Ruby, Sapphire & Emerald Tips: Controls & Hidden Tricks
Reorder moves with SELECT, sort the Bag, register a bike or rod, use the Repel trick and soft reset in Pokémon Ruby, Sapphire and Emerald.
Every shortcut below works the same in Ruby, Sapphire and Emerald.
Published
| Buttons | Where | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| SELECT, then SELECT again | Battle move list | Swaps two moves for good |
| A, then A again | Summary moves page | Swaps two moves |
| SELECT, then SELECT again | Bag list | Moves an item to a new spot |
| SELECT | Overworld | Uses the registered key item |
| Hold B | Overworld | Runs once you own the Running Shoes |
| B | Acro Bike | Wheelie, bunny hop and jump |
| A + B + START + SELECT | Anywhere | Soft reset to the title screen |
Reorder moves in battle with SELECT
Choose FIGHT, put the cursor on a move and press SELECT. A grey cursor stays on that move; move the black cursor to the slot you want and press SELECT or A to swap them. B cancels. The new order stays after the battle, because the swap also changes the party Pokémon. It needs at least two moves and does not work in link battles. A Pokémon that used Transform only swaps for that battle.
Reorder moves outside battle on the Summary screen
Open START → POKéMON, pick a Pokémon and choose SUMMARY. Press right to the battle moves page and press A. Highlight a move, press A, move to its new slot and press A again. The same works on the Contest moves page. Use this when you are not in a battle, or before a link battle where SELECT is switched off.
Sort Bag items with SELECT
There is no automatic sort. Put the cursor on an item, press SELECT, move the red line to the new position and press SELECT again; B cancels. This works in the Items, Poké Balls and Key Items pockets, from the overworld and in battle. TMs, HMs and Berries stay in number order and cannot be moved, and you cannot move items while selling them in a shop. Put Escape Rope, Repel and your healing items at the top so you reach them with one press.
Register a key item to SELECT
In the Key Items pocket, pick an item and choose REGISTER (WÄHLEN on a German cartridge). A small SELECT badge appears beside it, and pressing SELECT on the overworld now uses it without opening the Bag. Only one item is registered at a time. Seven key items can be registered: the Mach Bike, Acro Bike, Old Rod, Good Rod, Super Rod, Itemfinder and Pokéblock Case. To unregister it, pick it again: in Emerald the option now reads DESELECT; in Ruby and Sapphire choose REGISTER again.
Mach Bike or Acro Bike?
Rydel gives you one bike for free in Rydel's Cycles in Mauville City. You can swap it for the other one there at any time, as often as you like; bring the bike in your Bag, not in the PC. Pick by what you need next:
| Bike | Controls | What it is for |
|---|---|---|
| Mach Bike | + Control Pad | Speeds up the longer you ride and climbs sandy slopes |
| Acro Bike | Press B | Wheelie: front wheel up |
| Hold B | Bunny hop on the spot or while moving | |
| B + + Control Pad | Jump, also sideways |
Register the bike and press SELECT to get on or off. Riding also lowers the wild encounter rate to 80% of walking. If SELECT does nothing, riding is not allowed on that map or tile. For the places that need a bike or a field move, see the HM and field move guide.
Fish faster with a registered rod
Register your best rod, face any water and press SELECT to cast. When the dots stop and the game says a Pokémon bit, press A at once or it gets away. In Emerald, a lead Pokémon with Suction Cups or Sticky Hold makes a bite much more likely (about 92% of casts instead of 50%). For a hard fishing target, see the Feebas guide.
The Repel trick: choose which wild Pokémon appear
A Repel blocks every wild Pokémon whose level is lower than your first healthy party Pokémon (fainted Pokémon and Eggs are skipped). Wild Pokémon of the same level or higher still appear. So put a Pokémon at the front whose level matches the Pokémon you want: weaker ones stop showing up. This also works on the roaming Latios or Latias and on mass outbreaks.
| Item | Steps | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Repel | 100 | 350 |
| Super Repel | 200 | 500 |
| Max Repel | 250 | 700 |
Lead abilities that change wild encounters
The ability of the first Pokémon in your party changes wild battles. In Ruby and Sapphire only two abilities do this; Emerald adds many more.
| Ability | Effect |
|---|---|
| Stench | Half as many wild encounters |
| Illuminate | Twice as many wild encounters |
| Ability | Effect |
|---|---|
| Synchronize | 50% chance the wild Pokémon has the same Nature |
| Cute Charm | 2 in 3 chance the wild Pokémon is the opposite gender |
| Magnet Pull | 50% chance of a Steel-type on land (grass or cave floor), if the area has one |
| Static | 50% chance of an Electric-type, if the area has one |
| Hustle | 50% chance the wild Pokémon has the highest level possible |
| Vital Spirit | 50% chance the wild Pokémon has the highest level possible |
| Pressure | 50% chance the wild Pokémon has the highest level possible |
| Intimidate | Skips half of the wild Pokémon 5 or more levels below the lead |
| Keen Eye | Skips half of the wild Pokémon 5 or more levels below the lead |
| White Smoke | Half as many wild encounters |
| Arena Trap | Twice as many wild encounters |
| Sand Veil | Half as many wild encounters in a sandstorm |
| Suction Cups | A fishing bite on about 92% of casts |
| Sticky Hold | A fishing bite on about 92% of casts |
Physical or special? Gen 3 decides by type
In these games every move of one type uses the same stat. Fire, Water, Grass, Electric, Psychic, Ice, Dragon and Dark moves are special: they use Special Attack and hit Special Defense. All other types are physical. So Fire Punch is special, and a Pokémon with a high Attack but low Special Attack should not learn it.
| Physical (Attack) | Special (Sp. Atk) |
|---|---|
| Normal | Fire |
| Fighting | Water |
| Flying | Grass |
| Poison | Electric |
| Ground | Psychic |
| Rock | Ice |
| Bug | Dragon |
| Ghost | Dark |
| Steel |
Natures in a sentence
Each of the 25 Natures raises one stat by 10% and lowers another by 10%; five Natures change nothing. A Pokémon’s Nature never changes after you catch it or hatch it. How to pick one, and how to train stats, is in the EV training guide.
Move Relearner and Move Deleter
TMs break after one use, while HMs can be used again and again. Plan TMs carefully, and use these two houses to fix a moveset:
Move Relearner in Fallarbor Town
The Move Relearner in Fallarbor Town teaches a Pokémon one move it could have learned by level, for one Heart Scale. Heart Scales are hidden on several routes, and wild Luvdisc can hold one.
Move Deleter in Lilycove City
The Move Deleter in Lilycove City makes a Pokémon forget any move for free, HMs included. It is the only way to remove an HM move such as Cut or Flash.
Soft reset: A + B + START + SELECT
Warning — Save first: A soft reset loses everything since your last save. Save right before a legendary or a gift Pokémon, never during the battle.
Hold A, B, START and SELECT together to restart at the title screen without switching the Game Boy Advance off. Load your save to try a battle or a gift again, for example for a better Nature on Rayquaza.
Clock and dry battery
The cartridge has a real-time clock for berry growth, tides and daily events. When its battery runs dry the game says so at start-up: you can still play and save, but clock-based events no longer happen. Berries are the most visible loss.
Ruby, Sapphire & Emerald controls FAQ
- How do I rearrange my moves with SELECT in Pokémon Emerald?
- In battle, press SELECT on a move, move to the other move and press SELECT again. Outside battle, swap them with A on the Summary screen’s moves page.
- How do you register items in Pokémon Emerald?
- Open the Key Items pocket, pick a bike, rod, Itemfinder or Pokéblock Case and choose REGISTER. Then press SELECT on the overworld to use it.
- Should I pick the Mach Bike or the Acro Bike?
- Either is fine at first: Rydel in Mauville City swaps them for free whenever you need the other one.
- How do you soft reset in Ruby, Sapphire and Emerald?
- Hold A, B, START and SELECT at the same time.
- Can you sort the Bag in Pokémon Emerald?
- Not automatically. Move items one at a time with SELECT; TMs, HMs and Berries keep a fixed order.
- Where is the Move Relearner in Ruby, Sapphire and Emerald?
- In Fallarbor Town. He teaches one forgotten level-up move for a Heart Scale.
Button names on this page are the original Game Boy Advance buttons.
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