Pokémon Sunset Is A Brand-New Game For Old-School Fans

During any given generation, there’s generally not a consensus about what Pokémon fans want. Some want Game Freak to move forward and introduce new mechanics, while others want an old-school experience.

With remakes, there’s room for both, but it doesn’t always work out that way. On Reddit, though, fans are celebrating the release of Pokémon Sunset, which is a decidedly old-school tint to the series that should keep hardcore fans happy.

Pokémon Sunset Is An Old-School-Inspired ROM Hack

There’s Still A Market For That

Crafted by the creator of Emerald Seaglass, Pokémon Sunset imagines the world of Pokémon “under the spell of an eternal sunset.” It’s a great premise for a Pokémon adventure with high stakes, and there are even new “sunset forms” of Pokémon that can change type. So why is this project old-school-inspired? Well, it doesn’t have modern concepts like level caps, shiny charms, physical/special splits, and custom game modes.

It takes place in the Ilios region, which is Greek-inspired, and sports a new team with “350-400 Pokémon” to capture. There are no “Fakémon” planned for Pokémon Sunset, meaning all the characters you can get are official, albeit with the aforementioned additional forms to navigate. According to the creator, it will be based around replay value, and it even has a hard mode to boost Gym Leader difficulty.

It’s not quite as hardcore as something like Pokémon Null, but it’s a good medium for fans who are used to modern conveniences and quality-of-life, but want a more challenging experience.

Pokémon Fans Should Check This One Out

Sooner Than Later

Custom image created by Evan D. Mullicane

Fans are already loving it now that it’s out: “Oh I can’t wait to play this! It looks amazing! I love the warm sunset colors. Thank you for making the Johto Pokémon available throughout the game too, instead of just for the post-ending like the original Leafgreen did. This was something that I always disliked in the original and I’m so excited to be able use a Johto team (especially the starters, Chikorita my beloved!) Congrats on the release and thank you for your hard work making this.”

Others like it so much that the creator is now on their radar: “Just wanted to say I’ve been playing this the past two days. I have a feeling it’s going to be up there with my favorite hacks. Some minor fun and interesting changes. Beautiful and creative theme. Really good stuff. Thanks, OP. I’m interested in anything you do in the future.”

Pokémon is one of those franchises that just won’t go away. Whether it’s through official or fan-created means, it will live on for decades to come. No matter what, there’s something out there for everyone.

Created by

Satoshi Taijiri, Ken Sugimori, Junichi Masuda

Latest Film

Pokémon the Movie: Secrets of the Jungle

First Episode Air Date

April 1, 1997

Current Series

Pokémon