- 2
- Posts
- 2
- Years
- Seen Oct 28, 2023
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Introduction
Like many other people, I've been frustrated with the lack of difficulty in Pokémon games. I've started working on a difficulty hack a couple of times in the past but never got very far due to a lack of time and not being able to add all the features I wanted. At the start of this year, I had a lot of time on my hands and with access to new resources I decided to give it another go. I've now arrived at a point where the main game is pretty much complete and I'm mostly concerned about balancing. I've given the player a lot of overpowered tools, but I currently don't have enough time to test it all by myself. That's why I've decided to post here. If you're looking to just play through a difficult ROM then you can already do that with this ROM. It's certainly lacking a bit of polish, but the main game can be completed. If you're enjoying the challenge and want to help me out a bit then I would appreciate that.
What is this game like?
This is a difficulty hack of Fire Red that has been made with nuzlocking in mind. This means that you'll frequently encounter routes that only have Pokémon of the same type or that are all good for an upcoming section of the game. Some Pokémon will still be better than others, but you don't need lucky encounters. I've also rebalanced some of the moves to remove a bit of rng from the game, but there is still plenty of rng since this is Pokémon. If you are crazy enough to attempt to nuzlocke this then I recommend looking up the documentation.
Every trainer has a new team with custom moves, most trainers have EVs and many also have held items. All potions have been removed from the AI since those can either be abused or they're completely broken. Most random trainers are skippable just like they were in the original game, but mandatory trainers have been made more difficult. Pretty much all bosses have a full team and the rival's team changes constantly as it always should have, in my opinion. Outside of the trainers, Pokémon, wild encounters, and available items little has been changed. My aim was to create a more difficult version of gen 1 and not a version of gen 1 that has everything. This is why you will only see gen 1 Pokémon, their later gen evolutions and Alolan forms during the main game. Both the player and the AI get very powerful very quickly. Once you reach Vermillion City you will have access to most moves thanks to a free move relearner that knows egg moves and a ton of TMs from the pokemarts, but the AI has access to the same moves. Many useful hidden abilities have been made available as regular abilities and you get access to ability pills before the first gym so that a Pokémon's usefulness won't depend on getting lucky with your ability.
To allow certain trainers to reach their full potential the level curve is very steep compared to a normal game. However, you won't need to grind endlessly. You get a lot of exp, but if you need to train up new Pokémon or want to skip random trainers then you have access to an infinite amount of rare candies. EV training also becomes very easy once you reach Lavender Town. I wanted it to be possible to get through the game quickly and as long as you can actually beat the battles then this is definitely possible.
Features
Screenshots
GIFs
Download and documentation
Beta testers
I'm currently looking for people that are interested in helping me beta test the game. I'm mostly looking for people that are experienced with set mode since that is the mode that I'm balancing around. If you want to help then let me know on Discord. People who help me out a bunch can get their own trainer in the post game.
Credits
Join the Discord
Introduction
Like many other people, I've been frustrated with the lack of difficulty in Pokémon games. I've started working on a difficulty hack a couple of times in the past but never got very far due to a lack of time and not being able to add all the features I wanted. At the start of this year, I had a lot of time on my hands and with access to new resources I decided to give it another go. I've now arrived at a point where the main game is pretty much complete and I'm mostly concerned about balancing. I've given the player a lot of overpowered tools, but I currently don't have enough time to test it all by myself. That's why I've decided to post here. If you're looking to just play through a difficult ROM then you can already do that with this ROM. It's certainly lacking a bit of polish, but the main game can be completed. If you're enjoying the challenge and want to help me out a bit then I would appreciate that.
What is this game like?
This is a difficulty hack of Fire Red that has been made with nuzlocking in mind. This means that you'll frequently encounter routes that only have Pokémon of the same type or that are all good for an upcoming section of the game. Some Pokémon will still be better than others, but you don't need lucky encounters. I've also rebalanced some of the moves to remove a bit of rng from the game, but there is still plenty of rng since this is Pokémon. If you are crazy enough to attempt to nuzlocke this then I recommend looking up the documentation.
Every trainer has a new team with custom moves, most trainers have EVs and many also have held items. All potions have been removed from the AI since those can either be abused or they're completely broken. Most random trainers are skippable just like they were in the original game, but mandatory trainers have been made more difficult. Pretty much all bosses have a full team and the rival's team changes constantly as it always should have, in my opinion. Outside of the trainers, Pokémon, wild encounters, and available items little has been changed. My aim was to create a more difficult version of gen 1 and not a version of gen 1 that has everything. This is why you will only see gen 1 Pokémon, their later gen evolutions and Alolan forms during the main game. Both the player and the AI get very powerful very quickly. Once you reach Vermillion City you will have access to most moves thanks to a free move relearner that knows egg moves and a ton of TMs from the pokemarts, but the AI has access to the same moves. Many useful hidden abilities have been made available as regular abilities and you get access to ability pills before the first gym so that a Pokémon's usefulness won't depend on getting lucky with your ability.
To allow certain trainers to reach their full potential the level curve is very steep compared to a normal game. However, you won't need to grind endlessly. You get a lot of exp, but if you need to train up new Pokémon or want to skip random trainers then you have access to an infinite amount of rare candies. EV training also becomes very easy once you reach Lavender Town. I wanted it to be possible to get through the game quickly and as long as you can actually beat the battles then this is definitely possible.
Features
Spoiler:
Screenshots
Spoiler:
GIFs
Spoiler:
Download and documentation
Beta testers
I'm currently looking for people that are interested in helping me beta test the game. I'm mostly looking for people that are experienced with set mode since that is the mode that I'm balancing around. If you want to help then let me know on Discord. People who help me out a bunch can get their own trainer in the post game.
Credits
Spoiler:
Join the Discord
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