<s>
and	O
are	O
2002	O
role-playing	O
video	O
games	O
developed	O
by	O
Game	O
Freak	O
,	O
published	O
by	O
The	O
Pokémon	O
Company	O
and	O
Nintendo	O
for	O
the	O
Game	B-Device
Boy	I-Device
Advance	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
Pokémon	B-Device
Emerald	I-Device
,	O
a	O
third	O
version	O
,	O
was	O
released	O
two	O
years	O
later	O
in	O
each	O
region	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Remakes	O
of	O
the	O
two	O
games	O
,	O
titled	O
Pokémon	B-Application
Omega	I-Application
Ruby	I-Application
and	I-Application
Alpha	I-Application
Sapphire	I-Application
,	O
were	O
released	O
for	O
the	O
Nintendo	B-Operating_System
3DS	I-Operating_System
worldwide	O
in	O
November	O
2014	O
,	O
exactly	O
twelve	O
years	O
to	O
the	O
date	O
of	O
the	O
original	O
Ruby	B-Application
and	I-Application
Sapphire	I-Application
release	O
date	O
,	O
with	O
the	O
exception	O
of	O
Europe	O
,	O
where	O
it	O
released	O
a	O
week	O
later	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Owing	O
to	O
the	O
increased	O
capabilities	O
of	O
the	O
Game	B-Device
Boy	I-Device
Advance	I-Device
,	O
four	O
players	O
may	O
be	O
connected	O
to	O
each	O
other	O
at	O
a	O
time	O
instead	O
of	O
the	O
previous	O
limit	O
of	O
two	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Additionally	O
,	O
the	O
games	O
can	O
be	O
connected	O
to	O
an	O
e-Reader	B-Application
or	O
other	O
third-generation	O
Pokémon	O
games	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Ruby	B-Application
and	I-Application
Sapphire	I-Application
received	O
mostly	O
positive	O
reviews	O
,	O
though	O
critics	O
were	O
divided	O
in	O
their	O
assessment	O
of	O
the	O
games	O
,	O
especially	O
on	O
the	O
gameplay	O
and	O
graphics	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
With	O
over	O
16.22	O
million	O
copies	O
sold	O
,	O
they	O
were	O
a	O
commercial	O
success	O
and	O
became	O
the	O
best-selling	B-Device
games	I-Device
for	I-Device
the	I-Device
Game	I-Device
Boy	I-Device
Advance	I-Device
;	O
The	O
games	O
sold	O
less	O
than	O
previous	O
generations	O
with	O
Red	O
and	O
Blue	O
having	O
sold	O
nearly	O
31	O
million	O
units	O
worldwide	O
,	O
and	O
Gold	O
and	O
Silver	O
selling	O
over	O
23.1498	O
million	O
units	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
basic	O
mechanics	O
of	O
Ruby	B-Application
and	I-Application
Sapphire	I-Application
are	O
largely	O
the	O
same	O
as	O
their	O
predecessors	O
 '	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
with	O
all	O
Pokémon	O
games	O
for	O
handheld	B-Application
consoles	I-Application
,	O
gameplay	O
is	O
in	O
third-person	O
,	O
overhead	O
perspective	O
and	O
consists	O
of	O
three	O
basic	O
screens	O
:	O
a	O
field	O
map	O
,	O
in	O
which	O
the	O
player	O
navigates	O
the	O
main	O
character	O
;	O
a	O
battle	O
screen	O
;	O
and	O
the	O
menu	O
,	O
in	O
which	O
the	O
player	O
configures	O
their	O
party	O
,	O
items	O
,	O
or	O
gameplay	O
settings	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Another	O
stat	O
introduced	O
in	O
Pokémon	B-Application
Ruby	I-Application
and	I-Application
Sapphire	I-Application
is	O
Condition	O
,	O
an	O
important	O
factor	O
in	O
Pokémon	O
Contests	O
,	O
mini-games	O
in	O
which	O
participants	O
perform	O
moves	O
before	O
a	O
judge	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Like	O
Pokémon	B-Application
Gold	I-Application
,	I-Application
Silver	I-Application
,	O
and	O
Crystal	B-Application
,	O
Pokémon	B-Application
Ruby	I-Application
and	I-Application
Sapphire	I-Application
keep	O
track	O
of	O
real-life	O
time	O
;	O
this	O
influences	O
events	O
like	O
tides	O
and	O
berry	O
plant	O
growth	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
However	O
,	O
unlike	O
their	O
predecessors	O
,	O
Ruby	B-Application
and	I-Application
Sapphire	I-Application
do	O
not	O
differentiate	O
between	O
day	O
and	O
night	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Also	O
,	O
due	O
to	O
the	O
differences	O
in	O
the	O
technical	O
specifications	O
of	O
Game	O
Boy	O
link	O
cables	O
and	O
Game	B-Device
Boy	I-Device
Advance	I-Device
link	O
cables	O
,	O
Ruby	B-Application
and	I-Application
Sapphire	I-Application
cannot	O
be	O
linked	O
with	O
Pokémon	O
games	O
of	O
previous	O
generations	O
;	O
one	O
cannot	O
battle	O
with	O
or	O
trade	O
to	O
the	O
previous	O
generations	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Ruby	B-Application
and	I-Application
Sapphire	I-Application
have	O
limited	O
e-Reader	B-Application
support	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Nintendo	O
released	O
Battle-e	O
Cards	O
,	O
a	O
set	O
of	O
e-Reader	B-Application
cards	I-Application
that	O
contained	O
trainer	O
battles	O
in	O
which	O
the	O
player	O
could	O
see	O
previously-hidden	O
Pokémon	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
special	O
e-Reader	B-Application
card	I-Application
called	O
the	O
Eon	O
Ticket	O
was	O
also	O
released	O
;	O
obtained	O
through	O
the	O
Mystery	O
Gift	O
function	O
,	O
the	O
Ticket	O
allows	O
the	O
player	O
to	O
reach	O
a	O
place	O
called	O
Southern	O
Island	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Ruby	B-Application
and	I-Application
Sapphire	I-Application
are	O
also	O
able	O
to	O
connect	O
to	O
the	O
GameCube	B-Application
games	O
Pokémon	B-Application
Colosseum	I-Application
,	O
Pokémon	B-Application
XD	I-Application
:	I-Application
Gale	I-Application
of	I-Application
Darkness	I-Application
and	O
Pokémon	O
Box	O
:	O
Ruby	B-Application
and	I-Application
Sapphire	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
the	O
former	O
two	O
,	O
once	O
players	O
reach	O
a	O
certain	O
point	O
in	O
the	O
game	O
,	O
they	O
are	O
able	O
to	O
transfer	O
Pokémon	O
between	O
Colosseum	O
/	O
XD	O
and	O
Ruby	B-Application
/	I-Application
Sapphire	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Pokémon	O
Box	O
allows	O
players	O
to	O
store	O
and	O
organize	O
their	O
Pokémon	O
on	O
the	O
GameCube	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Also	O
,	O
in	O
the	O
European	O
version	O
of	O
Pokémon	B-Application
Channel	I-Application
,	O
players	O
could	O
receive	O
a	O
Jirachi	O
at	O
a	O
certain	O
point	O
in	O
the	O
game	O
,	O
which	O
they	O
could	O
then	O
transfer	O
over	O
to	O
Ruby	O
or	O
Sapphire	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Pokémon	B-Application
Ruby	I-Application
and	I-Application
Sapphire	I-Application
take	O
place	O
in	O
the	O
Hoenn	O
region	O
,	O
located	O
some	O
distance	O
from	O
the	O
Kanto	O
and	O
Johto	O
regions	O
featured	O
in	O
previous	O
games	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Like	O
other	O
Pokémon	O
games	O
,	O
Ruby	B-Application
and	I-Application
Sapphires	I-Application
gameplay	O
is	O
linear	O
;	O
the	O
main	O
events	O
occur	O
in	O
a	O
fixed	O
order	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
protagonist	O
of	O
Pokémon	B-Application
Ruby	I-Application
and	I-Application
Sapphire	I-Application
is	O
Brendan	O
and	O
May	O
,	O
who	O
have	O
recently	O
moved	O
to	O
a	O
small	O
town	O
called	O
Littleroot	O
Town	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
games	O
 '	O
two	O
main	O
goals	O
are	O
defeating	O
the	O
eight	O
Gym	O
Leaders	O
,	O
proving	O
oneself	O
worthy	O
of	O
challenging	O
the	O
Elite	O
Four	O
and	O
Champion	O
to	O
become	O
the	O
new	O
Champion	O
and	O
completing	O
the	O
Pokédex	O
by	O
capturing	O
,	O
evolving	O
,	O
and	O
trading	O
to	O
obtain	O
all	O
202	O
Pokémon	O
available	O
between	O
Ruby	B-Application
and	I-Application
Sapphire	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
is	O
possible	O
to	O
obtain	O
all	O
386	O
Pokémon	O
,	O
but	O
this	O
requires	O
trading	O
with	O
Pokémon	B-Device
FireRed	I-Device
and	I-Device
LeafGreen	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
Pokémon	B-Application
Ruby	I-Application
and	I-Application
Sapphire	I-Application
were	O
developed	O
by	O
Game	O
Freak	O
and	O
Nintendo	O
under	O
the	O
direction	O
of	O
Junichi	O
Masuda	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
the	O
Game	B-Device
Boy	I-Device
Advance	I-Device
was	O
able	O
to	O
handle	O
enhanced	O
graphics	O
,	O
Ruby	B-Application
and	I-Application
Sapphire	I-Application
were	O
the	O
first	O
games	O
in	O
the	O
series	O
that	O
allowed	O
up	O
to	O
four	O
people	O
to	O
share	O
information	O
at	O
one	O
time	O
,	O
as	O
opposed	O
to	O
the	O
previous	O
limit	O
of	O
two	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
audio	O
of	O
Ruby	B-Application
and	I-Application
Sapphire	I-Application
consists	O
entirely	O
of	O
game	O
music	O
and	O
sound	O
effects	O
;	O
all	O
dialogue	O
is	O
on-screen	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Pokémon	B-Application
Ruby	I-Application
and	I-Application
Sapphire	I-Application
were	O
released	O
in	O
Japan	O
on	O
November	O
21	O
,	O
2002	O
,	O
in	O
North	O
America	O
on	O
March	O
19	O
,	O
2003	O
,	O
in	O
Australia	O
on	O
April	O
3	O
,	O
2003	O
,	O
and	O
in	O
Europe	O
on	O
July	O
25	O
,	O
2003	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Nintendo	O
did	O
not	O
promote	O
Ruby	B-Application
and	I-Application
Sapphire	I-Application
at	O
E3	O
2002	O
;	O
however	O
,	O
it	O
launched	O
a	O
$7	O
million	O
promotional	O
campaign	O
that	O
lasted	O
from	O
March	O
to	O
May	O
2003	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
is	O
a	O
third	O
version	O
after	O
Pokémon	B-Application
Ruby	I-Application
and	I-Application
Sapphire	I-Application
,	O
developed	O
by	O
Game	O
Freak	O
,	O
published	O
by	O
The	O
Pokémon	O
Company	O
and	O
Nintendo	O
for	O
the	O
Game	B-Device
Boy	I-Device
Advance	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
Emerald	B-Device
received	O
generally	O
positive	O
reception	O
and	O
by	O
fiscal	O
year	O
2007	O
sales	O
had	O
reached	O
6.32	O
million	O
units	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
IGN	O
gave	O
them	O
an	O
"	O
Amazing	O
"	O
9.5	O
out	O
of	O
10	O
rating	O
and	O
awarded	O
them	O
the	O
Editor	O
's	O
Choice	O
Award	O
;	O
in	O
2007	O
,	O
the	O
games	O
were	O
collectively	O
named	O
the	O
tenth	O
best	O
Game	B-Device
Boy	I-Device
Advance	I-Device
game	O
of	O
all	O
time	O
in	O
an	O
IGN	O
article	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
ComputerAndVideoGames.com	O
gave	O
the	O
games	O
a	O
9	O
out	O
of	O
10	O
,	O
and	O
GameSpot	O
gave	O
the	O
games	O
8.1	O
out	O
of	O
10	O
,	O
naming	O
it	O
the	O
best	O
Game	B-Device
Boy	I-Device
Advance	I-Device
game	O
of	O
March	O
2003	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
However	O
,	O
GameSpot	O
called	O
the	O
games	O
"	O
a	O
cakewalk	O
from	O
start	O
to	O
finish	O
"	O
and	O
claimed	O
that	O
Ruby	B-Application
and	I-Application
Sapphire	I-Application
"	O
do	O
n't	O
offer	O
much	O
of	O
a	O
challenge	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Pokémon	B-Application
Ruby	I-Application
and	I-Application
Sapphire	I-Application
were	O
highly	O
anticipated	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
They	O
also	O
became	O
the	O
first	O
games	O
to	O
sell	O
2	O
million	O
copies	O
in	O
Japan	O
since	O
2001	O
's	O
Final	O
Fantasy	O
X	O
and	O
the	O
first	O
games	O
for	O
a	O
handheld	B-Application
console	I-Application
to	O
do	O
so	O
since	O
2000	O
's	O
Yu-Gi-Oh	O
!	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
the	O
United	O
States	O
,	O
Ruby	B-Application
and	I-Application
Sapphire	I-Application
were	O
the	O
second	O
-	O
and	O
third-best-selling	O
games	O
of	O
2003	O
,	O
respectively	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
games	O
were	O
brought	O
up	O
at	O
E3	O
2003	O
by	O
Satoru	O
Iwata	O
as	O
a	O
symbol	O
of	O
how	O
successful	O
the	O
Game	B-Device
Boy	I-Device
Advance	I-Device
was	O
at	O
the	O
time	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
With	O
16.22	O
million	O
units	O
sold	O
worldwide	O
,	O
they	O
are	O
the	O
best-selling	B-Device
games	I-Device
for	I-Device
the	I-Device
Game	I-Device
Boy	I-Device
Advance	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
and	O
are	O
enhanced	O
remakes	O
of	O
Pokémon	B-Application
Ruby	I-Application
and	I-Application
Sapphire	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
new	O
titles	O
were	O
developed	O
by	O
Game	O
Freak	O
and	O
published	O
by	O
Nintendo	O
for	O
the	O
Nintendo	B-Operating_System
3DS	I-Operating_System
.	O
</s>
<s>
They	O
were	O
released	O
worldwide	O
for	O
the	O
Nintendo	B-Operating_System
3DS	I-Operating_System
on	O
November	O
21	O
,	O
2014	O
,	O
exactly	O
twelve	O
years	O
after	O
the	O
original	O
release	O
date	O
of	O
Ruby	B-Application
and	I-Application
Sapphire	I-Application
,	O
while	O
the	O
European	O
release	O
was	O
the	O
following	O
week	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
or	O
simply	O
,	O
is	O
a	O
spin-off	O
Pokémon	O
game	O
for	O
the	O
GameCube	B-Application
,	O
bundled	O
with	O
a	O
GameCube	B-Device
–	I-Device
Game	I-Device
Boy	I-Device
Advance	I-Device
link	I-Device
cable	I-Device
and	O
a	O
Memory	B-Device
Card	I-Device
59	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
game	O
was	O
released	O
in	O
some	O
parts	O
of	O
Europe	O
as	O
Pokémon	O
Memory	O
Magic	O
due	O
to	O
translation	O
problems	O
and	O
Europeans	O
could	O
only	O
get	O
the	O
game	O
by	O
using	O
points	O
from	O
Nintendo	O
of	O
Europe	O
's	O
loyalty	O
program	O
or	O
by	O
buying	O
the	O
Pokémon	B-Application
Colosseum	I-Application
Mega	O
Pack	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
game	O
is	O
essentially	O
a	O
storage	O
system	O
for	O
the	O
Game	B-Device
Boy	I-Device
Advance	I-Device
Pokémon	O
games	O
that	O
allows	O
players	O
to	O
trade	O
and	O
store	O
Pokémon	O
that	O
they	O
have	O
caught	O
in	O
Ruby	O
,	O
Sapphire	O
,	O
Emerald	B-Device
,	O
FireRed	B-Device
and	I-Device
LeafGreen	I-Device
onto	O
a	O
GameCube	B-Application
memory	B-Device
card	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
Players	O
can	O
then	O
organize	O
and	O
interact	O
with	O
their	O
Pokémon	O
on	O
the	O
GameCube	B-Application
,	O
such	O
as	O
allowing	O
them	O
to	O
breed	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Another	O
feature	O
allows	O
Ruby	B-Application
and	I-Application
Sapphire	I-Application
to	O
be	O
played	O
on	O
the	O
television	O
via	O
the	O
GameCube	B-Device
–	I-Device
Game	I-Device
Boy	I-Device
Advance	I-Device
link	I-Device
cable	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
Options	O
such	O
as	O
taking	O
screenshots	B-Application
of	O
the	O
game	O
are	O
available	O
in	O
this	O
mode	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Craig	O
Harris	O
of	O
IGN	O
gave	O
the	O
game	O
a	O
"	O
Meh	O
"	O
rating	O
of	O
5.0	O
out	O
of	O
10	O
,	O
praising	O
the	O
interface	O
,	O
which	O
makes	O
the	O
organization	O
of	O
Pokémon	O
much	O
easier	O
as	O
compared	O
to	O
the	O
Game	B-Device
Boy	I-Device
Advance	I-Device
interface	O
,	O
as	O
well	O
as	O
the	O
emulator	O
which	O
allows	O
Ruby	B-Application
and	I-Application
Sapphire	I-Application
to	O
be	O
played	O
on	O
the	O
GameCube	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
He	O
also	O
stated	O
that	O
the	O
game	O
was	O
a	O
good	O
deal	O
due	O
to	O
the	O
inclusion	O
of	O
a	O
memory	B-Device
card	I-Device
and	O
link	O
cable	O
.	O
</s>
