“Pokémon Ruby” is, personally, my favorite video game of all time. It carries a nostalgia factor with me, including memories of me playing it while my brother played “Pokémon Emerald”, which we still do today. I have been waiting for a Gen 3 remake for as long as I can remember. As much as I love the style and animation for Gen 3, having my favorite video game re-mastered is exciting and new. Even though “Omega Ruby” and “Alpha Sapphire” have not been officially stated as remakes, the chances are high. With that being said, here are 5 reasons why a Gen 3 remake is a great idea.
1) New Mega Evolutions
If Nintendo wants to make these remakes the best that they can be, then they have to include Mega Evolutions. Every game from Gen 6 on has to as well, since Megas have become such a huge part of in-game play as well as competitive battling. If they go on this path, Swampert and Sceptile will definitely have Mega Evolutions. It would be weird to only have Mega Blaziken without the other two becoming Mega, or even having none of them be Megas. Imagine all of the other Pokémon from Gen 3 that could get Megas as well. Mega Swellow, Mega Breloom, even Mega Linoone (don’t tell me that wouldn’t be awesome). Gen 3 introduced so many Pokémon that could become Mega. Except for Slaking. We don’t need that.
2) 3-D Art Style
The animation in Gen 3 is my favorite out of all the generations. It was the perfect bridge between the classic games and the new DS games. It had a nice mix of 8-bit quality as well as smoothness and a great color palette. As much as I love the style, seeing some of my favorite cities and towns in 3-D sounds amazing. The world of Gen 3 is so interactive, whether through hopping with your bike along a path or having Trainers disguise themselves as trees. I would love to see these elements incorporated into the 3-D art style. Even though the Gen 3 Pokémon have already been seen in 3-D thanks to “Pokémon X and Y”, it would be nice to see them battling in the Gen 3 environments, like the Desert Ruins.
3) Expansion of Story
The inclusion of Megas into Gen 3 could also mean an expansion of the story. While I do love the story in the original games, it would be cool to see how Mega Stones/Rings could be incorporated. Rather than Team Magma and Team Aqua fighting over the Blue and Red Orbs, they could also be fighting for Mega Stones as well. Then Groudon and Kyogre could become Megas, which would look amazing. (I know they’re already broken. It would be cool in-game.) Mega Evolutions could be incorporated in other elements of the story as well, such as with Wally and his Ralts becoming a Mega Gardevoir. Each Gym leader could have one Pokémon with a Mega Evolution as well.
4) Music Re-Mastered
Everyone knows the classic trumpets that play throughout Gen 3. The music of Gen 3 is amazing, and my personal favorite of all the generations. They really helped add an element into traveling throughout the game, as well as with battling. The music helped in the story as well, especially when Team Magma and Team Aqua were involved. While I might end up preferring the original music better (for nostalgic reasons), it’s always exciting to hear a new take on a song, just as it would be for any song cover.
5) A New Experience
Just like with any song cover, taking a game and re-living it through another style is a new and exciting experience. The great part about these potential re-makes is that they are separate from the original games. You can always go back and play “Pokémon Ruby”, “Sapphire”, and “Emerald” whenever you want. It’s still cool to see all of the aspects that made Gen 3 great incorporated into a new style and technique. The same thing applies to “Heart Gold” and “Soul Silver”, which were both great games on their own. Having a new take on Gen 3 is an exciting and new experience that I’m very happy to experience.
Whether “Omega Ruby” and “Alpha Sapphire” become remakes or not, I still believe that a Gen 3 remake is a great idea. Even if they aren’t remakes, I’ll still be excited to go play these games and see the recreation and expansion of my favorite Pokémon region.