Following on from the highly enjoyable Pokémon Pinball on the original Game Boy and Game Boy Color, Nintendo released a successor to coincide with the release of Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire. Now, with Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire firmly secured by many a 3DS owner, Pokémon Pinball: Ruby & Sapphire appears on the Wii U Virtual Console. Is it worthy of your hard-earned Pokédollars though?
Pinball games need one thing to be worthwhile, and that’s elements that you couldn’t have on a real pinball table, otherwise they’re not really doing anything special at all. Luckily, Pokémon Pinball Ruby & Sapphire is bursting with unique elements that you couldn’t find in real life. Once you’ve picked one of the two available tables, you’re straight into the game with no instructions, but of course you can refer to the original manual by tapping on the question mark in the bottom left hand corner of the GamePad’s screen. That being said the controls are very simple and you’ll probably be able to work them all out for yourself in under a minute, along with what the different parts of the tables do in terms of gameplay. It should also be made clear that this game looks utterly gorgeous on the GamePad’s screen as well as the main screen. Like so many other GBA titles before it, the GamePad is ideal as it simply feels a lot like an extra large GBA, but playing with a Wii U Pro Controller on the big screen is just as enjoyable.
Naturally, one of the biggest parts of the game is catching Pokémon, otherwise it’d have a hard time making itself stand out as a game worthy of the Pokémon title. Once you fulfil certain requirements, you can aim your ball – which is of course a Pokéball – to certain areas to weaken and eventually capture a Pokémon that appears in the centre of the table. The Pokémon that appear depends on where you are, and you can change location whenever you like by hitting the appropriate element on the table three times. This along with the Pokémon that appear is entirely random, and considering that there are 200 monsters to capture in this game, you won’t be at a loss for things to do.
This game is also fairly forgiving, as the paddles are very close together and Latias or Latios will be on hand to save your ball for what really is a very long time, meaning that this is ideal for younger gamers. Don’t think that it's without its challenges though, as in order to rack up the highest scores you’ll have to take advantage of all the bonus rounds and opportunities to catch, evolve and hatch different Pokémon; this can take a very long time. If you’re serious about getting a ludicrously high score, what starts off as a gentle jaunt rapidly becomes a test of endurance as you attempt to get as much out of a single round as you can. The physics are as solid as you can expect for a title designed to appeal to a wide audience, but are a bit floatier than many pinball veterans made be accustomed to.
Presentation-wise, the game is simply a joy to behold. The animation is fluid, ludicrously colourful and incredibly charming. Due to the simple nature of the game more work has been put into the visuals than the main series titles they are themed around, breathing extra life into the third generation. Everything feels very lively and connected; you won’t find your eyeballs becoming bored in this outing. Unfortunately you may find the rest of you becomes a little tired after a while, as the simple gameplay can become a little monotonous through extended play. You can switch tables to vary the experiences, but it’s a game that’s overall more suited to being played for short periods of time rather than several consecutive hours.
Conclusion
Pokémon Pinball: Ruby & Sapphire is an enjoyable entry-level pinball game designed to appeal to as broad an audience as possible. Its colourful, charming visuals look even better on the Wii U than they did originally, and the vast number of Pokémon available to catch and evolve means that if you’re looking for a long-term dip-in, dip-out sort of game, you’ll have plenty to keep you occupied. It can become a bit tedious if played extensively, so it’s much better to play it in short bursts. A charming little game that is – like many Virtual Console titles – a bargain for what you get.
Comments 32
So....when are we getting this in the US?
Question! Does it give your controller rumble like the game would if you played it on the Gamecube's Gameboy Player?
For some reason, I always liked the original better. I don't know why. Nostalia maybe? Not to say that this one is bad; I still had tons of fun with it! Dunno if I'll download it for the VC though.
@duffmmann : Nintendo has always delivered the bare minimum when it comes to their VC releases, so I'd strongly doubt it.
Though I am not too keen on pinball a Pokemon themed one might just interest me!
@sillygostly StarTropics on Wii VC being a somewhat significant exception, of course.
Always enjoyed this game a lot. It's one of the few GBA games I actually go back to just for a quick game. Very fun stuff.
Good. Now then give us a 6th gen Pokemon pinball
Cool beans! Now maybe we can get a review of that other portable Pokémon-themed game, Pokémon Puzzle Challenge…
I mean, no offense to the reviewer, I'm just wondering what is up with that.
@creeprtrainer52
oh geez. The title says nothing misleading
SOMETIME I DO NOT NOTICE IT AND I LOOK AT THE END, RUBY SAPPHIRE SEE?
Oh wow I didn't know this was out on the VC! NoE seems to be ahead of the game with their VC offerings. I still have my GBA cart of this! Very fun game! I use to play this for hours. Spot on review.
@creeprtrainer52 That's the name of the game!
This is the only game I own that says pokemon. I enjoyed it very much for quite sometime. I might dig it out of the closet one day and play it on the gameboy player.
I loved this game back when I had a not-broken GBA. It was really addictive trying to get all of the Pokemon. Too bad this will never release on the 3DS.
I have the cart still, and it's currently a permanent fixture in my Gamecube Player.
Now if only the original would show up on the 3DS eShop, that would be great. We got Pokemon TCG, now we only need the original Pokemon Pinball to go with it.
North America please?? NOA still needs to get their butts in gear with the vc! DKC trilogy? Turbographx games? N64? Square RPGs? C'mon man! Terrible...
Subhead win
Pokemon on the virtual console? Now if only Game Freak would let Nintendo put the actual series installments on the eShop.
@sillygostly I would have to disagree. The GBA line of ports are anything but bare bones, in fact they're some of the best retro releases to date, boasting full button customization with multiple controller options, optional Pixel Perfect mode and screen smoothing, virtual restore points and off-TV play, access to the full color game manuals on the gamepad while you play... I wish all prior VC were kept to such a high standard.
And Nintendo did allow connectivity between Oracle of Ages and Seasons, so you never know. I do know this though- if there's a line of VC games to do it- it's gonna be the GBA releases on Wii U.
I will never play this on my Wii U...
If this were on 3DS VC, I'd buy it in a heartbeat. I still can't believe they decided to put GBA games on Wii U VC. I have ten official GBA games emulated on my 3DS, and they all came straight from Nintendo, yet they refuse to release more.
@joey302 Yeah! How dare they release titles that aren't in Europe like Castlevania! The nerve!
I still have my old GBA cartridge for this, and even then, I might buy this when it comes to the North American eShop! I love this game!
I own this and Mario Pinball Land on GBA. Honestly, Mario Pinball Land is a much better game with tons more to do and it gets a lower NL score.
Somehow I never knew this game existed. Looks good and I loved the GBC game.
Not paying 6 quid for it though.
The rumble feature is not in this port sadly. The options has it displayed but it is off by default and cannot be changed. Plays really well on the gamepad despite this.
Look, put these GBA games on the 3DS I don't want to play this on WiiU. I just don't understand why they don't do this.
@JaxonH - They didn't 'allow' connectivity between the Oracle games - it was always there through codes. They did nothing extra to add this.
I had the GBA cartridge, which seemed to delete my Pokédex data sporadically. I don't think it was a save battery issue, because there were times where it deleted my Pokédex, but kept my suspended game. I eventually gave up trying to complete this game because it kept happening.
I think it was triggered by trying to switch from GBA to GameCube GB Player while there was a game suspended. This game actually checks for the GB Player because it supports the rumble feature of GCN controllers, so maybe there was some glitchy code during the check. Who knows.
I just distinctly remember having an Electrode in my Pokédex with no Voltorb, which should never be possible in this game... my suspended file was during an "evolution" round, but it had deleted records of everything caught before hand.
I still feel kind of wary about playing this game. I really don't know if it was just my copy or if the game is kinda glitchy.
So weird.
@Kit The GBA VC on the 3DS is bare bones - you can't access the home menu, no save states, etc. Nintendo doesn't wanna release something like that for sale. I have a feeling we might see a better GBA VC on the New 3DS, though.
I agree with everyone here — what is keeping Nintendo from putting GBA and SNES classics on the 3DS? It is more than capable of handling both, yet they won't even come out and admit it.
I've said it before, and I'll say it again: All we want from all of these companies is the true reasons why they make the decisions they do. If gaming history has proven anything, it's not the bits or the technical aspects of a video gaming platform, it's what you can do with it. I just wish Nintendo would be the company that levels with its user base and shows up all of these other software developers that want to be on the shiny new hotness rather than build a quality product on a proven legacy platform.
3DS, please...
@GloryQuestor
I assume their explanation for GBA not coming to 3DS would be "That's why we made NES titles available on 3DS after the Ambassador releases", anyway...
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