I have done a ton of reviews for Playstation and I felt bad for leaving my Gamecube in the dust. My first review was actually a Gamecube game and after righting a review on that game, which was Wrestlemania XIX, I stop writing about Gamecube games. So I decided to write some more Gamecube reviews. And the first game I chose was Pokemon XD Gale of Darkness.
Story
The story is pretty well done for a Pokemon game. You a boy who is the son of a Pokemon researcher. The boy is just sent off on various errands for his mother such as finding his sister. But on these missions he encounters Shadow Pokemon, whom are sorta evil. This leads the boy through various locations to find and capture these creatures and to purify the shadows from them. Along the way an evil group, called the Cipher Group tries to hinder your attempts. One thing that confuses me about the story is how a boy, whom had no prior Pokemon experience, was sent on such an important mission. And why did not his father, who was supposed to be some big pokemon researcher help him on his journey. Even though at times the story made no sense, it was still a very competent story.
Graphics
The graphics of the world outside from the battles are basically the same as Colosseum. But maybe Gale of Darkness is a smidgen above Colosseum in this department. The Pokemon and their moves look exactly like how they did in Colosseum. The only exception is that some new Pokemon now have shadow forms which look pretty cool. The most improved aspect graphically are really the trainers. The trainers now actually look at their Pokemon as they attack, they get hit, and actually send them out. Simply stated the trainers just have better animations in this game. Several other graphical glitches from Colosseum were for the most part removed. Overall the graphics were pretty solid, even though they could have improved.
Sound
The music in this game is much better than it was in Colosseum. Both games had great song tracks, but Pokemon XD had a wider range of music to listen to. My favorite track was on the stage in which you had to battle Dark Lugia. The only problem I have with the sound were the Pokemon battle cries which sound like crap. The only game that had the Pokemon sound like they should was in Pokemon Stadium Two. I don't understand why these next generation Pokemon games never fixed the Pokemon's sounds.
Gameplay
The first hour of the game is just dialogue, at this juncture they explain all the basics, but after that you are free to start catching and training Pokemon. In this game you can have up to nine Pokemon at a time. The only thing that sucks is that you have to capture shadow Pokemon. After you capture a shadow Pokemon you have to train it until it becomes purified, or you can use the Purification Chamber which cleanses Pokemon automatically. In the game there are 163 different shadow Pokemon. By the way you start off with an Eevee, and you are able to evolve it quite soon after you receive it. I recommend evolving it since Eevee by itself, even though it is cute, is pretty weak until it evolves into one of its five forms.
Battling in this game is just as it is in any Pokemon game, it is turn based. The animations and graphics do enhance this feature however. There is nothing real bad to say about the battling except some Pokemon have attacks that they cant and should never be able to learn. One thing that separates this from Colosseum is that the game really goes hard on double battles that adds a new dimension and new strategy to the game.
After the main quest is done there are other things you can do. There are Battle Sims, about 50, in which you get rental Pokemon in order to solve a puzzle in battle. There is also Battle Bingo, in which you choose panels and according to the chosen panels you are given a Pokemon in which to battle others. Choose the wrong panel, and you may lose EP or your life.
Mt. Battle also returns as a way to train and level up your Pokemon, you will be here quite a lot trying to strengthen and trying to evolve your party Pokemon. Colosseum Mode also returns, enabling you to battle your Pokemon in the Colosseum. It is basically the same as before, the first battles are warm ups and after about 4 or 5 battles they get pretty difficult.
Replay Value
It is very high since you can play through the story many times and it does not get dull since you can also change up the Pokemon you use. There are also many other modes that keep this game entertaining such as battle bingo and The Colosseum Area.
Related Reviews:
Pokemon Diamond for DS
http://www.epinions.com/content_410248777348
Pokemon Emerald for Game Boy Advance
http://www.epinions.com/content_342138850948
Overall I recommend buying this game if you have a Gamecube and if you played Colosseum. This game is a notch of Pokemon Colosseum and you will be delighted by some of the changes. This game offers some new Pokemon ideology while still incorporating some nostalgic Pokemon ideas. This is a very solid Pokemon game.
