Pokémon FireRed Throwback - GB Player and More

[Southueki]

Originally Posted by RichterSnipes

Glad you're enjoying the hack!

You're right in thinking that most of those side quests are primarily done at the end of the game or for post-game. You can get the fossil Pokémon you didn't choose as soon as you get to Fuchsia City, though.

The sidequests are all thrown in to let you get most of the remaining Pokémon not obtainable through other means. My goal with this hack is to make the native FireRed into the most option-diverse (through nostalgic inclusions or otherwise) and convenient game it can be while keeping it essentially the same game. If you can get all the Pokémon in the game in credible, semi-authentic ways and get the feeling that the game has become less of a hassle to play (and has more options), then I'd say this hack is fulfilling it's job.

The hack is completely fulfilling it's job then! :D
I've now been through every gym, going for E4 atm. I got the second fossil pokemon and the bulbasaur too!
I'm wondering, the extras in the first post (bug catcher, route 10 pokecenter, ...) - you state them as significant in game. How so? In most of them I can't even identify the differences. Are they side-quests too in some way? What do you mean by significant?

[RichterSnipes]

Originally Posted by Southueki

The hack is completely fulfilling it's job then! :D
I've now been through every gym, going for E4 atm. I got the second fossil pokemon and the bulbasaur too!
I'm wondering, the extras in the first post (bug catcher, route 10 pokecenter, ...) - you state them as significant in game. How so? In most of them I can't even identify the differences. Are they side-quests too in some way? What do you mean by significant?

You're probably putting a bit too much thought into those. The images in the "Extras" spoiler tag are meant to showcase a few of the extra features as seen in the patch description. For example, notice how the player is facing that bug catcher before battling him in Viridian Forest. Seems correct, right?

Well, that's how it should be. Those images should all feel either "right" or "convenient" in some sort of way. Your mention of the Route 10 image fulfills the latter duty. That particular pic is meant to show off the one-cut trees in the game. Note how all the trees are gone when the player flies back to Route 10 (presumably after cutting them previously). Trust me, these subtle differences can add up.

[Southueki]

Originally Posted by RichterSnipes

You're probably putting a bit too much thought into those. The images in the "Extras" spoiler tag are meant to showcase a few of the extra features as seen in the patch description. For example, notice how the player is facing that bug catcher before battling him in Viridian Forest. Seems correct, right?

Well, that's how it should be. Those images should all feel either "right" or "convenient" in some sort of way. Your mention of the Route 10 image fulfills the latter duty. That particular pic is meant to show off the one-cut trees in the game. Note how all the trees are gone when the player flies back to Route 10 (presumably after cutting them previously). Trust me, these subtle differences can add up.

Oh I see it now! That makes sense :D
I was probably enjoying the side-quests so much I was inconsciously hoping and searching for more ahah

Love the hack tho, congratulations! Fire red should have been made this way, kudos

[dkp]

I found a very minor typo; Nidorina is misspelled as Nidorana, with an extra a. Trivial to correct, however, with any rom-level pokemon editor or even a hex editor (change C8 DD D8 E3 E6 E2 D5 E2 to C8 DD D8 E3 E6 DD D5 E2 ).

Something else might be to search "S " (CD 00) and its variants in a hex editor, especially one like Goldfinger, to correct the remaining itemS like errors. It seems they follow certain variables, so in the code the message might be something like "You received n POINTERS" and the game is simply reusing the same message over and over as a space-saving, work-saving technique.

This was very nice to play through; I really think you have a wonderful design philosophy. Great work on the audio, not too many seem up to the task of sound hacking.Thanks.

[RichterSnipes]

Hey again everyone! I'm here with a progress update. Or lack thereof, in this case. Since my last release I really haven't done much hacking to advance Throwback; real life has been getting in the way, especially at the present moment. It also doesn't help that my hacking computer is currently in for repairs...

Regardless, I intend to return to this in the near future. I've got a friend who might be interested in learning how to get into scripting. If I do end up helping him out, I feel my desire to come back to this will only grow!

I have a couple ideas as to what I want to do next, but they might be a bit expansive and require quite a deal of time commitment to finish. Rest assured, though, that whatever that next big step is, with it will come quality and pseudo-authenticity. I hope everyone who's tried the hack out so far has had fun!

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Originally Posted by dkp

I found a very minor typo; Nidorina is misspelled as Nidorana, with an extra a. Trivial to correct, however, with any rom-level pokemon editor or even a hex editor (change C8 DD D8 E3 E6 E2 D5 E2 to C8 DD D8 E3 E6 DD D5 E2 ).

Something else might be to search "S " (CD 00) and its variants in a hex editor, especially one like Goldfinger, to correct the remaining itemS like errors. It seems they follow certain variables, so in the code the message might be something like "You received n POINTERS" and the game is simply reusing the same message over and over as a space-saving, work-saving technique.

This was very nice to play through; I really think you have a wonderful design philosophy. Great work on the audio, not too many seem up to the task of sound hacking.Thanks.

Thanks for the report! I was bound to miss a few things...but "Nidorana?" Wow, I feel like I've committed a crime against all things sacred in Pokémon. Also, I did crush as many of the "ItemS" instances as I could find. There's a chance that events involving multiples of the same item received at once have it hardcoded into the game. If other decapped hacks have that right, I'll check again. When I get back to the hack, this will be top priority.

[RichterSnipes]

I just got my laptop back! I figured that it wouldn't be worth it to have the thread fully brought back from the dead if I didn't have anything to show, so here is a little treat for everyone.

First, a bug update. I've crushed a few annoying ones that I could get out of the way given my time constraints. Download it in the OP!

Changelog:

Spoiler:

Catch 'em All:

• Wild Sunkern now have a 5% chance of holding a Sun Stone.

Extras:

• You can now use the Bicycle all throughout Mt. Moon.

Decapitalization:

• "Nidorana" has been wiped from existence, now replaced with "Nidorina" as it should be. Thanks to dkp for pointing this out!
• An instance of "ChampionS" is now "Champions".

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But, more importantly, a glimpse into the possible future:

That's right, I started recoloring the GSC Pokémon sprites! I've chosen to start with Bulbasaur (Silver), Charmander (Crystal), and Squirtle (Gold/Crystal) for obvious reasons. But I only have these three guys done as of now. If I get around to completing the entire set for at least the Kanto Pokémon, I'll include them in a new patch option.

Some things you may notice:

1. Yes, I'm foregoing my own interpretation of the 1st Gen sprites. As captnotatroll's work should prove, they don't exactly translate into modern day well. Even if they were given the most perfect of makeovers, they would still stick out like a sore thumb. And yes, I'm aware that the Yellow sprites are much better than those. I find they still don't have quite the draw quality that the later games exhibit.
2. The upgraded sprites have a few changes made to their design to accomodate for more color options, particularly with eyes and shading.
3. The shading style is taken from Ruby/Sapphire/Emerald, as they are the last games in the series to fully embrace the original sprite style. Later games go for an immediate cartoon look, foregoing gradient shades for singular tones.

Also, the palettes are the ones from R/S/E. This is because they match the original artwork better and make it easier to port the R/S/E backsprites, which I intend to do as well. If you guys generally prefer the FR/LG palettes more, I'll change the colors back. Or just include options for both of them!

Any thoughts you have on the sprites? Perhaps opinions of your own conflicting with mine? I'm all ears!