Pokemon Box: Ruby and Sapphire

"Pokémon extremists to the left, casual gamers to the right"

Introduction
The Pokemon Company bring to us yet another quirky title - this time with it's uses. If you don't own either Pokemon Sapphire or Pokemon Ruby then there is no point in buying this at all because for the game to be able to run you must meet these requirements;

- Own a Nintendo GameCube (Obvious)
- Own a Gameboy Advance or Gameboy Advance SP
- Own a copy of either Pokemon Ruby or Pokemon Sapphire
- Own a Nintendo GameCube Gameboy Advance Cable.

Plus, you must also have a Memory Card with at least 59 free blocks of space. With the European release of the game you get a free memory card included in the packaging.

Gameplay
It's all rather simple really. Pokemon Box is a software tool for organising and sorting Pokemon that you have collected in the Ruby and Sapphire versions. The game also allows you to play Ruby and Sapphire on your GameCube through the use of the Nintendo GameCube Gameboy Advance Cable. You can transfer Pokemon from the Ruby and Sapphire versions to your memory card and store them there for future use. The game also updates the Berry Program on your Ruby or Sapphire game pack if it has not already been updated. Non-Pokemon players might not know what I'm talking about, but those of you who have played Sapphire and Ruby extensively, will.
Back to the gameplay. Pokemon Box features three modes of ‘gameplay'. The first being the ability to organise your Pokemon and store them on the memory card. This uses the box system that is used in all the Pokemon handheld games and looks nearly exactly the same, but with more boxes visible on screen. You can also sort your Pokemon in different ways, switch them to other boxes, change the wallpaper of a box, change the name of a box, etc. Most of these features you could already do on Ruby and Sapphire but Pokemon Box allows you to store far more Pokemon. Up to 1500 to be exact. The second mode of gameplay is the Showcase Feature. This mode allows you to create a stage to display your Pokemon on, and then you must ‘place a piece' onto the stage. The pieces are miniaturized versions of your Pokemon on stands.
While these two modes are not gameplay as such, the third one is. The third mode is the 'Go to Adventure' feature. This mode lets you play your Ruby or Sapphire version on your GameCube. This mode uses the GameCube Gameboy Advance Cable. There's nothing new in this feature other than the fact that you can take pictures while playing which can then be used as wallpaper in your boxes.

Story
Unless you're using the game to play your Ruby or Sapphire version, then there isn't a story. And if you want to find out about the Ruby/Sapphire story, then consult one of the reviews for those specific games.

Graphics/Sound
The graphics are consistent with the Gameboy versions and don't feature any technologically advanced 3D versions of Pokemon. If you were looking for a Pokemon game high in graphical prowess then you should be reading one of the many Pokemon Colosseum reviews.
The sound is also consistent with the Gameboy versions and you won't find anything new here.

Replayability
If you're a Pokemon fanatic and take great pride in organising your Pokemon then you'll spend hours sorting through them, etc. If you're just looking to upload a couple of Pokemon to your memory card then you're not going to have much fun here. The main thing that will boost replayability is the feature that allows you to play the Ruby/Sapphire versions on your GameCube.

Final Recommendation
If you're looking for a 3D adventure, then this is not the game for you. If on the other hand, you want to play your Ruby/Sapphire game pack on your GameCube but don't feel like shelling out for a Gameboy Player then you'll want to buy this. And if you're a Pokemon extremist and have run out of storage room on your Gameboy versions, then there's another 1500 reasons to buy this game.

Reviewer's Score: 6/10, Originally Posted: 05/30/04