And who says remake says above all visual overhaul. Fourteen years later, it's a must... Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire therefore benefit from the graphic engine and advances of Pokémon X and Y, released in October 2013: fully 3D adventure, more dynamic combat staging, variation environments and the weather... These two versions are up to the level of the 3DS with a few nicer ones, such as reflections in puddles (at night, you can see the starry sky) or even new little animations for our hero. It is therefore mostly very successful, and we rediscover the more natural decors of Hoenn. The other side of the coin: there are drops in framerate during the fights and the 3D relief is still only available during the clashes. Moreover, if camera movements are still as little used, they are much more relevant; the somewhat catastrophic management of viewing angles at Illumis last year has left its mark... The same strengths for more or less the same weaknesses: Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire do not revolutionize anything visually, but after the leap forward in 2013, we kinda expected it.
REMIXED REMAKES
The graphics engine is also not the only element to be transplanted versions X and Y. The gameplay also remains substantially identical. The Poké Multi-Navi reappears and still integrates the Poké-Récré, the multiplayer functionalities and the Virtual Improvement System. You can now find the Navi TV Show there, which broadcasts all day long news bulletins, but which is especially useful when you want to have regular news from your connected friends. Mega Evolutions are also making a comeback after a popular first attempt by players, in a wider variety of Pokémon, including the Legendaries Groudon, Kyogre, Latios, and Latias. The bag of the Trainer that you are once again benefits from an optimized organization, with thematic pockets and possible shortcuts for four objects of your choice; the touch navigation interface has been slightly improved, as has the Pokédex, and it is now the best in the series (if not for the map, which really deserves to be more detailed ). We will however regret the end of the customization of the hero and the aerial combats, which were however very fresh ideas
Beyond a scenario reworked for the occasion, which will lead you to face Teams Magma and Aqua, these two opuses are characterized by a larger map, comprising a large portion of wild areas and aquatic roads.
But these Omega Ruby & Alpha Sapphire versions still manage to stand out from Pokémon X and Y. Beyond a scenario reworked for the occasion, which will lead you to face Teams Magma and Aqua, these two opuses are characterized by a larger map, with a large portion of wild areas and water routes. You will therefore have enough to show off your brand new Navi-Dex, which is one of the major additions of the episode. It allows you to know at a glance if there are still creatures to capture in a particular area, and if so which ones; a good way to organize your research. In addition, the Navi-Dex offers you the possibility of detecting Pokémon with special talents, rare abilities and high innate potential. The more species you encounter, the more likely you are to find a rare specimen. The approach is interesting but a bit daunting and forces you to take your troubles patiently before capturing a Pokémon; with twenty or thirty more encounters, you may be able to get your hands on a more developed specimen
STUFFING-CATCH
Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire also bring back from the beginning of the 90st century quite important features of the original episodes on GameBoy Advance, namely Live Contests and Super Secret Bases. The former encourage you to develop Cold Blood, Intelligence or even the Beauty of your critters in order to present them to a jury. Directly linked to the cultivation of berries, which takes on an additional dimension here, the Live-Contest remains a fairly uninteresting, boring and ultimately anecdotal feature. The Super Secret Bases are, on the contrary, much more interactive: from halfway through the game, you can indeed build your own refuge in one of the many places provided for this purpose in Hoenn and change it at will. Fully customizable with dozens of items available in stores, these hideouts can be visited by other players and even turn into arenas. On the other hand, visiting the Secret Bases of other trainers via the Streetpass and picking up their flags opens access to exclusive items. Still, this remake is a notch below the originals in terms of difficulty. Game Freak and Nintendo also seem determined to level it down; we trace XNUMX% of the adventure with our starting Pokémon, always far superior to the others. A pitfall that is becoming a recurring hair and which could annoy experienced players in the long run.
