The Darkest Pokemon game you’ve never played

My mom didn’t like Pokémon and never got me any of the games, but I managed to get a hold of Pokémon XD because my dad didn’t realize he bought the GameCube that came bundled with the game for us for Christmas (he also didn’t care that much). So while this was a niche Pokémon game for many, this was actually my first Pokémon game so it holds a special place of nostalgia for me.

Oh god, the “THEY KIDNAPPED AN ENTIRE VILLAGE” section broke me 🤣I was _waiting_ to see how you’d tackle that; and as usual, great video. XD Also, I’d like to share something, with regards to this cool and weird game! *Long comment ahead, people.* You’ve been warned♪

Though it isn’t my very first pokémon game, it’s my fourth; and by far one of my favorite RPG experiences in general; right behind Mario & Luigi Superstar Saga. My personal heroes are a team of goggle-wearing kamen riders, AKA my Ledian (Pulsaveil, mixture of Pulseman and Veil, the Hero and Rival characters from the Game Freak platformer Pulseman) and my Flygon (wanted to call him Pawn’s Arrow because my non-native butt thought it was cool, but it was too long, so I called him Panzaro instead. Every new Flygon I obtain is then named that; it’s a title now. Same for Pulsaveil).

I also had a Ninetails with heat Wave and Sunny Day — excellent teammate for Panzaro’s Flamethrower — a Teraclops with Earthquake — also a great ally, since Panzaro can just ignore it — Shadow Punch and Curse (I _hate_ the Ghost version of Curse, but it dealt with foes way stronger than me, so, necessary evil) an Ariados with Night Shade and Scary Face, and finally, an Electrode called Miror B.
…I really, really, really, like Miror B.

Also, every move I’m not mentioning is one I don’t remember. Sorry. XD I still have my data, but I’ll need a new Wii to access it.

Now, a thing this video doesn’t mention (because it’s not important for the recap) is that when you don’t catch a Shadow Pokémon, Miror B gets it; and because you accidentally gain a radar that tells you exactly where he goes, so that you can simply just have another chance at catching it by fighting Miror B again.
People, I could be in the middle of a super important infiltration mission that’ll tell you more about the plot. But when the radar tells me Miror B’s somewhere?
I. Would. Drop. _EVERYTHING._ To go and run wherever he was just to hear his music again and watch him dance during our battles. It got to a point where- like, okay: so there’s PvE tournaments in this game. One of them is in Realgam Tower, the gambling place. Miror B can literally just enter the tournament there, and you have to enter yourself to follow him; which to me was the most exciting thing ever. Like, you have to infiltrate a tournament to meet a wandering ex-criminal and steal an abused Pokémon mid-fight? Y E S.
I’d typically meet him in semi-finals; he’d have a new Lv40/45 team matching my own (I particularly remember his Sunny Day/Solar Beam/Leech Seed/Sleep Powdere Jumpluff), with new strats, and a Shadow Pokémon to boot.

I spent afternoons just interrupting the actual story to bask in the greatest of his presence, and I fondly remember that. It’s totally a drag; Kid Me just simply didn’t see it this way. XD
As for Greevil, he gave me THE fight of the century at the time like some badass Evil Yoda (he does epic front flips before throwing a pokéball), and forced me to strategize soooo much after going through Citadark. His son has a Shadow Salamence, by the way; kicked that thing’s teeth in with my two heroes.
Speaking of which, against Greevil, my Pulsaveil used Light Screen and Reflect to protect my team from Shadow moves as best I could, while Panzaro fired off Earthquakes, Flamethrowers and Dragon Claws to deal with the opposition. I frequently changed partners (Pulsaveil switched out after doing his job, only coming back to put Screen/Reflect again, or fire off a Brick Break/Psybeam) next to Panzaro to buff ‘im or complement his strength, and he and Pulsaveil ended up being the last ones standing.

It was… something. Like it’s the one Pokémon game where it felt like I had to use _everything_ but the potions/revives (I really didn’t like healing mid-battle) to help my team. If anyone tried to beat Panzaro, I’d use a Snag Ball to steam Greevil’s ‘mon. Sure, four out of six ‘mons of mine were KOed, but they gradually took down the three Legendary Birds, and just the fact that my two goggle-eyed heroes made it through the end is just the best. I never figured out how to purify Lugia as a kid though, which sucked for me; but it was still neat.

It’s also the first game in which I didn’t use the starter because I simply had terrible results with it (took Flareon; I love the fluff), so I’m currently doing a new run to redeem ‘im. I’ll get that Lugia, too; and I’ll try to transfer it all the way up to Gen 8 with that sweet, sweet Psycho Boost. We’ll see if I manage!

If y’all read all of that, thank you for doing so! This is just a long share about a game that I genuinely adore despite its flaws, and I figured it might be entertaining. Thanks for reading! Enjoy your time ^_^