POKEMON EMERALD

The fifth game of the advanced generation behind its predecessors Ruby, Sapphire, FireRed and LeafGreen, Pokemon Emerald is set to be one of the best Pokemon games around. Set in the world of Ruby and Sapphire, Hoenn, Emerald builds on top of the legends of Groudon, Kyogre and Rayquaza that were briefly touched on in Ruby and Sapphire. As can be told by the cover art, Rayquaza will play a vital role in this tale of an aspiring Pokemon trainer, and the evil gangs, Aqua and Magma, that threaten to disrupt Hoenn.

Although it shares many traits with Ruby and Sapphire, Pokemon Emerald has major differences that make it unique. Much more focus has been placed on the competitive battling aspect of Pokemon, and this is evident in the creation of an island full of different battle stadiums - the Battle Frontier. Here trainers can spend hours conquering challenges and testing their skills in various types of battling. But there is more to Emerald than the Battle Frontier - new Pokemon, new characters and new places are abound.