Suspiciously Crisp-Looking Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire Footage Sparks Fresh Nintendo Switch Port Speculation

Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire footage shared by the official Japanese Pokémon account has sparked fresh speculation that the titles will be re-released for Nintendo Switch.

The Game Boy Advance classics can be seen again in the following video shared to social media by The Pokémon Company. On the surface, it's a playful post celebrating one of the game's many NPCs: Mr. Briney, known in Japanese as Old Man Hagi.

But eagle-eyed fans believe there's something suspiciously crisp and colourful about the footage, like it's been sourced from a new version of the game — perhaps even one that's running on the Nintendo Switch? After all, the fans say, Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen received similarly improved presentation when they arrived on Switch last year.

While Nintendo has said nothing officially about the launch of Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire re-releases, new launches for the games on Switch are widely expected . Not only were references to the games spotted in datamines of FireRed and LeafGreen's code, but those games also sold incredibly, incredibly well — with four million copies shifted in six weeks .

While controversial online at the time of their announcement , FireRed and LeafGreen's eye-opening $20 price point (each) did nothing to stave off demand to buy the games again (despite other GBA games simply being offered as part of the Nintendo Switch Online subscription). And all of this with little effort to modernize the titles on Nintendo's part, other than the unlocking of certain event tickets and the addition of a swear filter.

こらこら！ まて まて ピーコちゃん！ #敬老の日 #ハギろうじん pic.twitter.com/NhTjkeklBV — 【公式】ポケモン情報局 (@poke_times) September 21, 2026

Is there still time to announce and launch Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire before this year's lucrative holiday season? Just about. With Nintendo Switch 2 titles Pokémon Winds and Waves still up to a year away, these games would certainly buff The Pokémon Company's profits further in the back half of 2026. And we're still due to hear when exactly in October that FireRed and LeafGreen will get Pokémon Home support . A Ruby and Sapphire release around the same time would make a lot of sense.

Originally launched in Japan back in 2002, Ruby and Sapphire were the main titles for the Pokémon franchise's third generation, to later be joined by Pokémon Emerald. Set in Hoenn, these games introduced fan favorite creatures such as Mudkip, Treecko and Torchic, Kyogre and Groudon. Would you pay $20 to play one of these again?

Tom Phillips is IGN's News Editor. You can reach Tom at tom_phillips@ign.com or find him on Bluesky @tomphillipseg.bsky.social