The Pokemon company comes up with a compelling sequel to Pokemon Colosseum, but with a few fatal flaws.
The game features many lovable and memorable characters, from a big dude with a crew cut that tries to smash your sister, to the former leader of Cipher who likes to dance and jiggle his red and white afro. Each one will leave you stunned, and i guarantee when you see some of them twice (usually the bad guys) you'll think 'oh no...'.
The graphics aren't too bad, typical of a Game cube. But, they are a bit better then some games. The 3D renderings of Pokemon are pretty cool, and actually came out well. Watching people cry after you defeat them in battle is downright hilarious. The musical score in this game is quite epic, with everything from eerie cave music to a world map thing that'll get stuck in your head.
Gameplay can get repetitive. Basically you battle other people's Pokemon. The farther on in the game the harder this gets. If you see a shadow Pokemon you capture it. And no, you can't capture real trainer's Pokemon (thieves!). After that you make an attempt to "purify" the Pokemon and "open the door to its heart" by giving it messages and walking around with it. It all sounds like hippy mumbo jumbo but as long as the old man who helps you is happy just go with it. After purifying a Pokemon you lose its incredibly awesome moves and get whatever moves it would've had. The most annoying part, there are only four places to catch wild Pokemon. And you have to bait them. And you have to drop what you're doing and go to the spots if your special watch says Pokemon are there. Yes, you have a special watch that goes through your items, Pokemon, caught list (same thing as a regional Pokedex), Pokemon catching spots, and it radars where the afro guy is. Interesting piece of technology. The maps are pretty cool and have a lot of details and things, but when in a Cipher base, you'll find yourself running around trying to avoid grunts dropping from the ceiling. Freaks. Also, it can take forever to get to where you're going.
Overall, this game is immersive and addicting. But for those of us who value achievement, you'll find yourself wasting way to much game time purifying Pokemon and running through dungeons. Overall an 8 out of 10.