Pokémon Alpha Sapphire (2014)

As I have stated Previously Pokemon Heart Gold/Soul Silver (HGSS) are one of two games I would keep from the Pokemon franchise. Omega Ruby/Alpha Sapphire (ORAS) would be the other one. The original Ruby/Sapphire (RS) was the first game in the series that I bought with my own money and completed without any help from friends or family. So the story and monsters from Hoenn have a special place in my heart and they always will. BUT NOW THEY CAN MEGA EVOLVE AND THAT'S F#!@ING DOPE AS HELL! The developers seemed to work out some of the visual difficulties they had with Pokemon X and Y, and the story of the original game was only enhanced by adding the Mega Evolution elements. Flying through the sky on Latios/Latias was so much fun and even as an adult I was mesmerized by the idea of flying over this region that had given me so many hours of enjoyment a full decade earlier.

The games sound was not perfect, but I mostly blame that on the hardware of the 3DS and the developers maybe being a bit too ambitious with what it could be. either way it wasn't bad just not to the standard of the rest of the game. The visual aspects were again hindered more by the hardware than anything else, something that constantly plagues Nintendo games.

If you were going to play any two games in the series I would recommend this one and HGSS. The rom hack scene has not quite made its way to either yet but when they do I cannot wait for the possibilities therein.

It's been a while since I played a Pokemon game until the end. Lord knows I've been postponing my trip through Hoenn for a long time. Well, I decided to take this trip and I'm really glad I did.

AlphaSapphire managed to rekindle my love for Pokemon.

Starting by the presentation, I know that Pokemon games are very simple and hardly ever bring anything cutting edge to the table, but where it lacks in novelty, it compensates in winsomeness. From the cities, to the map, gyms, monster design, environments and even those repetitive dungeons and fights - This game is adorable and it throws the cutesy factor in your face. And it works! It blends well with the classic turn-based battle system and fits like a glove with its monster design. Gen 3 Pokemon are amazing and it made want to catch, hunt and seek almost every Pokemon on this Pokedex.

A few quality of life improvements helped the game to become more agile. AlphaSapphire makes some old Pokemon games seem like a chore. It's a bit fast, slicker, and even more accessible than before. Its new gameplay quirks made the loop even more addictive. For example EXP Share, which is a godsend mechanic.

All in all, AlphaSapphire was one of the chillest Pokemon games I've played. And that casual design philosophy didn't bother me at all. I loved battling gym leaders, elite four, the aqua team and hunting legendary creatures. I took my time with it and I was rewarded for it.

But not everything is flowers in Hoenn. AlphaSapphire may have improved on the classic formula, but forgot to fix a few flaws. They masked them well, but they're there.

This game is still a grind fest, especially if you want to rematch Elite 4, catch legendary Pokemon or even battle online. The story sucks, as usual, and although the amount of content make up for it, even Delta Episode felt a bit dull. HMs are still a thing here and there are LOTS of them. And the soundtrack... My god, it's BAD!

Also, why the Mirage Spots mechanic? Were they really necessary? I get that it's a way to cram many legendary monsters into this game, but it ended up being a confusing, complex and uninviting hot mess!

A few other things slowed down my experience. Useless systems like 'super training', 'fashion show', 'planting berries'. Those were some of the things that were so unnecessary that I forgot them halfway through the game. I mean, was the 'secret base' system THAT fun and useful? I didn't think so...

AlphaSapphire brought my heart back to Pokemon. It's not only a great game in the series, but a good JRPG, in general. Old flaws and conservative design mechanics do weigh down and the grind makes the experience repetitive, but nothing broke it for me.

My trip to Hoenn was worth it and I'll won't forget it so soon.