Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire Announced for November 2014 Release
Today, we received some surprising news about new games in the Pokémon franchise for release later this year in Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire. They are widely believed to be remakes of the third generation games which nobody expected at all. We have no information on the titles outside the release date which is planned for November 2014 as a worldwide release, much like Pokémon X and Y. Also like Pokémon X and Y, Nintendo and The Pokémon Company International seem to have dropped the word “Version” from the titles of the games.
Nintendo says that, “Pokémon Omega Ruby and Pokémon Alpha Sapphire are a fresh take on Pokémon Ruby and Pokémon Sapphire, which launched in 2003 and were fan-favorite hits on the Game Boy Advance system. The new titles promise to take players through a dramatic story within a spectacular new world.”
With a November 2014 release, Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire will not make it in time for the first Regional Championships of the VGC ’15 season in October. Like the VGC ’13 and VGC ’14 seasons, we expect to play using Pokémon X and Y at the fall regionals before switching to Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire after mid-December. Keep in mind that the VGC ’15 season will be the first year we will hopefully have events on a regular basis if the current Premier Challenge pilot program pans out. It remains to be seen how long that Play! Pokémon decides is sufficient before sanctioned events switch to the new games.
About the Author
Firestorm is one of the co-founders of Nugget Bridge and the Community Manager for eSports Tournament Platform Battlefy. He has been playing Pokémon since 1999, competitively since 2007, and attending tournaments since 2010. He lives in Vancouver, Canada with a degree in Interactive Art & Technology + Communications. You can follow him on Twitter at @rushanshekar.
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Pretty much everything I wanted to say has been covered, but I’ll elaborate on it a little more. I was disappointed about Lightning Rod on M-Sceptile, apparently like everyone else, but I think its typing is the biggest upset for me. Since we don’t know what next year will bring in terms of Pokemon availability, I could just be acting pessimistic… but I was disappointed that it’s Dragon/Grass. I know a lot of other mons are 4x weak to Ice (Dragonite, Noivern, Garchomp, Salamence…) but they usually are at least decently bulky or have a good ability to help make up for their lack of defensive capabilities (ex: Salamence having Intimidate to help put cushion physical attackers), but Lighting Rod is just an odd choice to me. Sceptile has piss-poor bulk with 70/65/85, and they can’t add an abundance of bulk because then you have to take away from its offensive capabilities. I’m really curious to see its final spread, but the typing really disappointed me. Taking away one weakness (Fire) and adding two new ones (Fairy, Dragon) while making an old weakness 4x more effective against it… It seems like it could have been better. I’m probably being over-pessimistic about this whole thing, so I won’t add anything else on Swampert.
TL;DR: Blaziken got the biggest piece of the pie when it comes to abilities between the three.
Theoretically they could dock its Attack and put some of it into the defenses. Some Megas get drops along with their boosts already (Mewto Y, for instance) already.
As for Blaziken… Here I agree with you. XD
Well I guess there’s still a spot for 2 for a starter IMO its swampert that would get 2 why? I here u liek mudkipz but who was the most popular starter all those years ago
Actually, Blaziken was the really popular one, not Swampert. IIRC Swampert might have actually been the least popular one. It was the most competitively viable one but that has little to do with popularity among the kiddies.
I herd u dint liek mudkipz? ;-;
Aaaaaand Mega-Sceptile joins Hydreigon in the club of ‘Dragons with 4X weakness’
Although between its lightning rod ability, and Swampert’s swift swim, thunder wave is probably going to be a near obsolete method of speed control in the ORAS era.
Garchomp and Dragonite got there first! Lol I just hope Mega Sceptile has the offensive capabilities to seperate itself but im highly…skeptical.
Garchomp and Dragonite were already in the club…they were joined by Hydreigon and Sceptile this gen…
I see Sceptile as more of a support Pokemon though. Hopefully it’s competitively viable, because it’s my favourite starter of Gen 3.
How are you guys talking about RSE remakes and completely forgetting about Flygon and Altaria (who both came before Garchomp) I’m confused
Altaria was always a favorite too… I’m ashamed
I’m kinda surprised no one’s noticed Groudon and Kyogre’s new attacks.
On the page featuring them, you can clearly see them battling it out in the artwork with crazy lava spikes and water streams.
However, in the screenshots we can see those exact techniques, with screenshots of Groudon and Kyogre in battle directly preceding them. Coincidence? I think not.
Even more interesting, Groudon’s attack looks like a perfect Ground/Fire move in the same vein as Flying Press, and Kyogre is either surrounded by really weird-looking drops of water or chunks of ice, and the floating originators of the water blasts look quite similar.
Basically, I think we just might be seeing Ground/Fire Groudon and Water/Ice Kyogre with matching dual-type moves. It’s not exactly likely, but Groudon has been trying to be a dual-type all its life, and… well, I already explained everything else.
And battling got even more confusing dual type moves? What’s next dual abilities? U know that wouldn’t suck think: truant + ability that boosts attack when hit…. Mega slaking confirmed
I hope that doesn’t suggest Mega Kyogre will become part Ice, that would kinda suck if so…why give it unneeded weaknesses when its Ice Beam KOs dragons left and right without STAB anyways?
Well, now it’s time to start breeding for VGC 2015! Assuming that they will be allowed, I’m going to start breeding mudkips and treekos but I’m not sure what the best nature would be, any ideas?
I’d bet on a special nature due to its already high special attack and Lightning Rod increasing special when hit. But we wont know until the game I guess! Unless more is revealed tomorrow…they revealed stat boosts for some of the megas, perhaps that will happen tomorrow as well? I’m excited for potential reveals tomorrow – perhaps more on these ‘prehistoric’ pokemon?
u may be right get tv is showing some stuff lets all watch a dude in a bath again god no but there is gonna be info
Please don’t remind me of that op monster that has an op ability .
The trailer!!! Omg the graphics are so crisp and the graphics for primal kyogre and groudon are too good!!! Also is it just me or do the sprites seem smaller and more compact than x and y. It brings back the nostalgia of the super compact heavily pixilated sprites from gen 3
X and y was so good, I really can’t wait for one of my favorite storylines, paired with the new meta and new mons to be used! The nostalgia is too real! Also I have heard rumors of mega minun and plusle. How would they make these megas applicable to the vgc meta?! Pokemon, allow primal kyogre in the format and let the power that is drizzle take over!!!
On the one hand, Groudon having a sub fire type makes sense, after all it can’t even get STAB on moves its own ability powers up. Probably what it should’ve been a along, as Eruption was a bad joke on it. Give it Flare Blitz or Sacred Fire and watch it tear through stuff.
On the other hand, Kyogre owns it even more now, which is fine with me actually as I like Kyogre more. Even Sun probably won’t save it from a quad weakness to Water, or maybe just barely.
Oh good, Groudon is finally the Fire/Ground type I assumed it was when I first played RSE.
Do we know yet if Secret Bases are coming back?
I know Battle Frontier was introduced in Emerald, but I really hope they bring it in these new games. The Battle Dome and Battle Pike were definitely my favorite facilities.
no but I have dreams of them in x and y quality graphics.
It’d be perfect with Streetpass! I still don’t even know what the Streetpass function in XY is.
There wasn’t….. Also if u notice in the trailer there’s a certain gem blinding light thingy that looks like a mega stone!
Does anyone know if that large mass above Lilycove City was in the old game? If not what do you think it is?
Not quite sure. I certainly don’t remember so many land masses on the map, though I do recall them getting in the way while surfing so may just be HD map.
I can spot out some new looking areas. If you zoom in you can kinda see building-ish areas and some of those previously inaccessible islands appear to have some sort of construction type things going on. Mirage Island is there from what I can tell as well, so that’s a plus.
The bottom island I believe is either Mew’s or the Lati island. I forget if one of the island is the Sky Tower area though. I know the general area but I can’t really spot it out. I see the Regi Island, Abandoned Ship, the Space Center, Shoal Cave, Berry Master’s Farm, and honestly plenty of areas that could house new locations.
FRLG had new areas on a secondary map. We may have a Frontier but with it’s own area, kind of like how it felt like it was the same as Sinnoh’s with the travel.
…I certainly do not recall that dark cloud along the top though… It kinda looks like a floating castle…
The second volcano/crater looks a bit familiar. I can tell it looks more like Groudon erupted in the volcano area and Kyogre was the white crater, but that nearby secondary is a mystery.
Streetpass for Secret Bases sounds interesting, yet with the 3-4 people in my area that I managed to street pass (at work and honestly I have no idea who most of them are still. I only met 1 and know of 2) I think that would be a pain sometimes. How about more like Mixing Records? Streetpass has the option to auto mix records and you can also do it over WiFi with friends?
Mega Sableye, interesting seeing how the original form was pretty competitive. The first time I saw him, it looked like Sableye’s ability would be stance change, but it doesn’t look like Sableye comes out from hiding behind his gem. Thoughts? I don’t really think it’s going to be very viable personally, as it already has Prankster, and it’s offensive stats may be to poor to make competitive through a mega form. Even if it keeps prankster too, I probably wouldn’t waste a mega slot on it over something like Kanga.
Well, we know the mega exists, but literally nothing else about it. Too soon to tell whether or not it’ll be viable.