pokemon emerald question

hey, i was wondering, can i play pokemon emerald on the 3ds?

You need to buy the real game (not a rom). Somewhere around the DS should be a slot where you can insert GBA games. Then, you can play it. If I'm not mistaken there's something else you need to download or maybe there isn't. I forgot; I used to have a DS a year ago and I kinda forgot some stuff about those things. However, I am 100% sure you can.

You CANNOT play Emerald on the 3DS due to the fact that the GBA slot was removed. DS, DSI, DSI XL, GBA, and ROMs on the computer are compatible with Emerald.
Best guess is to get a GBA Emulator.

Spoiler:

Now i have to choose between emerald and y....

Atlas, stop spamming with the spoilers please...

Also, you can only play a Game Boy Advance game [such as emerald] on the Nintendo DS ALONE! The Nintendo DSi and the Nintendo 3DS do not have the Game Boy Advance game slot. I think there is a way to manufacture an emulator / game on a DS / 3DS card or emulation, but I think that's pretty much illegal and voids the warranty of a game system. You're best bet is to get a Nintendo DS and play the game with that console, a Game Boy Advance [good luck finding the obsolete thing], or downloading a Game Boy Advance / Nintendo DS emulator from a site such as http://www.coolrom.com  and downloading the rom [from that same site, since it has emus and roms]. I'm not sure on the compatibility of the rom version with the actual hand-helds, but if I have read my information right, the interlinking is possible.

Links:
http://www.coolrom.com/ <-- Recommended ROM site
http://www.desmume.com/ <-- Recommended Nintendo DS emulator
http://www.gameboy-advance.net/ds-lite/flash-cards.htm <-- I think there's information about flash cards here

You shouldn't have problems finding information. If you need anything else answered about the emulators, there is always Google.