Pokemon Colosseum

"Pokemon Colosseum has started the downfall of console Pokemon games"

This is how Pokemon Coloseum works. There are two modes, RPG mode and Battle mode. RPG mode is similar to playing the handheld Pokemon game in 3D, albeit much more monotone and generic. The battle mode s where you just battle other teams (with no rewards whatsoever). When you first think of Pokemon Colloseum, these things come into mind, "OMG a 3D Pokemon RPG on a console!" "Next gen Pokemon battling" and "Pokemon Stadium 3!". Unfortunately, Pokemon Coloseum doesn't fit these categories quite well.For one, it may be the first Pokemon RPG on a console, but it certainly isn't the best. You are very limited to what you can do, so no catching wild Pokemon or flying or surfing around the overworld. The battling in Colosseum is the same as in the handhelds, but feels much more generic. Most of the attack animations are stale and some of the coding methods Genius Senority uses, looks very unprofessional. Colosseum is certainly not the Pokemon Stadium 3 that Pokemon fans were hoping for. In fact, it feels like a Pokemon Stadium 0.5. Let's break it down:

Gameplay: If you're a fan of Pokemon, you won't find much fun in this game. In the RPG mode, you will be battling a lot, which gets very repetitive and boring pretty quickly. I'm assuming Genius Senority did this to lengthen game play hours because the RPG mode is short and doesn't have much to offer. In battle mode, you will find yourself bored as hell because playing and beating it offers no reward. The odds are stacked greatly against you in battle mode. When you're battling, it feels very awkward. The moment you select your attack, the screen switches to the battle animations quickly, which makes it feel more like a text-based battle you'd find on a website, rather than a real battle. That being said, some things take way too long to proceed. For example, when weather plays a role in the battle, the game rotates around the arena and does like a 360 before switching to the attack selection screen. This is not necessary and feels as if the game developers did some sloppy programming. The camera zooms in and out at random moments, which makes the experience feel weird. All in all, if you played Pokemon Stadium 1 or 2, you're gonna wonder what the hell happened in Pokemon Colosseum.

6/10

Graphics: While some of the attack animations are colorful and all, everything else graphics wise is pretty bad. The original 250 or so Pokemon look the EXACT same as they did on the N64, which means they copied and pasted from Pokemon Stadium. How lazy can Nintendo and Genius Sonority be? You would think that the new Pokemon would look better, because the new Pokemon haven't been on a console game before, and need an animation. Yes and no. Some Pokemon like Groudon look amazing, showcasing how large and rare that Pokemon is. However, some Pokemon like Salamence (a salamander-like dragon) look horrible. The characters in the game look dull and bland, and you'll see the same floor and wall patterns in the RPG mode. Most of the attack animations are boring. You will find that a lot of the moves use circles and a palette swap from another move. You can tell that Nintendo rushed this game into the market.

5/10

Sound: This is probably the worst part of Pokemon Colosseum. Laziness plagues this game, and the sound production shows how much Nintendo is lazy. The Pokemon cries in Pokemon Colosseum are the exact same ones found in the handheld Pokemon games. Yes, sounds that were used 10 years ago are found in this game! In Pokemon Stadium 1 and 2, Game Freak created their own Pokemon cries specifically for the consoles. All Nintendo had to do was make a few more Pokemon cries for the new GBA Pokemon, but instead they scrapped it and used the old Gameboy cries. When you are scrolling down a menu in Pokemon Colosseum, it's the same clicking sound you find in the Gameboy games. Even the music is recycled from the Gameboy Pokemon games. No, the battle themes are not orchestrated, or not even an upgrade from the MIDI like music from the handhelds. It seems like Genius Sonority just popped a synthesizer in and used the exact same song. It's much worst than that though. When you are battling, it feels as if the music is taking over and doesn't blend in as well as Pokemon Stadium. It's like trying to play soccer on a field with bagpipes playing; the music feels more disruptive. Although only one or two tracks in Pokemon Colosseum are decent, the rest of the sound production is unprofessional and recycled from other games.

3/10

Control: Pokemon is a very menu driven game, so it would be very difficult to screw this game. There are a few flaws, however. In RPG mode, you will find yourself with a girl who will always follow you behind your back. She's more of a liability because you can't really talk to her. She will get in your way if you ever have to back track, which makes controlling the movement of the RPG mode somewhat frustrating. When you're battling, the controls are simple, almost too simple. In Pokemon Stadium, Game Freak made use of ALL the buttons on the N64 controllers, making it very easy and intuitive to switch Pokemon, pick attacks, check stats, attack description, etc. In Pokemon Colosseum, you have to move your cursor with the control stick and select with A. It's not bad, but it's not that great either.

7/10

Value: If you don't have a Gameshark/Action Replay and are planning to collect all 386 Pokemon, you will find some value in Pokemon Colosseum. It is the only way to obtain some of the Pokemon legally (e.g. Entei, Raikou, Suicune). If you don't like battling on the GBA, then you may like what Colosseum has to offer. For single player battles, you can fight other trainers in battle mode, although it's not very fun after a while. For multiplayer battles, you can battle each other. However, it is very flawed. For one, you need a lot of hardware in order for you to battle with your friends (i.e. two GBA's, two Pokemon GBA games, two GBA-GC link cables). You cannot save your team onto Pokemon Colosseum, which makes things very inconvenient. If you don't mind losing some of the new attack and abilities, and only want to use the old Pokemon, go back to Pokemon Stadium 2 because Colosseum's multiplayer mode is much worse. For everyone else, don't even bother with this game. You will dislike Pokemon, and even if you wanted to try a Pokemon RPG on a console, it will sorely disappoint you.

5/10

Summary: Nintendo, what have you done to Pokemon console games? You gave this game to Genius Sonority, a newbie game developer who obviously needs more practice making video games. Once again Nintendo, you've shown us how lazy you can be by using the same Pokemon animations that were used 6 years ago and ripping sounds off an old Gameboy Color game made 10 years ago. You've shown us how desperately you want money by releasing a sloppy, rushed Pokemon game into the stores. You've ruined our hopes of a true Pokemon RPG in 3D. Combined with your work of laziness, greed, and your general decline of quality video games, you've created a piece of crap that is Pokemon Colosseum.

PRO: Pokemon in 3D
PRO: Although not great, offers a slighty difference experience in Pokemon games
PRO: Offer exclusive Pokemon that you can only get in this game

CON: Shallow RPG Mode
CON: Watered-down Battle Mode
CON: Bland graphics
CON: All attack animations relatively the same
CON: Many sounds recycled from Gameboy games
CON: Sloppy programming
CON: Feels rushed, for quick $$$

I give Pokemon Colosseum a 4.0/10

Reviewer's Score: 4/10, Originally Posted: 07/22/08

Game Release: Pokemon Colosseum (US, 03/22/04)