2017 ROM Hack Pokémon Orange Gets Huge New Updates Evolving The Entire Game

One of the first Pokémon ROM hacks I ever downloaded was actually Pokémon Orange; it was released and developed waaaaay before AI got its dirty little mittens on the scene and before ROM hacking became a popular thing to do. This game was originally developed by PiaCRT, and it was one of the best to download for those wanting a GBC-specific hack of Pokémon Crystal, now upgraded by Neoma.

It very much led the way and was ahead of its time, but with the wave of new ROM hacks and many which are absolutely remarkable, Pokémon Orange became one that was less and less recommended as the years went on. But that's all about to change as there is a new version available, adding a bunch of new features, quality of life upgrades and even a slightly new name: Pokémon Orange: Citrus Edition, which is available to download via HackDex today.

New Quality Of Life Upgrades

• Several major bug fixes that the original had.
• Added Cheat Menu (UP UP DOWN DOWN LEFT RIGHT LEFT RIGHT B A on the Title screen).
• Updated Battle Effects from Polished Crystal.
• Stat Drops Hit Differently.
• New Power-Up Animations & Sound Effects
• Overworld/Living Weather System
• Expanded Options
• Always On Shiny Mode
• You Can Now Steal Pokémon
• Turn On: Free Items, Unlimited Master Balls & Max Money

For those new to the Pokémon Orange hack, it has you playing as a kid from Valencia Island (you get a choice of playing as Indigo or Orange, and it even lets you pick a difficulty at the start too) who is asked to deliver the GS Ball to Samson Oak, and in many ways it loosely follows the anime. Some Pokémon come in unique Orange Island forms, Alolan variants, and if you're lucky, you can even find a Crystal Onix throughout the story too.

For me, it was a visually refreshing "island-themed" take on a new location using Pokémon Crystal, which has one of the best GB visuals of any Pokémon game, and it pairs it with a wide range of modern enhancements that don't ruin it, nor is the difficulty that hard, making it a pleasant and relaxing ROM hack to play on your new GBC-inspired hardware or software emulators. It's worth a try, and is available to patch today via HackDex.