Oooh an update, sweet! 😄
I know I've made quite a few long posts in this thread already. I'm gonna tryyyyy to keep this one short (but probably fail...) haha. Back before v0.2 came out, I only made it to the 1st gym but didn't get around to beating the gym I think. But I've recently made some time to sit down and play it more in the last week or so on my 2nd save and so far I've gone from beating the 1st mini boss, to the gym and 3rd grunt. 1st one still definitely the hardest one and took the most time to train to overcome them lol, with the 2nd one not too far behind at all. This may come as a surprise, but I actually defeated the 2nd grunt's last Pokémon using just my Stunky, but not before my Gulpin used yawn (and switched out on the immediate next turn because it was weakened), and holding nothing more than a Quick Claw, as well as being one level below the foe.
So, yeah.. loving the game. (: So I'm on the hard mode, and the 10% decrease in EXP as well as the BW-esque EXP system in general, I'm feeling it lol. It certainly takes time to train. And the mini bosses are not easy by any means. But... after beating the 1st gym, it's like...everything just clicks. I have to say, overcoming these challenges and the difficulty, the improved variety of wild Pokémon to catch, reasonable and relatively easy grinding for money.. It's all so rewarding. I understand some people may not like it, but we're in an age where everyone wants everything right away, they want instant results, they lack patience, aren't willing to do the work for things, they just want it to fall in their lap. So I for one, can't express enough how much I appreciate a game like this with this much thought put into it, and the decisions behind the game, everything about it. I love it immensely. I'm definitely feeling it now, after the 1st gym is when it started hitting me the hardest. It's a great feeling; satisfying. Think, pistachio theory. You can buy a bag of de-shelled pistachios and gorge yourself on those, but it's just not quite as satisfying as getting to each individual pistachio yourself by freeing them of their shells. It takes energy, yeah, and time. But it's far more rewarding than a bag where you can just dip your hand in and toss them into your mouth like popcorn lol. Anyways movin on from the pistachio tangent.
I do want to add, I think restricting myself from using any sort of speed-ups, makes a huge difference that people overlook. It has me more invested, makes the playthrough more memorable, and the game overall is more enjoyable, reward factor again like I said multiple times alreadh hah. And yes it takes more time, but we never had speedup in the original Pokémon games, did we? And we still put in a hundred+ hours into all of those. It's not a requirement in any capacity. I have been testing it out for some minor things though, without issue. But I won't abuse it, still. (Mostly just to get thru areas I've already cleared that have wild Pokémon I have zero merit to defeat 😅 I'm trying to get berry juices every day bc they work as held items which is big when you can't use the bag in a trainer fight. As well as cutting trees, or when I get surf, rock smash, superior fishing rods, and wanna explore newly accesible areas near in past routes)
The whole day-night system is beautiful too, I love how it looks, in the overworld and also in battle, and the fact it can change during a battle. As well as having different encounters. With cutting trees too possibly? I also have a question pertaining to that, I will ask later on in this post.
And when you catch a Pokémon, and read dex entries, the text boxes and everything CHANGE depending on the time of day. That is HUGE. And it's beautiful. A very nice touch. It's all about the little things :3
These may have been fixed in the new patch, but I do still wanna say some issues I've encountered, in case they aren't fixed. So the main one for me, the Green shard tutor. One of the moves becomes Magnet Rise. And Last Resort becomes Fling when he offers to teach. It says 10 shards instead of 12. Fling still remains in its original spot as well though. It's a shame bc I was looking forward to teaching Last Resort to one of my team members after farming shards... To help against some bosses.
Then Metronome which is TM00 becomes TM?0 in the bag and is right between the TMs and HMs (without having sorted the TM case at all). Another thing with the TM case pocket, the 2 sort options are a bit odd. You can't sort it by number with TMs first and then HMs at the bottom. I feel like only one sort option is needed there. Just that one. Maybe by name as well. Also the berries, they can be sorted only by quantity or name and not number. It's at least automatic for both of these pockets. But I thought I'd mention it. Especially since single item sorting is not possible in either like with the other pockets. It works fine with the main item pocket and any other sorting I want to change up, I can do individually.
And.... while I'm not expecting my wishes to be fulfilled on this one, the Pokémon I've caught in my 2nd playthrough, they have sentimental value to me. And I got lucky with catching a lot of them. Their natures, IVs... Not to mention items I got from trees and stuff. And the first Kricketot I found had a Metronome on it. I spent hours catching dozens, with lots of resetting bc money issues, and not a single one after that ever had that held item. I don't want to give up that rare find...
I was hoping the next patch could just be placed over the 0.2 version, but alas. So to get to the point, I noticed the trading center is still blocked off even after getting the 1st gym badge. It's a real bummer for me.. I thought it would have opened by now as most Pokémon games, as well as some romhacks, have access to trading after beating the 1st gym at the latest, if not earlier. I'd really love it if I were able to trade my Pokémon to my new save file. Preferably as early as possible though, before having to beat the first 2 mini bosses and 1st gym.. I mean I've already beat all of them twice, right? New game+ privilege? 🤣
They aren't strong enough to just breeze thru the game or anything though. I understand people could abuse it and all. But again, the sentimental value... And the time it took trying to find the right natures and things..
I don't want to sound overentitled. That's honestly my only nitpick since I first picked this game up way back.
I understand if you choose to keep trading out of the equation... But it would mitigate the only issue I have, esp if each update requires a fresh new save file. It is inconvenient. Being able to transfer my team over and a few important items, would be such a timesaver. The time it takes to grind is a huge huge factor as well. That's one thing turning me off from starting new saves constantly. But either way, if it improves the game, the experience and fixes bugs, then so be it. I'd rather that then for there to be problems that can break the game or restrict progress that is otherwise within the game.
All up to you of course, but it'd mean a lot if you would hear out my grievances and at least consider it ya know? If you're not willing to budge, I understand. It's a sort of difficulty hack, so I mean yeah.
I'm kinda on the fence about getting this new patch atm. I suppose I'll get it. Just not sure if I'll play it just yet. 🤔 I've got this much time put into it so far (well... I fell asleep this morning after an all-nighter and ×2 speed turned on while I was out, so subtract like... I guess 8 hours?) Putting in this same amount of time just to get the same spot with likely less resources and useful trained Pokémon.. it's just.. an overwhelming thought I guess.
And here's my current team.. took out Spinarak for Seedot. Magikarp here, especially. This thing is tough to train. It's taken forever to get it to Lv12. Slow EXP gain innately, on top of the BW experience system, the 10% decrease and then not being able to actually fight on its own T~T trading it either before or after it evolves would be helpful!
![[PokeCommunity.com] Pokémon Tourmaline (v0.2.1 Released 04/22/2025) [PokeCommunity.com] Pokémon Tourmaline (v0.2.1 Released 04/22/2025)](https://data.pokecommunity.com/attachments/88/88728-edc4cb30689cd13d17f23241eb7c45de.jpg)
One question I have which I mentioned having earlier... Do Pokemon that evolve from stones still learn moves by leveling up? I had a rare candy and leaf stone so I was able to evolve Seedot into Shiftry fully. Just learned Razor Leaf and Leaf Tornado at lv 20 upon becoming Nuzleaf. Not sure if maybe one or the other was due to being that specific level or not. Also I thought Shiftry learns Razor Wind after evolving. In one game. Idk which. Could be wrong. Maybe it's just a base lv1 move. And considering where I'm at rn, it's not exactly easy to test Shiftry's level up moves. Maybe I'll just keep it as Nuzleaf for a while. Does anyone else have it tho? I caught it literally at lv19 by cutting the tree right below Cinerous Town.
Last thing I wanna say here is yeah burnout sucks, I can relate, definitely. I'm very glad to see you're still working on this game and remaining dedicated and passionate. Please please take care of yourself and maintain that stamina and balance (: Plenty of rest, h2o, and a healthy diet and some exercise does wonders! I'm not your dietician or personal fitness trainer though 😅. I know I've said it many times already, but I love this game. When trading is my only nitpick with a game, that's an extremely good thing imho (but plz plz plz 🙏🏽🥺 don't make me lose my babies. I love them so so much ❤️). I see the vision. This game is slept on and that's such a disappointment, more than anything. I'm at the point now with the game, I'm confident I'll make smooth progress. I did see that it got a mention in that one rising YTers video. He had some valid criticisms, but I still feel like he didn't see it properly (no offense to the guy), the way I am seeing it now. People aren't giving it the chance it deserves. It's a beautiful world you've cooked up, with a certain simplicity I've come to admire and appreciate, in the current climate of Pokémon fan works.
So I hope this changes in due time, when the game is completed and hits v1.0. If Ayrei can give it another chance..Like... a REAL real chance, like he's given other good romhacks, then I think he'll fall in love with it like I have, and more and more people will get talking about it, and flood this thread in droves and it will be very successful.. Just some of my insights. It's a hidden gem. 100%.
Take care, and thanks for reading. I appreciate and respect the hard work!!!
P.S. please add trading (x
Also this was funny,
![[PokeCommunity.com] Pokémon Tourmaline (v0.2.1 Released 04/22/2025) [PokeCommunity.com] Pokémon Tourmaline (v0.2.1 Released 04/22/2025)](https://data.pokecommunity.com/attachments/88/88730-2691a26f5f9c0b625034460da9b2a6ca.jpg)
Considering. . .
![[PokeCommunity.com] Pokémon Tourmaline (v0.2.1 Released 04/22/2025) [PokeCommunity.com] Pokémon Tourmaline (v0.2.1 Released 04/22/2025)](https://data.pokecommunity.com/attachments/88/88731-59f9382c39767c8fda6498ba9847b828.jpg)
XD
P.S.S. i know what I said... And this ended up very long. Please forgib. It's a love letter to Pokémon Tourmaline uwu
A quick edit to clarify some things...
I realize I'm playing on an older version here. These might've been fixed by now.
From 10 and onwards to the cancel line of the Green Shard tutor, here is a list of what each move teaches, primarily to include the bugs/inconsistencies:
10. Fling teaches Gravity for 10 shards.
10. Gravity asks for 12 shards, then teaches Last Resort.
10. Tailwind teaches Tailwind for 10.
12. Last Resort asks for 10 shards, and teaches Fling.
12. Sleep Talk teaches Sleep Talk.
Cancel asms for 14 shards, and teaches Foul Play.
Not sure if that's intended to be a move here, or what went wrong, but I think it should be on the list of moves, but properly c:
And cancel should do just what it says Cx Luckily going into the list doesn't softlock you despite cancel not functioning properly. So there's that, ahaha.
Elgyem does have the glitched Magnemite sprite but I do see it listed as being fixed in v0.2.1. I barely encountered it for the first time tonight lol.
And then finally... This. So I have encountered Missingno from a couple of trees, but I reset every time. I utilize save states before cutting every tree, or at least before doing an area, just in case. Because I saw people dealing with that issue. So for all intents and purposes, I haven't actually encountered it in battle in my save file at all.
So going into the details inside the Pokédex for this odd number, and clicking on "Cry" made the game go silent and then have this sort of muted but not completely soundless audio. But the music was gone. Sfx and everything. I walked out of the building and got a black screen. I am able to scroll all the way down to it and just exit the pokedex and have zero issues as long as I don't interact with it. I'm sure it's fixed by now, or will be eventually. And as long as people avoid it and don't play with fire, they'll be fine.
And on the trading thing again... I don't wanna beat a dead horse again. It's a hack with a good level of challenging difficulty in it, and of course it is in its early demo phase still (which does not at all mean the game can't still be impressive. It most certainly is impressive). So again I understand. I'm gonna have to start a fresh save when it's time for 1.0 or beyond anyways. I have no doubts on that. That's just the standard for romhacks. And I'll have to give up most if not all of what I have on my current save file or any that come after it and before the finished product. Doesn't mean I can't still enjoy it. I've reflected a bit, since writing my post. I was a bit too pressy / persistent about it. It should be a simple request of, "Can trading be looked at as a feature?" and end there. Instead I kinda just wouldn't let it go I guess. I probably sounded entitled and whiney there. But no, it's your game, your vision. I'm just a humble player and I want nothing more than to play the game how you envision it. That's what makes it so perfect in my eyes. So whatever you decide to do, I'll support it regardless.
The last thing I wanna do is make things harder for you, especially after you just recovered from burnout. So while it would be nice to have, it's not absolutely necessary and if it's not something you see any merit in adding, that's your decision and I will respect it.
The end xD