Its not a particularly strong effectgiving your creatures +1/+0 for 3 mana is a tough sellbut it does have one major thing going for it
The difference is that while Birthing Pod synergized magnificently with persist creatures and those with enters-the-battlefield triggers, Gate synergizes with cheap, battlefield-filling creatures, especially those with sacrifice abilities
Next, banish The Great Mikanko of Legend using its effect to send Arabesque of the Mikanko from Deck to GY
Besides being a sizable aerial threat, Archon of Cruelty has a nasty enter the battlefield trigger, causing the target opponent to sacrifice a creature, discard a card, and lose three life
His initial Pendulum Monsters, Stargazer and Timegazer also count, since they can shut down his opponent's Spell and Trap Cards