This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. (Prior Rating 1/4 helpful - WARNING SPOILERS)
After progressing to game completion, I found out that my former review... just did not touch upon some elements. The story is disjointed. You will find yourself on missions to do the strangest things, somehow ending up with you saving the world. You will forget about the reason you are doing whatever you are doing sometime during the game, and its unlikely you will remember for a while. The game is EASY. Like... so easy that the only time I even had a single character felled is when I forgot to heal Karis after a battle while she was at 25% health. You think I used psynergy the entire time? Nope, only attacks. The only time I even used psynergy is while facing Djinn and Bosses, and bosses were the only time I even used Djinn. If you fight all your randoms like this, bosses will drop to their knees in under 8 turns... with barely leaving a scratch on you until the end game bosses. Puzzles? Easy, not the same challenge of the GBA games. Graphics are stellar in battle, par in the world map and towns. Audio is top-notch. Now, that being said, feel free to hate all you want about my review :)… Expand

After seven years, the Golden Sun franchise finally gets a much desired sequel. It doesn't disappoint, either, it's exactly what the fans had been wanting. Though there were pros and cons to the game, just as in the previous games, the cons were things that often times got in the way of the entertainment. I'll get to that later, though.

First is the pros. In terms of storytelling and characterization, Dark Dawn does a much better job than its predecessors. While the game gets off to a slow and rocky start, the actual storytelling, especially starting about halfway through, really improves, and it begins to become enjoyable. Also unlike the first couple games, this game did a lot of characterization into the first six or so characters, especially Sveta. While the last two characters simply game too late to get a good feel for them, you got to know the first six, and in conversation even got a feel for the silent protagonist's personality.

However, the game has a few major faults. First is the ease of the game - simply put, you get too powerful too fast, and the rest of the game winds up becoming a joke. While the final boss does a good job in terms of giving a challenging battle, the combination of surprisingly high experience rewards and rapid acquiring of djinn just keep anything else from coming close to being a threat.

This leads to the second complaint - poor pacing. Some character just plain and simple should have joined up earlier - the last two you get join you in the last hour or so of the game, too late to make any sort of impact. Even worse, one is used as a deus ex machina of sorts, rather jarring considering how well told the story had been up until then.

The biggest kicker, though, had to be that the game suffered from the exact same flaws as its predecessors, little if any attempt to fix this was made. In fact, it's almost like it got worse - while psynergy is decent early game, with both rapid class upgrades and level ups, it's quickly overpowered by the unleashes. Near the middle of the game, it just stops being worth it to cast anything other than buffs and healing - enemies aren't enough of a threat to need debuffs or ailments, and even mages wind up doing more damage with their physical strikes than with psynergy. To add insult to injury, the only real saving grace psynergy had in The Lost Age, the advantage that it can strike an area, is gone as well.

However, the negatives, while it may seem in the review to be greater than the positives, really don't outweigh it. The game is still plenty of fun, and while not phenomenal, it definitely above average. It may be easier than some prefer, but you'll quickly find when doing self-imposed challenges that the game can get very difficult if you skip too many djinn, either on purpose or by mistake. All and all, it's very enjoyable.

However, it should go without saying that the next installment will need to start addressing ome of the problems with the series, as without the 7 year break, fans will be much less forgiving.… Collapse

Golden Sun: Dark Dawn is, in my opinion, not as good as the first two for the GBA. That may be a little unfair in comparison, afterall, since the first two were probably about as good of a GBA game could get. However, this is a sequel, and as a sequel, GSDD is an excellent choice for RPG fans who are looking for a good 30+ hours to invest their cash in on the DS. The graphics are rather impressive, especially for the DS, and the battle animations are remarkable. The sound quality isn't as great as it should be, but I do rather enjoy some of the new scores for various towns as well as remakes from the first two titles. To be fair, the battles are about as straightforward as a turn-based RPG can get, with the occasional Djinn or Summon thrown in. All of the battles were quite easy throughout the game, including bosses. The only boss (excluding secret dungeon bosses) that ever posed a challenge was the final boss. The puzzles throughout the game were also extremely easy, save for a few that took me a little extra time, but never hindered me for long. That being said, the game is very easy and welcomes novice RPG fans. The story is much more bland this time around, with the main quest consisting of "In order to make this thing work, we have to go there and get this item!" All of the playable characters are likable and have personality except for the alternate Earth Adept, who really sounds like a robot in much of the dialogue. There's a decent level of customization based on what combination and how many Djinn you assign to each character, so it's worth it to tinker around a little bit. One thing that irritated me tremendously was the fact that there are passable Djinn and Summons. There were also passable Djinn in the first two Golden Sun games, but I somehow managed to collect all of them anyways. In Dark Dawn, that is not the case, since I completely neglected an entire Summon and the last Earth Djinn. I recommend looking up a Djinn and Summon guide if you can't stand passing one of them. Overall, Golden Sun: Dark Dawn can be called a worthy predecessor. Is it revolutionary? No. Is it one of the greatest RPG's for the DS of this generation? No. But is it a good title and one that is essential if you're a fan? Yes. Recommended to fans and novice RPG gamers, but to those who desire a more challenging RPG for the DS, look elsewhere.… Expand

A word of warning: If you didn't like the first two Golden Sun games, stay away from Dark Dawn. The third entry in the much-beloved series changes little but the graphics, so it's not likely you're going to enjoy this DS iteration.

But then again, most of those that will be picking this one up are the fans that have waited quite a few years for the game... and for them, this will not disappoint. It contains everything you've loved about the Golden Sun games, with a nice graphical upgrade and a new world to explore. You still transverse dungeons solving puzzles, collect Djinn to become stronger, and fight through now-considered-archaic turn-based battles. Overall, fans will enjoy every minute of this 25-hour adventure, while the enjoyment for others will stem from their like of role-playing games.… Expand

After 7 years, they made this game epic. I wish they would come out with more in less then 7 years now. Game as been polished, awesome story tons of added ji ins and summons and spells new characters possibility to swap new characters.

6 years of planning and development by Camelot Software and they haven't wasted a moment of it. This game will be a welcome return to the series for old fans and a great introduction for newcomers to the series. Older players will be happy to find many of the same type of puzzles returning in Dark Dawn along side some fresh ones. The puzzles are a little difficult at times but not completely impossible. The combat maintains the same style of turn based command selection combat, with a host of new moves and spells and a character with a completely new set of fighting mechanics. The characters all have depth and are developed well enough to be likable and seen as real people, and not some tired cliche stereotype. Without giving away spoilers, the world from the last game was saved by the release of the Golden Sun at the end of the last game which is referred to as the 'Golden Sun Event'. While the world stopped it's slow erosion, there were unforeseen side effects, including massive earthquakes, upheavals and huge tidal waves. Now though, the world seems to be falling apart and it's up to the children of the old cast to follow in their parents footsteps and save the world once again. The story will take experienced players about 20 hours to complete and up to 35 or maybe 40 for newcomers, however for completionists, there is many, many more hours of exploring the world, collecting the best items and summons, grinding to maximum level and doing all the sidequests and story mechanics that may even encourage perfectionists to go back and replay the story once it's over.

The game is a little slow to start and returning players who know the basics of how Golden Sun works may find the first thirty or so minutes of constant forced dialogue to hold your hand through the basic mechanics of gameplay can become a little infuriating as it did for me. New players however will likely be thankful for this introduction. Otherwise, the game's mechanics and design as well as immersion level are utterly flawless. Camelot took great care with the design of this game and it shows.

The game's soundtrack and sound effects will be familiar to old players since it's designed by the same person as the last two games. While fitting for the series and well done in and of themselves, I personally feel that the soundtrack just isn't as gripping as the stellar soundtrack from the first two games, although the inclusion of several remixes of the themes from the first two games as nostalgia are well timed and placed for maximum effect and will be a treat to older players.

The game has not really pushed the DS to it's hardware limits with this newest game, however the graphics are very much in line with what fans come to expect from the series, and add to the level of immersion and character depth. Camelot also made the daring decision to give many of the talking scenes in the game a facial close up. Their faces aren't perfect and leave a little to the imagination but this still fits into the charm of the series and the text bubble speech more than makes up for the character depth. Overall, this game is a welcome edition to the series and Camelot's hard work and effort that they pored into this game have paid off. Golden Sun is never going to be a major franchise like Call of Duty, Final Fantasy or Castlevania, but in a day and age where development of games seems increasingly tailored to making a quick buck with flashy lights and top notch graphics, Golden Sun: Dark Dawn will be a welcome edition to older games that know what top notch game quality really is and a good first stepping stone to newer gamers who want something portable that has a mystery plot or just likes spatial puzzle solving, all of which I personally love to death.

Being an old fan, I tried to be as professional as I could and not just fanboy this game to death. The final rating I'd give it is an 8.5, maybe a 9 out of 10 and I'd go so far as to call it a 'should have' game for any DS owners.… Expand

A proper, full-blown, no gimmicks sequel to the Golden Sun series that rocked big time on GBA over half a decade ago. Just as good as the games back then and a stellar example of an old bag of recipes still being good enough for a first-rate JRPG experience. Misses perfection due to being a bit short, easy, and heavier on text than boss battles. Yet, turn-based battles and Zelda-esque puzzles don't get much more entertaining than this!… Expand

I'm a longtime fan of Golden Sun (anyone who even knows what it is has to be a long time fan...) I was thrilled when I heard about Dark Dawn, for the simple fact of getting MORE Golden Sun. The franchise does a fantastic job of taking everything great about RPGs and infusing it with its own style and innovations. Golden Sun is easy enough to pick up for anyone, and though I highly recommend playing the first two, the in-game encyclopedia and dialogue cover just about everything. No puzzles are too tough or require heading over to a FAQs page, but I do recommend exploring the heck out your environments because just about every room, hut, or town has dozens of secrets (even it its just an herb). Unlike the first two games, enemies don't seem to appear as often during puzzle-solving (which there is A LOT of) and battling avoids being tedious, since there is so much customization and leveling up. There are dozens of Djinn, Psynergies, and weapons with unique and powerful unleashing capabilities, that suddenly fighting becomes a fun way to display your latest strategy-shift or upgrades. Entertainment: The game is beautiful; taking full advantage of the DS's graphics capabilities, environments are large and unique. Serious thought was put into aesthetics and puzzles for everything, and it shows. The most rewarding part of the game comes from pure nostalgia - taking place 30 years of in-game timeline corresponds to 7 years our time - I fondly remember the adventures of Issac and company, and the heroes of past games have become the stuff of legend in Dark Dawn. There's a neat side quest to collect storybooks where the stories are told from the first two games. Battles are fun, puzzles are cool, and some of the dialogue is pretty witty. The Drawbacks: YES there is a lot of dialogue. I enjoyed it in the other games, but sometimes it rambles too much. Toward the end of the game it also had the annoying habit of having each of your party share their thoughts on particular subjects during cut scenes as if the developers wanted to make sure everyone got enough "facetime" in the game. Also bothersome, tough-talking Tyrell seems to lose his personality halfway through the game as he has less and less to contribute. Kind of strange...oh and I think he actually has a thing for Sveta...but it's never fully realized. The worst part of the game has to be the lack of proper bosses. I can't tell you how many times I prepared my party for what would surely be an area where I would be forced into a battle with a tough boss. I healed/set Djinn/saved and got ready, but 9 times out of 10 it would just be more puzzles. Where were all the bosses? The final boss was honestly the only thing close to bosses from the old games, which were challenging and required strategy. The rest usually just require brute force after some very passive leveling up. Overall, the game is great to play despite a few oversights and over-indulgent dialogue. Took 23 hours to beat (almost a full day...how about that?) and I look forward to the next direct sequel.… Expand

Dark Dawn maintains throughout the adventure a fantastic puzzle element, but the overlong dialogue and stupidly easy combat prevent it from being truly great.

Story: The story in Dark Dawn is great. Though the beginning part looked a bit stupid to me when the story really kicked off it was very exciting. Though the story is interesting the way it is told isn't up to par. The game has you sit through long and unnecessary conversations. These conversations a can last very long and I wouldn't blame you if you got bored and just mashed the A button to skip it. Of course I want the story but I do not need every detail to be looked into in even greater detail because I can look into it in my own time with the in game encyclopedia. Every now and the you'll be asked your opinion on the situation and you answer from 4 different emoticons. These choices really have no effect on the story so I don't really see the point in them. Overall though the story is great and should be able to keep you interested until the climax. I did have one problem though but this only really applies to fans of the series. When I played Dark Dawn I thought the game felt short but it wasn't because it took me 22 hours to complete it. It felt short because by the time you have completed the story you have LOADS of unanswered questions and this game really needs a sequel to clean things up. I haven't discussed any part of the story becuase I do not want to spoil.

Presentation: The graphics in this game a great. The inventory interface can be small annoyance but it is nothing too big. The sounds are cool but my major complaint here is the music. I know many people are going to disagree with me here but just listen. I loved all the music in the previous titles. All of them were memorable and overall the music was fantastic. However, for Dark Dawn the music just sounded bland. The dungeon music overall sounded bad. The battle music is okay but in the previous titles it was epic. The only tracks I found that I liked was the Boss music but there aren't many bosses in this and they are fairly easy to defeat (I'll cover this in the gameplay section) so you can't really enjoy it but I am glad they brought back the Saturos them though. EPIC!! Overall the presentation is solid only with a few minor flaws as I know many of you will disagree with me about the music.

Gameplay: Not much has changed but more of the same is not always bad. In this case it is good because the previous GS games were fantastic. You have your usual Attack, Psynergy, Djinn, Summon and Item commands. If you've played the previous games you'll feel right at home here as very little has changed. You use Psynergy outside of battles to solve puzzles. Collect Djinn to boost your stats and change your classes giving you great customization. Finding/buying better gear to enhance your party's stats etc.. There were a few cool features added though, for example you have to 'master' your weapon to be able to use it's unleashes and most of the weapons have multiple unleashes and this teaches you to pick your weapons carefully and there is also 1 new Summon added.Again, there are problems with this games gameplay though. Overall, this game is just too easy. You don't really need to use Psynergy in battle apart from healing ones and you can just keep spamming 'Attack' until you win. Djinn and Summons make it insultingly easy as well. Spam with Summons and you will win in just a few turns. As I said in the presentation section too, there aren't that many bosses that are part of the main story line and many of then are a walk in the park. The only challenge you will get is from the final boss and one of the side quest bosses. (And if you've played this game you will know who I am talking about) Also, this difficulty spike is just huge, you've been blasting through the game for the last 20 hours then you are met with this boss and just get destroyed. But the biggest problem that I had with this game is that there 'Points of no Return'. In Dark Dawn, the are some PONRs meaning that when you get to a certain point the main quest you can no longer go back and explore areas before it meaning that if you've missed anything it is gone forever unless you start a new game. this wasn't the case in the previous games so I don't know why it has been changed. I like the story to be going at a decent pace but it comes with a big gameplay cost. Golden Sun Dark Dawn is a solid RPG and anyone who is a fan of the genre should pick it up. The story is great, it has some of the best graphics on the DS and the gameplay is innovative and fun but some flaws set it back from living up to it's 7 year hype.
I know this has turned into more of a rant than a review but this is my first review and hopefully you can look passed that. Thanks for reading. =)… Expand

This game will be a joy and a curse to all those who remember the old games. You'll love it because it's Golden Sun again - with added 3D battles and animations, some of the old characters returning, and many references to the original games on the Advance. You'll hate it because it doesn't particularly bring anything new to the mix, rather just doing the same thing all over again. Though what it does, it does well and it's a great game regardless.… Expand

The original Golden Sun games were two of the best made for the GBA, if you ask me. This game has a lot in common with those greats as far as style is concerned but as much as I enjoyed playing it Dark Dawn feels more like a children's versions of the games than anything else. When even the optional boss fights are easy (and I didn't grind at all) you know there's a problem with the game. The other main problem is that the game doesn't seem to have a real strong grasp of the story and at the end, ultimately, nothing is accomplished. Overall a fun game to breeze through but nothing to sink your teeth into.… Expand

I did'nt play the first game of golden sun but this is game is worth a 10/10.the story is fascinating.
in a battle you dont use the control pad/d pad you only press buttons but this game is totally worth your time. :D

its aparently BETTER if u played the 1st 2, but since i havnt this already gets a 95% for being one of the best ds games...
THE best non japanese rpg of 2010, and easliy awesome.
speaking of easy, the game is a bit, well.. easy, but thats the only reason why it didnt get a perfect 100%, and the fact that the beggining is slow, and doesnt drag u in like dq9

Unlike the first two games, Dark Dawn doesn't have the pseudo-3D visuals during the battles but it does retain the other familiar gameplay mechanics the series is known for as well as a couple new features (the in-game Glossary being a neat one, in my opinion).

I waited SEVEN years for this game, how can I not give it a 10? But in all honesty she is a beauty. The only sadness in my heart is from the short length of this game and that the puzzles were too easy. Make the next GS more like the gba versions because they were much much more memorable. Please don't make us wait seven years again!