GameCube Classic Pokémon XD: Gale of Darkness is Now Available to Play on Nintendo Switch 2

Fan-favorite Pokémon series Pokémon XD: Gale of Darkness is now available to play again via Nintendo Switch 2. We heard last month that the classic would arrive sometime in March via the Nintendo Switch Online subscription, and today that day has now come. As ever, though, you'll need the pricier Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack tier to play GameCube titles. Originally released in 2005, Gale of Darkness is a successor to the Pokémon Colosseum (and earlier Stadium) titles, though it is more notable for featuring a fan-favorite story mode featuring the very cool-looking Shadow Lugia. The game's story revolves around the corruption of creatures by Team Rocket, and its depiction and usage of Shadow Pokémon influenced later games in the franchise — particularly the appearance of Shadow Pokémon again in Pokémon Go. (Sadly, Shadow Lugia has not put in another appearance there, though.) At the time, when Pokémon mainline games had yet to evolve into the big 3D open-world adventures seen today, Pokémon XD: Gale of Darkness was arguably the best-looking game the Pokémon franchise had seen. It's stuck in the memory of fans since, who have been eagerly awaiting its arrival to a modern a