The Pokemon franchise turned 25 years old in 2021, and numerous games have released during that time. Eight mainline generations each introduced a region, often explored via two versions of the same game followed by either an enhanced third version or sequel. Plenty of Pokemon spin-offs have also made their mark, be they puzzle and pinball games or standalone adventures. Pokemon Colosseum and XD: Gale of Darkness stand out among those spin-offs.
Released for GameCube in 2003 and 2005, respectively, Pokemon Colosseum and XD: Gale of Darkness were the debut projects for Genius Sonority - a smaller start-up headed by Manabu Yamana that was funded in-part by former Nintendo president Hiroshi Yamauchi's "Q Fund." Genius Sonority would later become known for games like Pokemon Trozei!, Learn with Pokemon: Typing Adventure, and Pokemon Cafe Mix. Though its projects include Dragon Quest Swords: The Masked Queen and the Tower of Mirrors and The Denpa Men trilogy, Pokemon games are the studio's bread and butter, and many would be excited to see its GameCube duology brought back.
Why Pokemon Colosseum and XD: Gale of Darkness Stand Out
Genius Sonority's debut titles are essentially follow-ups to Pokemon Stadium and its sequel on N64. The franchise did not fully adapt 3D graphics until Pokemon X and Y in 2013, so Colosseum and XD: Gale of Darkness served as a way to bring Generation 3 Pokemon outside the confides of the Game Boy Advance's 2D sprites. Pokemon Battle Revolutions on Wii - also developed by Genius Sonority - did the same thing for Generation 4, but the GameCube games went a step further by offering their own RPG stories.
Almost every mainline Pokemon game follows the same formula: Young trainers from a small town receive their first partner and venture out to become the Pokemon League Champion, filling out their Pokedex and battling villains along the way. Games like Pokemon Sun and Moon sub out elements but keep the basics intact. Pokemon Colosseum stars Wes, a former member of the evil Team Snagem who takes a device that lets him steal other peoples' Pokemon. He only uses this to steal and later purify Shadow Pokemon engineered by the Cipher organization, but Colosseum's tale of espionage and corporate conspiracy goes further than others in the franchise.
XD: Gale of Darkness takes place a few years after Colosseum, set in the same Orre region that's based on Phoenix, Arizona; predating Black and White's New York-themed Unova. Its protagonist Michael is a more traditional young trainer, but his goal revolves around stopping Cipher now that it controls Shadow Lugia (an edgy but fan-favorite design with similarities to Pokken Tournament's Shadow Mewtwo). Wes starts Colosseum with an Umbreon and Espeon, calling attention to the game's focus on Generation 3 Double Battle mechanics, but Michael starts XD with an Eevee that offers players more freedom.
Bringing the Orre Region Back
Some of what made these titles special are antiquated by today's standards. It's no longer unique to see Pokemon translated into 3D (though the scale of Colosseum and XD lend themselves to more animations), and some promotional elements like the first appearance of Bonsly and Munchlax prior to Generation 4 are no longer really relevant. However, the stories in Genius Sonority's Orre region make them worth bringing back to experience on modern hardware.
For every comment about wanting to play as antagonists like Team Rocket, it's surprising The Pokemon Company hasn't done more to promote characters like Wes as alternatives to its series' somewhat cookie cutter narratives. Colosseum and XD: Gale of Darkness don't have the deepest plots - they are still Pokemon games - but they have lots of memorable characters and locations like Phenac City. Many will point to Miror B., an eccentric man with a Poke Ball afro who disco dances with Ludicolo. However, there are many others like Dr. Kaminko and his Robo Groudon suit to discover.
If Nintendo adds GameCube support to its Switch Online program, Colosseum and XD: Gale of Darkness would be great companions. They would lose connectivity with Game Boy Advance titles, but their original stories are ultimately more important and fans could still battle over the Internet using rental teams. However, with Genius Sonority still kicking, it would be better to see the original team work on a re-release of sorts, perhaps enhancing and packing together their stories like the upcoming Advance Wars 1 + 2: Re-Boot Camp.
Pokemon Colosseum and XD: Game of Darkness are available now on GameCube.