Sideshow Showcase
Hack Series Pokéluv - A Balanced, Randomized Experience (FireRed/Emerald) [UPDATE]
Started by Akiak August 30th, 2017 8:21 AM- 45055 views
- 69 replies
Hi, my name is Akiak, and this is a hack for Pokémon Emerald and Pokémon FireRed that I've been working on for the past few years. It's quite fun, and it's basically finished now.
It's essentially a 'rebalancing' hack. All 386 Pokemon have been redesigned (stats, moveset etc.) so that they're ALL relatively viable in some way, giving them a unique flair in the process which they never had in the original games.
The catch here is that this includes all pre-evolutions as well. Every Pokemon was treated as its own unique entity, so if you want a Charmander to spearhead your team (or a Hoppip, or an Oddish), then that's a perfectly viable option.
As an example, Charmander has lower overall stats compared to Charizard, however they're a bit faster, boast a pretty special secondary ability and can learn a few unique moves such as Will-o-Wisp.
I didn't set out to make every Pokemon equally strong, but I tried to give every single one some kind of redeeming quality that makes them worth using.
There are a few crazy ideas in there, but they're all based on something, wether it's the Pokemon's appearance, lore, or 'hidden potential'.
I've also included a modified version of the Reasonable Randomizer, which I highly recommend using. It preserves trainer types (Roxanne has Rock-types, etc.) and habitats (no wild Growlithe in the sea), and includes several competitive movesets for all 386 Pokemon, which it can choose from when building enemy teams.
FEATURES
DOWNLOAD
Pokeluv.zip
MEDIAFIRE LINK
https://www.mediafire.com/file/yuvnxb7cgqtcnw0/Pokeluv.zip/file
Updated 25 August 2022
HOW TO INSTALL/PATCH/RANDOMIZE
DISCORD
https://discord.gg/FHWk4GmqdS
LUVLOCKE CHALLENGE
Some examples of Pokemon picked at random, to give you an idea:
List of moves modified:
Hall of Fame:
Previous version: https://www.mediafire.com/file/zzcxuhyjt93j4x0/Pokeluv21.zip/file
Thanks to:
RichterSnipes: for the super good Pokemon Throwback.
dearman4: for the excellent Pokemon Emerald Final.
LAT10S: for the Reasonable Randomizer project, and making it open source.
karatekid552 and his team: for the Gen III Suite which kickstarted this whole project.
Gamer2020: for the Pokemon Game Editor toolset.
DoesntKnowHowToPlay, MrDollSteak, Jambo51, esperance, LAT10S, TL, haven1433, SevenChurches, ABZB, LocksmithArmy, Cha Cha Dinosaur, HackMew, Anthroyd, dylan, Lunos, FBI, Uncommon, mbcn10ww, AkameTheBulbasaur, Samu and probably countless other people.
Contact me on Discord (Akiak#4655) or on Twitter. Much love.
It's essentially a 'rebalancing' hack. All 386 Pokemon have been redesigned (stats, moveset etc.) so that they're ALL relatively viable in some way, giving them a unique flair in the process which they never had in the original games.
The catch here is that this includes all pre-evolutions as well. Every Pokemon was treated as its own unique entity, so if you want a Charmander to spearhead your team (or a Hoppip, or an Oddish), then that's a perfectly viable option.
As an example, Charmander has lower overall stats compared to Charizard, however they're a bit faster, boast a pretty special secondary ability and can learn a few unique moves such as Will-o-Wisp.
I didn't set out to make every Pokemon equally strong, but I tried to give every single one some kind of redeeming quality that makes them worth using.
There are a few crazy ideas in there, but they're all based on something, wether it's the Pokemon's appearance, lore, or 'hidden potential'.
I've also included a modified version of the Reasonable Randomizer, which I highly recommend using. It preserves trainer types (Roxanne has Rock-types, etc.) and habitats (no wild Growlithe in the sea), and includes several competitive movesets for all 386 Pokemon, which it can choose from when building enemy teams.
FEATURES
- All 386 Pokemon, including pre-evolutions, have been 'rebalanced' (stats, movesets, abilities etc.) to be at least somewhat viable, but without being unrealistic.
- All level-up and trade evolutions have been replaced by an optional evolution via Rare Candy. Stone evolutions are unchanged.
- Many moves have been rebalanced (full list below)
- 9 new moves, including Poison Jab & Shadow Claw
- Legendary Pokemon have been considerably buffed, and are now uncatchable (think of them as boss fights)
- Based off of Emerald Final and Throwback, which include many QoL features
- A more balanced distribution of single & double battles
- Optional Gen 6-style EXP Share from the start (entire party receives 100% of the EXP)
- A specially tailored version of Reasonable Randomizer, with competitive movesets for all 386 Pokemon. This is an essential part of the experience, and I don't recommend playing without it.
- Scaled EXP system from Gen 5
- Gym leaders have better teams
- Better AI
- 7 new Move Tutors
- Physical/Special split (applied to certain moves)
- HMs don't need to be taught
- Catch rates have been buffed, to make Nuzlocking less painful
- Critical hits nerfed to 1.5x
- Sturdy & Rough Skin have been updated
- Steel no longer resists Ghost
- Poison survival on 1 HP
- Rare Candy substitutes can be bought in certain Pokemarts
- Cleanse Tag reduces wild encounters by 1/3
- Lucky Eggs are obtainable early on that disable EXP gain (useful for level caps)
- The Master Ball is replaced by TM35, and an extra PP Max is available (hint: scanner) (Emerald)
- Eevee, Tyrogue & Wurmple evolve via Sun Stones (which can be found on wild Gloom & Vileplume) and Moon Stones
- Revamped Battle Tent/Battle Frontier sets (Emerald)
DOWNLOAD
Pokeluv.zip
MEDIAFIRE LINK
https://www.mediafire.com/file/yuvnxb7cgqtcnw0/Pokeluv.zip/file
Updated 25 August 2022
HOW TO INSTALL/PATCH/RANDOMIZE
Spoiler:
DISCORD
https://discord.gg/FHWk4GmqdS
LUVLOCKE CHALLENGE
Spoiler:
Some examples of Pokemon picked at random, to give you an idea:
Spoiler:
List of moves modified:
Spoiler:
Hall of Fame:
Spoiler:
Previous version: https://www.mediafire.com/file/zzcxuhyjt93j4x0/Pokeluv21.zip/file
Thanks to:
RichterSnipes: for the super good Pokemon Throwback.
dearman4: for the excellent Pokemon Emerald Final.
LAT10S: for the Reasonable Randomizer project, and making it open source.
karatekid552 and his team: for the Gen III Suite which kickstarted this whole project.
Gamer2020: for the Pokemon Game Editor toolset.
DoesntKnowHowToPlay, MrDollSteak, Jambo51, esperance, LAT10S, TL, haven1433, SevenChurches, ABZB, LocksmithArmy, Cha Cha Dinosaur, HackMew, Anthroyd, dylan, Lunos, FBI, Uncommon, mbcn10ww, AkameTheBulbasaur, Samu and probably countless other people.
Contact me on Discord (Akiak#4655) or on Twitter. Much love.
I've made some pretty massive updates to this hack. Ironed out some bugs, made improvements, added features etc... It's all detailed in the OP.
I'd highly recommend giving this a try coupled with a randomizer. Just download the PokeluvPSX patch and follow the instructions provided.
Enjoy!
I'd highly recommend giving this a try coupled with a randomizer. Just download the PokeluvPSX patch and follow the instructions provided.
Enjoy!
Great hack i have to try it but i have to say do you have idea to add the 3rd gen Pokemon to the hack ?
Great hack i have to try it but i have to say do you have idea to add the 3rd gen Pokemon to the hack ?
I'd love to but unfortunately given the amount of time it took to do the first 2 gens it's very unlikely that I'll ever get around to it.Pretty much the only update that I'm considering making at the moment (barring any bugs/issues people might find) is giving the trainers with Custom Movesets enabled a fixed team that can't be randomized, which would fix some minor issues (that are explained in the OP).
Although if someone else wants to tackle the 3rd gen I'm open to that, just let me know!
So uh... I ended up completing the 3rd gen while I was on vacation...
So now all 386 Pokemon have been revamped, which significantly improves compatibility with randomizers. You can now use the Reasonable Randomizer instead of UPR, which has habitat and trainer type specialty retention.
I always found it really jarring and immersion-breaking when I'd find a Growlithe swimming around in the sea, or a gym leader with completely random types.
I also fixed an issue with Prof Oak's aides and made some general improvements. As always it's all listed in the OP, which has been revamped and is hopefully easier to understand now too.
Finally, I'd like to also announce that I will begin working on an Emerald version, so stay tuned for that (if all goes well)!
☺️
So now all 386 Pokemon have been revamped, which significantly improves compatibility with randomizers. You can now use the Reasonable Randomizer instead of UPR, which has habitat and trainer type specialty retention.
I always found it really jarring and immersion-breaking when I'd find a Growlithe swimming around in the sea, or a gym leader with completely random types.
I also fixed an issue with Prof Oak's aides and made some general improvements. As always it's all listed in the OP, which has been revamped and is hopefully easier to understand now too.
Finally, I'd like to also announce that I will begin working on an Emerald version, so stay tuned for that (if all goes well)!
☺️
Very cool hack! So does this make the trainers in the game stronger as well? I see an option called "retain trainer strength" in the screenshot you posted.
That's simply an option in the randomizer that skews the Trainer Pokemon based on their level, so early trainers are more likely to have pre-evolutions whereas later trainers will have more fully-evolved mons.But as you can see I have the Strictness slider set to 10 so it's a very minor effect, I wouldn't recommend increasing it too much as it kind of goes against the idea of this hack which is to "level the playing field" and give every Pokemon a chance to shine.
I would say the difficulty is certainly at least a little bit higher than vanilla, since literally every Pokemon that you encounter will be somewhat threatening in some way, plus the randomisation adds unpredictability that can be hard to prepare for (even more-so if you set the Battle Style in the options to SET instead of SHIFT).
I've reached a dead end. Bill didn't confront me in Cinnabar Island after beating Blaine, so I can't go to the Sevii Islands. The woman blocking the entrance to the Elite 4 said that Lorelei is not present, meaning she's on Four Island. Am I missing something?
I've reached a dead end. Bill didn't confront me in Cinnabar Island after beating Blaine, so I can't go to the Sevii Islands. The woman blocking the entrance to the Elite 4 said that Lorelei is not present, meaning she's on Four Island. Am I missing something?
Oops! I should include this in the main post.As part of the "Catch Em All" hack, the Sevii Islands are no longer accessible until after the Elite Four.
Are you saying you've got 8 badges but you still can't get into the E4?
Oops! I should include this in the main post.
As part of the "Catch Em All" hack, the Sevii Islands are no longer accessible until after the Elite Four.
Are you saying you've got 8 badges but you still can't get into the E4?
That's right.
As part of the "Catch Em All" hack, the Sevii Islands are no longer accessible until after the Elite Four.
Are you saying you've got 8 badges but you still can't get into the E4?
That's right.
Thanks, can confirm this is indeed a bug that's unique to my hack, only idea I have atm is that it might be caused by the National dex being given at the start and making the game think you've already beaten the E4.Looking into it but might take like a week as I'm pretty busy
Thanks for reporting tho 😊
Have fixed the issue, so the FRfull patch should work fine now.
I have been working on the Emerald version but progress has been slowing down due to lack of time. I may still get it done soon tho, can't really say right now.
Have also noticed a few mistakes and things I wanted to change when copying the Pokemon over from the FR version, so hopefully will get that sorted soon too.
✌️
I have been working on the Emerald version but progress has been slowing down due to lack of time. I may still get it done soon tho, can't really say right now.
Have also noticed a few mistakes and things I wanted to change when copying the Pokemon over from the FR version, so hopefully will get that sorted soon too.
✌️
Have fixed the issue, so the FRfull patch should work fine now.
I was able to beat the Elite 4 and Champion, but I don't see any way to reach the Sevii Islands. I went to Cinnabar Island's Pokemon Center to see if Bill's there. He isn't, and in his house, he doesn't mention the Sevii Islands.
I was able to beat the Elite 4 and Champion, but I don't see any way to reach the Sevii Islands. I went to Cinnabar Island's Pokemon Center to see if Bill's there. He isn't, and in his house, he doesn't mention the Sevii Islands.
Looking into it.
Interesting hack, i will play this hacks when sevii islands solved.
Can we match with other people using linked battle feature?
Yes of course, this is a fairly vanilla hack so all communication features should work normally.Can we match with other people using linked battle feature?
Not sure how it'll behave if you battle against someone who isn't using the hack, if it'll cause desyncs or if you simply get to use your buffed mons as normal, probably the latter but idk
Please don't do that, there's a reason I'm using an older version of Throwback, there'll be compatibility issues with newer versions.
I'm currently looking into the post-E4 issues and will hopefully have a fix soon.
As for the picture, that's really weird, I can see it fine on multiple different devices. Not sure how to help you :/
EDIT: here, try this link for the pic: https://imgur.com/a/BksRxqR
EDIT2: also for the record, the only features that are missing from Throwback v190806 compared to the current version are the moveset changes, which cause compatibility issues with Pokeluv, and the Celebi encounter, where Celebi is just added to your party for free, which can't be allowed in this hack for obvious reasons.
I'm currently looking into the post-E4 issues and will hopefully have a fix soon.
As for the picture, that's really weird, I can see it fine on multiple different devices. Not sure how to help you :/
EDIT: here, try this link for the pic: https://imgur.com/a/BksRxqR
EDIT2: also for the record, the only features that are missing from Throwback v190806 compared to the current version are the moveset changes, which cause compatibility issues with Pokeluv, and the Celebi encounter, where Celebi is just added to your party for free, which can't be allowed in this hack for obvious reasons.
Have fixed the issue 😊 PokeluvFRfull patch has been updated.
Sevii Islands should now activate after the first time you beat the E4. Only thing I haven't tested yet is if everything works normally the second time you beat the E4 (i.e. it doesn't re-activate Oak's Sevii island script), but from how I set it up it should work fine.
Sevii Islands should now activate after the first time you beat the E4. Only thing I haven't tested yet is if everything works normally the second time you beat the E4 (i.e. it doesn't re-activate Oak's Sevii island script), but from how I set it up it should work fine.
BIG UPDATE
Through some sort of miracle (thank you Gamer2020) I was able to skip the entire process of copying over every single Pokemon from FireRed to Emerald and have completed the Emerald version!
I've decided to use Pokemon Emerald Final as a "base", and since it's still getting updated, the patch should be used after you've applied the latest version of the Emerald Final patch (unlike the FireRed patch which is simply applied to the vanilla ROM).
By the way, my hack will re-enable capitalization (because I personally prefer it that way).
Again, I've also included basic versions of the hack, with and without the Physical/Special split.
Finally, I noticed a handful of mistakes in the FireRed version which have been fixed. It's very minor stuff though (mainly some Pokemon having moves they shouldn't have) so I wouldn't bother to update if you've already started a playthrough on the previous version.
As always please let me know about any bugs you might encounter (I've only tested the beginning of the game).
Hope you enjoy!
Through some sort of miracle (thank you Gamer2020) I was able to skip the entire process of copying over every single Pokemon from FireRed to Emerald and have completed the Emerald version!
I've decided to use Pokemon Emerald Final as a "base", and since it's still getting updated, the patch should be used after you've applied the latest version of the Emerald Final patch (unlike the FireRed patch which is simply applied to the vanilla ROM).
By the way, my hack will re-enable capitalization (because I personally prefer it that way).
Again, I've also included basic versions of the hack, with and without the Physical/Special split.
Finally, I noticed a handful of mistakes in the FireRed version which have been fixed. It's very minor stuff though (mainly some Pokemon having moves they shouldn't have) so I wouldn't bother to update if you've already started a playthrough on the previous version.
As always please let me know about any bugs you might encounter (I've only tested the beginning of the game).
Hope you enjoy!
So the Sevii Island issue made me stop playing this hack until it was fixed. While it was fixed, I played Adventure Red Chapter, a very long hack. After that, I finally got back to this hack. Thank you for fixing the Sevii Islands issue, I was able to do all the stuff there and beat the Elite 4 and Champion's rematch teams. I was able to return to the Sevii Islands after beating the Pokemon League again, so no bugs there.
Overall I enjoyed the hack. I used the randomizer settings in the OP as well as a Steel monotype. That spiced things up and it definitely made my team unique. Forretress, Aggron, Scizor, Beldum, Mawile, and Steelix. Honestly if the randomizer brought Skarmory and/or Magnemite/Magneton sooner, I would've used them. I made sure no Legendaries were in the wild, so no Jirachi or Registeel for me. Beldum and Scizor were the MVPs because of their sweeping abilities. Scizor dominated the first Pokemon League challenge. Beldum was the MVP for the 2nd Pokemon League challenge. That one was ridiculous because Blue had a Mewtwo, the randomizer tortured me with that. Also, Torkoal and Rapidash, as if it knew I had a Steel monotype team. Eventually I got into the right situation where Beldum double danced with Sharpen and Agility, taking down Mewtwo and outspeeding and OHKOing the Fire-types in Blue's rematch team.
As far as critiques, I think more could be done to make pre-evolutions more appealing, mainly some BST enhancements. More than the ones implemented. Documentation would be helpful because I didn't bother looking at all the Pokemon to see what they have. I used G3T but didn't spend too much time on it, a document is better anyway. Then again, my monotype was extremely limited, the only pre-evolved Steel-types I could get is Magnemite, Aron, and Beldum. Aggron was more appealing because of the power. Beldum's sweeping moves and Levitate made it more appealing than Metagross. That's just my opinion, I appreciate the effort a lot. It definitely separates itself from say Emerald Balanced Edition, which gave everyone a BST of 600.
I do like Throwback and appreciate that as the base ROM, but man I love Emerald Final. I'll check out the Emerald version eventually. Ending on a more positive note, thanks again for making this, very solid.
Overall I enjoyed the hack. I used the randomizer settings in the OP as well as a Steel monotype. That spiced things up and it definitely made my team unique. Forretress, Aggron, Scizor, Beldum, Mawile, and Steelix. Honestly if the randomizer brought Skarmory and/or Magnemite/Magneton sooner, I would've used them. I made sure no Legendaries were in the wild, so no Jirachi or Registeel for me. Beldum and Scizor were the MVPs because of their sweeping abilities. Scizor dominated the first Pokemon League challenge. Beldum was the MVP for the 2nd Pokemon League challenge. That one was ridiculous because Blue had a Mewtwo, the randomizer tortured me with that. Also, Torkoal and Rapidash, as if it knew I had a Steel monotype team. Eventually I got into the right situation where Beldum double danced with Sharpen and Agility, taking down Mewtwo and outspeeding and OHKOing the Fire-types in Blue's rematch team.
As far as critiques, I think more could be done to make pre-evolutions more appealing, mainly some BST enhancements. More than the ones implemented. Documentation would be helpful because I didn't bother looking at all the Pokemon to see what they have. I used G3T but didn't spend too much time on it, a document is better anyway. Then again, my monotype was extremely limited, the only pre-evolved Steel-types I could get is Magnemite, Aron, and Beldum. Aggron was more appealing because of the power. Beldum's sweeping moves and Levitate made it more appealing than Metagross. That's just my opinion, I appreciate the effort a lot. It definitely separates itself from say Emerald Balanced Edition, which gave everyone a BST of 600.
I do like Throwback and appreciate that as the base ROM, but man I love Emerald Final. I'll check out the Emerald version eventually. Ending on a more positive note, thanks again for making this, very solid.