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Let me guess, you’ve finished Pokémon FireRed and you’re looking for the next game to play? Another Pokémon should be the obvious choice, but there’s a problem, right? The price.
Pokémon games on Switch are expensive, but if you didn’t mind spending $20 on Pokémon FireRed/LeafGreen, you wouldn’t regret spending the same amount for a game that offers more.
Today I want to introduce you to Coromon, a monster-taming game that feels just like Pokémon did back in the GBA. At a glance you might think it’s just another Pokémon clone, but let me assure you that once you see what it offers, you’ll understand why this is one of the best Pokémon alternatives on the market.
Why Coromon Feels Like a True GBA Pokémon Successor
At first glance the visuals will immediately take you back to the GBA era with its perfect pixel art world. And in my opinion, it looks better than Kanto.
While I love the Gen 1 games, we need to agree there isn’t much variety when it comes to their locales, probably because of the hardware limitations of the original Game Boy. And since FireRed aims to be a faithful remake, it gets hindered by its original games.
Coromon on the other hand, doesn’t have these limitations, and you’ll be traveling through different areas that actually look different. From sandy deserts to scorching volcanoes and even frozen caves.
And it also has an upper hand when it comes to combat visuals, since the Coromon sprites, which all have great designs, aren’t static like in Pokémon FireRed and feel more dynamic and interesting.
How Coromon Handles Save Files Better Than Pokémon
This might not be as important as it used to be, but Coromon does feature multiple save slots, up to 3.
On Switch you can always create a new account, connect it, and start a brand new save file, but on other Pokémon titles you won’t be able to play online on these accounts if you don’t have an NSO subscription.
Well, this would be a downside in FireRed, but the only online functionality it has, or will have, is Pokémon Home connectivity, and once you enter the app, you can actually choose the account you want to move your Pokémon from.
But in the end, Coromon still has Pokémon FireRed beat, since it also takes advantage of the multiple save files from different accounts, bringing the save slot total to a whopping 24.
Coromon’s Custom Mode Lets You Play Your Way
When playing a monster-taming game, every run will feel different based on the monsters you collect. But even though Coromon has 124 monsters to select from, things will get stale after a few runs, especially if you’re a maniac who’s trying to fill those 24 save slots.
So, I suggest messing with the Custom Mode to get an entirely different experience after you’re done with a normal playthrough. You can mess with the game’s speed, encounter rates, experience rates, and difficulty, and even toggle a built-in Nuzlocke setting!
And if you want something truly special, look no further than the randomizer mode. This, combined with the Nuzlocke, is insanely fun and creates an experience that will not be the same for everyone, making it feel even more special.
Coromon’s Story Mode: What Makes It Stand Out From Pokémo
Pokémon FireRed’s story is charming but simple, and I don’t think it’s a flawed game for not having a deep narrative. It rewards you with lore dumps whenever you go out of your way to explore or talk to NPCs, which adds to the existing narrative.
But I won’t deny that having an actual plot in Coromon to follow through is great! You’ll be traversing the region of Velua to collect the essence of six powerful titans, who kind of work like this game’s Gym Leaders. The essences are needed to stop the Crimsonite corruption brought upon an alien race, and it’s your job to beat them and save the day.
It’s not super deep or complex like a JRPG such as Final Fantasy 7 or even Xenoblade, but it’s a nice change of pace. And if you’re reading and you’ve happened to play Coromon in the past, I think you should give it another run since the game got a story overhaul not long ago.
Coromon’s Online Features vs Pokémon FireRed
Coromon does have online trading and battling with a ranked mode.
While online trades are great, especially if you have a friend who’s also playing through the game, ranked mode is dead, and you won’t be finding anyone to battle.
Unfortunately, Coromon is too much of a niche game to have an active online battle community, but if you truly want to experience 1-on-1 battling, I suggest you try to find other players in a Discord server or even Reddit.
Coromon Post-Game Content
The postgame is one of the most important parts of any monster-taming game, and I’d say Coromon’s is just slightly ahead of FireRed’s.
After you beat the main story, you are free to explore the world, collect all Coromon, train them, and battle online. But I’d say the most compelling part of Coromon is the Battle Dome.
It’s similar to a Battle Tower in Pokémon, where you’ll be facing battle after battle until you are defeated. Although it offers much more than even current modern Pokémon games.
While battling, you’ll earn a special currency to enhance your team and the facility itself to deal with the ever-increasing level of your opponents. Managing this currency and building the correct team is the key to success in these modes, especially in higher difficulty settings.
Is Coromon a suitable alternative to Pokémon?
Coromon, despite its 2D pixel art looks, is still one of the best alternatives to Pokémon to this day. It’s a great game with a lot of charm and features that will keep a Pokémon fan hooked for days.
So, if you’re looking for a game to play after Pokémon FireRed, look no further than Coromon.
Thanks for reading, and if everything goes well, I’ll be seeing you again next time with brand new content.
