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I am usually a big fan of Nintendo's reorchestrations - see Throwback Galaxy from Super Mario Galaxy 2 as an example that I consider spot-on. However, I didn't like Nintendo's reorchestration of Route 110 for Omega Ruby/Sapphire.

I will just come out and say this rather than beating around the bush: I think that Nintendo's official Omega Ruby/Sapphire orchestration of Route 110 is very weak. It kills all of the energy of the original Ruby/Sapphire tune in a few ways: (1) The secondary instruments (behind the lead line) muddle together due to there being so much going on in the upper-mid range. The use of panning to separate instruments is not enough to counteract that. This results in a lead line that doesn't feel like it has a supporting secondary instrument/melody for a good part of the tune. In the original, the secondary line was always very clear, and the role was handed off between a second horn, third horn, and violin which were all easy to distinguish by ear due to octave and panning. (2) Perhaps due to all the secondary instruments competing for the mid-high range, the playful call-and-response between lead and secondary horns are lost, which was not just a major theme in the original song but defined the very identity of the Ruby/Sapphire OST. (3) In the Omega version, the bass line adds rhythmic complexity that needlessly draws attention and energy away from the lead and secondary lines, while rhythmically competing with the drum line. This makes the piece feel more crampt and rigid, rather than open and sprawling like the original. (4) The homogeneity of the instrumentation make the song feel like it isn't progressing. Whereas in the original Ruby/Sapphire tune we have a bassline that's carried in turn by a tuba, viola, and chiptune instrument, in the official Omega orchestration we get the bass line being carried by the same *exact* bass instrument throughout the entire song, which contributes to the stagnation of energy across sections of the piece. (5) Final nitpick. In the official Omega orchestration, the horns buzz too much on attack. Like a bee. Listen to it with a decent headset and you'll hear what I mean.

In my rendition I wanted to emphasize the interplay between lead and secondary lines from the original, as well as introducing a new dialogue between the brass and string sections to give it my own twist. I know the arrangement is far from perfect, and I can't say it's better than Nintendo's orchestration, but I did spend a lot of time trying my best to build on what made the original song successful and I hope you appreciate my arrangement!

MP3 Download:
https://www.maxlaumeister.com/music/archives/route-110-pokemon-ruby-sapphire/

Original Ruby/Sapphire OST Song:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dKW-reR_jUQ

Official Omega Ruby/Sapphire OST orchestration:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dcsij1P7Mtg

Official Background Art:
https://i.imgur.com/TgT5AgM.jpg

This song licensed under Creative Commons CC BY 4.0:
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/