History YMMV / PokemonColosseum

** Pyrite Town, a catchy, jazzy number painting the vivid picture of [[ViceCity the smoky, sneaky town of crime.]]

* BestBossEver: The final battle against [[spoiler:Evice]] is one of the hardest bosses in the series, but unlike some bosses, the fight contains legitimate strategies that actually have you think off your feet. The music is amazing, and highlights the end of the adventure and difficult fight ahead and the background and tension for the battle is awesome.

** The reveal of the BigBad. [[spoiler:It's not the tall, cool-looking Nascour; it's the short, fat, ugly mayor of Phenac City. Who somehow floats. [[DifficultySpike And has the toughest team in the main story, somehow]]]].

* VindicatedByHistory: On release, mainstream outlets decried ''Colosseum'' for [[TheyChangedItNowItSucks straying too far from the formula of the main series games.]] At the time, the series didn't have a full-3D single-player adventure, so expectations were very high. Once Pokémon's main games ''did'' make the leap to 3D, the series began being accused of [[ItsTheSameSoItSucks the opposite trope]], and the Gamecube 3D models were often cited as more characterful and charming than the style later entries used. Combined with the heavy SequelDifficultyDrop of the main series, ''Colosseum''[='s=] NintendoHard story mode was also vindicated. This game is now looked back on very fondly, rather than being just a CultClassic.

* NightmareRetardant: Nascour is a tall, demonic and uncanny-looking man that is also a top executive of Cipher, but because of how out of place he looks like especially in a ''Pokémon setting'', he inversely looks too ridiculous to be taken seriously.

** [[https://youtu.be/tqOTyApGQ1k Pyrite Town]], a catchy, jazzy number painting the vivid picture of [[ViceCity the smoky, sneaky town of crime.]]

** Miror B's battle in Realgam Tower lacks his [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gZsOwo9rhsQ iconic battle music]] and instead goes with the much more dramatic, but far less fitting [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ld4TzVQD0Ag Cipher admin theme]]. That means the opening notes of the song are playing... ''[[https://youtu.be/MmdeGe5-I_c?t=325 while Miror B. is dancing.]]''

** Multiplayer requires GBA cartridges, there's no rental Pokémon roster, and Quick Battle is only one player.

** [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking Trading is not available until the post-game]]. Without Badges to mark obedience as the game progresses, all Pokémon obey Wes without question--but without being able to trade, [[ObviousRulePatch you can't swap Plusle for a level 100 you trained up in Hoenn]] and curb-stomp Cipher with it.

* AlternativeCharacterInterpretation: Wes gets this a lot, particularly regarding his original plans for the Snag Machine and his decision to help Rui, as due to his SilentProtagonist status his true motivations are never made clear in the game itself. Some fans see him as a [[TheAtoner fundamentally good person despite a rough past]], who left Team Snagem out of disgust for their actions and stole the Snag Machine to prevent them from using it, and only reluctantly began using it himself as a [[NecessarilyEvil means of saving the Shadow Pokémon]]. Alternatively, he's a straight-up VillainProtagonist, who's parting with Team Snagem was merely the result of deciding he [[ICanRuleAlone didn't need them anymore]], and only begins targeting the Shadow Pokémon after realizing he could effectively steal them without consequence and [[VillainWithGoodPublicity no one would fault him for it]]. Fanfics and LetsPlays frequently portray him as a HeroicComedicSociopath.

** The last post-game Shadow Pokémon you have to snag is... a Lv 20 Togetic. That's considerably lower-level than the Pokémon you ''started the game with'', and Togetic isn't a particularly strong Pokémon at that. The biggest danger in snagging it is not accidentally knocking it out. (Which is very easy to do, as you're expected to have a Lv 65-70 team at that point)
** Inity, the Mt Battle Master in Battle Mode Doubles. His team isn't terrible, but coming after battles 98 and 99, which have [[OlympusMons Groudon and Kyogre]] respectively, he's a total joke. Contrast that to Infin, the end boss of Singles Mt Battle, who has a Kyogre.

* BreatherBoss: After several tough rematches with the four Cipher Admins and before the battle with the head of Cipher, [[spoiler:Gonzap]] is actually not that tough at all. He even has some ArtificialStupidity, spamming Earthquake on the three of his Pokémon that have it, even though every time he does it, it knocks big chunks out of whoever else he has out at the time. Using Flygon makes it even funnier, since Levitate makes it immune to ground moves. His Shadow Skarmory can be a pain to catch, though. (Unless you swap-duplicate the Master Ball, then it's a cinch.)

* ComplacentGamingSyndrome: There are a little over 50 Shadow Pokémon, a lot of them aren't particularly powerful, and the purification mechanics mean investing in ones obtained later in the game is a hassle. While they're still perfectly useable, most players prefer to just run with teams consisting of one or both starter Eeveelutions, Makuhita/Hariyama, a Johto starter (usually not Bayleef), Flaafy/Ampharos, and Quagsire. All of them come at the beginning of the game and pull their weight throughout. Any or all of the Legendary Beasts may also get used since they're far more powerful than most of the Pokémon the game has to offer. The only standard late-game Pokémon that frequently sees use is Vibrava/Flygon, since it actually benefits from being a latecomer due to skipping its MagikarpPower period.

** You can use [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PK4lMxx6YAc any Ball an infinite number of times by using it on your first mon's turn and switching your item list around in the second - and yes, this includes the Master Ball.]]

** Hyper Mode forces you to forfeit a turn to dispel it, which can be frustrating if the Shadow Pokémon that contracted it is at low health and gets KO'd as a result.

** Most games start you with a single Level 5 Pokémon. Wes starts with the two Johtonian Eeveelutions at a level 25, (for comparison, most starter Pokémon reach their final evolution at 36), with correspondingly higher-level tactics right out of the gate.

** [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking Trading is not available until the post-game]]. Without Badges to mark obedience as the game progresses, all Pokémon obey Wes without question - but without being able to trade, [[ObviousRulePatch you can't swap Plusle for a Lv 100 you ground up in Hoenn]] and curb-stomp Cipher with it.

* SpoiledByTheFormat: Most of the trainers, [[TheComputerIsACheatingBastard most notably two towards the end]], use Pokémon that were technically available to you when the game was released. So, you'll see evolutions or pre- evolutions of Shadow Pokémon all over the place before you can snag them, sometimes way before. You'll see Spinarak all over the place, including one in the first city, but you get to snag Ariados just about halfway through. ''Colossseum'' uses Pokémon that are available in ''VideoGame/PokemonRubyAndSapphire'' plus all the Gen II ones, including ones that evolve from Gen I Pokémon that are unavailable in ''Ruby and Sapphire''.

** Dakim has three Pokémon with Earthquake and Protect, and they will alternate between them so one hits the entire field with Earthquake and the other doesn't take anything by Protecting. Earthquake also hits his Shadow Entei super effectively and it doesn't have Protect, so if you're not careful he'll knock it out and prevent you from catching it.
** Venus is among the most tedious bosses to fight in the whole game. Her entire team except her Shadow Suicune knows Attract, which makes Pokémon of the opposite gender unable to attack 50% of the time. Her Delcatty hits surprisingly fast and hard, and on top of infatuation, her Vileplume can paralyze your Pokémon with Stun Spore, making them only able to attack '''20% of the time''' if affected by both. To make matters worse, her Pokémon have a sudden level spike from the Pokémon you fought previously by about 5 levels, which makes the fight more difficult to those who haven't grinded in preparation.

** The abandoned mine hideout of Miror B. is a maze of tunnels and bridges and caverns and they all look alike. The random trainers scattered throughout will have you jumping for joy when you stumble onto the heal machine before the boss battle. Although you get a cutscene skip to Duking's house after battling Miror B, you have to find your way in and out on your own when you go after [[OptionalBoss Mirakle B.]] And if you thought you could use an Escape Rope like in the handheld games... you can't in this game.

** Realgam Tower has a lot of tough battles to get through, several of them with Cipher admins, and the level spike of Nascour and [[spoiler:Evice]] means you have to grind to stand any chance of beating them. Nascour is in the 50s, and [[spoiler:Evice]] at 60-61. Plus, you can't save after each battle in the final part, meaning you have to deliberately lose to one of the normal trainers and then save to secure snagged Shadow Pokémon (fortunately you're healed after each battle). However, Nascour and [[spoiler:Evice]] are both much higher than anyone else you've faced, and you likely won't be strong enough the first time you fight them.

** The Plusle that Duking gives you is a JokeCharacter in-game. However, if the developers had made Minun obtainable, as DummiedOut text from Nett suggests they had at one point planned to, it could have been a rather good option. The abilities of Plusle and Minun, Plus and Minus respectively, raise the Special Attack of both Pokémon if they are allied with each other. Considering this game is all Double Battles, it's rather frustrating that they didn't end up including Minun.

* VindicatedByHistory: On release, mainstream outlets decried ''Colosseum'' for [[TheyChangedItNowItSucks straying too far from the formula of the main series games.]] At the time the series didn't have a full-3D single-player adventure, so expectations were very high. Once Pokémon's main games ''did'' make the leap to 3D, the series began being accused of [[ItsTheSameSoItSucks the opposite trope]], and the Gamecube 3D models were often cited as more characterful and charming than the style later entries used. Combined with the heavy SequelDifficultyDrop of the main series, ''Colosseum''[='s=] NintendoHard story mode was also vindicated. This game is now looked back on very fondly, rather than being just a CultClassic.