That was back when CGC was really strict. 6/7 holos/exs subbed got 9 and 1/7 got 9.5 
Got the Magmar, Scyther, and Swampert bumped up to 9.5, though, after a bunch of resubs.
Zero pristines, even after resubs.
But yeah, Ruby has weirdly mediocre print quality. Lots of print lines and corner dots. It was much better in e-Series and in later EX sets. Even Sandstorm/Dragon are much stronger.
Although I grew up with Gen 1 & 2 and Crystal/Silver/Red were my first games which I loved, I feel like Gen 3 was the peak of Pokemon games and I got the most enjoyment out of that era
You hit the nail on the head here with the reason for inflated pricing, all that plus just the general collectible nature of anything Nintendo these days. Honestly both GCN games have aged like milk in terms of their 3d graphics, pace of gameplay, and lack of quality of life features that were the standard even in other gen 3 games like Emerald. They are an absolute slog to get through. But I’m here for it. Gen 3 is the best gaming gen for Pokemon and I’ll die on this hill.
Have to admit that I was listening to the Colosseum soundtrack on YT a few weeks ago. THAT is one thing that they definitely got right in those games. Most of the battle themes are excellent and then there are some really nice slower-paced tracks such as the shrine which I particularly like.
Both games are bizarre if you think about how somebody else outside of Nintendo was allowed the develop a major Pokemon game(s) and actually got all the battle mechanics/stats side of things spot on if nothing else. I could never see something like this being greenlit by Nintendo again.
Do you guys think they’ll ever bring the 2 GameCube games to switch on the virtual console or something like that?, been sitting on the fence about picking them both up great games loved them as a kid.
It’s always possible though Nintendo aren’t exactly hot on re-releasing Gamecube games in general and tend to have only focused on the big ones. Mario Sunshine, Wind Waker, Metroid Prime and a few others. There’s loads of their own games from that era that are just gathering dust in their back catalogue.
I know Colosseum and XD are a lot more popular these days but they weren’t regarded as series highlights before. And as far as Pokemon goes, they have yet to rerelease the likes of Firered/Leafgreen on a digital service so you would assume more popular games like those would get priority but who knows.
Lastly, you would THINK Nintendo own full rights to the two games but they were developed by Genius Sonority and not Nintendo/Game Freak. Whether this has a any bearing on whether they can actually do what they want with them, I don’t know.
I would think it would be reasonably safe to buy them but I personally don’t think XD is worth paying $200 or more for. I would investigate emulation to try before you buy. Also, people have developed hacks for the games that greatly expand them. Those might be worth checking out.
Wondering if anyone has any knowledge of the Gen 3 era competitive TCG meta. I’d love to build a couple decks to play with at home.
Was there a format that had a particularly fun meta?
Great resource for vintage meta, check it out
i will never forgive them for their disrespect to helpful metagross
this is so so sick thank you
Yep, this shocked me. I thought that it would be closer to $2,500-$3,000.
It helps that it was an incredibly strong copy. It didn’t look like most CGC 10 Gold Stars to me. I wonder how the surface looks irl.
Miku collab song for the Littleroot Town fans
