Battle Pokémon in this emerald version

Pokémon: Emerald is a fun and free action game where you battle and collect Pokémon. This role-playing game is very similar to the other primary Pokémon installments; you’ll be pitted against two rival groups—Team Aqua and Team Magma—and the action will take place both on land and at sea.

In Pokémon: Emerald, you’ll take on the role of a child who has recently relocated to a new town and instantly set out to follow their father by becoming a Pokémon master. You’ll need to brave the great outdoors to compete with other trainers and battle wild Pokémon.

Gotta catch ‘em all

In Pokémon: Emerald, and all of its predecessors, the game focuses on acquiring these creatures and using them in the battle against wild or other trainers’ Pokémon. When your opponent runs out of Pokémon or you capture one, you win. You’ll lose if all of your Pokémon faint. Getting knocked out means starting over at the last Pokémon Center and spending half as much money.

Traveling to different cities and defeating the top trainer in the local Pokémon gym will also raise your Trainer Rank. You’ll have to go on a bunch of different adventures and do a bunch of different side quests as you train and acquire Pokémon, and eventually, you’ll become involved in some shady dealings with Team Aqua and Team Magma—two evil groups of Pokémon trainers.

The game has a lot of cute and powerful Pokémon you can collect, as well as interesting people you can meet along your journey to becoming a Pokémon Master. However, the game is sometimes unstable whenever you run into buildings. Ads can also pop up when you accidentally press them since some of the control buttons are overlapping with them.

Is there a remake?

While Pokemon Emerald takes older players down the memory lane, there has been no news from Game Freak, Nintendo, or the Pokemon Company about a possible remake—or even a potential release of a ported version of the game on Nintendo Switch Online. There were even rumors of Nintendo creating Game Boy Advance and GameBoy Color emulators for Nintendo Switch Online, however, these were proven untrue. With this in mind, it is best to critically assess information online and wait for official announcements from Nintendo itself.  

Become a Pokémon Master

Despite the fact that Pokémon: Emerald becomes unstable anytime you run into buildings or that certain ads flash up accidentally because of faulty control placement, the game is, overall, enjoyable for players that appreciate and love this entire franchise. It is recommended for those who want to relive fond memories of playing older Pokémon games or just want to continue with a brand-new story.