ROM Hacking Discussions

Hey, got a couple questions (hopefully this is the right place to ask...)
I am planning to make a new Pokemon hack but I am not sure which Pokemon game to base it off. I did a bit with Fire Red, but then realised that Emerald might be a better. Which one do you think I should work on? I need to add Pokemon and I don't want to have to replace.

Next question, while I was playing around with FR I added Riolu to the first slot between Treeko and Celebi. I changed Ivysuars pokedex id to the one that Riolu was on then set Riolu on to Ivysuars old one. Then in YAPE I set Riolu's entry and got myself one in VBA, I received my pokedex and checked, but Riolu was not there.
How can I fix this or how should I of done it?

SkylordRiolu said:

Hey, got a couple questions (hopefully this is the right place to ask...)

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Not really for the second question, but I'll answer anyways.

I am planning to make a new Pokemon hack but I am not sure which Pokemon game to base it off. I did a bit with Fire Red, but then realised that Emerald might be a better. Which one do you think I should work on? I need to add Pokemon and I don't want to have to replace.

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It really depends on everything you need done. Both Emerald and FireRed have 25 extra slots for pokemon. Although I believe FireRed has far more tools available and far more research done on it.

Next question, while I was playing around with FR I added Riolu to the first slot between Treeko and Celebi. I changed Ivysuars pokedex id to the one that Riolu was on then set Riolu on to Ivysuars old one. Then in YAPE I set Riolu's entry and got myself one in VBA, I received my pokedex and checked, but Riolu was not there.
How can I fix this or how should I of done it?

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So you set Riolu as dex #2? Does Ivysaur still show up instead of Riolu? Try catching one to find out.

TweenyTodd said:

Not really for the second question, but I'll answer anyways.


It really depends on everything you need done. Both Emerald and FireRed have 25 extra slots for pokemon. Although I believe FireRed has far more tools available and far more research done on it.


So you set Riolu as dex #2? Does Ivysaur still show up instead of Riolu? Try catching one to find out.

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The 25 extra slots will not appear in the pokedex as they don't have dex entries associated with them. In fact, if you catch them in the wild, your game will crash trying to load their non-existant entries. They also have quite a bit of linked data that all needs to be repointed.

karatekid552 said:

The 25 extra slots will not appear in the pokedex as they don't have dex entries associated with them. In fact, if you catch them in the wild, your game will crash trying to load their non-existant entries. They also have quite a bit of linked data that all needs to be repointed.

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So I take it that the solution is to completely replace Ivysaur with Riolu and fix everything forthwith?(evolutions,movesets,sprites,etc.)

Also, I believe Jambo put up a piece of ASM that fixed the crash that I must currently be using, because my game is not crashed. However, there is no corresponding pokedex entry.

TweenyTodd said:

Not really for the second question, but I'll answer anyways.


It really depends on everything you need done. Both Emerald and FireRed have 25 extra slots for pokemon. Although I believe FireRed has far more tools available and far more research done on it.


So you set Riolu as dex #2? Does Ivysaur still show up instead of Riolu? Try catching one to find out.

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I set Riolu as a starter pokemon, it works fine, except it still wont show up in the dex, although it has an entry that I set in yape.
[Edit] Also, what is the easiest way to add more pokemon without replacing or having a limit of 25?

SkylordRiolu said:

I set Riolu as a starter pokemon, it works fine, except it still wont show up in the dex, although it has an entry that I set in yape.
[Edit] Also, what is the easiest way to add more pokemon without replacing or having a limit of 25?

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Well, there is Jambo's 649 patch but it is still in development. It does have all the pokemon included, but its buggy, so I don't really suggest you use it as of now.
Other than that, you're gonna have to replace pokemon. Just replace pokemon you know will never appear/won't be used. Other than that, that's all I can say.

Dragoon said:

Well, there is Jambo's 649 patch but it is still in development. It does have all the pokemon included, but its buggy, so I don't really suggest you use it as of now.
Other than that, you're gonna have to replace pokemon. Just replace pokemon you know will never appear/won't be used. Other than that, that's all I can say.

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I had a look at the patch earlier today, sad that I can't use it yet, but I understand why. Thanks anyway!

TweenyTodd said:

So I take it that the solution is to completely replace Ivysaur with Riolu and fix everything forthwith?(evolutions,movesets,sprites,etc.)

Also, I believe Jambo put up a piece of ASM that fixed the crash that I must currently be using, because my game is not crashed. However, there is no corresponding pokedex entry.

Click to expand...

Yes.


It only crashes if it trys to load the pokedex entry when you catch it for the first time. If you already recieved it through egg/evolution/trade/givepokemon, then it won't crash because it won't try and load one.

SkylordRiolu said:

I set Riolu as a starter pokemon, it works fine, except it still wont show up in the dex, although it has an entry that I set in yape.
[Edit] Also, what is the easiest way to add more pokemon without replacing or having a limit of 25?

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Easiest? Wait for Jambo to finish his patch. Doing it youself is a lot of hard work and research, but there are a couple of threads around here that can help you.

Ok, I replaced Bulbasuar entirly with Riolu (On a different rom) and it is still a starter, but Oak still calls it a grass type and Bulbasaur. What is the best way to fix this?
[Edit] Would a script editor do? If so, any recommendations?

SkylordRiolu said:

Ok, I replaced Bulbasuar entirly with Riolu (On a different rom) and it is still a starter, but Oak still calls it a grass type and Bulbasaur. What is the best way to fix this?
[Edit] Would a script editor do? If so, any recommendations?

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Yes, you will have to use a script editor to edit what Oak says. You can download XSE in gamer2020's toolbox I believe. Then just look at diegoisawesome's scripting tutorial and you should probably figure out how to edit it by yourself after that.

Dragoon said:

Well, there is Jambo's 649 patch but it is still in development. It does have all the pokemon included, but its buggy, so I don't really suggest you use it as of now.
Other than that, you're gonna have to replace pokemon. Just replace pokemon you know will never appear/won't be used. Other than that, that's all I can say.

Click to expand...

I had a look at the patch earlier today, sad that I can't use it yet, but I understand why. Thanks anyway!

SkylordRiolu said:

Ok, I replaced Bulbasuar entirly with Riolu (On a different rom) and it is still a starter, but Oak still calls it a grass type and Bulbasaur. What is the best way to fix this?
[Edit] Would a script editor do? If so, any recommendations?

Click to expand...

You could also look it up in A-Text and edit it. It is a custom script, just like a story script.
Or, use a text table in a Hex Editor with that capability.

Of course, if you don't have enough space, don't risk overwriting. Just compile with XSE or another script editor and repoint.

i got a question about hacking roms is it super hard or is it something u just pick up as u go or is it better to already know what ur doing about it

ShiningLust said:

i got a question about hacking roms is it super hard or is it something u just pick up as u go or is it better to already know what ur doing about it

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What you have to know when you start creating a game modification hack, is how to rom hack. Rom hacking is simply data editing, and in ways that it will modify the original game in a wanted way. There are game-specific tools you can use along with hex editors (and stuff that go with them such as table files), tile layer editors and such. And talented hackers also modify the in-game code by building new aspects to the game. This works by knowing how CPU language works.

For starting out, I'd recommend to read, read and read even more. You should run into lots of handy documents by looking for GBA rom hacking tutorials/documents or such with Google. Once you know the basics, you could start off by experimenting with all kinds of tools.

ShiningLust said:

i got a question about hacking roms is it super hard or is it something u just pick up as u go or is it better to already know what ur doing about it

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This depends on what you are doing. If you just want to insert some new sprites, that is simple. If you wanted to insert form changes and add more Pokemon, that is very difficult and will take quite a bit of time. Mostly, if there is a tool for it, it is fairly simple, but if there isn't, it will be a rocky start, but the more you do it, the more it just flows.

miksy91 said:

What you have to know when you start creating a game modification hack, is how to rom hack. Rom hacking is simply data editing, and in ways that it will modify the original game in a wanted way. There are game-specific tools you can use along with hex editors (and stuff that go with them such as table files), tile layer editors and such. And talented hackers also modify the in-game code by building new aspects to the game. This works by knowing how CPU language works.

For starting out, I'd recommend to read, read and read even more. You should run into lots of handy documents by looking for GBA rom hacking tutorials/documents or such with Google. Once you know the basics, you could start off by experimenting with all kinds of tools.

Click to expand...

oh man that sounds super hard i wish i have someone that could show me step by step cuz i am a hands on guy and even if i read something i still cant understand it sometime cuz ive always wanted to leave how to make a hacked rom

ShiningLust said:

oh man that sounds super hard i wish i have someone that could show me step by step cuz i am a hands on guy and even if i read something i still cant understand it sometime cuz ive always wanted to leave how to make a hacked rom

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Well, if you want to, do it. There are plenty of good tutorials and tools here and elsewhere. If you can't find a tutorial on something you want to do, or find one, but can't make heads or tails of it, there's always the Simple Questions and Answers thread.

Once you get the hang of it, most of it's not all that hard.

Midnight Bear said:

Well, if you want to, do it. There are plenty of good tutorials and tools here and elsewhere. If you can't find a tutorial on something you want to do, or find one, but can't make heads or tails of it, there's always the Simple Questions and Answers thread.

Once you get the hang of it, most of it's not all that hard.

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yah ur right i will try that cuz ive always wanted to see what it was like to try and make one

Is there currently a Hack I can help with or a hack thats been made, a short yet very detailed story is what Id like to play. something that will WOW me and make me want to play again. Ive played hacks like SnakeWood, Flora Sky, Ruby Destiny and others but none have struck me to continue playing. I guess Im not easy to please XD I just named the three Roms I picked from the Hall Of Fame, and basically said they are boring.

JCInnes said:

Is there currently a Hack I can help with or a hack thats been made, a short yet very detailed story is what Id like to play. something that will WOW me and make me want to play again. Ive played hacks like SnakeWood, Flora Sky, Ruby Destiny and others but none have struck me to continue playing. I guess Im not easy to please XD I just named the three Roms I picked from the Hall Of Fame, and basically said they are boring.

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Nope, I have played both Snakewood and Flora Sky and I found them to be much different then your interpretation. Snakewood, if you made it past the first gym, became so twisty and crazy that you never knew what was going to happen. It had many bugs in tiles and whatnot, but it was quite entertaining. Flora Sky is very well made, though I haven't finished it yet. If you don't care to play the game the whole way through before judging, then I can't help you. The next best case would be to play Sienna. You aren't going to find a short quick story around here. For the most part, people like longer games, as long as they aren't drawn out. I know that my hack definitely won't be short, not by a long shot, and I'm sure that most other hackers feel the same way.


Also, don't ask for people to help you make a hack in a showcase, that is just rude and isn't going to get you anywhere.