Surprising Moments In Pokemon Games (Generation 3)
SHINY POKEMON:
Technically,
all my shiny Pokemon encounters, but the three most notable ones were:
1.
Golbat. First. Shiny. Ever. In
Sapphire Version, with funky colors to boot. :cer_nod:
2.
Fearow. In
FireRed Version,on one of the Sevii Islands. I'm more familiar with RSE and FireRed was pretty uneventful after the Elite 4/Champion Second Wave and the Sevii Island expeditions, so this was a pleasant surprise.
3.
Surskit. I was breeding Surskit for...something, I think. Maybe Natures, gender, or an Egg move. Anyway, after going through piles of Surskit eggs, one of them hatched, and I thought the color was a little off during the "Egg Hatching!" screen. The lighting in my actual environment was a bit dimmer than usual. Rather than releasing the Surskit, I browsed its Summary Screen. Lo and behold, it was a shiny Surskit! This one was quite peculiar because with the unusual lighting, I mistook the shiny Surskit's dark coloration as an off-chance dark blue coloring.
BATTLE TOWER 57-WIN STREAK (FINALLY!!!!):
My first 57-win streak in Battle Tower's Double Battle mode was
quite surprising, to the point where I practically squee'd in silence upon its conclusion. :cer_boogie:
LATIAS ENCOUNTER:
After having tenaciously triumphed against the Elite 4 and Champion, I set out from my humble home in Littleroot Town once again to continue my journey in the Pokemon world. I make my way through tranquil Route 101 and what do I see?
Wild Latias appeared!
Me: HEY! I just done saw you on the TV! :D (and I also saw you in that there game intro!)
Latias: >_>
<_<
"Go! Blaziken!"
*one turn later*:
Wild Latias fled!
O_O
A LATIAS. ON ROUTE 101.
RIGHT AFTER I SEE IT ON THE TELE. Such a meeting began the hunt for the elusive, crimson-colored Latias. That was definitely a WTF?! moment of Pokemon encounters, and I wish all of my Pokemon discoveries could be like that (sadly ruined with Generations 4 and 5. Darn the Internet). I learned the wonders of Mean Look/Shadow Tag, the frustrations of PokeDex mapping/monitoring, and the art of the pursuit of Roaming Pokemon. Quite the hunt, indeed, and the capture was relished even more. :) I actually thought the game's Lati was programmed to always appear on Route 101 if you proceed straight there after your first time beating the Hoenn Champion, but that was not the case. >_>
ELEMENTAL HYPER-BEAM(S)! (and Volt Tackle, too)
This was also in
Sapphire Version, and I was wandering near Route 102 messing around with Metronome in wild Pokemon battles, and one fine day these messages appeared:
Mew used Blast Burn!
Mew used Hydro Cannon!
Mew used Frenzy Plant!
Mew used Volt Tackle!
Cue several hours of Metronome-spamming with Mew just to have the chance to see their amazing GBA animations and text messages again. These moves especially piqued my interest, because they were nowhere to be seen in the "Move" category of the pre-programmed text responses of the game. :D Thankfully, they appeared proper via Cape Brink move tutor in
FireRed/LeafGreen, but at the time such unreleased moves were
awesome due to their obscurity and their mysterious nature. Not too sure, but I think at some point pre-FR/LG I tried training a Camerupt to see if it could learn Blast Burn, but no luck.
OBTAINING THE NATIONAL POKEDEX IN SAPPHIRE VERSION:
I was working on the "trade starter Pokemon, start new game" tactic for obtaining the Kanto starters in my
FireRed save file. My friend had a
LeafGreen Version cartridge and was holding a few Pokemon for me. At some point, I did a trade to
Sapphire Version from his
LeafGreen, not expecting too many changes...
How wrong I was. The Pokedex completely changed its background from a royal blue to a resplendent silver. My Hoenn Dex got expanded
bigtime, getting reformatting in the sequence of Kanto (National) Dex numbering rather than Hoenn Dex numbering. The search function also got an additional search option, with "Hoenn Dex" and National Dex" for selection. The designated font for the Pokemon I had seen and caught also got altered slightly, getting updated to reflect the amounts of Pokemon I had seen and caught in the Hoenn region,
and displaying the same numbers for a National Dex basis. Prior to that, I thought only
FireRed and
LeafGreen could have the National Dex capacity, so I was
ecstatic when I found out that my Hoenn PokeDex in
Sapphire Version got quietly
upgraded to the National PokeDex standard! :cer_boogie: At the time, I didn't know that all 386 existing Pokemon had been programmed into my Generation 3 at the beginning; I just thought that
FireRed had sent some sort of never-before-seen Pokedex update. Basically, it felt like how Ash gets his Pokedex upgraded in the anime (if it already had
pre-programmed information on all existing Pokemon at the time, it wouldn't need occasional upgrading).
REGI/LEGENDARY GOLEM PUZZLE AND ENCOUNTERS:
The puzzles involved in catching the Regis were awesome. Having to catch two specific Water-type Pokemon that needed to be arranged in the party in a certain order, journeying in the deep-sea waters near Pacifidlog Town, entering the Sealed Chamber, unlocking three doors far away, using Strength in a specific location, using Fly
in the middle of a cave, and...waiting for 5 minutes...the process in merely
unlocking the Regis was full of epicness, and I was constantly getting surprised.
Though the battles were
very trying and long, the awesomeness of
this techno music soothed things a bit. :)
KYOGRE AND RAYQUAZA ENCOUNTERS:
Well...based on the cover, this one was a bit obvious IMO and should have been anticipated, but there is nothing like encountering the game's legendary version mascot - Kyogre! Especially with
this ominous "...What did you DO?! 0.0" music playing epically in the background. Elemental forces of nature being tampered with...not a good idea in Pokemon world. Needlessly to say, I used my Master Ball on him - and no, I do not regret it.
Rayquaza was a intriguing beast. I first learned about its existence in conversation when I wondered aloud what I would be able to trade for a Groudon...the answer was something to the effect of "Kyogre...maybe someone might trade you a Groudon for a
Rayquaza..." By that statement, I inferred that Rayquaza's power, whatever it was, was comparative to that of Groudon and Kyogre, yet it somewhat seemed lesser in a way... I eventually set out to catch this green-hued Sky High Dragon-type Pokemon. Much yelling was had in Sky Pillar, with all the cracks and sharp turns needed with the Mach Bike and what-not. In retrospect, it is amusing, but at the time, MY
GOSH. I finally managed to ascend the treacherous Sky Pillar and engage my Pokemon in battle with such a fearsome sky dragon. The background of the battle scene was nice, and I was frequently subject to the destructive wrath of a new Dragon-type move called Outrage (surprisingly, I learned it has existed since Generation 2). Netting this Pokemon in an Ultra Ball was quite the accomplishment indeed, and I was anticipating a heartwarming reunion with this beast as it claimed the spotlight in
Emerald Version's enhanced plotline.
I believe these were the best surprises of Generation 3...I await the many (yet somewhat dampened due to spoilers) surprises that Generations 4 and 5 have to offer in
Platinum,
HeartGold, and
Black/Gray Versions! :cer_boogie:
