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Crystal hack: [Hack of the Year 2017] - Pokémon Orange (GBC) [Suloku Patch] (Fin)

Played through the whole HotY Beta! Here's my thoughts about this great hack.


In true gen 1/2 style, what little story there is is in the background and not the main focus of the game, but still entertaining enough where it makes you want to keep playing just to see what might happen on the next island. Unlike gen 1/2, however, the dialogue is much more unique and varied, which makes the Orange Archipelago feel like a living, breathing place. Combined with the basic story points urging you forward, the plot and narrative of the Orange Islands blend together to create a very fun experience that goes beyond simply beating up everything in your way. The dialogue is written very well, and my only gripe with it is a notable lack of contractions, which makes some NPCs sound like they're robots, but that's a very easy thing to fix in the long run.

Regarding the NPCs, there's definitely enough of them to make the islands feel alive but not overcrowded, and they all typically have interesting and/or entertaining dialogue, including some trainers that even tell you where you can find certain Pokemon and other interesting lore/factual tidbits about the islands themselves. The Orange Islands are very loosely based on the anime, such as having Professor Ivy, Butch & Cassidy and Jessie & James, Tracy, the Crystal Onix, and so on, but rather than following Ash's anime adventure, these characters and plot points are designed and organized in a way where they can be done by you, the player, as you embark on your Pokemon journey to challenge the Orange Crew and become the champ. We also see familiar faces and other characters that help explain and fill in a few of the things that happened during the three year gap between RBY and GSC. While obviously not canon, they're still very believable and well written. All in all, the story, narrative, and dialogue are all very well written, which is a major plus for me.

The battle system is what you'd expect from a gen 1/2 game, but with more streamlined mechanics and an optional PSS split patch, which makes the gameplay more reminiscent of gen 4 and makes some Pokemon infinitely more usable. With the addition of Fairy type, new held items, and updated mechanics, you get a battle system that's reminiscent of gen 2 but still updated enough where it feels fresh and different from the vanilla gen 2 games. Combine that with a new Pokedex chock full of appropriate selections from almost every gen, and it's a unique experience that you could never get from a typical Pokemon game.

Moving along to the actual Orange Islands, they're done in a way that makes them feel populated but also like a natural paradise, chock full of trailblazing through wild, rarely-touched areas. The mapping is great, and nearly every island has hidden secrets and areas that make them worth coming back to once you get more HMs, which is very important considering the islands naturally have to be smaller than a typical large mainland region. Not only that, but every island typically has some unique quirk/NPC/etc. that makes the island worth visiting, so you definitely don't want to actively skip anything!

The spriting, art, and music are also all impeccable, with devamped new music and remixed old music, devamped sprites of new Pokemon, new tiles, and lots more. This is especially important, since it sets the Orange Islands apart as its own separate entity rather than being a mishmash of other regions. It actually feels like I'm exploring and experiencing something new, rather than something simply cobbled together for the sake of convenience. Pia Carrot definitely went all out in making the Orange Islands as unique and fresh as possible, and all that effort really shines through when playing through the game.

All in all, this hack is the real deal, an amazing experience that rivals, and even surpasses in some ways, Gamefreak's own games, and I can't wait for the next beta and all the content we'll be seeing in the future.
 
More updates! Wow, I've been blazing through content. I've completed Cleopatra Island's scripts as well as the entirety of Fukuhara No. 4, and I'm currently working on Route 63.

The only thing left for the old areas that I want to do is rework the rocket event on Mandarin North, and then I can move on with the new areas without any worries.

I've updated Salazzle's sprite
[PokeCommunity.com] [Hack of the Year 2017] - Pokémon Orange (GBC) [Suloku Patch] (Fin)
credits to nuukiie for the base I used.

I've tested Red's battle and even with a team of lvl 100 Pokemon I found it incredibly difficult without a Dark type in my party! Fun.

The Meowth for Kecleon trade on Golden Island has been changed to Meowth for Mr. Mime. This will be the only way to obtain Mr. Mime. Meowth will be available on Route 63.
 
Route 63 is just about done now, just need to write some dialogues for the trainers I added there and wild encounters. Not sure whether I want to work on Ascorbia Island or go back to Mandarin North to rework the Rocket event. Will keep you all updated.

Spoiler:
 
looneyman1 said:
I'm playing on the HotY edition of the hck with th ePSS addon and I saw an unusual thing happen. Sometimes when I catch a pokemon they inexplicably change genders, which may be a huge issue for breeding pokemon at some point.
Click to expand...

This has been reported several times already, and is noted in the download post. It's due to personality being bugged and also affects Pinkan and Shininess. Working on a fix but I don't know the cause.
 
Woooooooooooooooooooo my fav graphics <3 Fannnkkks =3
 
hey correct me if I'm wrong but wasnt Lorelei supposed to appear on one of the islands prior to the second badge in the anime? If not I assume she ought to be seen in the next version of the hack since she would be a good challenge for the player on one hand and she would sorta mirror Lance's role in G/S/C's story in undoing a Team Rocket plot.
 
looneyman1 said:
hey correct me if I'm wrong but wasnt Lorelei supposed to appear on one of the islands prior to the second badge in the anime? If not I assume she ought to be seen in the next version of the hack since she would be a good challenge for the player on one hand and she would sorta mirror Lance's role in G/S/C's story in undoing a Team Rocket plot.
Click to expand...

She appears on Mandarin South, just before the 3rd gym, just like in Orange.
 
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Amazing to see how far this game has come since I last looked. I will check it out tonight.
 
I just gotta say I love what you are doing here. I always crave for more original style Pokemon games and the OI were always a missed opportunity. Very happy to see and play this! I also made this to show my excitement! Keep up the good work!

[PokeCommunity.com] [Hack of the Year 2017] - Pokémon Orange (GBC) [Suloku Patch] (Fin)
 
Ziko577 said:
This may seem like a selfish request but you think you could either change or improve the female player character a bit? I personally found her to be a bit boring compared to the male character in the previous playthroughs I had with this game. This guy maybe has the right idea: https://ghost-missingno.deviantart.com/art/Beta-Crystal-Sprites-for-G-S-C-564595350
Click to expand...

Pretty happy with her tbh, the backsprite I currently am using is mostly based off that link. The only thing I might improve on is the facing up overworld frame.
 
New cries have been implemented thanks to luckytyphlosion! Every Pokemon has a unique cry now, it uses the same code Prism does to do the same thing. Beta 2 is gonna be something :)

Pokedex video coming soon hopefully, assuming my recording software allows.
 
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