Hey everyone,

This week I released my hack FireRed Redux here. A few of you correctly pointed out that there's an older hack called FireRed Redux: Open World by Petuuuhhh (2018-2021). Different project, different scope — that one focuses on open-world exploration and level scaling, mine focuses on competitive difficulty.

To avoid confusion, I've rebranded mine to FireRed Redux: Competitive Edition (FRR:CE). Same hack, same features, clearer name.

What FRR:CE offers:
- Full Gen 1-9 roster including Pokémon Legends: Z-A formes
- Custom species exclusive to this hack with new abilities
- Hard level caps per gym, with auto-level at Pokémon Center
- Mega Ring + every mega stone, all competitive items, mints and stat boosters available from the start
- Universal Move Tutor NPC
- Instant-capture DexNav for fast team building
- Shedinja Mega evolution at level 21
- Built on pokefirered-expansion decomp (open source)

It's an alpha build so there are minor bugs being tracked — a v1.1 hotfix is coming soon based on community feedback from the last release post.

Links:
- GitHub: github.com/Migueleitor/FireRedRedux
- Subreddit: r/FireRedRedux (now branded as FireRed Redux Competitive Edition)
- Patch + install guide in the pinned post.

Thanks to everyone who's tried it so far. Genuine feedback after a few gyms welcome.

FireRed Redux: Competitive Edition
Kanto reimagined — competitive difficulty, modern QoL, and a cross-generation roster spanning Gens 1–9.

Alpha 1.1 — built on pokefirered- expansion

Rebranding note: This project was originally called "FireRed Redux" and has been renamed to FireRed Redux: Competitive Edition (FRR:CE) to avoid confusion with FireRed Redux: Open World by Petuuuhhh (2018-2021), which is a separate, unrelated hack.

What is this ROM hack?
FireRed Redux: Competitive Edition is a difficulty-focused Pokémon ROM hack based on pokefirered-expansion. The game is primarily in English. It gives you access to every Pokémon from Generation 1 through Generation 9 and Mega Evolutions (including the new ones from Pokémon Legends: Z-A), every move in the franchise, and a wide set of quality-of-life improvements designed to remove tedium and focus the experience on the battles.

Installation
This hack is distributed as a .bps patch — not a full ROM. You will need to provide your own clean copy of Pokémon FireRed.
1. Get a clean Pokémon FireRed (U) v1.0 ROM
The base ROM must match these hashes exactly:
**SHA-1:**41cb23d8dccc8ebd7c649cd8fbb58eeace6e2fdc
**MD5:**e26ee0d44e809351c8ce2d73c7400cdd
Any other version (v1.1, EU, translated) will not work as a base.
2. Download the latest patch
Grab firered_redux_v1.0.bps from the Releases page.
Patch SHA-1:6f64c044f62b17784be9de55aa7d7b70d1dd7738
3. Apply the patch
Use any BPS patcher:
Floating IPS (flips) — desktop (Windows / Linux / macOS).
Online ROM Patcher by Marc Robledo — works in any browser, no install required.
Apply firered_redux_v1.0.bps to your clean ROM. The output .gba file is your patched game.
4. Play
Recommended emulators:
mGBA — Windows, macOS, Linux, Android. The reference emulator for accuracy.
RetroArch with the mGBA core — iOS and other platforms.
Both are free.

⚠️** Alpha**: save frequently and use save states. Undiagnosed bugs may exist.

Main changes
Every trainer has been redesigned with competitive teams: top-tier AI, perfect IVs, held items, and tuned movesets.
Hard level caps for each major battle (see table below).
Wild encounters have been modified across many routes.
A roster of new custom Pokémon species with new abilities has been added to pose a bigger challenge.

Level caps
The Pokémon Center automatically levels your team up to the current cap, so you never have

Brock 14
Misty 21
Lt. Surge 24
Erika 29
Koga / Sabrina 43
Blaine 47
Giovanni 50
Elite Four & Champion 60+

Quality of Life & Sandbox
Running shoes available from the start.
Universal Move Tutor NPC with access to every move in the game.
The Pokémon Center levels up your team to the next cap.
Your team auto-heals after every victory.
Upgraded DexNav for fast team building (see How DexNav works below)
Access to all competitive items, evolution stones, and Mints from the start.
Infinite repel.
Trade evolutions simplified — no trading required, in-game alternative methods available.
Affection mechanics disabled (Pokémon will not survive lethal hits at 1 HP).
Bypass of Oak's intro cutscene — pick your starter directly at level 14 with perfect IVs.

How DexNav works in FRR:CE

The DexNav in this hack is an instant-capture tool, not the encounter-trigger system from ORAS. To use it:

1. Open the DexNav menu in any area with wild encounters
2. Scroll to the species you want
3. Press A
4. The Pokémon is added directly to your party (or PC if your team is full) with a proper level-up moveset

There are no forced encounters and no Pokéballs required. If the DexNav reports "could not be found in the area", that area simply has no wild encounter table for that species — try a different route where it actually spawns.

Documentation
Full trainer rosters and encounter tables are available online:
📁 MediaFire — FireRed Redux Documentation
📁 Google Drive — FireRed Redux Documentation

Special events
A postgame is in development. More content will be added in future updates.

Limitations & Known Bugs
This is an Alpha build — expect minor bugs.
Some battle music tracks may use placeholder themes (custom music integration is in progress).
A handful of side trainers in early routes still use vanilla teams; they will be updated in the next build.

Reporting bugs
Found something? Please open an Issue including:
A short description of what happened.
The emulator and version (e.g. mGBA 0.10.x).
A save file (.sav) from the moment the issue occurred — this makes diagnosis much faster.

Credits
Created by Miguel.
Built on top of pokefirered-expansion by rh-hideout.
Inspired by Run & Bun and Elite Redux.
Original Pokémon designs by Game Freak/ The Pokémon Company.
This is a non-commercial fan project. No copyrighted material from Nintendo, Game Freak, or The Pokémon Company is distributed — the patch contains only original changes and must be applied to a clean ROM that you own.

— Thank you for playing FireRed Redux —

https://preview.redd.it/j7v3xx1cp01h1.jpg?width=2556&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=8358ed27ef3f4564a438d4436dc37644699e3e66