History YMMV / Pokemonrubyandsapphire

* ThatOneSidequest: Finding Feebas and evolving it into Milotic. You can read the full summary [[http://www.serebii.net/games/feebas.shtml here]], but in short, it involves hours and hours of systematic searching, [[ScrappyMechanic endless fishing]], finding/breeding a Feebas with the right nature once you've found a Feebas tile, and lots of Berry farming and Pokéblock making. At least it's easier than in [[VideoGame/PokemonDiamondAndPearl Generation IV]] where the Feebas tiles get scrambled every day rather than by something reasonably under your control. Averted in the remakes, where Feebas can be found on any tiles (but has a lower encounter rate to compensate).

* PopularityPolynomial: These games were received just fine at first, but they fell out of favor rapidly, and Hoenn in general became ignored for many years. When the long-requested remakes were finally made, however, the Hoenn region, its human characters, and its Pokémon got a massive resurgence in popularity, probably even more popular than before.

* VindicatedByHistory: At the time of their release, ''Ruby'' and ''Sapphire'' were polarizing for making significant changes to the game mechanics and for only a handful of earlier Pokémon being available without trading with then-unreleased titles. Most fans these days appreciate the games and Game Freak for understandably changing the often slapdash code of the previous generations into something more manageable, while introducing new mechanics that improved battles, and only wished that the other design flaws could be fixed by a remake. Thankfully, many fans rejoiced when the news came that remakes were made, ''Pokémon Omega Ruby'' and ''Alpha Sapphire''.

* VindicatedByHistory: ''Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire'' were fairly controversial when they were released. People either liked or disliked the addition of Generation VI's [[AntiFrustrationFeatures quality-of-life features]], with some seeing them as unnecessary and [[ItsEasySoItSucks made the games very easy since the content was largely not balanced around their addition]]. Instead of incorporating more features from ''Emerald'', they incorporated more ''XY'' elements and also added many more original elements. Fast forward seven years, and as predicted, fans of ''Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire'' started crawling out of the woodwork after ''VideoGame/PokemonDiamondAndPearl'''s remakes proved to be more of a faithful remake to the point of copious ItsTheSameNowItSucks. Many of the quality-of-life improvements and new features in ''Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire'' garnered more and more praise over time to the point that fans largely started considering them improved versions of ''VideoGame/PokemonXAndY'' and some of the very few 3D mainline games to be near-universally praised by the hardcore fandom along with ''VideoGame/PokemonLegendsArceus''. It helps that ''Pokémon Emerald'', long considered a SacredCow in the fandom, has dropped off in popularity over time, leading to many fans who label ''Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire'' as the definitive Hoenn games.

* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter: More like a character type, but Surskit had a unique and useful Bug/Water-type[[note]]Bug is strong against Water's vulnerability to Grass. Water is strong against Bug's weakeness to Fire and Rock, [[IceMagicIsWater and learns Ice-type moves]] for Bug's Flying-type weakness.[[/note]] held back by the low stats that came with it being a first stage evolution. Then its evolution Masquerain lost that typing in lieu of the [[PowerupLetdown weak and uninspired]] [[KryptoniteIsEverywhere Bug/Flying-type]]. It took until ''VideoGame/PokemonSunAndMoon'', over 13 years later, to get fully evolved Bug/Water-types that could utilize the type's potential.

* SignatureScene: The cutscene in ''Emerald'' where [[BigDamnHeroes Rayquaza intervenes to break up the fight between Kyogre and Groudon]], ending the weather crisis and saving the world. To this day, it is still one of the most liked cutscenes in the entire series.

* MisBlamed: The one thing fans seem to remember to blame Creator/GameFreak for rather than Creator/{{Nintendo}} in the Pokémon games is the inability to transfer Pokémon from the first two generations' games to ''Ruby and Sapphire'' onward. However, this is — coincidentally enough — the one complaint that the company had no control over — the UsefulNotes/GameBoyAdvance wouldn't allow interaction with the UsefulNotes/GameBoy and UsefulNotes/GameBoyColor games ''at all'', even if they wanted to make it possible.

** In a variation that's more of a "They changed it ''back'', now it sucks", many players saw the fact that the Gym Leaders' teams stick too close to their original iterations, to the exclusion of the improvements they received in ''Emerald'', as a full downgrade. Especially Wattson not having his Manectric, and Tate and Liza going back to having only one Pokémon each.

* TheyChangedItNowItSucks: Many of the remake's musical arrangements, especially the battle themes, got complaints to this effect:

* TheyChangedItNowItSucks: Minor example: The Elite Four remix in this game lacks the iconic clapping section, to the consternation of many fans. It didn't help that ''Anime/PokemonTheSeries'' already did a well-received remix that added in more claps to the beginning.

* TheyChangedItNowItSucks: Minor example: The Elite Four remix in this game lacks the iconic clapping section, to the consternation of many fans. It didn't help that the [[Anime/{{Pokemon}} anime]] already did a well-received remix that added in more claps to the beginning.

* EvilIsSexy: Archie, Maxie, ''and'' their [[TheDragon admins]] gain fan following for their appealing character designs, and their redesigns in the remakes only help to boost their popularity to new heights.

** The Elite Four is noticeably less challenging than in other games. Sidney's the only one who even ''tries'' to cover his weaknesses to Fighting and Bug. Phoebe and Glacia suffer ''hard'' from [[PoorPredictableRock Agatha Syndrome]] in which their Pokémon all come from one or two evolutionary families - meaning they all can be hard-countered by one type that can outspeed them. Even ''if'' Drake has two Pokémon that know Flamethrower, his Shelgon knows Rock Tomb, and the AI [[ArtificialBrilliance will use them]] if you have an ice type, all but one of his Pokémon have a double weakness to Ice.

* JunkRare:
** Skitty has a low encounter rate and horrible stats, even when evolved into Delcatty.
** Chimecho is found only in the highest part of Mt. Pyre with a measly 2% encounter rate. It's close to completely useless in battle.
** Nosepass. You just have to get lucky in finding one by smashing rocks in Granite Cave, and then discover that its Attack is rather poor, more than likely making you think, "[[FakeUltimateMook THIS is the Pokémon I had difficulty with in Rustboro?]]"
** The Starf Berry in ''Emerald'' is one of the rarest items in the entire game: the only way to get one is by [[ThatOneSidequest defeating all of the Battle Frontier bosses]] '''TWICE''' to get the seven Gold Frontier Symbols. The berry's description states that it was abandoned at the world's edge due to its extreme power. Unfortunately, in actual play, it's a fairly AwesomeButImpractical item: all it does is sharply raise a random stat when the holder's HP is below 1/4th. Compared to the more consistent Liechi, Petaya, and Salac Berries, the Starf Berry is a massive gamble that doesn't have good odds of paying off.

** Looker's appearance in the game is this. [[spoiler: He randomly washes up on the beach at the Battle Resort with amnesia, and after being brought into a cabin gives the player a Mega Stone.]] Sounds like a set up for a sizable sidequest of some sort, right? Nope, nothing more ever comes of this incident. [[spoiler:The sudden appearance and amnesia]] ''may'' be explained by certain post-game reveals in ''VideoGame/PokemonSunAndMoon''... but it's still incredibly strange within ''[=ORAS=]'' themselves.

* ContestedSequel: Fans are divided on whether ''Emerald'' or ''ORAS'' are the definitive Hoenn games, thanks to the latter games not reflecting most of the changes from ''RS'' in the former outside of a few {{Mythology Gag}}s. The merged storyline, ability to get all three mascot Legendaries, higher difficulty, rematchable Gym Leaders, and, of course, the Battle Frontier are cited in ''Emerald'''s favor, while the separate but expanded storylines, later-generation improvements, expanded Dex, improved Pokénav, Secret Bases and Contests, enormous selection of postgame starters and Legendaries and Soaring are seen as the better trade-off for ''ORAS'' fans. With ''Emerald'' long being considered the best main series game by a good subsection of fans, whether the potential for ''ORAS'' as a worthy successor to ''Emerald'' makes it a candidate for one of the best ''Pokémon'' games or not, ''especially'' after ''ORAS'' was VindicatedByHistory, is [[BrokenBase a very divisive topic]].

** Ever since its debut in ''VideoGame/PokemonBlackAndWhite'', Serperior was mocked for being one of the weakest starter Pokémon in the series, even for in-game purposes. With ''ORAS'', its Hidden Ability of Contrary was ''finally'' released as an event, causing it to become one of the ''strongest'' starters in the series in competitive play.

** Previous remakes had some issues when it came to certain evolution and trading methods. ''[[VideoGame/PokemonRedAndBlue FireRed and LeafGreen]]'' had it so that you were unable to obtain Pokémon that evolve via friendship[[note]] Crobat and Blissey[[/note]] or through trading with a held item[[note]]Steelix, Scizor, [=Porygon2=], and Kingdra[[/note]] until after obtaining the National Dex, in addition to preventing gamers from being able to trade with the original ''Ruby'', ''Sapphire'', and ''Emerald'' until completing a sidequest that's very late in the postgame. The games also lacked a day[=/=]night cycle, which meant no Umbreon or Espeon either. Adding to that is how ''[[VideoGame/PokemonGoldAndSilver HeartGold and SoulSilver]]'', while fixing the issues [=FRLG=] had, had no access to location-based evolutions, which meant no Glaceon, Leafeon, Probopass or Magnezone. ''Omega Ruby'' and ''Alpha Sapphire'' allow all different evolution methods right from the start. [[note]]New Mauville is slightly tricky since it's the only specific location in the main game where you can evolve Nosepass and Magneton, but it cannot be accessed until the version legendary is defeated/captured. This requires one to save up Rare Candies and use them on either of the two Mons just outside the locked door.[[/note]]

** Unlike the ''[=HeartGold and SoulSilver=]'' remakes that implemented the chase after Suicune from ''Crystal'', ''ORAS'' did not incorporate any of the unique plot developments from ''Emerald''. Meaning that the player never gets to face off against both Team Aqua and Team Magma, or get to challenge Hoenn's Battle Frontier.

* ToughActToFollow: ''Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire'' ended up being this to ''[[VideoGame/PokemonDiamondAndPearl Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl]]''. Many fans loved the changes and improvements made to the original Hoenn adventures, and those fans were hoping to see Sinnoh gets this kind of remakes. When the remakes for ''Diamond and Pearl'' were finally released, however, they quickly came under fire for multiple reasons: the chibified overworld style, the lack of many quality-of-life improvements and all Pokémon from later generations, the characters and most of the Sinnoh region looking exactly the same as in the originals, and the Sinnoh adventure is a near-identical presentation to ''Diamond and Pearl'' without any of the improvements from ''Platinum'' (as opposed to ''ORAS'', which at least took ''some'' of the elements from ''Emerald'' in the post-game campaign) caused many to declare ItsTheSameSoItSucks. It did not help that ''BDSP'' were the first core series ''Pokémon'' games to not be developed by Game Freak, as they were busy working on the much more ambitious ''VideoGame/PokemonLegendsArceus''.

* VindicatedByHistory: ''Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire'' were fairly controversial when they were released. People either liked or disliked the addition of Generation VI's [[AntiFrustrationFeatures quality-of-life features]], with some seeing them as unnecessary and [[ItsEasySoItSucks made the games very easy since the content was largely not balanced around their addition]]. Instead of incorporating more features from ''Emerald'', they incorporated more ''XY'' elements and also added many more original elements. Fast forward seven years, and as predicted, fans of ''Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire'' started crawling out of the woodwork after ''VideoGame/PokemonDiamondAndPearl'''s remakes proved to be more of a faithful remake to the point of copious ItsTheSameNowItSucks. Many of the quality-of-life improvements and new features in ''ORAS'' garnered more and more praise over time to the point that fans largely started considering them improved versions of ''VideoGame/PokemonXAndY'' and some of the very few 3D mainline games to be near-universally praised by the hardcore fandom along with ''VideoGame/PokemonLegendsArceus''. It helps that ''Pokémon Emerald'', long considered a SacredCow in the fandom, has dropped off in popularity over time, leading to many fans who label ''ORAS'' as the definitive Hoenn games.

* {{Narm}}:
** The big confrontation between Kyogre and Groudon in ''Emerald'' has Groudon on a rock just big enough for it to stand on in the middle of the ocean as it's raining, making it seem comically one-sided in Kyogre's favor.
** The intro of the game shows May along Torchic, [[BreakoutCharacter one of the favourite starters in the whole series]]; the EnsembleDarkHorse Flygon; Manectric, often considered one of the best pokemon of the generation... And Volbeat, a [[LowTierLetdown very weak Pokemon]] which sticks out like a sore thumb among the powerful creatures alongside her.

* VindicatedByHistory: ''Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire'' were fairly controversial when they were released. People either liked or disliked the addition of Generation VI's [[AntiFrustrationFeatures quality-of-life features]], with some seeing them as unnecessary and [[ItsEasySoItSucks made the games very easy since the content was largely not balanced around their addition]]. Instead of incorporating more features from ''Emerald'', they incorporated more ''XY'' elements and also added many more original elements. Fast forward seven years, and as predicted, fans of ''Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire'' started crawling out of the woodwork after ''VideoGame/PokemonDiamondAndPearl'''s remakes proved to be more of a faithful remake to the point of copious ItsTheSameNowItSucks. Many of the quality-of-life improvements and new features in ''ORAS'' garnered more and more praise over time to the point that fans largely started considering them improved versions of ''VideoGame/PokemonXAndY'' and among the best 3D games in the series only behind ''VideoGame/PokemonLegendsArceus''. It helps that ''Pokémon Emerald'', long considered a SacredCow in the fandom, has dropped off in popularity over time, leading to many fans who label ''ORAS'' as the definitive Hoenn games.

* EnsembleDarkhorse:
** Flygon has a pretty big underground cult following for being one of the coolest Pokémon designs of the Third generation and for its unique typing. Even after Garchomp was released with the same typing and better stats overall, many players prefer the good old [[OurDragonsAreDifferent insect/dragon hybrid]] because it's just [[RuleOfCool way too damn cool]].
** Milotic, the DistaffCounterpart to Gyarados, was also another favorite Pokémon from the Gen. [[GuideDangIt It was also one of the most notoriously hard Pokémon to get.]]
** Steven Stone becomes one of the most popular Champions in the series, for his friendly NiceGuy personality, attractive looks, being among the strongest NPC trainers in the series which establishes his status as a MemeticBadass, helped by him having an active role in the story by mentoring the protagonist and helping the protagonist in stopping the villainous team.
** Absol got a lot of love for its cool design, though its ''very'' AwesomeButImpractical nature (it was a GlassCannon with a massive movepool that couldn't use most of it because of its horrible Special Attack, while its similarly bad Speed ensured that it would get killed before it could do much of anything) made it a competitive pariah until ''X'' and ''Y'', when it TookALevelInBadass with a [[SuperMode Mega Evolution]] that could actually abuse its Special movepool while buffing its Speed significantly.
** Salamence also got a bit of love for being a badass Dragon-type pseudo-legendary that could match Dragonite more or less hit-for-hit, then also gains a Mega Evolution in Generation VI.
** Metagross, a pseudo-legendary [[NinjaPirateZombieRobot robotic psychic spider]] with impressive stats, [[MightyGlacier most notably its Attack and Defense]], despite being a BraggingRightsReward for being obtainable only in the post-game in its debut generation (just like Tyranitar in Generation II), and Generation VI's nerf to Steel-types giving it two extra weaknesses in Dark and Ghost. It helps that it is the signature Pokémon of Steven Stone, who is also a fan favorite in his own right, and it also gets a Mega Evolution in Generation VI.
** The Ranger class of trainers, who became popular enough to get [[VideoGame/PokemonRanger a spinoff to themselves]].
** The Battle Frontier in ''Emerald'' has their own versions of Gym Leaders, known as the Frontier Brains. While many Frontier Brains in the series aren't remembered by players who never got into the post-game, all of the Hoenn Frontier Brains are somewhat remembered (thanks to the ninth season of the anime featuring all seven of the Brains) and some of them are appreciated by hardcore/anime fans:
*** Pike Queen Lucy, of the Battle Pike, is remembered for not only having one of the most...uh...[[DistractedByTheSexy unique]] character designs, but was one of the most favorable anime characters to ship with Brock, as she was one of the few who actually fell for Brock in the anime. She got a very small cameo (as an NPC you can talk to in the Battle Maison) in the remakes; and after an ''entire decade and a half,'' she finally managed to return in ''VideoGame/PokemonMasters'' as the first (and for nearly three years, '''only''') female Frontier Brain that can be recruited.
*** Pyramid King Brandon, of the Battle Pyramid, is a fan-favorite anime character due to his personality and the fact that he finds (and owns) ancient Legendary Pokémon, and is a friend to them. Like Lucy, Brandon made ''somewhat'' of a cameo in the remakes, but as the main star of an "ancient discovery" show ([[spoiler:that only can be accessed with the Volcanion event]]).
*** Tower Maiden Anabel, of the Battle Tower, may be hated by some for her jerk-like actions to the player, but she was another anime character that was appreciated by anime fans. On top of that, she returns in ''VideoGame/PokemonSunAndMoon'' and [[spoiler:it's revealed that ''Emerald''[='=]s version of Anabel is the one who appears in ''Sun'' and ''Moon'']]. She also managed to be playable in the February 2023 update for ''Masters''.
** Among the Gym Leaders of Hoenn, Flannery is one of the most popular thanks to her attractive design and her rather unsuccesful attempts to make herself look like a fearsome Gym Leader in spite of her inexperience. She became even more popular in the remakes thanks to her 3D model showing her expressions while she tries to keep her tough girl act (this time even accompanied with a {{kiai}} before she fights you) before she's revealed to be a HotBlooded yet clumsy trainer.

* EnsembleDarkhorse: Every single one of the updated admins.
** Courtney amongst a lot of the player-base, for her robotic yet CreepyAwesome mannerisms and her characterization as a {{Yandere}}.
** Tabitha, on the other hand, is now regarded as more of a LaughablyEvil villain. Redesign aside, he subsequently becomes more of a semi-AntiVillain, during the Delta Episode postgame. His fans also like to characterize him as a ButtMonkey.
** Shelly, for being a [[TheTease flirtatious]] MsFanservice DarkActionGirl, getting love from boy [[EvenTheGirlsWantHer and girl]] players alike.
** Matt, for exuding insane amounts of HoYay with several male characters, as well as providing a bunch of hilarious lines.
** Gabby & Ty are also popular as you can see in forums and Youtube videos. Many players of the game loved battling the duo countless times. Fans have also claimed that they enjoy battling the two to level up their Pokémon and complete their Pokédex.

** [[CuteMonsterGirl Gardevoir]], having an endearing humanoid design and [[MamaBear protective personality]], it's pre-evolutions, Kirlia and Ralts are not far behind due to their extremely cute designs which makes the line incredibly popular, this enduring popularity would grow over time and later lead to them getting a male only evolution in the [[VideoGame/PokemonDiamondAndPearl following generation]]: Gallade!.