Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Darkness

"Probably the most addicting Pokémon game EVER."

Nintendo took a big change from the usual Pokemon RPGs when they released PMD1. Now, they've released the sequel, and made a good game even better.

Story Rating: 10/10
PMD2 starts out pretty much the same as PMD1.. You wake up as a Pokemon and you can't remember anything. Then your friendly partner forms a rescue team with you, and you hope to remember your past as you help other Pokemon.

And then they decide to add some pretty great twists. Unlike PMD1, in this game it's time that's screwed up, and you get to go to the future for a little while. Furthermore, two of the "main" characters are definitely not to be taken at first impression and end up causing some of the main plot turns.

The story also seems a bit less rushed than PMD1's did, and even has a few almost tear-jerker moments in it, which is actually a pretty good surprise for a Pokemon game.

Gameplay : 8/10
Similarly to PMD1 (or any Mystery Dungeon-type game), you spend almost all of your time in dungeons, either searching for an item, rescuing a Pokemon, escorting clients, or just reaching the end of the cave. It can get a bit tedious at times, but a few fun new things have been added in PMD2.

First, there's a new type of mission: Outlaw Missions. You'll be arresting or taking an item from a criminal Pokemon, and fortunately, you find them as soon as you enter a floor, so you don't have to search forever like you do for other missions.

Also, they've added a mini-game of sorts called Sentry Duty. You identify Pokemon by footprints, and you can get some really good rewards if you do well.

And personally, I think the post-story game play is a bit more interesting than in PMD1, as it's more straightforward and the dungeons are more fun.

Music: 10/10
The music is great in this game, and fits the caves and situations extremely well. Also, I've found that the music is extremely catchy, and it's overall more memorable than PMD1 (though PMD1 had some good tracks, too).

Sound Effects: 6/10
Eh... Not that great, but not horrible either. Still, you'd think they'd improve the Sound Effects a bit, given how great the music is.

Graphics: 8/10
PMD1 and PMD2 seem to get a bad rap about the graphics, since they had to use GBA capabilities due to MD Red and didn't update them for PMD2. However, teh graphics really aren't that bad, and I like a lot of the overworld sprites. The dungeons and mugshots look pretty decent as well, although I suppose some of the attack graphics could be better.

Wi-Fi: 8/10
This game added Wi-Fi, so it automatically gets some good points in my book. You can download missions and do rescues over Wi-Fi, although to download the missions you have to be past a certain point in the post-game.

Overall Ranking: 8/10
PMD1 was a great game, don't get me wrong, but PMD2 made so many great additions and changes. There are still a few things that can be ironed out, but overall, PMD2 was a great sequel.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 11/07/08

Game Release: Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Darkness (US, 04/20/08)