Pokemon Ultra Violet: A new take on a classic game.

Today, we’re discussing the Pokemon Ultra Violet Version, a Fire Red ROM hack. Compared to newer Pokemon games, Fire Red is just too vanilla, so a fan took it into his own hands to finalize updates and fully complete a beautiful ROM hack. Anyone with the Internet can obtain this version for free by installing a simple Game Boy Advanced emulator and downloading a copy of the Pokemon Fire Red (Ultra Violet ROM hack).

Pokemon Ultra Violet is for anyone who loves the old-gen games and wants some excellent modern-day implementations that are a staple in the newer Pokemon games, such as:

  • The ability to catch all of the Pokemon from several different versions.

  • Able to evolve certain Pokemon without the need to trade.

  • New areas, items, and events to explore.

Some ROM hacks make you feel like you’re in a completely different game. Pokémon Ultra Violet doesn’t attempt to do this. Instead, it refurbishes the classic title Fire Red and gives us an exciting new way to revisit the Kanto region.

The inspiration behind Ultra Violet was to create a game where you could catch every Pokemon without having to trade between Fire Red and Leaf Green to get version-specific Pokemon. The creator, LocksmithArmy, also threw in the generation three Pokemon; what a fine touch. 

Since ROM hacks are played solo, the usual rules don't apply. You can finally “catch ’em all” in one single version.

Pokemon Ultra Violet starts out like any other version, except this time, you'll get a colorful new title with a picture of the Legendary Mew. Then you go through the whole rigmarole with Professor Oak and his lousy memory.

Once you begin your journey, you can choose a starter Pokemon. Of course, you aren’t stuck between Bulbasaur, Charmander, and Squirtle in this game. Once Oak lets you choose, you can talk to him to initiate a new feature: catching your first Pokemon.

You’ll be sent to a mini version of the safari zone, a lab on a hidden map where Oak and his team observe rare Pokemon in the wild. You’ll then be able to catch one of these twelve Pokemon in safari balls, using bait and rocks if necessary. (You do have a limited number of safari balls, so be careful.)

If you’re looking to choose a random starter but don’t want to leave it up to the game’s odds, I suggest rolling a 12-sided dice (just type “D-12 roll into Google) and going after the appropriate Pokemon on the following list.

  • Bulbasaur

  • Charmander

  • Squirtle

  • Pichu

  • Machop

  • Ralts

  • Gastly

  • Trapinch

  • Houndor

  • Spheal

  • Larvitar

  • Dratini

Starting your adventure.

The concept of collecting all eight badges and taking down every rocket hideout remains the same as the original Nintendo release on the Gameboy Advance, tho veteran players might still spot a few differences. Your rival, for example, actually says that Raticate has passed away when you confront him at the Pokemon Tower in Lavender Town. It’s a creepypasta conspiracy that has come to life and one that avid fans will enjoy.

One of the other things you may notice early on is the ability to grab both the dome and helix fossils when you go through Mt. Moon. You don’t have to leave the other fossil Pokemon sitting around! Grab them both and eventually make your way to Cinnabar Island to revive them into living, breathing rarities.

The battle system hasn’t changed entirely, but again, you might notice some minor differences. Gyarados, for example, is now a Water/Dragon type instead of Water/Flying. Everything on ‘continental’ Kanto may remain mostly untouched, but naturally, you’ll find improvements as you play. 

Version exclusives from Leaf Green and Fire Red are both catchable, making this feel like what could’ve been if we had a 3rd gen Blue version. Items are also more prevalent; This includes rare valuables that didn’t make it into the red, green, or blue versions, like sunstones, upgrades, and more. You’ll need some particular evolution items to fill out your Pokedex.

Once you make it to Vermillion City and have completed the S.S. Anne, you can embark on a new adventure. If you go to the southernmost house, just to the left of the dock, you’ll find a young girl asking you to deliver a letter. After accepting, this quest will send you directly to 4-point Isle, a place you should get accustomed to throughout your time in Pokemon Ultra Violet because this new island is the only place in the game where you can catch Pokemon from the Hoenn region.

There are many pieces to this island, which you can gradually unlock as you complete more and more of the game. The main unlocking points are as follows:

  • Complete S.S. Anne – Unlock 4-Point Isle Town, Dread Mountain Prairie, Dread Mountain

  • Defeat Team Rocket at Silph Co. – Unlock Catacombs (a maze with a new layout)

  • Obtain Strength and Surf – Unlock more of Dread Mountain

  • Obtaining Earthquake (Defeating the 8th Gym) – Unlock Haunted Forest, Meteor Site

  • Defeat Elite Four and Rival – Unlock Guardian Meadows

You’ll find all of the Hoenn Pokemon throughout this unique Pokemon Ultra Violet map, including rare Pokemon residing in some hidden locations. We’ll cover more on those later when we discuss where to find every Pokemon in the game.

Part of the intent and fun of the Pokemon Ultra Violet Rom is catching every single Pokemon from the first three generations, experiencing implementations that could have been since the beginning. If filling up your Pokedex is what you intend to do, you’ll have to leave no stone unturned.

Sometimes, it could be a pain to track down those final Pokemon. So, I’ve included several detailed catching guides for some of the tougher Pokemon to encounter.

The Pokemon Ultra Violet ROM removes the necessity to trade your first Pokemon several times just to fill the Pokedex. All nine starter Pokemon from the first three generations can be found in logical locations across the map.

  • Bulbasaur – Route 21

  • Charmander – Pokemon Mansion

  • Squirtle – Seafoam Islands

  • Chikorita – Five Isle Meadow

  • Cyndaquil – Mt. Ember

  • Totodile – Water Path

  • Treecko – Dread Mountain (Outside)

  • Torchic – Meteor Site

  • Mudkip – 4-Point Isle (Dock)

Mew

Bill can be found at the Sea Cottage on the Cerulean Cape performing experiments on Pokémon teleportation. However, Bill accidentally combines himself with the body of a Pokemon and needs the player's help to make Bill human once again. Doing this will send you to a special island where you’re able to encounter a level 7 Mew. It does tend to flee, so I’d suggest saving before you attempt anything during the encounter. This can be done using the emulator's save function rather than the in-game save function (because you can’t save at any moment using the in-game save).

Once you’ve completed the Ruby/Sapphire quest Celio of One Island offers, many legendary Pokemon events will become unlocked. Your first Pokemon determines the legendary dog locations. The roaming dogs aren’t easy to track down, so go through every route or search in some other meticulous manner.

If you started with Bulbasaur or a caught Pokemon, you’ll find:

  • Suicune on Route 2 behind Diglett’s Cave

  • Raikou in Rock Tunnel

  • Entei roaming Kanto

If you started with Charmander, you’ll find:

  • Raikou on Route 2 behind Diglett’s Cave

  • Entei in Rock Tunnel

  • Suicune roaming Kanto

If you started with Squirtle, you’ll find:

  • Entei on Route 2 behind Diglett’s Cave

  • Suicune in Rock Tunnel

  • Raikou roaming Kanto

Regis

Latios and Latias

Jirachi

Ho-Oh and Lugia

Deoxys

celebi




Journeying Through Kanto.


4-Point Isle: New area unlocked.


Pokemon Locations in Ultra Violet.


Starter Pokemon


Common Pokemon.

Almost every Pokemon from the first generation can be found in the wild, and any Pokemon that were previously version-exclusive can now be obtained since there is no fictitious rival game. As for all the rest of the common Pokemon, you’ll find them on various islands.

To keep with the original Nintendo release, the second generation Pokemon can be found on the Sevii Islands. The gaps in Fire Red have been filled, so you can now catch all 100 Pokemon introduced in Johto.

The Gen 3 Pokemon are almost entirely found on the new 4-Point Isle. Since this island is exclusive to the Pokemon Ultra Violet ROM, I suggest exploring it often.


Guaranteed Shiny Pokemon.

One of the most exciting new features this game has to offer is the ability to find shiny Pokemon with ease. The original way to acquire a shiny Pokemon was to trudge through hours of tedious random encounters until the odds rolled up in your favor. This normally takes a while. In Fire Red and Leaf Green, your chances are 1 in 8,192. You can still find a shiny in random locations in Ultra Violet; however, the new ‘shinyizers’ in Pokemon Ultra Violet Version guarantee shinies.

Scattered across the map are special tiles that give the next Pokemon you encounter a 100% chance of being shiny. As far as I could tell, there are 18 of these “shinyizers” spread across the entire game. I’ll tell you where the first one is. You can always use this spot to get full, shiny odds.

Essentially, this is the only spot you’ll ever need to know. With clever movement and repels, you can guarantee any shiny you want. Use moves like Fly and Dig to get where you need to be, and then repel your way to the Pokemon you’re looking to catch. The first “shinyizer” you’ll come across is just up Route 1, above the first ledge. The picture below has Ultra standing where you need to be. And yes, your first Pokemon can be shiny.


Karate Master Pokemon.

While technically, you could breed the fighting Pokemon Tyrogue and then evolve it in Fire Red, the Pokemon Ultra Violet ROM makes the process much easier. Once you defeat the Karate Master, you can collect both Hitmonchan and Hitmonlee just like you could snag both fossils from Mt. Moon.


Eevee

Multiple Eeveelutions are usually locked because of breeding. Instead, the Pokemon Ultra Violet ROM makes it so that Eevee is a Game Corner prize.


OManyte and Kabuto.

Normally, when you find extinct Pokemon chilling in Mt. Moon, you’re forced only to take one. The Pokemon Ultra Violet ROM lets you take both, allowing you to revive both Omanyte and Kabuto eventually.


Anorith and Lileep.

On your second visit to Dread Mountain, you’ll be able to find a man mining for fossils, and he’ll share one of each with you. They can be revived at the lab on 4-Point Isle.


Legendary Pokemon.

Regirock, Regice, and Registeel are all at the end of the Catacombs on 4-Point Isle. You’ll only get one shot to catch each of them, so again, I suggest saving before you take any actions during the encounter.

The Weather trio

Groudon, Kyogre, and Rayquaza can all be found at Dread Mountain on 4-Point Isle. Just to let you know, they sit at a higher level than you.

Once you’ve unlocked the Guardian Meadows on 4-Point Isle, you can encounter Latios and Latias.

Jirachi can be found inside an egg at the meteor site. You’ll need a Pokemon that knows Earthquake and an empty slot in your party to collect it.

You'll catch these two box-art legendaries in keeping with the original Nintendo event. You can obtain the ticket at the Pokemart on Six Island.

Deoxys can be captured by collecting the mystic ticket on Seven Island and then traveling to Birth Island.

The Celebi event is in the Berry Forest. Be warned! You’ll only get a Pichu with Volt Tackle if you faint it. However, killing Celebi doesn’t mean it’s gone forever; it respawns after defeating the Elite Four again.


In conclusion.

Pokemon Ultra Violet is an excellent game if you found Fire Red to be an awesome classic. Its improvements over the regular version give you way more legroom to become the ultimate Pokemon Master.