Pokémon XD: Gale of Darkness
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| Pokémon XD: Gale of Darkness | |
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| Developer(s) | Genius Sonority |
| Publisher(s) | Nintendo |
| Engine | Pokémon Colosseum engine |
| Release date(s) | JPN August 4, 2005 NA October 3, 2005 EU November 18, 2005 |
| Genre(s) | RPG |
| Mode(s) | Single player, multiplayer |
| Rating(s) | ESRB: Everyone OFLC: G PEGI: 3+ |
| Platform(s) | GameCube |
| Media | 1 × GameCube Optical Disc |
Pokémon XD: Gale of Darkness, released in Japan as Pokémon XD Yami no Kaze Dark Lugia (ポケモンXD 闇の旋風ダーク・ルギア Pokemon Ekkusudī Yami no Kaze Dāku Rugia?, lit. "Pokémon XD: Whirlwind of Darkness Dark Lugia"), is the second console role-playing game from Nintendo’s Pokémon franchise for the Nintendo GameCube. It is the successor of the GameCube game Pokémon Colosseum. The game takes place in Orre, the setting of Pokémon Colosseum’s adventure mode. All of the Game Boy Advance Pokémon games can connect to this game through trading and Battle Mode.
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[edit] Story
The story begins 5 years after the events of Pokemon Colosseum with the introduction of Michael, the main protagonist. Michael first meets Professor Krane, his mother's boss. He introduces the concept of Shadow Pokémon, which are Pokémon whose hearts have been artificially closed. The criminal syndicate Cipher is creating and distributing them for their evil purposes. Krane also introduces the Snag Machine, which is used to capture Shadow Pokémon to purify. Krane charges Michael with the Snag Machine to capture these Shadow Pokémon and gives him a special pair of glasses so he can identify them. Shortly after this, Krane is kidnapped by Cipher agents. Michael goes out to save Krane and to uncover and defeat the Cipher syndicate.
[edit] Main characters
- Michael (Ryuuto): The main hero of the game. Michael lives in the Pokémon HQ Lab with his sister Jovi, mother Lily and Professor Krane. Michael’s starter is an Eevee. Michael must stop the criminal activities of Cipher and purify all the Shadow Pokémon they have created, especially XD001 Lugia. Michael has several partners including Jovi and Professor Krane. Michael is a default name for the main character, not an official name.
- Eevee: Michael’s starter Pokémon which was received from his father who died. Eevee can early evolve into any of its five initial forms: Vaporeon, Jolteon, Flareon, Umbreon and Espeon. It cannot evolve into Leafia or Glacia in this game, for Diamond and Pearl are the first games with 4th generation Pokemon.
- Jovi (Mana): Michael’s young and scatterbrained sister. She is a bit hyper and enjoys being the center of attention. She occasionally goes to Professor Kaminko’s house for unwelcome visits. She teams up Michael at one point in the game. She refers to herself in the third person.
- Lily (Lilia): Michael and Jovi’s mother who works in the HQ Lab with Krane. When Krane is captured by Cipher, she leads the scientists into finishing the Purification Chamber they’ve been working on.
- Professor Krane: The leading scientist in Orre and leads the Purification Chamber Project in the Pokémon HQ Lab. He is kidnapped by Cipher early in the game and is held prisoner in the old Cipher Shadow Lab. Michael rescues Krane, the professor becoming the player’s partner for a short period in order to escape the lab and battle Lovrina. Krane later gives the player the Master Ball in order to snag XD001.
- Eagun (Rogan): A legendary trainer who lives in Agate Village with his wife Beluh and Pikachu. He has trouble with sending e-mails. He provides some advice during Michael's journey.
- ONBS: The television station in Pyrite City owned by the group previously known as the Kids’ Grid. Secc, Nett, Bitt, Marcia, Megg and Duking’s other children all work in the ONBS. ONBS is invaded by Cipher in the game and it is up to the player to save it.
- Professor Kaminko: A lonely but eccentric scientist who lives in an old house to the east of the HQ Lab. He lives with his loyal assistant Chobin. He has constructed a Robotic Groudon and Kyogre.
- Chobin: Kaminko’s assistant and bodyguard. He is a short man with blue hair and glasses with black swirls on it that make him look like a madman. He thinks Kaminko's rather useless inventions are impressive. He has a Sunflora, a Gyarados, a Hoppip and a Tropius, but when you first battle him, he only has a Sunkern. Chobin later takes control of the Robotic Groudon. He has a resemblance to E. Gadd. He, like Jovi, refers to himself in the third person.
- Team Cipher (Team Shadow): The evil syndicate that was supposedly shut down 5 years ago is back, bigger and badder than ever. They have stolen 82 Pokémon from a stolen luxury ship, S.S. Libra and made them into Shadow Pokémon. Their most powerful Shadow Pokémon is XD001 Lugia, a prototype who has had its heart sealed and resistant to purification. The main members of Cipher are now Master Greevil, his sons Eldes and Ardos, chief executive Snattle and admins Lovrina and Gorigan.
- Master Greevil (Master Deathgold): The leader of Cipher and father of Ardos and Eldes. Greevil disguises himself as the friendly Mr. Verich who is very kind and gives free meals to the sailors at Gateon Port. He owns a full-shadow team consisting of Articuno, Zapdos, Moltres, Exeggutor, Tauros and Rhydon. Greevil also controls XD001 Lugia. At the end of the game, thanks to some loving words from Eldes, Greevil surrenders to the police after being defeated by Michael. After snagging all his shadow pokemon, he will have a Swellow, Manectric, Starmie, Granbull, Aerodactyl and Altaria, all at level 50.
- XD001 Lugia: The most powerful Shadow Pokémon yet. XD001 has had the door to its heart sealed forever and cannot be purified except when the purification chamber has all its circles at maximum tempo and also if taken to the Agate Shrine in Agate Town.
- Ardos and Eldes: Greevil’s twin sons and bodyguards. Ardos totally believes in the Shadow Pokémon plan and tries to goad his father into destroying Citadark Island with Michael still on it. Greevil surrenders to the police, and Ardos flees, now running from a nationwide man-hunt. Eldes is friendlier than his brother and tries to convince his father to give into the police and succeeds. If a third shadow Pokémon game were to be made, Ardos could easily be the new antagonist.
- Lovrina: Lovrina is a young admin in Cipher, and is also the first Cipher admin you will battle. She has very long pink hair and a stroppy temper, similar to that of the previous admin Venus from Pokémon Colosseum. Lovrina tries to convince Professor Krane to help with XD001 but he will have no part in it. Lovrina has a Shadow Delcatty and later a Shadow Farfetch'd and Altaria.
- Snattle (Wazzle): The chief executive of Cipher. He is somewhat a posh man and enjoys power. He was promised by Greevil he’d become the governor of Orre when the Shadow Project was finished. He has a Shadow Lunatone and later a Shadow Solrock and Starmie to match.
- Gorigan: Gorigan is another admin. Hotheaded and strong, Gorigan is highly like Dakim from Colosseum. He runs the Cipher Key Lab, his office on top of the base. He is a bit comical and has a hunchback in the making. He is quite the acrobatic. He has a Shadow Primeape, Hypno and later he will have a Shadow Poliwrath and Mr. Mime.
- Team Snagem: Team Snagem are not dead either, but the group is small at the moment. Gonzap is still the leader.
- Gonzap: The ledgendary leader of Snagem. His moustache and eyebrows have shortened, but he hasn't changed much since Colosseum. Looking for revenge on Cipher, he becomes a temporary ally with Michael and helps him break into the Cipher Key Lab. In the end, he becomes a hero all together, as he is seen among the cast of heroes at the end of story mode.
- Miror B. (Miraabo): The groovy, music-loving Cipher admin returns, now with a bigger afro than ever. He is now a wanderer, but still has Folly and Trudly for company. Every time you fail to snag a Shadow Pokémon, Miror B. will obtain it. Then, an item called the Miror Radar will notify about the location of Miror B. Michael can then fight Miror B. to try to Snag the Shadow Pokémon that he previously lost. When you first battle him, he has a Shadow Voltorb. In the next time you battle him, not counting times you saw him to resnag a shadow Pokémon, he has a Shadow Nosepass. In the third and final time you battle him to not resnag a shadow Pokémon, he has a Shadow Dragonite.
[edit] New features and changes
Pokémon XD contains many new features from its predecessor, Pokémon Colosseum.
[edit] Poké Spot
Poké Spot is a new feature in Pokémon XD that was not included in Pokémon Colosseum. It allows players to battle and capture wild Pokémon. There are three different PokéSpot areas: Cave, Rock, and Oasis. Each spot has different Pokémon that might appear. They also have Pokémon that are rare to them, those Pokémon can be traded ingame. To get a Pokémon at Poké Spots, however, one needs to encourage it there with food, called Poké Snacks, a bit like Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire and Emerald’s Safari Zone Poké Block feeders. But, you will not always find a wild Pokémon when you lure a Pokémon there, as you could find a Munchlax at the Poké Spot.
[edit] Shadow moves
Shadow Pokémon are only able to use Shadow moves until they begin the purification process; this happens after the player has captured them. In Pokémon Colosseum, the only shadow move is Shadow Rush; this has been expanded for XD. There are now eighteen Shadow attacks. Shadow moves are "super-effective" against non-Shadow Pokémon but "not very effective" on Shadow Pokémon.
[edit] Shadow Pokémon
Pokémon Colosseum contains 48 Shadow Pokémon. This game features nearly double that, 83 Shadow Pokémon. Trainers that previously only had one Snag Pokémon now have two. Most Cipher Admins may have up to three Shadow Pokémon; Cipher Admin Eldes has four. The last boss, Grand Master Greevil, has a full party of Shadow Pokémon.
[edit] Purify Chamber
In Colosseum, Shadow Pokémon were purified one at a time at the Agate Shrine. However, since this game features many more Shadow Pokémon, the Purify Chamber was created. In it, a Shadow Pokémon is placed in the center of a circle and up to four regular (non-Shadow) Pokémon are placed on the circle. The regular Pokémon lead and open up the Shadow Pokémon's heart. The Purify Chamber can purify up to nine Shadow Pokémon at once, each in their set of four regulars and one shadow.
[edit] Battle Sims
After receiving the Disc Case from the Cipher Peon disguised as a lady at the gates of Phenac City, you can play them at Realgam Tower. You find through Orre many Battle CDs to use for the Battle Sims. Battle CDs are pre-programmed battles with different rental Pokémon. Some battles have restrictions, such as how many turns players can take and any preset status conditions. Completion of a Battle CD the first time earns an item as a reward, ranging from a Super Potion to a Sacred Ash.
[edit] Battle Bingo
Battle Bingo is another mini-game found at Realgam Tower. The goal is to clear a 4x4 grid with using some Pokémon in battle. You start by choosing your card, with its own Pokémon. You get to use that Pokémon and 2 master balls. Then choose a square and fight a wild Pokémon of the type stated on the square. If you win, you clear the square and choose another that is adjacent to it. If you are at a type disadvantage or just want to use the wild Pokémon because your running out of EP, you may use a master ball to catch it. Note: you do not get to keep any Pokémon you get in Battle Bingo. If you choose a square with a “?”, you get EP, extra master balls, etc. You can also get EP by clearing a line of squares. The game ends if you win or run out of EP. The player can also obtain a Bonsly card after finding the lost Bonsly which can be used to unlock a new Bingo card that allows Bonsly to be the starting Pokémon for Bingo. This is the first time in Pokémon that Bonsly is a usable Pokémon in battle.
[edit] Quick Battle
Quick Battle was also featured in Pokémon Colosseum. In Quick Battle (which is selected by selecting "VS MODE" out of that, "NEW GAME," and "CONTINUE.") you can quickly battle a friend with Pokémon that you may not actually have in Story Mode. (In Pokémon Colosseum, you can only battle a CPU.) The Pokémon in Quick Battle also have more creative movesets than in Colosseum's Quick Battle Mode, such as Pikachu knowing Dynamicpunch as well as other rare moves. Moves are now selected with the C-Stick instead of the normal selecting system. The final and probably most noticeable change to it is that it is always a double battle and teams always have 2 Pokémon. You can not get Groudon and Kyogre in this mode.
[edit] Development
Before the game was released to anybody, several previews were given. Here are some of the previews:
[edit] Reggie Fils-Aime
The first bite of information on Pokémon XD was good news for Pokémon fans: Nintendo of America executive Reggie Fils-Aime revealed in an interview with gaming website IGN in March 2005 that Pokémon XD would have gameplay similar to the Game Boy Advance RPGs Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire, much to the delight of fans disappointed with other Pokémon titles on Nintendo 64 and Nintendo GameCube. Here is the excerpt from the article:
- IGNcube: Finally, what is Pokémon XD?
- Reggie: Pokémon XD is a brand new Pokémon game for GameCube. It’s a true RPG Pokémon. It isn’t a sequel to Colosseum. It’s a brand new build. A brand new game that really plays off the RPG aspects. So think of it this way. If you loved Ruby and Sapphire, you’re going to love Pokémon XD for GameCube.
The final product did end up being a sequel to Pokémon Colosseum, though much was expanded upon, such as new areas and towns, a deeper storyline, more Shadow Pokémon to Snag, and the ability to capture wild Pokémon at 'Pokéspots'.
[edit] Japanese magazines
Japanese gaming magazines Famitsu and CoroCoro Comic later gave screenshots and information that revealed that the game would have 3D graphics similar to those of its predecessor, Pokémon Colosseum. It was also revealed that the game would continue the inclusion of Shadow Pokémon and snagging from Colosseum. Nothing of the plot was revealed, other than the fact that a black Shadow Lugia was said to play a large part in the story.
It was also revealed that the player starts with a level 10 Eevee, and that the levels progress more closely to the main handheld series.
[edit] Nintendo promotions
Nintendo released two demos to promote the game. In the retailer stores demo, the player goes through two battles where the player can snag three Shadow Pokémon. Playable Pokémon in the demo include Gardevoir and Parasect. The second demo as on the "Pokémon Rocks America" tour. Players who finished the demo were able to download a free Metang. During the stop in Phoenix, players could get an early copy of the game.
[edit] Reception
Pokémon XD received mixed reviews, usually scoring 6-7 out of 10 (8.6/10 was its highest score). [1][2]
The game was commonly criticised for having a large amount of recycled material from Pokémon Colosseum, which included a number of reused areas. Another common complaint was the fact that the game was limited in terms of the number of available Pokémon over the course of story mode and how linkage to the Game Boy Advance Pokémon games was only available after story mode was complete.
GameSpy had said in their review:
- ...much of the fun from the portable RPGs is wandering around the world, exploring patches of tall grass and seeing what creatures you randomly encounter. Since you're force-fed the Shadow Pokémon during your encounters with other trainers, it feels more like you're being given a roster of fighters as opposed to building one of your own."
[edit] External links
- Official North American website
- Official Japanese website
- Pokémon XD: Gale of Darkness at Nintendo.com
- Official trailer
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