Warrior Epic is the first RPG to reward players for letting their created characters die.  Having your created character bite the dust brings one of two benefits: you can either infuse the dead character’s soul into a weapon or one of your living characters can carry their spirit and use it as a powerful spell.  You don’t have to find your body and you don’t lose experience or progress.  It’s Warrior Epic’s way to turn a negative into a positive.  

Another negative that they turn into a positive has to do with money.  Your money.  Warrior Epic is a MMORPG that’s (almost) entirely free.  No fee to download, no monthly fee to keep playing.  The only things you’ll be paying real live money for are new outfits and cosmetic items for your characters, new stuff to pimp out your castle and health potions.  That last one’s a downer, I know, but as of when we did this preview, they were only supposed to be around 5 cents for a bunch.

To offset that cost, Warror Epic is giving every player a castle with two main areas to use, the stable and the Sanctuary.  The Stable is where you create not one but multiple characters, any of which you can take out on missions.  The Sanctuary is where the spirits of your characters go after they die in battle.  Did you lose your sweet level 20 pit fighter in that last quest?  Don’t worry you can revive him to land of the living for a fee (not real money).  But if you don’t want that sucky level 1 mage anymore then put that loser’s spirit into your pit fighters sword.  The after death options are quite a neat innovation.

The Castle can be stylized and modified to fit your liking.  You can change the pillars, the lamps, the walls, add new rooms like a pitfighters arena and even buy little pets.  These all cost real money but the options are very much available and attractive if you want to spend the funds.

Warrior Epic is an MMORPG that was created for the gamer that has a lot of time on their hands but not a lot of money, so the price range of purchasable items, costumes and castle decorations will be around 5 cents up to 3 dollars. With all the interesting options it brings to the table, and the fact that it should run on almost any PC, Warrior Epic looks like it could be worth the precious dollars of your monthly allowance or the precious hours after your commute home.  Check it out in the closed beta now.

The Magna Carta is a pretty important historical document.  It’s also a Japanese RPG.  A sequel is being released for the Xbox 360 and still has me asking the question.  What does this game have to do with the Magna Carta?

Magna Carta, from what I understand, is an RPG based in a fantasy world that has nothing to do with the real English Magna Carta of 1215.   I have never played the game, but it has a rhythm based combat system, which will return in this sequel.  The graphics for the new game will be updated from the original and from what screenshots over at Famitsu, it should at least be pretty to look at.

The basic rundown of the story is that society is slowly rebuilding itself to its former glory one-thousand years after a huge war. However, new wars are popping up after the assassination of a queen. The game also seems to feature a wolf man of sorts, and of course as is standard in Japanese RPGs, there’s lots of pretty girl characters who’s armor rating is inverse to the amount of armor they’re actually wearing.

Apparently the first game did really well in Korea, and they are probably trying to market to that demographic again.  Magna Carta is scheduled to release around August 2009, so keep your eyes open in Korea…

Source: Famitsu

To coincide with the newly released anime for Queen’s Blade, a slightly erotic fantasy manga, the company is releasing a fighter RPG game to give fans what they want – more service!

Coming out on April 3rd for the PSP, Queen’s Blade is a unit based game with a 2d side fighter to keep the action more interesting.  There isn’t much info on the battle system other than what is listed simply as “damage.”  As you fight you apparently have choice opportunities to destroy the “armor” of your opponent, but sometimes the “armor” is a maid outfit or some such.

If you do succeed in causing such damage to your enemy, you get a wonderful little fan service screen shot of the character you are fighting.  The RPG element sees your units get stronger as they win matches and don’t get their clothes stripped off.

Famitsu doesn’t show us much, but I am somewhat familiar with this anime and I am willing to bet it gets a lot more risqué than the screenshots at the source.

Don’t expect this one to come state side, so if you’re interested I highly suggest you import it.

Source:  Famitsu

Star Ocean 4 released on the Xbox 360 in Japan has hit the list of one of the best selling games for the system in Japan.  Sitting high with Blue Dragon and Tales of Vespia.  It seems as though Japanese RPG’s are the way to 360 sales in Japan.

The Square Enix game went on sale on February 19th and has been selling nonstop ever since.  The numbers listed so far put it at around 166,000 copies sold since that date.  Blue Dragon selling 203,000 and Tales at around 170,000.

Those are some really decent sales numbers, and even though some skeptics say the 360 will never do well in Asia, it seems they really just need to make sure to release games that are popular for that area.  Someone should tell Microsoft that not everyone likes Halo.

Source:  Famitsu

Square Enix’s latest in the Dragon Quest series (coming to the DS on March 28th in Japan), is all the talk.  Pre-orders are rampant at local 7-11’s and you see more and more people with slime toys every day.  A new feature that is being added uses the Nintendo WiFi technology to let you discuss the game with other people and gloat through your DS.

The article over at Famitsu really doesn’t go too deep into the information, but basically you meet other players that are playing Dragon Quest at a certain Inn, kind of like you would bump into new and interesting people at a hostel while traveling around.  These people have all setup a profile (hopefully) that shares a bit of info about themselves and maybe what they like about the game.  You can also see all the neat things they have done in-game and compare your advancement.

There seems to be a small chat function and the ability to possibly add friends.  So basically this is just like MySpace for your Dragon Quest character.  I guess that’s pretty neat.  Hopefully some more info about what else this game can do with Nintendo WiFi will surface, but maybe I am being optimistic.

Source:  Famitsu

We’re fans of The Witcher here at Ripten. We’re obviously not alone, as CD-Projekt, the Polish developer of the fantastic RPG, are bringing the game to both the Xbox 360 and the PS3, under the name The Witcher: Rise of the White Wolf. Jakub Stilinsky, the game’s designer, had plenty to say about the console version- it has refined controls, more fluid combat, better graphics, a new engine, and better enemy behaviour. He describes the new combat as “more dynamic and more engaging,” and adds that the console player will feel more in control- one of the problems I had with the PC version. With a developer like CD-Projekt, we can be sure that there will be a lot of polish (the noun, not the country) on this game. Hit the jump for the video.

Sounds great to me. I’m sure Dan will be getting one of his trademark huge boners right now, too.

Source: Polygamia via Destructoid.

Just saw over at Famitsu a bunch of news about the new RPG coming out for DS titled Blood of Bahamut.  With what they seem to have planned, I am very excited about this game being released.  Read on to find out what I’m stoked about.

Wi-Fi multiplayer.  Yes, I said Wi-Fi multiplayer. On the DS. In an RPG. From Square. This is what I thought the DS was going to be for in the first place.  There aren’t too many games that utilize Wi-Fi, and those that do either have it in the genre I don’t want (Advance Wars), or do it a bit differently than I had hoped (Castlevania).  According to the article, BoB (not a great acronym, I know) will have four-player action to go along with a single-player story.

From what I can tell on the screenshots, you do most of the story if not all of it from atop a monster that I can only assume is a reanimation of the monster Bahamut.  It is yet to be seen what the true story is, but it should be rather good.

I hope I’m not getting too excited over this game only to get shafted on the multiplayer aspect, but time will tell.  I’m still looking forward to this game either way, but if I can play it with friends and actually play out story mode with them co-op style, I’ll be that much happier.

Source: Famitsu

Sega’s PS3 exclusive Valkyria Chronicles looks good. It looks really good. Alternate WWII-timeline, elegant painterly graphics, cameos from Skies of Aracdia characters and some newfangled take on strategy-RPG gameplay? We won’t even have to wait too much longer for it, either, as Sega has announced that the game will come out on American shores on November 11.

For the serious Japanophiles out there, the game will include the original Japanese voice-over work – a nice backup option in case the American voice-overs are too hammy. Hit the jump for more info.

Sega Japan recently released downloadable extra episodes for the JP release of Valkyria, but so far mum’s the word on whether this content will be making it over to the US PlayStation Network. It’ll definitely not be on the retail disc, Sega confirmed in a conversation with Siliconera.

Source: Siliconera

It’s been a long time since Square Enix started milking their audience for everything they’re worth. Since Final Fantasy IV’s original release and prior to its appearance on the Nintendo DS, it had already been ported three times over. With its arrival on the DS marking its fourth port, it also marks its first real remake that would recapture the magic of the original, as opposed to just regurgitating it.

For the sake of full disclosure, prior to playing Final Fantasy IV DS, I have yet to play the original. As such this review is written from that perspective.

Final Fantasy VII was the first game that caused me to widen my eyes and say, “So, this is what games are capable of?” Of course, at the time I was a pre-pre-teen and I understood fuck-all of the plot. But the overall story still managed to have an impact on me, from adventure and discovery to death and loss. Final Fantasy IV recaptures its own plot and story with the aforementioned elements and modernizes it for a new audience with updated visuals, a re-imagined world, and a revised script.

Needless to say, this is a game for people who already enjoy the established JRPG formula, old fans of the original, or those who didn’t have a chance to play the original and want to see the evolution of one of their favorite series. This is no more than an excellent modernization of a 17 year-old classic.

Although prettier, the previously mentioned updated visuals are hampered by the Nintendo DS’s hardware capabilities, which can best be compared to Nintendo 64’s ability to render 3D. Ultimately the most concerning thing is that with the super-deformed, super-stylized 3D models being at an almost laughable level of detail, it may very well be the ceiling of what the DS is capable of graphically.

One of the newly introduced mechanics is also one of the more obscure and off-putting mechanics throughout. Dubbed “Augments”, they allow you to impart abilities of those who you’ve lost throughout the course of the game into those who are currently in your party.

And that’s precisely where the problem rears its ugly head. FFIV’s plot is completely topsy-turvy when it comes to character reliability, so as such, you won’t be able to strategically distribute them until the very end. Unless, of course you bought the Square Enix licensed strategy guide.

Among other things you may need a strategy guide for, difficulty will most certainly be one of the top reasons you contemplate purchasing one. Final Fantasy III DS was nearly impenetrable to me, due to its unbearable difficulty level. I ended up giving up soon after I picked it up. Final Fantasy IV DS remains very difficult, but thankfully, it’s not of the impenetrable, unbearable variety. Although, if you’re not paying attention, your party can and will be wiped out by a random encounter. On that note, unless you’re smarter than I am, tenfold, prepare to face death at nearly every boss you encounter.

Regardless of how much I’d initially wished Square Enix had chosen the PSP as the platform of choice to reimagine and introduce the earlier Final Fantasies to a new generation, as time went on Final Fantasy IV DS managed to engage me enough to stop thinking about its superficial shortcomings and focus on the task at hand– enjoying the game. Sales numbers aside, any game that can manage to do that will be regarded as a success to me.

What does this score mean? Check out our review scoring breakdown.

As demonstrated during Microsoft’s Press Conference at E3, Bethesda is nearing completion on the third iteration in the Fallout series, due out October 7th. Of course, with the changes that have been made to the series in Bethesda’s hands, Interplay is giving gamers a reality check by releasing the first game in the Fallout series on GameTap – for free.

Starting this Thursday, you can head over to GameTap’s website and pick up a free download of Interplay’s critically acclaimed Fallout for Windows. I recently picked this game up along with Fallout 2 for the Mac, and I most definitely do not regret it. Interplay’s Fallout titles are classic RPGs, and I recommend getting your hands dirty with the originals before venturing into Fallout 3- especially since you can now do it for free.

We have a dilemma here. On the one hand, we love beating down ogres and dragons and would happily do it year after year. On the other hand, we hate buggy gameplay and crippling slowdown. Fortunately it seems SouthPeak might have has found a way to minimize the glitches and maximize the ogres in their standalone expansion pack for Two Worlds, Epic Edition, due out in August.

The first game received wildly mixed reviews, ranging from a respectable score of 7.0 (ok, that was me) to a not-so-respectable “fecal doughnut” comparison. It was a fair game, marred by terrible glitches that were somewhat addressed in a patch several months after launch.

Still, even with the patch, multiplayer in Two Worlds was not the “MMO lite” that was promised ahead of time. Trying to play the game over XBL was nearly impossible, as slowdown and crashes made even the simplest fetch quests seem like an epic mess.

In the Epic Edition expansion, expect to find more multiplayer quests, a new town where players can fight online in an arena, and magical PvP competitions. And for a budget $20, it’s likely to snag a few budget-conscious adventurers who don’t mind if their horse gets stuck in an occasional rock.

My personal favorite moment from the original Two Worlds? Snagging a town’s sacred stone, which destroys the town’s defenses and lets the ogres take over, so you have to fight your way out. See, Two Worlds wasn’t all bad– there were some good ideas in there, you just had to look past the game’s technical flaws. If all these issues have been addressed, there’s no reason why Two Worlds can’t work the second time around.

Update: There’s been some confusion about whether this is a sequel or merely a stand-alone expansion. The answer is that a real sequel, called Temptation, is due out in November, but a few months ago it was incorrectly reported that Temptation would be an expansion pack for the original Two Worlds. The Epic Edition contains the original game, plus two new modes, for a budget price. From the press release:

Two Worlds: Epic Edition will contain the original game and the add-ons “Tainted Blood” and “Curse of Souls”, putting the massive world of Antaloor and countless hours of adventuring into one tremendous package. The original Two Worlds gave players a huge world and hundreds of adventures to undertake. The expanded content of Epic Edition adds over 70 online quests, eight new multiplayer maps, an innovative player-versus-player challenge where opponents battle to control magical orbs within a variety of arenas, and introduces the town of Tharnburg where players can train their warriors in various skills and challenge other players to combat in the Gladiator District’s huge arena.

Famitsu has the scoop on some new details about Infinite Undiscovery, the tri-Ace/Square Enix RPG for Xbox 360.  The game begins with Capel, a flute player, imprisoned due to his resemblance to the actual hero of the story, Sigmund. Luckily, the guards aren’t the only people to mistake him, so he is rescued by a cute, freckled girl called Aya. The new details revolve mostly around Aya, but also shed a little more light on the types of moves we can expect from the Connect Action system.

Screenshots on the Famitsu site seem to indicate the case that Aya may have a double as well, maybe a princess? Who’s that girl all decked out for some sort of ceremony?

One thing we know for sure, is that Aya does have a pet that she’s been raising–a rare animal known as a Crimson Bear.  Is that a unicorn horn coming out of his head, or just part of his armor? In any case, his name is Gustaf, not Iorek–tempting comparison, though. Apparently he’s a “power fighter” and jealous of the attention Aya pays Capel, to the point of snapping at him, even. From one screen in particular, it looks like he will be at least a guest, if not a full-fledged party member, although I’m guessing the latter since it seems he is connecting with Capell (despite the nipping) to perform the move Ignite Fang.

The final new tidbit deals specifically with a move called Symphonic Blade. If I understand correctly, it involves Capel’s sword absorbing the power of his current Connect partner’s Lunagram. So, depending on what party member you pair him with, there will be a different secondary effect to the attack. Looks like it’ll involve something like a quick-time event to choose–here Y is something called Falcon Spread and X is Sparrow Rainfall.

Infinite Undiscovery is set to ship in September for both Japan and the states. It’s one to look forward to!

Source: Famitsu

Etrian Odyssey II: Heroes of Lagaard is a fantastic RPG for dedicated players and a fine homage to the classic dungeon crawling RPGs like the PC Wizardry games. Players are given the opportunity to create a guild filled with characters from classes of their choosing, and then can explore a labyrinth at their leisure – mapping things out, leveling up, and fulfilling quests from the Duke and citizens of Lagaard.

It is a game that requires a lot of imagination and dedication on the part of the player. The only real stories in the game involve the labyrinth and its origins, since the characters in the party are all created by the player.

The sequel provides more options than the original game. There are more quests to undertake, a new dungeons, brand new mapping tools (I especially like the three different icons for gathering points), 12 different classes for characters, and new skills for characters to learn and new enemies. The tweaks in Etrian Odyssey II pretty much make the original game obsolete.

Of course an Etrian Odyssey game wouldn’t be the same if it weren’t for FOEs, the insanely powerful monsters that roam throughout levels. They are always stronger than the other enemies on that floor, and quite likely far stronger than your party when you first encounter them. FOEs will follow you, attack you during fights with bosses or other enemies and will generally make dungeon crawling a nightmare. If you do beat one, it might provide rare items. In the original Etrian Odyssey, they also provided a large amount of experience points – very helpful. In Etrian Odyssey II they don’t, which is very disappointing.

My biggest gripe has to do with the “warp wire.” See, in Etrian Odyssey games, warp wires are essential items which allow a party to instantly teleport from anywhere in the labyrinth back to town. In Etrian Odyssey II, the item is unlocked by talking to the girl at the general store after you’ve completed the first quest from the Duke and are proclaimed adventurers.

If you can overlook the difficult opponents, constant need to grind and the game’s tendency to expect you know what needs to be done without being told, then Etrian Odyssey II is probably for you. It really can be a lot of fun, and a great challenge.

However, I’ve found I can only play Etrian Odyssey II in small bursts. At one point, you’ll get tired of the fetch quests, character grinding and map creation, and you’ll have to take a week or two off. It does surpass the first game, in terms of gameplay, map designs, challenges and options, but both games succumb to the repetitive pitfalls.

What does this score mean? Check out our review scoring breakdown.

So much for a slow transition via the ice hole. Blizzard.com now features a fancy-shmancy flash animation announcing Diablo 3 — ice nowhere to be found. Who knows, maybe they had a good reason for all that frosty goodness.

Perhaps you will be able to ice your enemies with Sub-Zero like swiftness, or perhaps it was nothing more than a marketing attempt which, in the end, appears to have no logical connection to the fire filled reveal that was Diablo 3.

However, while we here at Ripten are a little miffed over the lack of connection between the two, we realize that things could have been worse. The reveal could have given birth to the monstrosity below. Enjoy a glimpse at what could have been after the jump.

Splash intro page aside, the official Diablo 3 webpage looks pretty cool in its own right and will surely have WoW players writing Blizzard asking for gigantic shoulder pads with white glowing tentacles shooting upward from them.

Kool-Aid Image Source: thiendo.blogspot.com (via: Penny Arcade Forum)

Looks like game publisher Atlus is headed to Los Angeles and is taking their Shin Megami Tensei franchise with them. According to our promptly received e-vites, the 2008 Anime Expo will have a panel dedicated exclusively to Atlus’ long running series. The panel is called “Shin Megami Tensei: Behind the Scenes”.

They don’t specifically say which of the SMT sub-series games will be showing up, but I would imagine it’s all-encompassing, including Devil Summoner, Digital Devil Saga, Nocturne and the Persona series, but that has not been confirmed. We’ll try to contact Atlus for more concrete information, so keep your eyes peeled for an update.

The panel takes place on July 5, 2008 at the Los Angeles convention center at 6:30pm. It’s going to be riddled with anime-nauts, although, if you’re into SMT, there’s a chance you may have an interest in anime as well.

As an aside, I hear great things about Shin Megami Tensei, although haven’t really gotten around to experiencing any of them first-hand until just recently. I’m currently 40 some odd hours deep into Persona 3 FES, which recently got a generally favorable review by us. If you’re at all into JRPGs, it’s worth a shot, as it seems to be a nice breath of fresh air from your standard Final Fantasy.

We reported just two days ago that a Famitsu article was translated revealing among other things a statement made by FF Versus XIII director Tetsuya Nomura in which he claims that resources were reallocated from Final Fantasy Versus and asked to instead assist in the completion of Final Fantasy XIII.

This translation along with further comments made in the article lead many to believe the game would be delayed even further. However, the following response was issued by Square Enix regarding the matter:

“Reports that development for Final Fantasy Versus XIII is on hold are false … The truth of the situation is that when free, some staff from the Versus team have been helping with the XIII team on development of Final Fantasy XIII. Development for both titles is continuing as originally scheduled.”

It appears now that the game is still very much on schedule — the same schedule that has had us in the dark for a very long time now. Hopefully some light will be shed during this years E3.

Source: eurogamer.net

You know you are getting old when an RPG that resembles the look of something you used to play on your Sega Master System can be crammed into a mobile device. It’s also a reality check when you see your twelve year old cousin walking around with a $400 cell phone — all proof that the times are changing and mobile gaming is a huge opportunity.

I don’t have much experience with mobile games, however in taking a brief look at “The Shroud” website it wasn’t too hard to make a loose visual comparison to the games I played growing up such as Zelda and Phantasy Star. The site features thirty screen images and three gameplay vidoes, one of which showcase the ability to fish in game.

The story begins with a peaceful newly settled mining community. You take on the role of a Taro, a boy who stumbles upon an ancient doorway while working in the mines. The discovery accidentally unleashes the monsters of The Shroud, evil creatures that had been banished by humankind for thousands of years. The monsters wreak havoc on the town causing many to flee. You as Taro remain to take on the evil creatures and restore the land.

If you are a fan of RPG’s, this one sounds interesting enough to occupy any free time you may have away from your console and big screen TV. For more information on this soon to be released mobile game, check out shroudgame.com.

From Final Fantasy creator Hironobu Sakaguchi and his crew at Mistwalker, Lost Odyssey is a traditional Japanese-styled RPG that thrusts gamers into a fun, beautiful and epic voyage.

After Mistwalker’s first title, the kiddie Blue Dragon, a lot was expected from Sakaguchi and his studio with this game. With so many modern RPGs on the Xbox 360, such as Mass Effect and Eternal Sonata, it’s hard to tell how the old-school gameplay will mesh with Western audiences. However, if you’re a fan of any Final Fantasy game you should feel right at home with Lost Odyssey.

The story of the game focuses on Kaim, a 1000 year-old immortal mercenary who has been through every ounce of human emotion during his life. Without much reason, Kaim has lost many of his memories from the past.

As Kaim progresses throughout the game, he’ll slowly regain pieces of his memory by meeting other people and relating their stories to some of his past ones. Kaim regains pieces of his life through dreams, or “A Thousand Years of Dreams,” which is a collection of short stories written by Japanese novelist Kiyoshi Shigematsu.

However, Kaim is not the only immortal living in Lost Odyssey’s unnamed world, which is going through a “Magic-Industrial Revolution” that has caused war among it’s nations. Throughout the game Kaim will come in contact with other immortals that have also lost much of their memory from the past. Just like Kaim, the immortals that join your party will also gain pieces of memory through their dreams.

Most of these dreams are pretty interesting reads, but a few of them are quite boring and none are essential for completing the game. But, the most interesting thing with these dreams is that they give you a glimpse of the characters past and you see how their actions in the present are related to their past experiences.

Once again, most of Lost Odyssey’s gameplay is very traditional and most RPG fans will be familiar with its turn-based combat system. However, unlike other RPGs, the game’s combat system features an Aim Ring System, which allows you to add a magic or attack boost to your physical attacks.

In order to get the added effect, you have to hold down the right trigger and line two rings at the right moment, which isn’t easy to do at first. The Aim Ring System is a nice little feature that puts a spin on the ordinary turn-based combat.

Even with the Aim Ring System, the game is pretty tough compared to most recently released RPGs, so be prepared to see the “Game Over” screen more than once. Not only are level grinding and accessory mastering important, they are vital along with well-planned strategies to get through the game’s tougher bosses.

Another feature in the game that is quite different from other RPGs is the way you learn abilities or skills, using the Skill Link system. Although mortal party members will learn new skills as they level up, immortals can not. To learn new skills, immortals must link with a mortal to learn one of their skills.

For example, when you first start the game Kaim won’t be able to cast any magic spells, but once you set a link to a mortal character that can cast magic, Kaim will eventually learn. Each skill requires that a set amount of Skill Points (SP) be earned before it can be learned. Immortals also have the ability to learn skills from accessories, which is a neat addition.

Although it’s a great game, Lost Odyssey isn’t without its flaws. One of the biggest problems of the game is its slow pacing. Almost a third of the game’s length is strictly cutscenes, although nicely detailed ones.

It has some pretty long loading times as well, and they happen quite often. Even when entering a battle, the loading will take ten to fifteen seconds just to get the enemies onto the battlefield. This severely breaks up the action and makes the game feel somewhat sluggish.

Graphically, Lost Odyssey looks wonderful, thanks in part to great character models, excellent environments and eccentric art direction. The game uses Epic’s Unreal Engine 3, which allows for a marvelous amount of detail and great lighting effects. The one issue with the graphics is the spotty framerate, which occasionally tends to slow down.

The game’s music is great, thanks to acclaimed Final Fantasy composer Nobuo Uematsu, who delivers a solid and fantastic score. The music in the game emphasizes the mood perfectly, although much of the music might not be as memorable as some of Uematsu’s past works. For a Japanese RPG, the game’s voice acting is pretty impressive and well done for the most part.

With over 40+ hours to the game, Lost Odyssey is definitely worth picking up, especially if you’re willing to complete it. The story might seem a little old school, but is really one of the best things about the game because of how in depth it gets and how involved each and every one of the characters are.

Even though the battle system is turn-based, the Aim Ring System really keeps things fresh and the Skill Link system allows for a different approach to learning new abilities. However, as I mentioned before, the game’s value really takes a hit because of its slow pace and horrid load times.

Lost Odyssey is an excellent game with a tremendous amount of depth and detail behind it. From its intriguing story to its incredible looks, the games doesn’t ever seem to let down, other than a few miscues with its loading times. Although very much a traditional RPG, Lost Odyssey seems to have thewill power to compete with modern RPGs because of its life-like characters and their stories. With not too many great RPGs on the Xbox 360, I would recommend Lost Odyssey to any 360 owner looking for a beautiful and fun RPG to play.

What does this score mean? Check out our review scoring breakdown.

Out of many of the video games out there, the Shin Megami Tensei games do a wonderful job at being mature without being gratuitous. Rather than padding out the game with over the top mature content, such as jiggling boobs or excess violence, they fill their games with genuinely disturbing material. Many of the things that go on in any given SMT game can range from disturbing to flat out nauseating in concept but they are never without a point, which is more than some games could say.

This extends especially to Persona 3, the first Persona game to be labeled as a Shin Megami Tensei title. While the game itself may deviate from the quasi-consistent world established by the first two Persona games, it’s still an incredible title. When Persona 3 was released in 2007 a special edition of sorts was released shortly thereafter in Japan and the western fans of the game were immediately stricken with fear.

You see, Persona 3 didn’t truly have an ending – even the state of the main character was left up in the air. Only that special edition had the ending we so desperately yearned for and the fates have smiled upon us for Persona 3: FES has arrived on our shores.

Persona 3 tells the story of a young orphan who has returned to the part of Japan where he grew up. However, immediately upon arriving, things are clearly not as they seem. When the clock strikes midnight the sky becomes a sickly greenish and black color, electronics stop working and giant coffins can be seen where people stood.

This mysterious time, the Dark Hour, is a place only for demons and rare humans who can harness the power of their Persona. The Persona is an inner power that awakens within them and allows them, using a gun-like device called an Evoker, to summon that power from within them to fight the amorphous entities known as Shadows that rule the Dark Hour.

It bears nothing that some may find the concept of the Evoker disturbing. Seeing a group of teenagers, and one preteen, taking a gun-like device to their own bodies can be a bit… off-putting. By pointing this device at themselves and pulling the trigger they “blow” the Persona out of their bodies in a spray of blue shards. This lets the Persona out and allows them to harness its energy to battle their foes.

Actually playing Persona 3 is a peculiar beast, especially to us Western gamers. The game is broken up into two distinct, but intrinsically linked, game modes. During the day you will go through what is essentially a social phase. Going to school, completing tests, making friends, shopping for equipment and increasing your three social traits will all be done in varying degrees depending on how you choose to spend your time.

At night you will explore the Dark Hour, namely the gigantic tower, Tartarus. Playing in the Dark Hour is the biggest part of the game, and it’s similar to playing Breath of Fire: Dragon Quarter. As you run around through one of the randomly generated floors, you will have to actually engage enemies by attacking them on the map.

If you strike them without being noticed, you get a free turn in the fight, but if they hit you first they will gain the free turn. Making your way through the 200+ floors is made simpler thanks to a reliable number of teleporters that allow you to teleport back to the entrance to save your game, recover health and switch your party members.

Persona 3 FES is essentially a bargain priced expansion, adding a whole new 30 hour adventure to the mix, in addition to making some changes to the original game. The main game is now called the Journey and a number of things have been added. You will find new Social Links, friendships that you make that power up your Persona, new scenes while interacting with others and some minor gameplay tweaks. Some of them are for the better but, sadly, a few of them actually for the worse. There is also a hard mode for those who enjoy a challenge that is immensely difficult.

The new game mode, aptly titled The Answer, is essentially a 30 hour dungeon crawl epilogue to the main game. Taking control of Aigis and the rest of the party from the main game you will explore level after level of a new dungeon called the Abyss of Time. While this new mode is fun in its own way there are a few major problems. First and most glaringly the mode is insanely difficult at times. Many enemies and bosses literally have no weaknesses so while they’re pummeling you into the ground with over powered spells you’re essentially trying to pick away at their health.

The other major complaint with The Answer is sadly one that can’t really be helped. Due to the nature of this mode and how it’s been set up there are no Social Links, no interaction with the outside world just lots of fighting. While it makes sense within the game it’s still disappointing as the social element is what really set Persona 3 apart from other turn based RPGs out there.

While not a graphical powerhouse, Persona 3 FES still looks really good. The whole game has a neat stylized anime look to it. It never goes over the top and is played mostly straight making for an interesting look to the game. The Persona look especially well designed and some are quite a sight when summoned.

Unlike some games that come from the Japan the voice acting in Persona 3 FES is top notch. Even Fuuka, the one character whose voice work was dubious in spots, has been given some new lines and some of her dialogue seems to have been re-dubbed. The music is a weird mix of pop, orchestral and almost opera tunes that oddly fit the game and is quite pleasant to listen to. During the course of the game some songs may get tiresome to hear but they’re genuinely fun songs.

Sure, Persona 3 FES sounds like all peaches and cream, but this great game is marred by a few things. You can die incredibly easy, especially early on, and watch literal hours of progress go right out the window. While not unique to this game, and indeed it is a part of all Shin Megami Tensei games, it does get to be a bit tiresome at times.

However if you can invest the eighty to one hundred hours to get through the main game as well as the thirty to play the epilogue there’s no reason not to own Persona 3. It’s an incredibly solid game experience that any RPG fan shouldn’t miss.

Westerners should count themselves lucky that the World Ends With You managed to make it out of Japan. As recently as five years ago, Square-Enix’s quirky RPG starring a typically angst-y teenage protagonist playing a bizarre game in the middle of Shibuya might have been deemed too bizarre for western audiences. And who knows, they might have been right. But times change, and it looks like we’re the better for it.

You take on the role of Neku as he wakes up in the middle of Shibuya’s Hachiko Crossing with a timer ticking down on his hand and no memory. Anybody who has ever passed through Tokyo will have to smile at this point, as Square-Enix has faithfully replicated every nook and cranny of the famous district.

Even the false store fronts carry a ring of authenticity with them, as names like “104” and “Towa Records” are poor disguises for well-known landmarks. All of this will probably be lost on the majority of westerners, but it’s nice that the localization didn’t bother to sugarcoat the fact that this is a very Japanese game set in a very Japanese location.

You spend a great deal of time attempting to solve the mystery of the “Reapers” and their sadistic game against this backdrop, and as you do so, TWEWY does an effective job of steadily doling out the play mechanics. On the surface, the battle system consists primarily of scribbling as fast as you can in an effort to knock out all of the beasts (called Noise) that inhabit Shibuya. But pretty soon, you’ll be trying to use the Dance Dance Revolution like moves of your partner who is battling simultaneously on the top of the screen. Then you’ll be trying out new attacks, which are provided by pins that are garnered from shops and enemies.

Did I mention that fashion is a heavy element in this game? Well, it is, as you buy not just pins, but a variety of hats, sweaters, dresses from a variety of (occasionally recognizable) retailers, marking perhaps the first time in which naked consumerism has actually boosted your stats across the boards. Customization freaks will find plenty to love in raising their reputation with the different shop owners in order to access the best clothes and abilities, while collectors will have a job on their hands trying to get all of the pins in the game.

In the meantime, this game does a terrific job of bringing its vibrant setting to life. Neku and company were designed by the omnipresent Tetsuya Nomura of Final Fantasy and Kingdom Hearts fame, and while it’s easy to write off the style that they evoke as tired (yet another blonde, spikey-haired protagonist), they are notable for fitting in quite seamlessly with the setting.

Another high point is the music, which is quite simply the best soundtrack on any system this year. It’s an eclectic mix of J-Pop vocal artistry, and even if your tastes don’t run in that direction, it’s hard not to feel energized when your met with a familiar synthesizer blast at the beginning of a battle. Too many RPGs these days utilize overly dreary or simply boring soundtracks, so it’s great to be playing a game that practically demands headphones.

In the hands of lesser designers, the wild battle system combined with the sheer variety of creative play mechanics would amount to an overcomplicated mess. But happily, as often as you find yourself dealing with the game’s more innovative elements, it never really feels overwhelming. Veteran RPG fans will pick up on the ins-and-outs of the game pretty quickly, and the result is one of the freshest experiences to hit either consoles or handhelds in quite some time.

With its solid art direction, outstanding soundtrack and creative gameplay mechanics, TWEWY ends up being a surprisingly addiictive game that is an enjoyable departure from the majority of RPGS out there. Enjoy it while it lasts, because most people should be familiar with Square-Enix’s penchant for running new ideas into the ground. But until it does, the World Ends With you is practically a mandatory purchase for anybody with a Nintendo DS and a taste for Japanese RPGs.

If there is one thing that Etrian Odyssey 2, a.k.a. Sekaiju no Meikyu II, succeeds in doing, it is throwing in additional content. After only a short time playing, I can honestly say that if Atlus chooses to release the sequel to this first-person RPG in North America, fans of the original will be quite pleased.

The first additions come in the class section. At the very beginning there are 11 different class options available, as opposed to the original, which featured only 7. All of the 9 original classes (landsknecht, protector, survivalist, dark hunter, medic, alchemist, troubadour, ronin and hexer) are available from the beginning for party creation.

On top of that, the gunner and doctor magus/shaman jobs are also initially available. The only “hidden” profession is pet, but players don’t need to worry. Where the ronin and hexer jobs in the initial game required players to delve into over 10 floors, the pet job is unlocked after defeating a boss on the fifth floor and returning to that area.

For my personal party, I chose to go with a slight alteration to my original Etrian Odyssey party. I replaced my dark hunter with a gunner, and then created a party filled with a landsknecht, alchemist, troubadour, ronin and gunner all named after Nana characters. (I’m a dork, I know.)

Like the original game, the only thing you can do after that is go to the guild. It’s a whole new town, so everything looks slightly different. Everything is still in the same place though– there’s the inn, an herbal academy, a trading post, a bar, a guild and Lagaard Palace. Once again the first mission involves mapping part of the first floor of the dungeon and proving you can handle yourself, functioning more as a tutorial than a challenge.

After that I did what any good Etrian Odyssey veteran would do – went to the trading post and loaded up on potions. The first game was renowned for its difficulty levels, and I had heard that the sequel delivered more of the same.

Then I went into the dungeon. I was quite impressed heading in, as the graphics seem improved somewhat. I know that is difficult to comprehend and even think of, since the Etrian Odyssey games are first person RPGs when wandering through areas, but everything looked better. There seemed to be a lot more detail in the forest stage.

Also the mapping functions have some significant additions. There are three different colors which can be used for floors (helpful for identifying water or poisoned areas), new arrows to identify one-way paths between areas, new door icons to represent locked and unlocked entrances and a wide selection of assorted new markers to add to the map. This really delighted me, as in the first game I found myself getting frustrated that I’d actually have to click an area to find out if that sparkly place was a mining area or a gathering spot.

Moving forward causes a 2D palace guard to appear. He talks a bit, then teleports you to a random spot in the maze. You then have to find your way back to the entrance. I figured this would be fairly easy, as the first mission in the original game involved a fairly small, straightforward initial level and the enemies weren’t too menacing.

Then I ran right into a pack of wolves, followed by some mole creatures. Let me take a moment to say that Etrian Odyssey 2 is not forgiving. I was a little slow when doling out potions, and so Junko the ronin had to take a dive. Thankfully that was the only real hardship, and I managed to maneuver my way through the area back to the entrance. A nice point worth mentioning is that the first F.O.E. enemy lay behind a closed door, so it doesn’t pop up out of nowhere and join your battle.

Returning to the entrance, the knight congratulated me. My party went to the hospital (manned by a doctor bears a striking resemblence to Trauma Center Second Opinion’s Derek Stiles) to revive Junko then to the palace to claim rewards and glory.

From my brief playthrough, I can honestly say I am impressed with the way the sequel turned out – even if my ronin was owned by a troop of moles. It is clear that the creators really looked at what the fans of the series liked and disliked, and did their best to leave the good and fix the mediocre. If Atlus chooses to release Etrian Odyssey 2 in North America, it could very well receive more attention than its sleeper hit predecessor.

Screens courtesy of NCSX

Kingdom Under Fire is a strange breed. The original games on the Xbox were a healthy mix of real-time strategy and sword-and-shield brawling, but apparently that involved too much thinking. Blue Side effectively removed all that pesky thought-requiring strategy and left us with Circle of Doom — a fairly straightforward hack-and-slash RPG with just enough emo to make you want to put on some eyeliner.

If you’re new to the Kingdom Under Fire series, well, it really doesn’t matter. Circle of Doom is more of a spin-off series in and of itself. There have been three previous Kingdom Under Fire games, and much like Grand Theft Auto or Street Fighter, none of them were part two. The actual Kingdom Under Fire sequel is scheduled to be released sometime in 2009.

The storyline of Circle of Doom, however, does involve some of the characters from the previous games. Chronologically, it takes place after the events of The Crusaders, and begins with the main characters being transported to the Dark Dimension.

Oh yes, there will be blood.

Basically, there’s a Lord of Light and a Lord of Darkness. They made an agreement that they would take turns ruling the earth for 1,000 years each. It came time for the Lord of Darkness to take over, but the Lord of Light got all pissy and said no. He didn’t like his beautiful world being ruined by the Lord of Darkness, so he just plain refused to let the Lord of Darkness take his turn.

Obviously, the Lord of Darkness was slightly furious, so he called upon his Dark Legion and tried to forcibly remove the Lord of Light from the world. People didn’t like that, so they fought back, and eventually beat the Darkness back to his dimension. Coincidentally, all the heroes that helped destroy the demons also got sucked into the Dark Dimension. Oh no!

So you now have your choice between five playable characters (and one unlockable character) and begin your adventure at this point. Different storylines reveal different plot elements and help to explain what the hell is supposed to be going on. I don’t know how much of this information people would consider to be spoiler territory, so I’ll refrain from mentioning any specifics.

Suffice to say, all of the characters follow the same path. There are essentially six regions, including a forest and the obligatory ice and fire levels, and everyone travels them the same way. The only story elements happen while you are sleeping, so you have to engage the story yourself if you are interested in it. Otherwise, you could play though the whole game up to the end boss and not even know what your motivation is.

The evil characters are especially confusing. Why would they want to to destroy the Lord of Darkness when they themselves are evil? These questions will only be answered if you choose to play out the story, and even then, you still might not understand what’s going on.

So you look through your character choices and pick what suits you best. My first choice was Regnier, a burly hunk of man-muscle with a masked face and horns, and my brother chose Leinhart, a fast-moving vampire ninja thing. We played through the entire game cooperatively over Xbox Live, a feature I greatly appreciate. In fact, Circle of Doom supports up to 4 players over Xbox Live, so that certainly adds some replay value right there.

You then awaken in the Forest of Embracing and run through a quick (and skippable) tutorial before running into your first group of baddies. I take a few minutes to get used to the controls, walk around and look at the scenery, etc. The graphics are actually quite nice, better than I expected. The art design seems like it was ripped straight from the pages of Heavy Metal magazine.

You get two weapon buttons: A and X. Each character has their own set of tools to smite bitches, which can be assigned to either button. You could have, for example, a sword and shield, a hammer and a crossbow, two hammers, or even two shields (if you wanted a challenge or were just completely retarded).

I personally went with the great sword and a hand cannon. Equipping a two-handed weapon, thankfully, does not take the place of two one-handed weapons like it does in some (most) other games. The first thing I noticed was that my combo attacks tore up the ground around where we were fighting. I got curious and started shooting rocks with my cannon, and to my surprise, they actually deformed.

The environmental destruction is limited, of course, but it’s pretty awesome to check out the battlefield after a huge rumble and see craters in the earth. It is not, however, a universal occurrence. My brother’s pussy little weakling of a character does not smash walls like mine does unless he gets a weapon with a specific enhancement that allows him to do so.

Regnier’s Explosion ability craters the ground quite nicely.

Ah, right — enhancements. Weapons, armor, and jewelry all have enhancement slots where you can add little extra, well, enhancements. These run anywhere from protecting you against fire to dealing more damage with each successful hit. The enhancements available to each piece of equipment are limited by the equipment type. For example, most of Regnier’s weapons can’t use Bloodlust, but his gauntlet-type weapons can.

Status and elemental abilities can be used as either offense or defense. Putting Lightning on a piece of jewelry will increase your chances of blocking a Lightning attack, but putting it on a weapon will give you a chance of inflicting additional Lightning damage on an enemy.

The process of getting these enhancements on your equipment involves Synthesizing, which is a whole convoluted game in and of itself. There is no definite result to combining any two pieces of equipment, other than most times, you will get the same thing you started with.

The Excavation enhancement increases environmental destruction. Shooting Regnier’s cannon close to the ground leaves a trail of annihilated earth.

For example: Start with a sword, try to synthesize a ring with it, and your end result will still be a sword, only different. It really is a process of trial and error, and it keeps you questing for more random junk to sell for the money needed to synthesize, or for the actual synthesis materials themselves.

Synthesizing items that have the same enhancement on them will combine and raise the enhancement level, up to a maximum of 25. Raising these levels is pretty much the only way you stand a chance or Hard and Extreme. There is no block button, so the only way you can avoid a hit is to have a high defensive level of Bash, Slash, or Thrust, not to mention the elemental attacks (like getting frozen) and status effects (like Fear, which makes you unable to attack).

As you find better armor, the dudes get increasingly more bad-ass…

…while the only female character, Celine, gets progressively more naked.

If it seems like I just spent way too long talking about synthesizing, then maybe you won’t like this game. In the 30 hours it took for me and my brother to run through the game on Normal, we spent probably 1 to 2 hours synthesizing stuff. Once we unlocked Hard, that time skyrocketed.

It took another 20 hours to run through the game on Hard. We didn’t have to do any of the story crap, so that decreased our time right there. Of those 20 hours, however, I would honestly estimate that we spent about 5 of those hours synthesizing our equipment. Believe it or not, Hard is actually hard. You really are better off investing some serious time and pretty much all of your money in synthesis.

The good thing about synthesizing is that it can only be done at an Idol. Every level is basically comprised of a set number of tiles, which are randomly put together to make the map. One tile in each level has an Idol. These locations are where you do all of your buying and selling, synthesizing, and the only place you can sleep and enter your dream world.

The Idol of Death

This is great in multiplayer because it’s basically a rest stop where people can do all the things they need to do. If someone is standing there synthesizing stuff, I can browse through what the Idol is selling, synthesize my own stuff, or enter the dream world while I wait (which you may do a lot of — I wasted a ton of my brother’s time at the Idol when he was eager to just go kill some stuff).

Everyone’s dream world is different, but they all have one similarity: a person to talk to. The main character of the dream world usually just stands there and talks to you, gives you your quests, and also teaches you new abilities if you ask politely. Abilities are usually spells, but there are other things like Dash and Leap.

This is not a cutscene — the character resolution in the dream world seems to be slightly higher than the real world.

Generally, you need to kill a certain number of specific enemies to learn an ability. Once learned, you can assign them to the B button and Right Trigger. Abilities for the most part are not very powerful, but there are a few that come in handy (like Heal), or that kill weak enemies fairly quickly and efficiently (Chain Lightning). I’ve found that spamming Explosion with Regnier is a good boss-killer.

Abilities can be charged up and made more powerful by holding the button, which also consumes your stamina. Your stamina, or SP, is basically your mana or magic, but it also decreases when you use a weapon. Weapons have an SP usage and an SP regeneration statistic, which just adds one more layer of complexity to your equipment. Yet another reason you’ll be spending time synthesizing all your shit over and over.

Spending a lot of SP to cast Heal provides some very impressive results.

When we beat the game, my brother and I were both in the upper 40s in level. The guys at the very beginning of the game on Hard are in their 60s. The max character level for a player is 120, and Extreme-level bad guys start at level 123. The boss at the end of the game on Extreme is level 223!

Overall, it took me 58 hours and some change to run Regnier through Normal and Hard mode, level up to 120 in Extreme, and then warp to the last region and beat the final boss. If I only wanted to do the storylines of each of the characters after that, it would be at the very least 20 hours per character, for a total of around 160 hours of gameplay. I’ve already played through Normal with Celine and Kendal, each one taking about 30 hours, and I still have the other 3 characters to go.. Not a bad bang for the buck, eh?

I had a nice time playing through Circle of Doom. I never got overly frustrated at the game or the cheapness of the baddies (which is rare). There are some moments where the framerate drops well below acceptable, especially on the last stage. There is a ton of detail there and a lot going on, but that really is no excuse.

The last level is dark and fairly disturbing.

My only major gripe is with the character Duane. What a crack-brained hunk of turd that guy is. On the character select screen we see an old fat dude with crazy eyebrows, an eyepatch, and that his weapons include Gatling guns. Sweet! No, unfortunately not sweet. The character feels to me like the people a Blue Side really hate the English and this is their way of expressing those feelings.

Duane is just a moron. His dash attack ends with him actually falling on his face, his melee attacks are about as useful as FEMA, and his story quests consist of dueling with some other loser in a “Who’s the Lamest Character?” contest. Basically, you attack or defend, high or low, and the winner is determined by almost complete randomness.

Each round starts with either the other guy saying something, in which case you defend, or you get to say something and attack. Sometimes you try to fake him out by saying something like you’re going to smack him in the nuts, but then you hit him in the face. Other times you can talk about pie, or how the dewy glow of a forest sunrise makes your inner gayness smile. Ultimately, what you say doesn’t really matter — the computer decides who wins, and even when it’s Duane, in every sense it will never be you.

The dumbest mini-game you will ever play.

Duane’s ultimate goal is to impress some chick from his past that is probably dead or old (is there a difference?) in real life. By comparison, Regnier was once immortal and basically talks with some old guy about how much ass he kicks; Leinhart is trying to mutate so that he can take back his land and bang some hot vampire chick; Celine is trying to find a cure for her lover and whores herself out for information… Okay, she doesn’t really, but still…

The point is that all of the characters have a decent storyline that involves murdering lots of stuff. They have some real, world-saving objectives, while Duane, on the other hand, calls his girlfriend fat and has fencing competitions. Maybe he is supposed to be the comic relief, but with the other options available, nobody wants to play as Jar-Jar Binks.

One more thing I should touch on is the voice acting. Many people have said that it’s just plain bad. I disagree. The voice acting is very good, actually. The characters are all very cold and emotionless — it’s a stylized thing. Leinhart’s accent is kinda bad, and Duane is overall horrible anyways so who the fuck cares what he sounds like.

Duane — looks like he should be awesome, but he instead wins the award for Lamest Character Ever.

Regnier, on the other hand, is actually voiced by John Di Maggio, the pipes behind Marcus Fenix from Gears of War. I was actually quite surprised as you wouldn’t initially recognize the voice as being him. I watched the credits after a few hours of playing and saw his name, and then was like “Huh… I guess that is him.” His voice acting is as emotionally void as everyone else’s, and in no way is it “bad”. Some people just don’t understand what style and perspective are.

Overall, if you enjoy hack-and-slash games, you will enjoy Circle of Doom. If you’re not sure what hack-and-slash is all about, then go rent Dynasty Warriors or Diablo II. Circle of Doom is a healthy mix of those two games — actually, it feels sort of like an MMORPG on a much smaller scale, like Phantasy Star. If you aren’t a fan of these types of games, however, Circle of Doom probably isn’t going to change your mind.

What does this score mean? Check out our review scoring breakdown.

Don’t miss the gallery for additional and/or larger images.

Circle of Doom Images

16 Photos

 

“Heroes?! In MY Labyrinth?!”

Have you ever gotten lost in a dungeon? Frustrated, confused, swamped by enemies with not a single health potion left in your inventory? Well, have you ever wanted to be the jerkface that designs those soul-killing labyrinths you loathe so much? If so, then you clearly need to play “Yuusha no Kuse ni Namaiki da,” or “Brazen In Spite of Heroes.”

In this puzzle-RPG hybrid from Japanese developer Acquire, you play the role of a quite-possibly-evil dungeon master trying to build the ultimate hero-killing maze. Laid out in Dug Dug-styled strata, you carve out all the tunnels yourself, culling slimes from moss-covered rock. These most-basic-of-basic RPG baddies will then proceed to ooze around and fertilize other tiles or feed on them and multiply. When rocks start to turn white from this process, you can break them to release nasty bugs or even more effective lizardmen. Figuring out how to structure your dungeon and cultivate more powerful creatures is the key to success. It’s a delicate ecosystem so think of it as a kind of “monster ant farm.”

Soon enough, the surface’s mightiest champions will descend into your lair in an attempt to abduct you and drag you topside for some buff rewards from the locals. Yeah, now you know how all those bosses you’ve killed over the years feel. Anyway, once they enter, you’re asked to place yourself somewhere in the dungeon, and though the grace period has ended, you can continue to create new tunnels and unleash new monsters as the adventurers hack their way through your minions. Each hero type has different attributes and weaknesses, as well as the ability to level up, increasing their strength and restoring their health. Striking a good balance between having monsters powerful enough to pose a challenge and not littering your dungeon with experience point fodder takes some getting used to.

Though it may sound somewhat complex, it actually plays out quickly. This is an arcade game through and through, which means it’s hard to tell exactly how deep it gets from the three-level demo. But, hey, it’s got great aesthetic appeal (original Dragon Quest era sprites and pipey music) and hallowed review house Famitsu gave it an impressive score (36/40). Try it for yourself in Japanese (it has a low language barrier) and hope that someone plans to publish the full game in the West at some point. Below you can find the promotional trailer and instructions on how to obtain the demo yourself.

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As getting demos, especially foreign ones, on to your PSP can be a trial of patience, you can try following these instructions:

1. Download this file to your PC. That’s the EBOOT file you’ll need to run the game.
2. Stick your PSP-formatted Memory Stick Duo into your computer if you have an appropriate reader OR use a mini-USB->USB cable to connect your PSP (with Duo inserted) to your computer.
3. Either way, the Memory Stick should show up on your list of drives. Open it and go to the /PSP/GAME directory.
4. Create a new folder with the title “NPJG90009″
5. Place the EBOOT file in that folder.
6. On your PSP, go to “Game” on your XMB and scroll down to “Memory Stick.” You should now see an icon for the game.
7. Click it and play!

By the way, you’ll need Firmware 3.72 to run it!