set of e-Reader cards that contained trainer battles in which the player could see previously-hidden Pokémon. A special e-Reader card called the Eon Ticket was also released; obtained through the Mystery Gift function, the Ticket allows the player to reach a place called Southern Island. There, the player faces either Latios or Latias, depending on which version the player is using.Ruby and Sapphire are also able to connect to the GameCube
Nintendo GameCube
The , officially abbreviated to NGC in Japan and GCN in other regions, is a sixth generation video game console released by Nintendo on September 15, 2001 in Japan, November 18, 2001 in North America, May 3, 2002 in Europe, and May 17, 2002 in Australia...
games Pokémon Colosseum
Pokémon Colosseum
is a role-playing video game developed by Genius Sonority and published by Nintendo as part of the Pokémon series. It was released exclusively for the Nintendo GameCube on November 21, 2003 in Japan; March 22, 2004 in North America; and May 14, 2004 in Europe...
, Pokémon XD: Gale of Darkness
Pokémon XD: Gale of Darkness
Pokémon XD: Gale of Darkness, released in Japan as , is the second console role-playing game from Nintendo's Pokémon franchise for the Nintendo GameCube. It is the successor of the GameCube game Pokémon Colosseum. The game takes place in Orre, the setting of Pokémon Colosseums adventure mode...
and Pokémon Box. In the former two, once players reach a certain point in the game, they are able to transfer Pokémon between Colosseum/XD and Ruby/Sapphire. Additionally, those who pre-ordered Colosseum were able to access the Pokémon Jirachi and see a preview of the movie Pokémon: Jirachi Wish Maker. Box, a so-called Pokémon "Microsoft Office
Microsoft Office
Microsoft Office is a non-free commercial office suite of inter-related desktop applications, servers and services for the Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X operating systems, introduced by Microsoft in August 1, 1989. Initially a marketing term for a bundled set of applications, the first version of...
", allows players to store and organize their Pokémon on the GameCube. Also, in the European version of Pokémon Channel
Pokémon Channel
Pokémon Channel, released in Japan as is a virtual pet video game for the GameCube, developed by Ambrella. Its focus is the adventures the player has with Pikachu, most of them involving a new television network...
, players could receive a Jirachi at a certain point in the game, which they could then transfer over to Ruby/Sapphire.
Synopsis
Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire take place in Hoenn, a fictional region based on the island of KyūshūKyushu
is the third largest island of Japan and most southwesterly of its four main islands. Its alternate ancient names include , , and . The historical regional name is referred to Kyushu and its surrounding islands....
in Japan. The region contains nine cities and six towns along with different geographical locations, all of which are connected by Routes. As in previous games, some areas are only accessible once the player fulfills a certain condition.
Like other Pokémon games, Ruby and Sapphires gameplay is linear; the main events occur in a fixed order. The protagonist
Protagonist
A protagonist is the main character of a literary, theatrical, cinematic, or musical narrative, around whom the events of the narrative's plot revolve and with whom the audience is intended to most identify...
of Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire is a child who has recently moved to Littleroot Town. At the beginning of the games, the player chooses either Torchic
Torchic
Torchic, known in Japan as , is a Pokémon species in Nintendo and Game Freak's Pokémon franchise. Created by Ken Sugimori, it first appeared in the video games Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire and subsequent sequels, later appearing in various merchandise, spinoff titles and animated and printed...
, Mudkip
Mudkip
Mudkip, known in Japan as , is a Pokémon species in Nintendo and Game Freak's Pokémon franchise. Created by Ken Sugimori, Mudkip first appeared in the video games Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire and subsequent sequels, later appearing in various merchandise, spinoff titles and animated and printed...
, or Treecko
Treecko
Treecko, known in Japan as , is a Pokémon species in Nintendo and Game Freak's Pokémon franchise. Created by Ken Sugimori, Treecko first appeared in the video games Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire and subsequent sequels, later appearing in various merchandise, spinoff titles and animated and printed...
as his or her starter Pokémon from Professor Birch. His friend, the protagonist's rival, is also a Pokémon Trainer
Pokémon trainer
People with at least one Pokémon creature can be considered a Pokémon Trainer. In this sense, people in related Pokémon occupations, such as Pokémon coordinators or Pokémon breeders, can also be considered to be Pokémon Trainers....
and occasionally battles the player. The games' two main goals are defeating the Elite Four to become the new Champion and completing the Pokédex by capturing, evolving, and trading to obtain all 386 Pokémon.
In addition to the main quest of defeating the Gym Leaders, there are side quests in which the player can aid NPC
Non-player character
A non-player character , sometimes known as a non-person character or non-playable character, in a game is any fictional character not controlled by a player. In electronic games, this usually means a character controlled by the computer through artificial intelligence...
s by fulfilling tasks (usually obtaining items); other side quests involve catching legendary Pokémon. The most prominent subplot involves Teams Aqua and Team Magma, crime syndicates who want to use Pokémon to alter the climate of Hoenn. In Ruby, the villains, Team Magma, want to use the legendary Pokémon Groudon to dry up the oceans of Hoenn; in Sapphire, the Team Aqua are the villains and they try to use Groudon's counterpart, Kyogre, to flood the region.
Shortly before approaching the town of the first Gym Leader, the protagonist first encounters the Team Aqua/Magma in the Petalburg Woods, where he or she rescues a worker from Devon (a company that manufactures Pokéballs) and recovers Devon merchandise. Upon arriving in Fallarbor Town (after defeating the third Gym Leader), the protagonist discovers that Professor Cozmo, an astronomer, has been kidnapped by Aqua/Magma. The protagonist traces them to a cave, Meteor Falls, but is too late to stop them from escaping to Mt. Chimney with a meteorite. The protagonist follows Aqua/Magma to Mt. Chimney where they are preparing to use the meteorite to alter the climate of the region. The protagonist defeats the Team's leader, however, and returns the meteorite to Professor Cozmo. Shortly after the protagonist defeats the fifth Gym Leader, Aqua/Magma again attempts to change the region's climate by stealing a Castform, a Pokémon with the ability to change the weather, from the Weather Institute. After the protagonist defeats the sixth Gym Leader, Aqua/Magma steals an orb with the ability to control a legendary Pokémon (Groudon in Ruby, Kyogre in Sapphire). Aqua/Magma then steals a submarine from Captain Stern in Slateport City; the protagonist, however, infiltrates the team's hideout, but fails to prevent the submarine from being used. Aqua/Magma, then travel with the orb to the Seafloor Cavern, where Groudon or Kyogre resides; the team then uses the orb to awaken the legendary Pokémon. Once awakened, the Pokémon travels to the Cave of Origin and causes a region-wide drought (Ruby) or severe rainstorms (Sapphire). When the protagonist defeats (or captures) the Pokémon, the region's weather returns to normal.
Development and release
Game Freak
is a Japanese video game developer that currently creates games exclusively for Nintendo. It has developed the Pokémon series of role-playing games and several other games.-History:...
and Nintendo
Nintendo
is a multinational corporation located in Kyoto, Japan. Founded on September 23, 1889 by Fusajiro Yamauchi, it produced handmade hanafuda cards. By 1963, the company had tried several small niche businesses, such as a cab company and a love hotel....
under the direction of Junichi Masuda
Junichi Masuda
is a video game composer, director, designer, producer, and programmer best known for his work on the Pokémon franchise. He is a member of the Game Freak board of directors, and has worked at the company since 1989. He helped compose the music for games like Mendel Palace and Smart Ball before...
. As with its predecessors, Ken Sugimori
Ken Sugimori
is a Japanese video game designer, illustrator, manga artist, and director. He is most famous as the character designer and art director for the Pokémon franchise. Sugimori is also credited with the art direction for other titles, including Pulseman. Sugimori drew all of the original 151 Pokémon...
was the art director, although these were the first games in which he did not single-handedly produce all of the art. When asked where his design team came up with the ideas for all of the new Pokémon, Sugimori stated that they get their ideas from past experiences in their childhood involving nature, animals, and the media and then base them on insects. Even looking at the world in a different perspective sometimes provided inspiration for the creatures. "First we select an insect and after that we add essential elements to the insects to make it more like Pokemon, such as adding some hard shape to it, to be more like steel," Sugimori said, describing the process of creating a Pokémon.
As the Game Boy Advance was able to handle newer, enhanced graphics, Ruby and Sapphire were the first games in the series that allowed up to four people to share information at one time, as opposed to the previous limit of two. However, the development team used a more basic graphics engine in order to keep the game simple and not overly confusing. The team wanted the games to appeal to a large audience, so the software was designed to be easy enough for younger generations of children to play, but new features were added to bring the veteran gamers back.
Masuda stated that the basic philosophy of all Pokémon games is communication; in the Pokémon series, this is manifested in trading and battling with other people. When asked about the new concept of double battles, the developers noted that they tried to focus more on the original one-on-one battles as the main type of competition and only added the double battles as a "new challenge". They stated that if they receive positive feedback about the double battles, the feature may appear more in future generations.
The games were the first in the series that did not contain all of the Pokémon from previous generations. Sugimori stated that the team tried to include all the new Pokémon as well as some from previous generations. When asked about any features that could not be included due to technical restrictions, Masuda noted that he wanted each individual Pokémon to make up to three different cries depending on its mood.
Lugia
is a Pokémon species in Nintendo and Game Freak's Pokémon franchise. Created by Ken Sugimori, Lugia first appeared as a central character in the film Pokémon: The Movie 2000, and later serves as the version mascot of the video game Pokémon Silver and its remake, Pokémon SoulSilver, appearing on the...
PT Cruiser. Later that year, Nintendo launched the EON Ticket Summer Tour, in which 125 Toys 'R' Us stores across the United States offered the Eon Ticket for download from July 19 to September 1. Nintendo aired two television advertisement
Television advertisement
A television advertisement or television commercial, often just commercial, advert, ad, or ad-film – is a span of television programming produced and paid for by an organization that conveys a message, typically one intended to market a product...
s, "Faces" and "Names", on prime-time network, cable, and syndication. "Faces" featured Pokémon juxtaposed with human look-alikes; "Names" featured people shouting out the names of Pokémon and emphasized the fact that the games introduced 100 new Pokémon. Additionally, Nintendo collaborated with United Kingdom beverage brand Vimto
Vimto
Vimto is a soft drink originating from the United Kingdom. It was first manufactured as a health tonic in cordial form, then decades later as a carbonated drink. It contains the juice of grapes, raspberries and blackcurrants , flavoured with herbs and spices...
to promote the games.
Audio
The audio of Ruby and Sapphire consists entirely of game music; all dialogue is on-screen. The music, composed by Junichi Masuda, Go Ichinose and Morikazu Aoki, is completely instrumental except for two tracks with vocals, "Trick Master" and "Slateport City". The soundtrack of the game was released under the Mediafactory label in Japan on April 26, 2003; the album reached #297 on the OriconOricon
, established in 1999, is the holding company at the head of a Japanese corporate group that supplies statistics and information on music and the music industry in Japan. It started as , which was founded by Sōkō Koike in November 1967 and became known for its music charts. Oricon Inc...
charts and charted for one week. Junichi Masuda wrote only battle tunes, Go Ichinose wrote most of the town, route, fanfare & 'Spotted' tunes, whereas Morichi Aoki did the remainder.
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Critical response
The games met with mostly positive reviews. IGNIGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
gave them an "Incredible" 9.5 out of 10 rating and awarded them the Editors Choice Award; in 2007, the games were collectively named the tenth best Game Boy Advance game of all time in an IGN article. GameZone
GameZone
GameZone is an American multiplatform video game website. GameZone's daily coverage includes reviews, previews, news, hints & cheats, and editorials. Additionally, GameZone offers downloads, a child-targeted website and in association with GameStop, hosts GZGameShop, an online retailer...
also gave the games a 9.5 out of 10 rating and gave the games an Outstanding Award. GamePro
GamePro
GamePro Media was a United States gaming media company publishing online and print content on the video game industry, video game hardware, and video game software developed for a video game console , a computer, and/or a mobile device . GamePro Media properties include GamePro magazine and...
gave the games 5 out of 5 stars and named them Editors Choices. ComputerAndVideoGames.com
ComputerAndVideoGames.com
ComputerAndVideoGames.com is the web-based successor to Computer and Video Games magazine, the world's oldest specialist gaming publication.- History :Launched in August 1999, CVG is one of the UK and Europe’s leading gaming web sites...
gave the games a 9 of 10, and GameSpot
GameSpot
GameSpot is a video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information. The site was launched in May 1, 1996 by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady and Jon Epstein. It was purchased by ZDNet, a brand which was later purchased by CNET Networks. CBS Interactive, which...
gave the games 8.1 out of 10. Eurogamer
Eurogamer
Eurogamer is a Brighton-based website focused on video games news, reviews, previews and interviews. It is operated by Eurogamer Network Ltd., which was formed in 1999 by brothers Rupert and Nick Loman. Eurogamer has grown to become one of the most important European-based websites focused on...
and 1UP.com
1UP.com
1UP.com is a video game website owned by IGN Entertainment, a division of News Corporation. Previously, the site was owned by Ziff Davis before being sold to UGO Entertainment in 2009....
were less enthusiastic about the games however; Eurogamer gave the games 7 out of 10, and 1UP gave the games a B-.
Reviewers were divided in their critiques of the games, especially concerning the gameplay and graphics. IGN praised the "deep design" and noted that the addition of features such as double battles greatly increased the strategic aspect of the games. GamePro also thought that the addition of double battles "add[ed] challenge" and "made the harder battles far more strategic than before—the way the game should be". Likewise, ComputerAndVideoGames.com called the gameplay "incredibly compelling and addictive". GameZone noted that the gameplay was more refined and challenging than that of previous titles. However, GameSpot called the games "a cakewalk from start to finish" and claimed that Ruby and Sapphire "don't offer much of a challenge". Eurogamer also felt that the mechanics "[get] very tired, very fast". 1UP.com also felt that the games were formulaic and that double battles were underused.
ComputerAndVideoGames.com was enthusiastic over the graphics, calling them "gorgeous". Other reviewers were less enthusiastic, however. GamePro felt that the graphics were only "a fair bit prettier" than those of the Game Boy color games; GameZone said that the games "still [use] the simple animations and basic character designs that were created for the original, color-less Game Boy". IGN and 1UP.com noted that the graphics had received only a minor upgrade, and Eurogamer felt that the graphics had been upgraded to a "functional level at best". The audio was generally well-received: GameZone and GameSpot both felt the audio was catchy; GameZone gave the audio an 8 out of 10 score, saying that while the music "was annoying at times, [...] it's also very good. [...] I found myself humming the music when I wasn't playing". Other complaints included the removal of the time system of Gold and Silver and the inability to import Pokémon from the games of previous generations.
Sales
Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire were highly anticipated. In Japan, they sold 1.25 million units within the first four days of release and were the best-selling games of the 2002 holiday season; sales totaled around 4.4 million within six weeks of release. They also became the first games to sell 2 million copies in Japan since 2001's Final Fantasy XFinal Fantasy X
is a role-playing video game developed and published by Square as the tenth title in the Final Fantasy series. It was released in 2001 for Sony's PlayStation 2, and will be re-released for PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Vita in 2012...
and the first games for a hand-held console to do so since 2000's Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters 4.If the two games are counted as one In North America, Nintendo moved around 2.2 million units by April 2003 (within one month of the games' North American release) in the region alone. Ruby and Sapphire were the second and third best-selling games, respectively, of 2003. The games enjoyed success in Europe as well. They were the second best-selling games of the holiday season in 2002; even before release, European retailers imported cartridges from the United States to meet the high demand for the games. With around 13 million units sold worldwide, the games are the best-selling titles ever for the Game Boy Advance. However, analysts noted that with "young kids...gravitating toward Yu-Gi-Oh!
Yu-Gi-Oh!
is a Japanese manga created by Kazuki Takahashi. It has produced a franchise that includes multiple anime shows, a trading card game and numerous video games...
" at the time, Pokémon's popularity was waning. This was reflected in the games' sales compared to those of previous generations: Red and Blue
Pokémon Red and Blue
Pokémon Red Version and Blue Version, originally released in Japan as , are role-playing games developed by Game Freak and published by Nintendo for the Game Boy. They are the first installments to the Pokémon series. They were first released in Japan in 1996 as Red and Green, with Blue being...
sold nearly 27 million units worldwide, and Gold and Silver
Pokémon Gold and Silver
are the second installments of the Pokémon series of role-playing video games developed by Game Freak and published by Nintendo for the Game Boy Color. The games have dual-mode capabilities allowing them to also be played on earlier Game Boy models. They were first released in Japan in 1999 and to...
sold a little over 14 million units.
Pokémon Emerald
, featuring RayquazaRayquaza
is a Pokémon species in Nintendo and Game Freak's Pokémon franchise. Rayquaza first appeared in Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire and subsequent sequels, later appearing in various merchandise, spinoff titles and animated, printed, and film adaptations of the franchise. Rayquaza also appears on the cover...
on the box art, is the twelfth game in the Pokémon video game series in Japan, and the eleventh in North America and Europe. The game, an updated version of Ruby and Sapphire, was released in Japan on September 16, 2004; it was released in North America on May 1, 2005, Australia on June 9, 2005, and Europe on October 21, 2005.
Though the gameplay is largely the same as that of Ruby and Sapphire, Emerald introduces new features. The plot is modified; both Team Magma and Aqua are villains who are locked in a constant gang war and awaken Groudon and Kyogre respectively. When the two legendary Pokémon begin to battle each other, the protagonist must unleash Rayquaza
Rayquaza
is a Pokémon species in Nintendo and Game Freak's Pokémon franchise. Rayquaza first appeared in Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire and subsequent sequels, later appearing in various merchandise, spinoff titles and animated, printed, and film adaptations of the franchise. Rayquaza also appears on the cover...
the legendary Pokémon (pictured on the box cover) to calm them. Some of the game mechanics are changed as well. Though double battles were clearly marked in Ruby and Sapphire, in Emerald, two separate trainers might unite to battle as a pair. After the Elite Four is defeated, the player may re-battle Gym Leaders in a double battle. Also, Pokémon sprites
Sprite (computer graphics)
In computer graphics, a sprite is a two-dimensional image or animation that is integrated into a larger scene...
are animated in battle like they were in Pokémon Crystal. Probably the most significant addition is the Battle Frontier, an expanded version of the Battle Tower in Ruby and Sapphire.
Emerald has been generally well-received. The game has an aggregate rating of 77% on Game Rankings
Game Rankings
GameRankings is a website that collects review scores from both offline and online sources to give an average rating. It indexes over 315,000 articles relating to more than 14,500 games.GameRankings is owned by CBS Interactive...
. Gamespot
GameSpot
GameSpot is a video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information. The site was launched in May 1, 1996 by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady and Jon Epstein. It was purchased by ZDNet, a brand which was later purchased by CNET Networks. CBS Interactive, which...
gave it a 7.5 out of 10; IGN
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
gave it an "Impressive" rating of 8.0 out of a possible 10. Eurogamer
Eurogamer
Eurogamer is a Brighton-based website focused on video games news, reviews, previews and interviews. It is operated by Eurogamer Network Ltd., which was formed in 1999 by brothers Rupert and Nick Loman. Eurogamer has grown to become one of the most important European-based websites focused on...
, however, gave Emerald a score of 6 out of 10. Though it praised Emerald for looking better than either Ruby or Sapphire and for having harder and longer gameplay, it criticized the game for not even being a "half changed update [...] but more of a director's cut". Emerald was the second best-selling game in the United States of ; it sold 6.32 million copies, making it the third-best selling game for the Game Boy Advance. In November 2005, Nintendo Power
Nintendo Power
Nintendo Power magazine is a monthly news and strategy magazine formerly published in-house by Nintendo of America, but now run independently. As of issue #222 , Nintendo contracted publishing duties to Future US, the U.S. subsidiary of British publisher Future.The first issue published was...
reported that "Total sales [from Pokémon Emerald] would exceed the value of an actual emerald
Emerald
Emerald is a variety of the mineral beryl colored green by trace amounts of chromium and sometimes vanadium. Beryl has a hardness of 7.5–8 on the 10 point Mohs scale of mineral hardness...
the size of Neptune
Neptune
Neptune is the eighth and farthest planet from the Sun in the Solar System. Named for the Roman god of the sea, it is the fourth-largest planet by diameter and the third largest by mass. Neptune is 17 times the mass of Earth and is slightly more massive than its near-twin Uranus, which is 15 times...
."
In 2011, it was reported that the game was still selling in Japan in 2010 with approximately 7,724 sold that year.
Pokémon Box: Ruby and Sapphire
Pokémon Box: Ruby and Sapphire, or simply Pokémon Box, is a spin-offSpin-off (media)
In media, a spin-off is a radio program, television program, video game, or any narrative work, derived from one or more already existing works, that focuses, in particular, in more detail on one aspect of that original work...
Pokémon game for the Nintendo GameCube
Nintendo GameCube
The , officially abbreviated to NGC in Japan and GCN in other regions, is a sixth generation video game console released by Nintendo on September 15, 2001 in Japan, November 18, 2001 in North America, May 3, 2002 in Europe, and May 17, 2002 in Australia...
console, bundled with a Nintendo GameCube Game Boy Advance Cable and a Memory Card
Memory card
A memory card or flash card is an electronic flash memory data storage device used for storing digital information. They are commonly used in many electronic devices, including digital cameras, mobile phones, laptop computers, MP3 players, and video game consoles...
59. It was released in Japan on May 30, 2003 and in North America on July 11, 2004, but only through the New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
Pokémon Center and its online store. It is no longer available in either location. The game was released in some parts of Europe as Pokémon Memory Magic due to translation problems, and Europeans only could get the game by using points from Nintendo of Europe's loyalty program, or by buying the Pokémon Colosseum Mega Pak.
The game is essentially a storage system for the Game Boy Advance
Game Boy Advance
The is a 32-bit handheld video game console developed, manufactured, and marketed by Nintendo. It is the successor to the Game Boy Color. It was released in Japan on March 21, 2001; in North America on June 11, 2001; in Australia and Europe on June 22, 2001; and in the People's Republic of China...
Pokémon games that allows players to trade and store Pokémon that they have caught in Ruby, Sapphire, Emerald, FireRed, and LeafGreen
Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen
are enhanced remakes of the original Pokémon Red and Blue video games, which were released in 1996. The new titles were developed by Game Freak and published by Nintendo for the Game Boy Advance and have compatibility with the Game Boy Advance Wireless Adapter, which originally came bundled with...
onto a GameCube memory card. Players can then organize and interact with their Pokémon on the GameCube, such as allowing them to breed. Unique Pokémon can also be acquired. Another feature allows the games to be played on the television via the GameCube Game Boy Advance Cable. Options such as taking screenshot
Screenshot
A screenshot , screen capture , screen dump, screengrab , or print screen is an image taken by a computer to record the visible items displayed on the monitor, television, or another visual output device...
s of the game are available in this mode. Another addition is the "Showcase", where players can create and display game pieces of Pokémon.
Nintendo referred to the game as "the most exclusive Pokémon software ever offered to North American Pokémon fans," but it was generally considered to be unnecessary, receiving an aggregate score of 50% on Game Rankings
Game Rankings
GameRankings is a website that collects review scores from both offline and online sources to give an average rating. It indexes over 315,000 articles relating to more than 14,500 games.GameRankings is owned by CBS Interactive...
. Craig Harris of IGN
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
gave the game a "Meh" rating of 5.0 out of 10, praising the interface, which makes the organization of Pokémon much easier as compared to the Game Boy Advance interface, as well as the emulator which allows Ruby and Sapphire to be played on the GameCube. He also stated that the game was a good deal due to the inclusion of a Memory Card and Cable. However, Harris cited the "Showcase" as "entirely unnecessary and completely out of place," and said that overall the game lacked much to do. He wrote, "It's targeted specifically for the truly die-hard Pokemon fan, but it requires so many specific elements to actually be useful to anyone." Allgame
Allgame
Allgame is a commercial database of information about arcade games, video games and console manufacturers.Allgame is owned by All Media Guide, along with Allmusic and Allmovie....
gave the game three and a half out of five stars.