Pokemon Ruby
ポケットモンスタールビー
Pokemon Ruby Box Art
Pokemon Sapphire
ポケットモンスターサファイア
Pokemon Sapphire Box Art
General information
 Platform  Game Boy Advance
 Developed by  Game Freak
 Published by  Nintendo
 Players
 1-4
 Generation  Generation III
 New Pokemon  135
 New Abilities  76
 New Moves  103
 Predecessor(s)  Pokémon Crystal
 Successor(s)  Pokémon Emerald
 Release dates
  Australia  April 3rd, 2003
  Europe  July 25th, 2003
  Japan  November 21st, 2002
  United States  March 19th, 2003
Quick menu: Story / Pokemon / Region / Team Aqua & Magma / Gym Leaders / Elite Four / Connectivity / Videos / Trivia / Sales Figures / Review Scores / Media & Artwork / Articles & Guides

Pokémon Ruby title screenPokemon Ruby & Sapphire versions are the main core series titles for Generation III and had been released globally by July 25th, 2003 for the Game Boy Advance. They are represented by the Legendary mascots; Groudon for Ruby and Kyogre for Sapphire.

After the success of the previous gen's Pokemon GSC and harnessing the power of the newly released Game Boy Advance, Nintendo and Gamefreak stepped up to produce a new game with amazing Pokemon. Ruby and Sapphire introduce lots of new features, moves, abilities and Pokemon whilst also fixing some things which had been issues in previous titles in the series. 

Asides from a whole new world and story we see a bunch of features that make the game more fun to play but at the same time, challenging! The games were really well recieved by fans, so much so that 12 years after their release, the games were remade and modernised in the form of Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire for the Nintendo 3DS/2DS.

New Features

Pokemon Natures were added, whenever a Pokemon is spawned in the wild or bred, it has a nature that benefits a stat and affects another. Making the game more balanced and each Pokemon unique.
Each Pokemon species now has a Pokémon ability! After entering battle or when something happens during battle they do something like raising stats, lowering the enemies stats, or just being faster during a downpour. The abilities make battling more fun and entertaining! Want to know more? check out our guide to Pokémon Natures.

Double battles are happening! Now you can have battle against two Pokémon at once with two Pokémon of your party. This really makes the hunting of Pokémon more fun and changes the strategy as certain attacks have to hit two Pokémon at once, or all Pokémon, like earthquake! This is what makes abilities so useful because there are some Pokémon that are immune to ground type moves, so if your partner earthquakes there are no worries!May, dressed for a contestMay, dressed for a contest

Pokemon Contests! Finally a way to battle…without battling. Pokémon contests let you face your Pokémon against others without having to fight them, all the moves do things to impress the crowd. Moves are categorized as cool, beauty, cute, smart and tough! Now you can become the best at contests, groom your pokemon and earn all the ribbons for your beloved partners.

Ribbons are basically prizes that you get when your Pokémon gets an achievement such as winning a contest, filling up its evs’ or just being plain unique. Be on the lookout for them.

Stats were overhauled, Individual Values are now unique and Effort values manage how much your Pokémon grows from fighting. The new setup is done in a way that training affects your pokemon but breeding too.

Plot / Story

The story begins with the player and their family moving to Littleroot Town, Hoenn region which is the base from which they'll begin their Pokémon journey. The player and their family moved to Littleroot town because their father, Norman had just become the gym leader of the Petalburg Gym.

The little intro video at the start shows the player in a removals van, it pulls up outside a house in Littleroot Town, where the player's mother then explains that this is to be there new home, the player and their mother enter the house whilst a couple of Machoke's who represent the moving company bring in boxes. The wild Poochyena who attacked BirchThe wild Poochyena who attacked Birch

The players mother then suggests that they go and say hello to Professor Birch, who is a friend of their fathers. So the player heads out and talks a walk to Professor Birches house, when they get there they are greeted by Birch's wife, and when the player goes upstairs they meet either Brendan or May (if the player is male, they meet May, if the player is female they meet Brendan) who are the son/daughter of Professor Birch and would later become one of the players rivals. The Professor isn't home at this point and is out working in the field, Brendan/May go out to look for him.

The player also leaves Birches house and continues up route 101, where they find the Professor being chased around in circles by a Poochyena, whilst still being pursued by his tormentor the Professor shouts to the player to pick a Pokéball from his bag which is on the ground nearby, and use the Pokémon to save him from his aggressor! At this point the player then gets to choose between Treecko, Mudkip and Torchic; the Hoenn starter Pokémon, immediately after the player chooses their starter Pokémon they'll be engaged in battle against the wild Poochyena, once the player defeats Poochyena and saves Professor Birch he thanks the player and allows them to keep the Pokémon they used to save him. At this point Professor Birch then says the player should meet up with Brendan/May on route 103 for some tips on being a Pokémon Trainer.
Treecko Torchic Mudkip
Treecko Torchic Mudkip

On arrival to route 103 the player finds Brendan/May and the two have their first battle, once it's over both the player and Brendan/May return to Professor Birch's lab and are both given their first Pokéballs and a Pokédex.

Once the player leaves the lab they find their mother waiting outside, who then gives them the Running Shoes to help them on their journey. The player then heads over to Petalburg City, where their father is the Gym Leader of the Petalburg Gym. The player stops by to tell their father that they've decided to become a Pokémon Trainer just like he did before them, a fact that Norman is both happy and proud to learn. During the conversation with the players father a boy from Petalburg named Wally enters the gym and asks Norman for help in catching his first Pokémon, Norman gives Wally a Pokéball and loans him a Zigzagoon and then asks the player to go help Wally with his first catch.

The player meets up with Wally on Route 102 where he is succesful in catching his first mon; a Ralts. The pair then return to the gym and Wally returns the loaned Zigzagoon and thanks Norman, just before his mother calls him home. It's at this point that Norman encourages the player to start their own Pokémon journey, travelling the Hoenn region and taking on his fellow gym leaders: Roxanne, Brawly, Wattson, Flannery, Winona, Tate & Liza, Wallace & eventually although he doesn't say it this would lead to the player facing their own father too.

Shortly after the player departs the Petalburg Gym they travel through Route 104 and on to Petalburg Woods; where they make their first encounter with the villainous team of the Hoenn region; Team Magma if you are playing Ruby, Team Aqua if you are playing Sapphire. A battle ensues between the player and the Pokévillain, after which the grunt reveals that his team has some sort of scheme to go after something in Rustboro City.

The player arrives in Rustboro City, heads to the Rustboro Gym and takes on Roxanne who yields the players very first Gym Badge to them; The Stone Badge. Not long after leaving the Rustboro Gym the player bumps into one of the researchers from the Devon Corporation who is shaken and tells the player that he has been robbed by grunts from Team Aqua (Sapphire) or Team Magma (Ruby), the player ends up tasked with helping him get the Devon Goods back from the villains and heads in the direction that the robbers went.

As the player navigates Route 116 they run into Mr. Briney who begs the players help; as the same criminal team who stole the Devon goods has also kidnapped his Wingull named Peeko and is holding it hostage in the Rusturf Tunnel. The player enters the tunnel and confronts the grunt who low and behold not only has Mr. Brineys Wingull with him, but also the Devon Goods! The player engages the grunt in battle and after defeating him rescues Peeko and takes back the Devon Goods.
Mr. StoneMr. Stone After the player safely returns the Devon Goods to the researcher who had them stolen from him originally, he then asks the player if they could deliver the package to Slateport City's shipyard, where on arrival they meet up with Mr. Stone, the Devon Corp's president. Mr. Stone has a favour to ask of the player, sending them to take a letter to his son, Steven, in Dewford Town, but not without first thanking the player for their earlier actions by giving them a PokéNav.

As the player leaves they meet May/Brendan who tell the player about Mr. Briney and the fact he used to be sailor, the player then travels back through the Petalburg Woods and visits Mr. Briney at his home. Mr. Briney thanks the player for their earlier actions by giving them passage to Route 105 and Dewford Town. The player heads just north of Dewford Town into Granite Cave, where Steven, the letters intended recipient was exploring. At the cave entrance the player obtains HM05 (Flash) but is unable to use it outside of battle until they defeat the Dewford Gym. The player, unable to venture into the cave without the use of flash, proceeds to take on Brawly the Dewford Gym Leader, earning the Knuckle Badge and the ability to use Flash outside of battle. The player now enabled to use Flash to navigate the cave finally finds Steven in the depths of the caves and delivers the letter from his father, Steven thanks the player and gives them TM47 (Steel Wing), he also says he sees the potential in the player to become a great Pokémon League Champion some day.

The player leaves Dewford Town and meets back up with Mr. Briney who takes the player across route 107, 108 and 109 ending up just South of Slateport City. As the player enters the city they notice a large crowd of Team Magma (Ruby)/Team Aqua (Sapphire) members blocking the entrance to the Oceanic Museum. The player finally makes it to Stern's Shipyard where they were due to deliver the package to Captain Stern, only to find that he isn't there and is infact in the Oceanic Museum (you know, the one with the load of grunts outside it!). The player arrives at the Oceanic Museum shortly after and finds Captain Stern inside, two grunts from Magma/Aqua then confront the player and a battle ensues. The player who is now becoming a very strong trainer makes quick work of the grunts and they flee, it's then that their boss Maxie (Team Magma) or Archie (Team Sapphire) arrives, explaining what their Team is trying to achieve and warning the player that they'd do well not to meddle with their objectives again.

With the objective of delivering the Devon Goods to Captain stern now complete the player leaves Slateport and hits Route 110. It's here that they encounter their rival; Brendan/May and take them on in battle before proceeding on their way to Mauville City to take on it's gym. The player arrives at the Mauville gym and finds a familiar face waiting for him at the entrance, it's Wally! the guy you helped catch his first Pokémon, he's outside with his uncle who seems a bit sceptical as to whether Wally is ready to take on a gym leader yet. Wally challenges the player to a battle in an effort to prove himself to his uncle, but is unfortunately defeated. Wally's uncle invites the player to come and visit him in Verdanturf Town one day. The player says their goodbyes to Wally and his uncle and enters the Gym where they manage to defeat Wattson and his electric mons and earn the Dynamo Badge, they also earn the ability to use Rock Smash which they use to clear the blockage at the Rusturf Tunnel - an action for which the player gets awarded HM04 (Strength). The player then begins their journey to Fallarbor Town.May, the female rivalMay

When the player reaches the Fallarbor Pokémon Centre they meet Lanette, she invites them to visit her home on Route 114, as the player is travelling this route they reach Meteor Falls and find Team Magma (Ruby)/Team Aqua (Sapphire) who have just robbed Professor Cozmo of a valuable meteorite. As the player is about to confront the villainous team and attempt to retrieve the metorite, a group from the opposing team turns up causing the thieves to quickly fall back and dissapear up Mt. Chimney. The opposing team give chase, as does the player, who when they eventually arrive at the peak of Mt. Chimney find Team Magma and Team Aqua engaged in battle. The player finds and faces the main admin of their game versions evil team (Magma's admin Tabitha if Ruby, Aqua's admin Matt if Sapphire). Once the player gets past the admin they see the leader of their games primary evil team using the meteorite in a machine, the player quickly engages and defeats the leader and retrieves the Meteorite.

The player leaves the scene and is now able to take Mt. Chimney's southern path which was previously blocked by the fighting team members of Aqua/Magma. They head down Mt. Chimney and arrive at Lavaridge Town, enthusiastically heading onwards to face Flannery at the Lavaridge Gym despite everything that had happened on their journey just beforehand. The player, undeterred by all their battles with the games villains makes quick work of Flannery and leaves with her Heat Badge. Shortly after they meet Brendan/May again who give the player the Go-Goggles and suggests that maybe its time the player travelled to take on their father at the Petalburg gym and show him what they've learned. Excited to do just that, the player makes tracks to Petalburg Gym and battles their father, who is slightly taken back but none the less very proud to award the player with the Balance Badge.

Anime Season's which loosely tie in with Ruby & Sapphire (in terms of locations, NPCs such as gym leaders and Pokémon)
Pokemon Advanced Season 6 Logo Pokemon Advanced Challenge Season 7 Logo Pokemon Advanced Battle Season 8 Logo Pokemon Battle Frontier Season 9 Logo

Official Description

Immerse yourself in the beautiful region of Hoenn, a place of masterful heroes and mysterious teams, of friendship and battles. As the new kid in town, you set off your journey as a Pokémon Trainer. Who knows what wonders and dangers await you? Now it's time to grab your gear and head out on your own...

  • Over 200 Pokémon appear with over 100 newly discovered species—you'll have to link up and trade with a friend who has SapphireR/RubyS Version to catch them all!
  • 2-on-2 battles—use two of your Pokémon in battle at the same time!
  • Engage in intense multi battles with up to four friends!
  • Pokémon Contests let you groom your Pokémon to be the Best of Show!
  • Stunning Game Boy Advance graphics display the world of Pokémon with more detail than ever!

Can I catch them all?

Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire introduced a pretty impressive 135 new Pokémon, bringing the total number of known Pokémon to 386 across these titles and their predecessors. Unfortunately due to a lack of connectivity between the Game Boy/GBC titles and the Game Boy Advance not all known Pokémon can be bought to Hoenn (not in it's GBA form at least). In order to complete the PokeDex, trading is a necessity (cheating and hacking aside). 

There are several Pokémon that could only be obtained via official Nintendo events (or the exploitation of cheats and glitches) these are:
  • Latios: An event Pokémon for Pokémon Sapphire. Can also be caught roaming. See our guide for how to get it.
  • Latias: An event Pokémon for Pokemon Ruby. Can also be caught roaming. See our guide for how to get it.
  • Jirachi & Deoxys: These two gen III Pokémon are the only third gen mons that have to be caught by external means, for example if you had a Gamecube you could use the Bonus Disc for Pokémon Colosseum in order to get Jirachi.

Like all the paired series titles before them Ruby and Sapphire also have a number of version exclusive Pokémon, although not many - 6 version exclusive normal Pokémon plus their mascot Legendaries. Here's what each game has:-

 Pokemon Ruby exclusives
273
273 Seedot
(Grass type)
274
274 Nuzleaf
(Grass/Dark type)
275
275 Shiftry
(Grass/Dark type)
303
303 Mawile
(Steel type)
335
335 Zangoose
(Normal type)
338
338 Solrock
(Rock/Psychic type)
383
383 Groudon
(Ground type Legendary).

 Pokemon Sapphire exclusives
270
270 Lotad
(Water/Grass type)
271
271 Lombre
(Water/Grass type)
272
272 Ludicolo
(Water/Grass type)
302
302 Sableye
(Dark/Ghost type)
336
336 Seviper
(Poison type)
337
337 Lunatone
(Rock/Psychic type)
382
382 Kyogre
(Water type Legendary)


Region / Setting

Ruby & Sapphire are set in the Hoenn region, an area of the Pokémon World just south of the Sinnoh region. Hoenn was inspired by Kyushu, the main Japanese Island. Like Johto and Kanto had themed place names before it (ie places named after colours, or plants) Hoenn is no different, all of the cities and towns of Hoenn are two words joined together for example Little Root, Ever Grande and so on.

This regions Pokémon Prof. as mentioned already in the story is Professor Birch in Little Root Town.

A map of the Hoenn region
A map of the Hoenn region from the Official Artwork for Pokemon Omega Ruby / Alpha Sapphire.

As you can probably tell from the map above the Hoenn region features an impressive variety of environments which range from volcanic regions, to deserts, to grasslands and rainforests. Compared to other regions from the core series of games there is also a comparably large water mass, especially when compared to the largely landlocked Sinnoh region. Likewise Hoenn was compared to Johto by Ruby in the Pokémon Adventures Manga when she stated that she preferred Johto's many large and modern cities over the wildnerness and sparse population of the Hoenn region. Due to the rugged nature of the inland terrains the majority of the towns in Hoenn are situated on the coast.

Another notable feature is that the Hoenn region has one active volcano; Mt. Chimney in the north west, the name Mt. Chimney is owed to the fact that every so often the Volcano will pump out clouds of ash which will rain down on nearby towns, cities and routes.

Hoenn has a warm semi-tropical climate, surpassed in terms of temperatures only by those of Sun & Moon's Alola region. So it's suspected that Hoenn must be situated reasonably close the the equator of the Pokémon world. But it's not all Pina Colada's and sunshine for the residents of Hoenn, the desert regions are prone to terrible sandstorms, whereas the northeastern areas can often be pelted by tropical rainstorms which act to sustain the regions rainforests.

Team Aqua & Team Magma


Two Grunts from Team Aqua Team Aqua
Team Aqua is a villainous gang that operates in the Hoenn region; their ambition is to expand the worlds water mass, a goal they hope to achieve by awakening the Legendary Pokémon; Kyogre. Team Aqua is led by Archie and two other major characters are Matt and Shelley, the teams male and female admins. If you play the Sapphire version, Team Aqua will be the primary evil team.
Two grunts from Team Magma Team Magma
The arch rivals of Team Aqua, due to their completely opposite goals; these guys want to expand the worlds land mass; and their plans rely on raising the Legendary Ground type Pokémon; Groudon from it's slumber. They also operate in the Hoenn region and are often seen in conflict with Aqua. Magma is led by Maxie, and other members of importance are Courtney and Tabitha, the teams top ranked admins. If you play the Ruby version, Team Magma will be the primary evil team.


Gym Leaders

The eight gym leaders of the Hoenn region. You'll have to beat all eight of these guys and win their badges if you want to enter the Pokémon League and take on the Elite Four and the Champion.  Also check out our guide on the Gym Leaders of Ruby & Sapphire and how to beat them.
Roxanne Rustboro Gym: Roxanne
Roxanne only likes one thing more than studying and learning, and that's battling with her team of Rock type Pokémon. She's known as "The Rock-Loving Honors Student" and Her team consists of: A Geodude (Level 14) Rock/Ground and a Nosepass (Level 15) Pure Rock type.

Defeat Roxanne and she will present you with the Stone Badge.

"Hello, I am Roxanne, the Rustboro Pokémon Gym Leader. I became a Gym Leader so that I may apply what I learned at the Pokémon Trainer's School in battle. Would you kindly demonstrate how you battle, and with which Pokémon?"
Brawly
Dewford Gym: Brawly

Brawly, as the name suggests uses Fighting type Pokémon, he's always up for the ruck that one. When he's not battling at his gym, you can find him hittin' the waves, as he loves to surf as a result they call him "A big wave in fighting" and his team is made up of: Machop (Level 17) and Makuhita (Level 18) both being pure fighting types.

If you can knock out Brawly's fighting mon's he'll yield the Knuckle Badge.

"I'm Brawly! Dewford's Gym Leader! I've been churned in the rough waves of these parts, and I've grown tough in the pitch-black cave! So you wanted to challenge me? Let me see what you're made of!"
Wattson
Mauville Gym: Wattson

The Jolly Old man who stands as the leader of the Mauville Gym is known as Wattson, his name itself directly relating to the Electric Pokémon that he specialises in. Wattson's three Pokémon are: Magnemite (Level 22) an electric/steel type, Voltorb (Level 20) a pure electric type and Magneton (Level 23) an electric/steel type.

If you can withstand the voltage of Wattson's team and overcome him you'll earn yourself The Dynamo Badge.

"I've given up on my plans to convert the city, I have. And so, I put my time into making door traps in my Gym. Oh? Now, what are you doing here? What's that? You say you've gotten past all my rigged doors? Wahahahah! Now, that is amusing! Then, I, Wattson, the Leader of Mauville Gym, shall electrify you!"
Flannery
Lavaridge Gym: Flannery
Flannery is a fire type specialist, and the new leader of the Lavaridge Gym who has recently taken over from her Grandfather. She is known amongst the locals are "One with a fiery passion that burns!". She commands a team of four made up of: Numel (Level 24) a fire/ground type, Slugma (Level 24) a pure fire type, Camerupt (Level 26) a fire/ground type and Torkoal (Level 29) a pure fire type.

Extinguish Flannery and her team and she will yield her Heat Badge.

"Welcome... No, wait. Puny Trainer, how good to see you've made it here! I have been entrusted with the... No, wait. I am Flannery, and I'm the Gym Leader here! Uh... Dare not underestimate me, though I have been Leader only a short time! With skills inherited from my grandfather, I shall, uh...demonstrate the hot moves we have honed on this land!"
Norman
Petalburg Gym: Norman

Norman specialists in Normal Pokémon, as his name practically suggests. He is the father of the player, but don't think for a minute that he'll go easy on you, Norman is ambitious and wants to rise above the status of gym leader, people know him as "A man in pursuit of power!". Norman has three normal type Pokémon: Slaking (Level 28), Vigoroth (Level 30) and another Slaking (Level 31).

Face down and defeat your ingame father in order to obtain The Balance Badge.

"Hm… So, you did get four Gym Badges. Fine, as I promised, we will have a Pokémon battle. … I'm so happy that I can have a real battle with my own child. But, a battle is a battle! I will do everything in my power as a Gym Leader to win. , you'd better give it your best shot, too!"
Winona
Fortree Gym: Winona
Winona is an expert in Bird type Pokémon. The residents of Fortree City know her as "The bird user taking flight into the world." this statement potentially being linked to the fact that Winona often flies on the back of her Pokémon. Winona's team of four is made up of: Swellow (Level 31) a normal/flying type, Pelipper (Level 30) a water/flying type, Skarmory (Level 32) a steel/flying type and Altaria (Level 33) a dragon/flying type.

Clip the wings of Winona and her team of birds and be awarded the Feather Badge.

"I am Winona. I am the Leader of the Fortree Pokémon Gym. I have become one with bird Pokémon and have soared the skies... However grueling the battle, we have triumphed with grace... Witness the elegant choreography of bird Pokémon and I!"
Tate & Liza
Mossdeep Gym: Tate & Liza

The twin gym-leaders of the Mossdeep Gym are Psychic specialists, they're also the only Trainers in the game with the trainer class 'Leader'. The residents of Mossdeep City know them as "The mystic combination!". They only command one Pokémon each, but they're pretty tough: Lunatone (Level 42) and Solrock (Level 42) both of which are rock/psychic types.

If the player can defeat this formidable duo they'll be awarded The Mind Badge.

Tate: "Hehehe... Were you surprised?"
Liza: "Fufufu... Were you surprised?"
Tate: "That there are two Gym Leaders?"
Liza: "That there are two Gym Leaders?"
Tate: "We're twins!"
Liza: "We're twins!"
Wallace
Sootopolis Gym: Wallace

Wallace is a water-type trainer and the final gym leader you will take on in the Hoenn region. He is a tough gym leader, with aspirations of going much further which will soon be realised. He is unique in having the trainer class of 'Sootopolitan' and known by locals as an "Artist, and lover of water.". Wallace's pretty stacked out team contains: Luvdisc (Level 40) a pure water type, Sealeo (Level 40) an ice/water type, Seaking (Level 42) a pure water type, Whiscash (Level 42) a ground/water type and finally his Milotic (Level 43) which is a pure water type.

Defeat him to obtain the Rain Badge, the final badge you will need in order to enter the Pokémon League and confront the Elite Four.

"My name is Wallace. I'm this town's Gym Leader. I've also been entrusted with the protection of the Cave of Origin. This sunshine (Ruby)/downpour (Sapphire) is caused by a power emanating from the Cave of Origin. That… That is the Red Orb (Ruby)/Blue Orb (Sapphire). I see. Follow me."
"The Cave of Origin is ahead. No one from Sootopolis is permitted to enter the Cave of Origin. But you must go. Together with your Red Orb (Ruby)/Blue Orb(Sapphire). You must go regardless of what awaits you inside the Cave…"


The Elite Four & The Champion

Once the player reaches Ever Grande City they will get the oppurtunity to take on the Elite Four of Hoenn, and should they defeat them they'll even get a shot at the Champion of the Pokémon League. Check out our Elite Four Strategy Guide if you're having trouble beating them.

Elite Four Sidney, master of dark types Elite Four #1 - Sidney, a Dark Type master
Considering he is a master of dark type Pokémon, Sidney is an upbeat guy who loves his Pokémon and his role within the Elite Four. Sidney will come at you with all out offencive moves.

His team consists of:- Mightyena (Level 46) a pure dark type, Cacturne (Level 46) a grass/dark type, Shiftry (Level 48) a grass/dark type, Sharpedo (Level 48) a water/dark type and Absol (Level 49) a pure dark type.

"Welcome, challenger! I'm Sidney of the Elite Four. I like that look you're giving me. I guess you'll give me a good match. That's good! Looking real good! All right! You and me, let's enjoy a battle that can only be staged here in the Pokémon League!"
Elite Four Phoebe, master of ghost types Elite Four #2 - Phoebe, a Ghost Type master
Phoebe doesn't look at all like your traditional ghost type master, being fairy smiley and welcoming, she trains at Mt. Pyre, and this is where she claims she developed the ability to commune with ghost types. Her Grandmother also lives on Mt. Pyre, who has been encountered by the player previously and Phoebe commented that the player made an impression on her. Phoebe isn't an all out attacker like Sidney, she'll be using confusion, sleep and status affects more than a full on offence.

Her team is made up of: Dusclops (Level 48) a pure ghost type, Banette (Level 49) a pure ghost type, Banette (Level 49) a pure ghost type with different moves to the Banette before it, Sableye (Level 50) a dark/ghost type and Dusclops (Level 51) a pure ghost type.

"Hahaha! I'm Phoebe of the Elite Four."
"I did my training on Mt. Pyre. While I trained there, I gained the ability to commune with Ghost-type Pokémon."
"The bond I developed with my Pokémon is extremely tight. Come on! Just try and see if you can even inflict damage on my Pokémon!"

Elite Four Glacia: Master of Ice Types Elite Four #3 - Glacia, an Ice Type master
It's not known where Glacia is originally from but it is said that the travelled from a region far away in order to become part of Hoenn's Elite Four. She is passionate and tactical in equal measure, referring to herself as having "flaming passion in icy cold". Glacia will utilise items as much as she can during combat with the player.

Glacia's Team consists of: Glalie (Level 50) a pure ice type, Sealeo (Level 50) an ice/water type, Sealeo (Level 52) an ice/water type, Glalie (Level 52) a pure ice type and Walrein (Level 53) an ice/water type.

"Welcome, my name is Glacia of the Elite Four. I've traveled from afar to Hoenn so that I may hone my icy skills. But all I have seen are challenges by weak Trainers and their Pokémon. What about you? It would please me to no end if I could go all out against you!"

Elite Four Leader: Drake, master of dragons Elite Four #4 - Drake, a Dragon Type master
It is said that Drake once had his life saved by a Dragon type Pokémon, though the details of that situation are not known. Ever since this time he has dedicated his life to learning everything he can about the Pokémon who saved his life. He used to be shipmates with Mr. Briney. Drake is the strongest member of Hoenn's Elite Four, and he believes the combined challenge he and the three members before him present is tougher even than that of the challenge offered by the Battle Frontier.

Drake's Team consists of: Shelgon (Level 52) a pure dragon type, Altaria (Level 54) a dragon/flying type, Flygon (Level 53) a ground/dragon type, Flygon (Level 53) with a different moveset and finally Salamence (Level 55) a dragon/flying type.

"I am the last of the Pokémon League Elite Four, Drake the Dragon master! In their natural state, Pokémon are wild living things. They are free. At times, they hinder us. At times, they help us. For us to battle with Pokémon as partners, do you know what it takes? Do you know what is needed? If you don't, then you will never prevail over me!"
Steven Stone, The Pokémon League Champion The Pokémon League Champion: Steven Stone
Steven is the champion of the Hoenn region, and an even more powerful trainer than all of the Elite Four you faced before him; he specialises in the Steel type. Steven's home is in Mossdeep City and The president of the Devon Corporation is his father. Steven enjoys exploring remote places in search of rare stones.

Steven's team is as formidable as one would expect from the Champion, he specialises in Steel but his team is a little different to what you might expect, he's got a Skarmory (Level 57) a steel/flying type, a Claydol (Level 55) a ground/psychic type, an Aggron (Level 56) steel/rock type, Cradily (Level 56) a rock/grass type, Armaldo (Level 56) rock/bug type and a Metagross (Level 58) a steel/psychic type.

"Welcome, . I was looking forward to seeing you here one day. You… What did you see on your journey with Pokémon? What did you feel, meeting so many other Trainers like you? What has awoken in you? I want you to hit me with it all! Now, bring it!"


Connectivity

Like the previous Pokémon core series titles, Ruby and Sapphire continued to allow players to trade between the two cartridges in order to fill up their PokeDex by use of trading the game exclusive Pokémon - this time it was done using the GBA Game Link Cable. Unfortunately Ruby & Sapphire cannot be used with the Wireless Adapter and likewise they weren't backwards compatible with their Gen I and II counterpart titles.

Ruby and Sapphire can trade with fellow GBA titles Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen, and also offers compatibility with spin off titles Pokémon Colosseum and it's sequel Pokémon XD: Gale of Darkness for Gamecube. Later on Ruby & Sapphire would also be able to trade with their predecessor; Pokémon Emerald.

For a first in the series players were also able to trade and battle with games that weren't from the same region as each other without risk of data corruption; loss of saved games etc.

The Pokémon from Gen Ruby & Sapphire / Gen III can't be traded directly to Gen IV, V or VI games, however if the player chooses to do so they can permanently transfer their Pokémon to Gen IV using the Pal Park trading feature. If you want to get Pokémon from your Gen III game to a generation V game you can do so by transferring first to a Gen IV game, and then using the Poké Transfer. Likewise Gen III mon's can be transferred to a Gen VI title using the Poké Transpoter or even the Pokémon Bank if you go via a Gen IV and Gen V game.


Videos

Check out these videos of Pokémon Ruby & Sapphire including intros, trailers and TV Commercials from different regions

All of the Unused Music for Pokemon RS which is present in the game data but not accessible via gameplay

Official Trailers for Pokémon Ruby & Sapphire

A Japanese TV Commercial for Pokémon Ruby & Sapphire

The Intro / Opening Video for Pokémon Ruby

The Intro / Opening Video for Pokémon Sapphire


Trivia

  • There is a girl in Sootopolis City called Kiri (the girl who gives you 2 berries a day). This NPC was named after Junichi Masuda's daughter. Kiri was born about 2 months prior to the release of the Japanese versions of Ruby and Sapphire, in September 2002.
  • If you try to enter the Oceanic Museum while it's occupied by Team Aqua or Team Magma but don't have the money to pay the entrance fee, you'll get in for free. The receptionist will simply mistake you for a member of Aqua/Magma and let you in. Once neither of the teams occupy the museum however you'll need to get your hands in your pockets!
  • There is evidence within the games code that Double Battles with Wild Pokemon had been planned, but never made it to release. This is evidenced in the following text string within the code:-
  • "Wild \v[&H05] and \v[&H03] appeared!", with \v[&H05] and \v[&H03] - each "\v[&H03]" statement would call the name of a Pokemon.
  • Ruby & Sapphire are the first main series titles which show the players father; Norman, the gym leader is the players father regardless of whether the player is playing as Male or Female. Other core series titles which feature both of the players parents are Pokemon Emerald and Pokemon Omega Ruby & Alpha Sapphire.
  • These were the first Pokemon core series titles to run at 60 FPS, the same framerate was carried over into FireRed, LeafGreen and Emerald but for some reason for the Generation IV games it reverted to 30 frames per second.
  • Nincada can evolve into two different Pokemon. If the player has a free slot in their party and a Pokeball in their bag they will get Ninjask and Shedinja. This even applies if Nincada is Shiny, so you could end up doubling your shiney goodness.
  • Ruby and Sapphire are the first core series games where the player can't choose Rival as their name.
  • In the USA there was a special promotional coin featuring Groudon and Kyogre for preorders from some retailers.
  • Early versions of the Ruby and Sapphire Box Art had the "Gotta Catch Em all!" slogan on the front covers, this was removed in the final version.
  • The Japanese release date for Ruby & Silver was the same date as the third year anniversary since the release of Gold & Silver.

Kyogre, the Legendary mascot of Pokemon SapphireKyogre, the Legendary mascot of Pokemon Sapphire

Sales Figures

Pokémon Ruby & Sapphire sold a total of 16.22 million units between them and netted over 689 million USD worth of sales. As extremely anticipated titles with a loyal fanbase Ruby & Sapphire had sold over 1.25million units in it's first 4 days in Japan alone, making them the best selling videogames of Japan's 2002 holiday season. Six weeks after release 4.4 million units had been sold across Japan, no games had broken 2 million sales across Japan since Final Fantasy X in 2001.

In the U.S, 2.2 million units of the games had been sold in the first month of release in March, 2003 which ranked them the second and third best selling videogames of 2003 in the United States. Over in Europe the success continued, interestingly they were the second best selling videogames of Europes 2002 holiday season, despite them not officially being released there until July, 2003 nearly half a year later. Due to the popular demand for the games in Europe lots of copies of Ruby and Sapphire had been imported from the U.S to meet consumer demand.

The 16.22 million copies that R&S sold allows the games to stand tall as the best selling videogames ever for the Game Boy Advance.

Review Scores

Ruby and Sapphire were positively recieved across the board with the worst rating of the major sites being a still-pretty-good 7 out of 10 from Eurogamer, here's what other major sources scored/commented on their outings to the Hoenn region:-

  • Craig Harris from IGN was clearly taken with the games giving them a rare 9.5 out of 10 and stated "Pokemon: Sapphire Version and Pokemon: Ruby Version feature extremely deep game design that will suck up a lot of players' gaming time. And that's a really good thing, folks."
  • GameSpot reviewer Greg Kasavin was pretty impressed too, giving a commendable 8.5 out of 10 and commenting "Pokemon fans will be in for exactly what they want, while new players now have the perfect opportunity to see what this unusual and likeable series is all about."
  • Users of Metacritic have Pokemon Ruby & Sapphire versions scored at an average user score of 8.7 over 181 ratings, whilst the average score from their 30 syndicated critics was 82/100.
  • Game Rankings aggregate score comes in at 84.21% over 50 user reviews

Groudon, the Legendary mascot of RubyGroudon, the Legendary mascot of Ruby

Media & Artwork

Official Artwork Gallery from Pokemon Ruby & Sapphire - A large gallery featuring many of the Pokemon from the game
Official Artwork Gallery from Pokemon Ruby & Sapphire - A gallery featuring many of the Characters from the game
Box Art from Pokemon Ruby including numerous regional variations + editions
Box Art from Pokemon Sapphire including numerous regional variations + editions
Screenshots from Pokemon Sapphire version
Screenshots from Pokemon Ruby version

Other Ruby & Sapphire Articles

How to make lots of Pokedollars in FireRed & LeafGreen + Ruby/Sapphire/Emerald
How to Catch Latios / Latias easily in Pokemon Ruby, Sapphire and Emerald
A Guide to Pokémon Natures for Competitive Battling
Battle Frontier Guide for Ruby, Sapphrie and Emerald
Finding Feebas: A Guide to Catching and Training Feebas
Pokemon Ruby & Sapphire: Gym Leaders & Strategies to beat them
Pokemon Ruby & Sapphire: The Elite Four & Strategies to beat them