Did ORAS do Wally justice?

[Alola]

Regarding the in-game story, not really. It was still the same:

1. Meet him in Petalburg with Ralts
2. See him again at Mauville City with a sole weak Ralts
3. Okay, walk with him back to Mauville after you beat your dad (new)
4. Cameo after Groudon/Kyogre is resolved (new)
5. Final battle at Victory Road

They should have given him more screen and interaction time like they did for May/Brenden. We should have run into more often in Hoenn, and had more rival battles to gain insight into his increasing strength. His Roselia and Magneton should have been fully evolved, not just in the post game. And heck, he even could have helped out against Team Aqua/Magma! But as GF did not, I can't really see how his character has improved bar facial expressions, new art and a new signature Pokemon.

Additionally, his battle theme sucks. I couldn't believe it; it sounds like music from some cheesy action 1990s 2D side scrolling game. It's annoyingly bland and repetitive and sounds very out of character for Wally. I don't care if its suppose to represent his sudden new found courage as a trainer (and where was that courage when he conquered all Hoenn Gyms?), they could have made a much better theme to represent that. Really disappointed, but then again Wally was never really significant to begin with compared to Team Aqua/Magma shenanigans, the Hoenn League Challenge, the Delta Episode and recently Brendan/May's friendship/relationship.

 

[Pikachu Bros.]

I preferred when he had a Gardevoir in the GBA games.

Why does he have the battle theme that he does in Victory Road?

 

[Almonds]

Personally, changing his ace from Gardevoir to Gallade was a good move on GF's part. Wally already had the motivation and courage to go on his journey - what he needed the most was a healthy body to support his dreams, to be physically strong. His signature pokemon being Ralts, having it evolve into a pokemon that's physically strong represents him better than Gardevoir, who's more about the mind than physical strength.

 

[SammyW27]

They should've done more with him. It was a neat story at heart.

In fact...

Spoiler

 

[Kallyle]

They should've done more with him. It was a neat story at heart.

In fact...

Spoiler

Is it just me, or does that comic make Wally look like Seto Kaiba?

 

[godiego]

Personally, changing his ace from Gardevoir to Gallade was a good move on GF's part. Wally already had the motivation and courage to go on his journey - what he needed the most was a healthy body to support his dreams, to be physically strong. His signature pokemon being Ralts, having it evolve into a pokemon that's physically strong represents him better than Gardevoir, who's more about the mind than physical strength.

Or they just wanted to avoid Wally using the same ace as Diantha, another Mega Gardevoir. :\

 

[zakisrage]

It's not just because he changed his team. It's because of what's implied from his dialogue and the NPCs that say about him. I haven't unlocked his rematches so I can't say exactly when he says about re-raising his team, but from the screenshots I've seen, his dialogue has a rather sarcastic tone implying he's not satisfied with how his pokemon is and wants to raise it from the beginning (or re-breed). From what the NPCs say, he's actively shown to breed eggs, handpick his team members, and it drastically contrasts his initial reaction on the very first day he caught his Ralts:

My very own Ralts… I will always, always treasure it!

From what I can see here, he would be raising it until death regardless of IVs and other pokemon-related factors. Unless boxing the creature is another way to show how much you care for it, then idk.

I don't see anything sarcastic about his dialogue after you fight him. And I don't see...well, firstly, I don't see why people don't think this is the same Ralts. He only changed Delcatty and Altaria. Secondly, even if it wasn't the same Ralts, I don't see why that makes him seemingly treasure his first Ralts any less. After we beat the main game, most of us don't use our in-game teams anymore. I don't. But does that mean I treasure them any less because I decide to use more Pokemon? I should certainly hope it wouldn't seem that way. If he wants to grow as a trainer, he's going to use new things. I don't think it makes him any less treasuring of him original team.

I've battled Wally before. I agree with you. Wally isn't like the way Kyriaki is describing him. He just isn't.

 

[HyruleAlpha]

Personally, changing his ace from Gardevoir to Gallade was a good move on GF's part. Wally already had the motivation and courage to go on his journey - what he needed the most was a healthy body to support his dreams, to be physically strong. His signature pokemon being Ralts, having it evolve into a pokemon that's physically strong represents him better than Gardevoir, who's more about the mind than physical strength.

Or they just wanted to avoid Wally using the same ace as Diantha, another Mega Gardevoir. :\

He uses Mega Gallade because it's a new Mega Evolution. Plus, since the two previous versions had a Champion with a Mega Gardevoir, it seemed like a reason to change Wally's main Pokémon. That's just my guess.

 

[Almonds]

Personally, changing his ace from Gardevoir to Gallade was a good move on GF's part. Wally already had the motivation and courage to go on his journey - what he needed the most was a healthy body to support his dreams, to be physically strong. His signature pokemon being Ralts, having it evolve into a pokemon that's physically strong represents him better than Gardevoir, who's more about the mind than physical strength.

Or they just wanted to avoid Wally using the same ace as Diantha, another Mega Gardevoir. :\

He uses Mega Gallade because it's a new Mega Evolution. Plus, since the two previous versions had a Champion with a Mega Gardevoir, it seemed like a reason to change Wally's main Pokémon. That's just my guess.

Just saying because there were people complaining about Wally having a Gallade instead of a Gardevoir when they initially revealed his new Mega partner. Avoiding the same ace as Diantha was, of course, the most logical thing to do (and I wouldn't be surprised if it was the only reason for GF even replacing it), but Gallade fits Wally's overall story in-game much better than Gardevoir anyways.

 

[lovandra]

Gallade was introduced on Gen IV right? If Gallade was there on Gen III, I believe they would give him to Wally.

I also agree that Gallade fits for Wally more than Gardevoir.

 

[Mantyke]

I'm not sure if he was done justice or not, as I can see the points of both sides on this thread. But either way, I always thought Wally was adorable even back in RSE and I like him a lot.
Also, I haven't beat the game so all this stuff about Wally being sarcastic and not treasuring his Pokemon anymore is strange to me. I'll have to find out about that later and decide for myself what I think, I suppose. But at the point I am at, I feel I can relate to Wally. I'm not a competitive player. I nickname all of the Pokemon that I actually use (and yes I change out my team from time to time, but I still care about them all), and I don't check for IVs. I breed only if I'm trying to breed for a shiny or to trade it. I STILL have my original very first Pokemon, my Blaziken named Sunshine that I obtained many years ago as a Torchic on my first run-through of any Pokemon game, which was Sapphire. And if I want a Sableye I catch the first Sableye I come across, because that's all I want. I'm happy with what I got, just like Wally is (or was?).

 

[skyradiant]

I haven't played the original RSE, but I think ORAS really did do him justice. I really love his character development, how he goes from frail and sick to kicking ass (to the point he beats the player to every gym from Lavaridge onward), so Wally would have to be my favorite character in these games overall.

 

[deoxysphobia]

I'm not sure if he was done justice or not, as I can see the points of both sides on this thread. But either way, I always thought Wally was adorable even back in RSE and I like him a lot.
Also, I haven't beat the game so all this stuff about Wally being sarcastic and not treasuring his Pokemon anymore is strange to me. I'll have to find out about that later and decide for myself what I think, I suppose. But at the point I am at, I feel I can relate to Wally. I'm not a competitive player. I nickname all of the Pokemon that I actually use (and yes I change out my team from time to time, but I still care about them all), and I don't check for IVs. I breed only if I'm trying to breed for a shiny or to trade it. I STILL have my original very first Pokemon, my Blaziken named Sunshine that I obtained many years ago as a Torchic on my first run-through of any Pokemon game, which was Sapphire. And if I want a Sableye I catch the first Sableye I come across, because that's all I want. I'm happy with what I got, just like Wally is (or was?).

That's how I do it too, unless I get multiples of the same Pokemon with the dexnav thing. And haha, I still have my first Pokemon, too! Name's Treecky, in Ruby. I've not yet gotten him into AS, since I don't have Pokemon Box, but one day!

ON TOPIC: I think Wally was absolutely done justice! The only thing I wished was if we saw more of him directly. I'd like to have seen him more than we did, I feel like his arc could've been a bit stronger then. I'm fine with the change to Gallade, and I love his battle music. I think ORAS was a step up past the usual in terms of arcs and having characters who actually went through development - it's been quite nice.

 

[Almonds]

Kuribo's Shoe — Wally @Petalburg: “Omg it’s a pokémon omg he can...

This post pretty much summarizes Wally's change over the course of the game

 

[aliveatnight]

I've always liked Wally, and I still like him now. I also think that Gallade is a better fit for him than Gardevoir, regardless of the reason that they choose to go that route.

Now I haven't re-battled him yet, the way he changes actually makes a lot of sense if you think about it. He was obsessed with Pokemon, and of course now that he's stronger he would want to continue and pursue that love. That doesn't make him a bad person, it just means he wants to be able to battle against stronger people.
I'd be willing to bet that he loves all his Pokemon equally, just some are meant for battle. And hey, he could always use the not battle Pokemon for contests!

 

[Almonds]

LOL Wally is also a confirmed pretty boy XD

There are two female swimmers at the Battle Resort who talk about the "Green-haired Mania Prince" and the "Green-haired Running Prince". They say that Wally is super cute and a bishounen (pretty boy), and one of their friends actually asked him out! But all he talked about was type advantages and battle stuff lol. If the NPCs can ask him out for dates, why can't I ;_;

 

[Mistigrix]

Wa- Lly...?

I'd say that the games did him justice just because I could actually remember him.
In the original games he was just little more than somebody who I had to watch capture a Ralts that one time.

 

[GleamingCoral]

I certainly think so. ^^ He was more than memorable this time, plus his theme, plus Mega Gallade.

...And the fact that his name is before yours on the "Certified Trainers" plaque at every gym after Wattson...

 

[WallflowerCanyon]

Yes.... yes it did. And his theme before you challenge the League is just freaking epic.

What I think, personally? He is the most important, most talented, most interesting, and most extraordinary person in the Pokémon Universe. And if y'all don't get this reference, so help me that I hope you step on a Lego with your bare feet.

 

[Peridorito]

Heck yes it did. Wally is just amazing in this game. From his Mega Gallade to his encounter theme to his final battle... he just screams amazing overall.

About Wally becoming "a soulless competitive player" at the end thing, I don't think he's really became that. I would say he's like Ash: he is constantly swapping his Pokémon around and trying to build a strong, viable team, but he still cares about all his Pokémon equally. The only difference between him and Ash is that he actually suceeds in becoming a strong trainer.