Personally, the best thing about Gen 5 was the plot. The pokemon team made huge steps in storytelling with BW1 and BW2. However, from a gameplay standpoint, gen five was just... not that great. You'd be better off reading one of those Nuzlocke webcomics if you want the plot.
X and Y are the complete opposite. The gameplay is phenomenal, the graphics are gorgeous, and the new Gen 6 pokemon are much more... shall we say, inspired than 5's were. But the plot just ain't there. The characters are so shallow it makes me sad. Why does Team Flare want to blow up the world again? We just don't know.Â
Which brings me to ORAS, by far my favorite entry in the series I've played so far. Not only do they improve upon XY's amazing gameplay, but the original Ruby/Sapphire/Emerald story is wonderfully remastered. All the side-characters are well developed, even the villains for a change (Archie and Maxie have MOTIVES?? IMPOSSIBLE.) It's also got something most pokemon games lack. A decent endgame. There's a whole new plot post-Pokemon League (During which you get Rayquaza, it's pretty epic), plus multiple daily battles and a collection of other small sidequest-type things.
Anyway, if you want a good balance between story AND gameplay, and you don't hate water HMs (Seriously, I LIKE surf and waterfall, they have actual function!) my vote is definitely ORAS.
Also, no, you don't need both games to get Rayquaza. You just need one.
X and Y are the complete opposite. The gameplay is phenomenal, the graphics are gorgeous, and the new Gen 6 pokemon are much more... shall we say, inspired than 5's were. But the plot just ain't there. The characters are so shallow it makes me sad. Why does Team Flare want to blow up the world again? We just don't know.Â
Which brings me to ORAS, by far my favorite entry in the series I've played so far. Not only do they improve upon XY's amazing gameplay, but the original Ruby/Sapphire/Emerald story is wonderfully remastered. All the side-characters are well developed, even the villains for a change (Archie and Maxie have MOTIVES?? IMPOSSIBLE.) It's also got something most pokemon games lack. A decent endgame. There's a whole new plot post-Pokemon League (During which you get Rayquaza, it's pretty epic), plus multiple daily battles and a collection of other small sidequest-type things.
Anyway, if you want a good balance between story AND gameplay, and you don't hate water HMs (Seriously, I LIKE surf and waterfall, they have actual function!) my vote is definitely ORAS.
Also, no, you don't need both games to get Rayquaza. You just need one.
