bit-tech Shopping: Nintendo Pokemon XD: Gale of Darkness (GC)

Rating: 8

Time with product:

Strengths: Fun double battles, interesting story, great for catching rare pokemon not readily available in Generation III and IV

Weaknesses: Repetitive at times, too much is recycled straight from Pokemon Colosseum

Summary: I happened to play Gale of Darkness before playing Pokemon Colosseum and the number of improvements made over its predecessor are many. The game play is more fun than the hand held titles as each fight is a double battle which adds to the complexity of a rather simple battle system. The game uses a world map which you select your destination, so you never get to explore what is between point a to b. While I would have preferred a more exploratory world, it does make the gameplay go by faster. Though the gameplay can get quite repetitive as the battles are sometimes slow and there are long stretches without any new pokemo to catch. The graphics are rather nice as it is interesting to see each pokemon fully animated and more than just a static sprite. Unfortunately, most of the areas are directly recycled from Pokemon Colosseum so there is little variety when playing both of the Game Cube RPGs. Overall, Pokemon XD: Gale of Darkness is a really fun RPG, and plays much differently than its simpler GBA/DS counterparts.

Rating: 4

Time with product: 1

Strengths: The sequel of Pokemon Colosseum, Pokemon XD, is more of the same. It can either be a deal-breaker or a jump for joy, depending on the person.

Weaknesses: It doesn't build up much over Colosseum.

Summary: If you're trying to choose between Colosseum or XD, choose XD. If you already have Colosseum, to be frank, you've already played Gale of Darkness.Pokemon XD's main weakness is that it doesn't build up much over Colosseum. It's the same thing with a new coat of paint. It tweaks something here and there, and offers no graphical improvements.

Rating: 8

Time with product: 3

Strengths: Fun quest mode, lots of unique Pokemon

Weaknesses: Battles can be long and slow

Summary: Pokemon XD improves upon its predecessor, Pokemon Colosseum, in almost every way. There are more Pokemon, new and interesting locations, and plenty of sidequests for the seasoned trainer. The ability to save anywhere is a plus, and the process of purifying Shadow Pokemon is much more interesting - it's almost like a minigame on its own! Recommended for Pokefans.

Rating: 10

Time with product: 19 Months

Strengths: Great pokemon game!!!

Weaknesses: None.

Summary: This is the sequel to Pokemon Colosseum. The game is similar to colosseum with new improvements. You can now run around and talk to anybody like any regular RPG game. Graphics and music is much better than colosseum. This is a must have for all of you pokemon fan out there!!!