Ah! That's interesting. I'm playing Alpha Sapphire right now. I love Pokemon, but tend toward the newer gens because they have more story.
Older games, or games that mimic older styles, can be pretty hit and miss for me as a result, even though I can appreciate a lot of the work and complexity put into them from an outside view (watching someone else play).
Revisiting the anime got me on a Hoenn kick, so here we are.
If you like indie games, and if you enjoy puzzles and story, have you ever tried Ib? It's a short indie psychological horror game that is all puzzles (no fighting), but really interesting.
The brief snippets of gameplay I got to experience weren't half bad. It's not one I would necessarily discourage other people from trying and I might even recommend looking into it depending on what I knew about their tastes.
Objectively, I don't think what I experienced (limited as it was) was a bad game. I think it was a frustratingly paced intro to a game with potential. How much potential, I don't know. I've heard mixed things.
You'll have to let me know what you think if you give it a play through.