Pokémon Ruby & Sapphire Celebrate 23 Years: Will They Be Relaunched on Nintendo Switch and Switch 2 Alongside Emerald?

Since Pokémon Day on February 27, Pokémon Fire Red / Leaf Green have topped the sales charts for Nintendo Switch systems. Despite Pokémon Pokopia being the franchise's most recent release, these original Game Boy Advance titles and first RPG remakes have proven to be an undeniable success on modern Nintendo platforms. Veteran players are eager to revisit these classics, while newer generations are keen to discover what drew so many to the three-decade-old game series.

It doesn't take an economic expert to see the obvious next step. While The Pokémon Company stated the Kanto game re-release was to celebrate the franchise's 30th anniversary, the third generation could easily follow suit as individual eShop releases, generating millions with minimal effort. This might not have been part of their initial strategy, but the sales figures are too compelling to overlook.

Pokémon Ruby / Sapphire officially celebrate 23 years since their North American launch. These were the inaugural RPG titles for the Game Boy Advance and generally the best-selling games on the 32-bit handheld console. A significant evolution in sprites compared to Game Boy Color allowed the Hoenn region to burst with color and water—lots of water. This tropical setting introduced memorable locations like a massive volcano, a town nestled in treetops, another with a Santorini-like vibe featuring the region's legendary Pokémon, and the perpetual conflict between land and sea. While Pokémon Emerald later achieved widespread acclaim with its formidable Battle Frontier, Hoenn originated in Ruby / Sapphire, securing their special place even above their 3DS remakes.

Completing the post-game mission on the Sevii Islands in Pokémon Fire Red / Leaf Green enabled Pokémon trading with Ruby / Sapphire / Emerald versions to complete the National Pokédex. This feature currently serves little purpose in the Switch versions, unless the best-selling GBA games, with 16.22 million copies sold, were also re-released. Future compatibility with Pokémon Home would also be anticipated, though the same cannot be said for the already available Pokémon XD: Gale of Darkness, which is among the GameCube titles on Switch 2's online service, alongside the upcoming re-release of Pokémon Colosseum.

The third-generation Pokémon RPGs could link with these two Genius Sonority spin-offs, allowing players to battle with their handheld teams in the then-impressive 3D graphics and receive some gift Pokémon. As part of Nintendo Switch Online, these GameCube games are not currently compatible with the individual Switch versions of Pokémon Fire Red / Leaf Green, nor would they be with Pokémon Ruby / Sapphire / Emerald versions if they were released on Switch consoles. The entire third generation was interconnected via GameCube and Game Boy Advance, an experience Nintendo might not be interested in fully replicating, beyond mere hints.

On Nintendo Switch Online, Pokémon Pinball titles are still notably absent. However, Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Red Rescue Team is available, and it was the last Pokémon game released for the GBA. For this reason, individual re-releases of Ruby / Sapphire / Emerald, likely priced at $20 USD, make perfect sense, connecting with Fire Red / Leaf Green and further boosting Nintendo's eShop revenue. Currently, Nintendo DS games on Switch 2 – if they ever materialize – are not an option, making the completion of the third Pokémon generation the logical path. There's no longer even a need for a costly disc-based Pokémon Box, the predecessor to Home.

Do you think we'll soon see Pokémon Ruby / Sapphire / Emerald for Switch and Switch 2 systems? At least the anniversary titles, as with Emerald, I'd venture to say they might wait a bit longer to avoid cannibalizing sales from its sister gems. After all, on 3DS, Pokémon Crystal was released months after Gold / Silver, and we all know why.