Guide: Everything You Need To Know About Pokémon Omega Ruby & Alpha Sapphires New DexNav

We dish out the details on this amazing new feature

Since Pokémon Omega Ruby & Alpha Sapphire came out in North America, one of the most talked about features is the DexNav, and it's easy to see why. It is one of the most addictive features that has ever been in a Pokémon game.

What Is It?

Essentially, the DexNav is part of the PokéNav Plus and allows for you to hunt for various Pokémon. As you play the game, you will occasionally see shaking spots in the grass, water or ground of a cave. This will activate the DexNav. Tap the touchscreen and you can start getting details for the Pokémon — you then have to sneak with gradual pushes of the circle pad to get them. It's as simple as that.

So what makes this such an amazing feature? It's simple. It encourages you to hunt for the best of the best.

What Pokémon Can Be Found With This?

Essentially any Pokémon in the wild can be found in this manner. Normally, only Pokémon that are found by walking or Surfing will randomly appear, and that's one of the main parts of it.

On the bottom screen, if you have the DexNav open whenever you're in an area with Pokémon, you will see an image based on the original Ruby & Sapphire maps and there will be an overlay over it. Pokémon you have only seen will have a silhouette and Pokémon you have captured will be more visible. If you touch the Pokémon you have previously captured, you can search for them. This opens up even more possibilities as Pokémon that normally require fishing or are only in hordes are also on the screen.

Doing this causes the DexNav to start searching for them. If successful, they will crop up nearby and you will have to sneak up on them to cause a battle to occur. If it's unsuccessful, then you may just need to walk around a bit or try a different patch of grass.

To top it off, after you have captured Primal Groudon or Primal Kyogre, then various other Pokémon will become available through this method, and only through this method. These Pokémon are not in the Hoenn Pokédex, such as Zorua, Tympole, Skrelp and more. You can find a list here.

What Makes This Special?

Essentially, while it does help you find the Pokémon you want, the Pokémon you discover through this method come with a variety of perks. If these are different from normal, they'll be denoted by a red exclamation mark on the DexNav screen.

When you edge closer to the Pokémon, the DexNav will give you a variety of details for the Pokémon. These details are all things which are special about the Pokémon.

First, the Level. Each Pokémon in each area has a specific level range in which it can exist. With the DexNav, there is a chance that you will encounter a wild Pokémon that is 10 levels higher than normal.

You also get to see the Pokémon's Ability. With the DexNav, there is a chance that you can encounter a Pokémon with its Hidden Ability. This is especially notable as some Pokémon — such as Skrelp — haven't had their Hidden Ability available before this.

You also get to see the Pokémon's "First Move". If this is a highlighted move with the exclamation mark, that means that the Pokémon knows a move that was previously only available through breeding.

You can also see the wild Pokémon's item before you encounter it. The items the Pokémon holds are very different to the ones it can usually hold in the wild. We have seen ones such as Lucky Egg being held by a Pelipper, Power Herb by a Nuzleaf and Cell Battery by a Plusle. We're still collecting information on what Pokémon holds which item, so be sure to keep checking back.

Finally, you can see the "potential" of a Pokémon. What is potential? Basically, it's the Individual Values of a Pokémon. For every star that is filled, the Pokémon has one maximum Individual Value stat, with a maximum of three being possible.

What Are The Chances?

Now, that's where this gets even more interesting. In this game, the Pokédex tracks how many times you have seen a Pokémon in the wild. This is a key factor in the DexNav feature as this is tied directly to a Search Level. As your Search Level gets higher, you get a better chance of seeing those aspects, and a better chance of multiple ones happening at once.

So, if you have seen a Pokémon just once, you have less of a chance than if you have seen one a hundred times. That's what's addictive about it. You'll keep wanting to search for the Pokémon to see what moves, items, abilities and so forth, you can get.

To top it off, there are numerous reports of Shiny Pokémon being easier to get if you're at a higher search level. This gives you even further incentive to get hunting.