Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire Versions/Reception

Both games were well received, receiving perfect ratings from GamePro and Mainia. IGN rated the games at 9.5/10 and commented that they were a "wonderful GBA follow-up to the immense Game Boy blockbuster." However, some reviews criticized the repetitive nature of the games, with Eurogamer commenting that "apart from the occasional tense battle with a Gym Leader and the more sophisticated opponents later on in the game, the constant fighting and collecting mechanic gets very tired, very fast." This, however, is more a criticism of the series in general than of any game in particular.

Ruby and Sapphire were the second and third best selling games of 2003 (with Pokémon Ruby selling more), and received an average score of 82% on Metacritic. With the versions combined, the games were the best selling title on the Game Boy Advance. If not, the title belongs to its third version. As of March 31, 2013, Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire have sold 16.22 million copies worldwide.