Final Fantasy XII - The only one you'll ever need

With a development time of almost five years and numerous delays, Final Fantasy XII proves that perfection takes time. While I'm not saying this title is perfect (nothing is), this is probably the best game in the franchise. Be warned, as this review is rather lengthy. I apologise in advance.

How it Looks: Fantastic!
As with every Final Fantasy, the graphics are top notch. Everything from the detailed buildings to the amazing effects of magic and abilities, down to the highly detailed character models, are absolutely gorgeous. While most of it is a bleak brown or grey colour, it fits the storytelling style and locale of the game. The game also runs very smoothly, even with a vast amount of people on the screen. I have yet to see slowdown while running through a city, even with 20-30 people walking around, talking to each other, and with ever-changing bubbles that appear over the ones you can talk to. The only downside is that the areas are so largely detailed that loading from area to area takes about 2-5 seconds, depending on the size.

How it Sounds: Great
The Final Fantasy series is known for its grande musical scores and XII doesn't disappoint. With a more gritty feel in most of the combat scenes and a nice, melodic feel in most of the free cities, the music is very much in tune with the story and locale. Nothing seems out of place, and while there's not a particular song that will stick with you after you power down the system, none of them are unpleasant to hear. Neither are the voice overs for the characters. While it seems a little mechanical at first, the voice overs get much better quickly as the game progresses, and while there are a couple of voices that don't sound like they'd suit the person who's speaking it, overall they're nicely done. Charisma is definitely in each voice, so we don't get any pissed off people standing there saying "I am angry!" in a monotone voice (looking at you Yuna!*).

How it Feels: Great
Square Enix did a great job making sure everything you need to control is simple to access: every command that can be activated from the controller is done so with a push of a button or a tilt of one of the analog sticks. While character movement is only designated to the left analog stick, by now most people should be used to that in games by now. The camera controls have been pushed to the right analog stick, and it provides the only flaw in the controls: they seem reversed compared to the movement, so moving the stick left will rotate the camera right, and so on, and it can't be changed. In fact, you better get used to the controls in the game, because you can't change any of them, and as I said while reviewing Xenosaga III, in this day and age it is unacceptable.

How it Plays: Excellent!
While it may seem a radical departure from the series, underneath the presentation the game plays very similar to past Final Fantasy games. Every battle is done in pseudo-realtime, so there are no random encounters, and most of the menu-work is very limited during non-boss fights. However, battles are still in ATB (or Active Time Battle) format, so you must wait for a gauge to fill up in order to execute a selected move. However, you don't have to mash attack, for once you've attacked a monster once, your character will keep attacking it until it dies, and will resume attacking after a different action is taken. With so much action happening at once, there's the Gambit system to help manage every character. Sort of a simple AI programming system, gambits allow you to have your characters do actions based on certain battle situations: character at 40% health, have your healer cast Cure on him/her; otherwise attack. Each gambit also has a weight, so if situation one arises and your character is acting based on situation two, it'll stop action and act based on the first gambit situation. Also changing is the level-up system. While you do get experience for killing enemies and levelling up based on that, it only raises your HP, Mana, and maybe a stat here or there. For each defeated monster, you also get Licence points (LP), which allow you to unlock licenses. Think of licenses as in real life: you can't cast a particular spell or wield a specific weapon without the proper license, and unlocking it on the license board allows you to use it. But unlocking a spell doesn't do much unless you have it, so you also have to hunt down those spells and weapons. A few squares on the license board are labelled Quickenings, and they are the limit breaks of the game. Quickenings are super-strong abilities that can deal massive damage to one or many enemies. They can also be chained, so if you have another character in battle with a quickening available, you can activate his/her quickening and chain them together. There's a timer counting down when you activate one, and as long as the timer isn't at zero, you can chain another quickening onto it, even if they don't have the mana for it (though if they do, it's used up)! Quickenings can only be used if you have the correct amount of mana bars open, and unlocking a new Quickening will add another mana bar, which essentially doubles/triples your original mana (to a max of three mana bars). Also changed are the summons. All of them must be defeated in battle (though there are a handful you must fight to progress story anyways), and must be given to a specific character, who will be the only person who can summon it. This can also increase mana bars, depending on the strength of the summon. Once summoned (and you'll need the required amount of full mana bars to summon one), it will replace the remaining party members and attack surrounding monsters for a set period of time, eventually leading up to its ultimate attack. Almost all of the summons are from the Tactics games, though a couple hidden ones are drawn from Final Fantasy's past.

Game Length: 60+ Hours
With a long story, a large License board to unlock for each character, a dozen or so summons, optional areas and quests, and giant Marks (creatures you're hired to go kill) that can take as long as an hour or two to kill, there's a ton here to do. And because your characters are determined by the licenses you give them, you can go through the game with totally different characters each time.

Verdict: Buy!
This is the definitive Final Fantasy. If you enjoy the series, you should own it by now. Even if you haven't enjoyed a game in the series, but like RPGs and a great story, pick this game up. I'll even go out on a limb and say that this game is not only the best game in the series, but probably the best RPG on the PlayStation 2.

Wii finally get our Wii!

After two years of guesswork and a large year of news, Nintendo's revolutionary system finally comes to our shores, and their idea of gameplay and innovation over graphics and cutting-edge technology may win the hearts of non-gamers, but it will surprise hardcore gamers with its enjoyability.

How it Looks - System: Incredible, Graphics: Decent/Good
The system is an interesting design: probably the first assymetric system I've seen. It looks like a square, but with it's back corner pulled down and out. It is the smallest of the next-gen consoles, being a similar size to three DVD cases in height. While Nintendo does plan on making other colours, only White is available at launch, which matches our DS Lites just fine. The look of the controller also mimics the buttons of the DS Lite, but that's more due to the fact that the DS Lite's buttons were made to mimic the Wii.
Graphically, however, is where the Wii is lacking. I'm not going to say that the Wii's graphics look terrible; they're great, but they don't match up to what the PS3 and the Xbox 360 can pump out. There's no option for HD output either, which fits Nintendo's goal of gameplay over graphics.

How it Sounds: Good
The sounds of the game depend on the game and television you're using, but the neat thing about the Wii is the speaker in the Wiimote itself. It was used mainly for effects generated from actions, like punching in Wii Sports: Boxing or slashing in Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, but it added to the experience.

How it Feels: Amazing!!
The big thing about the Nintendo Wii is the controller. Most games us the Wiimote, which looks like a television remote with only a few buttons, and a plug-in adapter known as a nunchuck, with a joystick and two more buttons. Each one fits in one hand very comfortably, so your hands aren't cramped or sore after a long play session. The Wiimote is pretty sensitive, but I've been told that you can change its sensitivity. Each game uses the controllers differently, so there's no true way to say how each game will feel for you. Some use the Wiimote and not the nunchuck, some use the Wiimote sideways, some use them for punching, throwing, etc., and each one feels comfortable. The only problem with this kind of free-moving control is that you must give a lot of space to everybody who's playing. When testing out Wii Sports: Baseball, I was pitching and the other player was batting, and when he swung the Wiimote, it clocked me in the elbow. If anything, it's durable!

How it Plays: Enjoyable
None of the small amount of games I played were frustrating to control. Each one was controlled with simple movements, which were mimicked on screen by what I was controlling very closely. With Super Monkey Ball: Banana Blitz, you control the level, which will tilt based on how the Wiimote is tilted exactly, so a small movement will only tilt it a little bit. In Wii Sports: Boxing, shooting your right hand out with a wide punch will have your boxer do a wide hook on the opposing boxer. This setup of controls allows for variable gameplay for every game made for it. If you want to, it is also able to play any GameCube game you may have, and with the Virtual Console available, you can download games from the Nintendo Vaults, from such systems as the NES, SNES, N64, Sega Genesis and TurboGraphix 16. Add in weather finder, buyable internet browser and photo manager and you have yourself a well-rounded gaming machine the whole family could use. Due note that some of the Virtual Console games require the Classic Controller, which looks like a SNES controller, but with two analog joysticks on it.

Verdict: Buy!
It may not have the prettiest graphics, but it sure as hell a lot of fun to play. The intent of attracting non-gamers to a video game console, and the system's interesting control scheme seem to spell success for Nintendo this time. With a cheaper price point than the Xbox 360 and PS3, it is sure to be a hit this holiday season, and beyond.

Mortal Kombat: Armageddon: More like Deception+

With the end of the latest console generation looming, Midway decides they're going to go out with the perverbial "bang" with their seventh entry into the Mortal Kombat franchise: Armageddon. Unfortunately, it feels more like a toned-down expansion to its predecessor Deception than a full-fledged game.

How it Looks: Mediocre
The game is done in 3D, as every game since Mortal Kombat 4, and while it doesn't look terrible, it's not new: the graphics use a similar engine, if not the same one, as Deception. Most models and almost every animation from Deception are reused here in Armageddon: If a character loses a round on his stomach, he/she/it will get up the same way as every other character. Recycling isn't limited to characters: half of the arenas are from Deception and Deadly Alliances (Deception's predecessor). The remainder are 3D remakes from the series' past: the Subway from MK3 makes a return, complete with trains as deathtraps. So if you're looking for cutting-edge visuals while fighting, look elsewhere. On the plus side though, there is not a single character that looks like another one, one of the problems of sprite-based graphics. For example, Ultimate MK3 had Sub-Zero, Scorpion, Rain, Ermac AND Noob Saibot use the same sprites, just recoloured and called "new." In Armageddon, all of these characters are in the game and look completely different.

How it Sounds: Annoying/Mediocre
The ambient music in the game is about the only good thing about the sound in Armageddon, as it sets the mood of the battle very well. Other than that, you may want to turn off the sound. Every character grunts, shouts, screams, groans, and roars when they attack, get hit, or jump, and none of it is in any sort of recognisable language, and none of it sounds any good. Sound effects are generally unnoticeable, though, and easily blend in with the background music. The only redeeming thing about the sound is the voice acting in the Konquest mode: it actually has some timing between characters talking! In Deception, when one character finished talking and another would start, there would be no pause in between. In Armageddon, it now sounds like a natural conversation between two or more people. The quality is spotty, but at least it isn't terrible to listen to.

How it Feels: Comfortable
The controls haven't changed at all from Deception: Each basic attack is mapped to one of the four face buttons, and combos are easily made by mashing those buttons. Special attacks are easy to pull off, as they take two directional pushes, then a face button. In fact, all the combos and special attacks are viewable during the fight in the pause menu, so no needless memorisation is needed. Blocking is easily executed with R2 (a parry is done by pusing Back and R2, which is a block that stuns the character if timed correctly), throwing R1, and changing fighting styles done with L1. The only qualm I have is that during fights, the arrow buttons and the left analog stick control movement, though during Konquest mode's non-fighting sequences, only the left analog stick moves the player.

How it Plays: Average
One of the main draws of Armageddon is that any player can win a fight at any given time. This is shown with deathtraps in each area: a red line denotes that hitting a player past that line or adjacent to the line (if you can't go past it) with an attack that lifts them off the ground (like an uppercut), that player will die in a gruesome (but sometimes funny) death sequence and you automatically win. This essentially sums up the gameplay in Armageddon: chaotic. While a seasoned veteran of Mortal Kombat will feel right at home with this game, any player has a chance (even if it's a very small one) of winning a fight. Another main draw is the fact that every character that appeared in a Mortal Kombat game is playable: from the famous characters like Sub-Zero and Liu Kang to the very obscure ones like Rain and Meat to the bosses of previous games like Kintaro and even Onaga. Each one has different strengths and weaknesses, but they mostly feel the same, thanks to the Kreate-a-Fatality system introduced. Instead of pulling off a complicated fatality, you imput much simpiler commands to do smaller bits of a fatality chain, then you can end it with ripping out the spine, or crushing their head. If you take too long between imputs the time runs out and you don't get to do a cool ending. The problem with the fighting mode, however, is that it feels exactly the same as Deception, and while that isn't a bad game, it's not fair to ask gamers to shell out 50 bucks for an updated roster an not much new in terms of gameplay. Alternate modes are the Konquest mode, which feels like MK: Shaolin Monks, a 3D beat-em-up game, but with arcade fighting bits; and Motor Kombat, which is Mario Kart with deathtraps and MK characters.

Game Length: 5+ hours (Konquest mode)
All the modes have unlimited playability, with no ending to them. With 62 characters, there are 62 different endings to read (no graphics, just text and a kata being played out), and with both the arcade fighting and Motor Kombat playable online, there is a lot of replayability..... if you don't mind repetitive gameplay.

Verdict: Bargain Bin
Don't get me wrong: the game isn't bad. It isn't the be-all and end-all of fighting games, but it's a nice pick up and play title to get with your friends. However, if you are wanting a strong fighting game, or if you've played and/or owned Deception and are looking for fresh gameplay, look elsewhere.

Disgaea 2: Sophomore Memories Cursed?

Disgaea 2: Cursed Memories arrives on the PlayStation 2, bringing with it the crazy antics of the original Disgaea, plus a new cast, new story, and new craziness. Now if only the game was so fresh.

How it Looks: Fair
Compared to most games on the PS2, the game falls flat in the visuals, as it sticks true to its roots and continues with the 2D sprites, with 3D modeled maps. The backdrop is usually just some solid colour or blend of colours, sometimes with stars or a sky, or something to that effect. While they are still 2D sprites, they do have very nice, fluent animations, with a lot of subtleties, like flowing hair when they move, or fluttering dresses, etc. There are a lot more animations for each character than in the first game, which was already pretty decent, and with a lot more models, this makes the game feel very fluid visually. However, with the power of the PS2 at their disposal, and with almost every other game using 3D characters, NIS could have improved the graphics to reach the times.

How it Sounds: Good/Annoying
The musical score in Disgaea 2 is rather nice, with a couple of songs returning for a second go, like the intro screen and the hospital menu. The rest are new, and while none of them will stick in your head when the power is turned off, they are at least pleasant enough to listen to while playing. The voice overs are also done very well, keeping the humour in tack with decent pacing (though the main character does sound somewhat flat and emotionless at times). The Prinnies' voices are a bit of a disappointment, since they were perfect in Disgaea, and they went and changed them for this game. They are somewhat high-pitched and a strain to listen to. The sound effects department really suffers, though. Some of the recurring sounds are pretty annoying, especially some of the character's jumping sounds. Every time you pick someone up or jump up to a panel that is higher than the character, there is a grunt or scream or something, and they aren't the most pleasant thing in the world. The Geo Combo (more later) sound effects are equally poor, taking away the more natural explosion sound and replacing it with a sort of "squish" sound.

How it Feels: Comfortable
The controls are unchanged from Disgaea from what I have played with. If you've never played the game before, there is a slight getting used to, but it is easily transformed into a groove when you get going (Naturally, I started playing this game after Xenosaga III, and, well, I had to add a 5 minute learning curve to the controls, even though I've spent over 100 hours on the first game!).

How it Plays: Fun/Boring
Contradictions in the most important part of the review isn't a good sign, is it?
To those who haven't played the game, it has a "cult" following for a reason (reviewers and writers throw that word around a lot. Essentially, a small group of people like the game a lot): It is a strategy RPG, where you take control of a group of people and play it out in turn-based, tile-based, tactical fights. That's all there is to the game: Fight through the story, fight through your items to level them up, or fight through the unlockable optional levels. Needless to say, you do a lot of fighting, and although the battle system is fairly easy to pick up, it is a difficult thing to master. Essentially, it is turn-based, but unlike the famous "Final Fantasy Tactics" style, your team goes first, then the opposing team goes, and so on. That is always the order; not once do your opponents start a fight going first. You can have up to 10 units on the field at a time, and you can move them and act with them in a turn. Once they move and attack, they can't be commanded for the rest of your turn, but if they've only moved, they can still act, and if they've only acted, they can still move. Better yet, if they've only moved, their move can be cancelled and moved again, as long as the spot they started in is empty. The big thing in this game is that you can pick up a unit on the field and throw it. This includes friends and foes. Another returning mechanic are geo panels. They are coloured squares on the grid, that when a geo pyramid is tossed on top of it, every panel of that colour gets the effect of the pyramid. Some are good (ex: increasing Attack by 50%), while some are bad (ex: Destroy the unit if they are attacked)! Also, if the pyramid is a different colour than the panel, attacking the pyramid will change each panel it was affecting to the colour of the pyramid, and if there are more pyramids hit by this wave, it creates a Geo Chain, possibly wiping out your enemies (or allies if you're not careful), and raising the bonus gauge like mad!
A new addition to the pickup mechanic is that you can have a stack of people and have the person at the base attack a unit beside them, and the whole stack will attack that person. It looks cool if anything else. Also new is the dark court, which will send subpoenas to your characters if they've leveled up too fast, or have too many abilities, etc. These can add bonuses to your characters (they are demons after all), or penalties, though I haven't been penalized by the court.
To those who have played through Disgaea at least through the story, it's the same game with a different set of characters, the two new additions, and a lot more Geo Effects (like sudden death, or death if damaged on that panel). If you really like it, you'll love it. But if you're looking for a new experience, you'll be disappointed.

Game Length: 100+ hours
Since there are 30-100 levels inside EACH item you can obtain (legendary and rare items have 100, rest have 30 as far as I know), about 4-5 unlockable areas, and the ability to get to level 9999 with any character, then reset their level to 1 in a new class and keep most of their abilities, the game can seem to go on forever. However, since it's mostly just the fighting, you must really like the game to go that far into the game.

Verdict: Split
People who have never played Disgaea: Buy!
While not the easiest game to master, Disgaea 2 is a very strong Strategy RPG that any RPG fan should have in their collection. Whether it's the unusual battle abilities, the zany characters and storyline, or the fact that being guilty gives bonuses will keep you interested for a while.
People who have played Disgaea: Depends
If you were a person who played Disgaea for as long as I can and still can't keep the controller down, this is the next best thing. It's a must for those fans. However, if you've played your fill of Disgaea, the second one will not provide anything new if you're looking for something. Though it is nice to return to a game and play through some new content.

Mega Man ZX: How many Mega Man games is this now?

The first new Mega Man game on the Nintendo DS is Mega Man ZX, a game that will feel somewhat familiar to those who played the X games for SNES/PlayStation (the 2D ones), and those who played through the Zero games for the GBA.

How it Looks: Good
While it won't win any awards for its graphics, the game does look very good, with smooth animations and no hiccups whatsoever. Dual and sometimes even Triple scrolling backgrounds are present in every level, showing off what the DS can do with sprite-based games. There is no 3D graphics anywhere in this game, as the developers kept the same 2D look that has made the Mega Man series a household name.

How it Sounds: Good
The music in the game is typical Mega Man fare: Nice rock music that just fits in the place it is. The soundtrack in general isn't as loud as some previous scores (the classic Mega Man X score is still the best Mega Man soundtrack to date, and in my opinion one of the best ever! I can still remember the beat to the opening level, and as I write this, I'm humming that tune horribly off-key!), but it's still very good. There are very few moments where there are voice overs, but those are all done in japanese, but so far I've only encountered one use of it. The sound effects, though, are top notch, with exception to timing: the main character's yell is heard every time he shoots and slashes the Z-Saber. While rapid fire and swinging aren't prevailent much, the one form I like to stay in is quick-fire: attacks quickly and uses projectiles. To this effect, the main character yells a lot, and can get annoying very fast. That is the only problem so far in the sound of the game.

How it Feels: Excellent!
Controls are very intuitive and make use of every button (except for select so far). The Y and R buttons are attacks (Y is main, and R is secondary), L is for dashing (though pushing a direction key twice rapidly will dash as well), B jumps, X brings up a ring menu to change your suit, A puts you in overdrive (more on that later), and Start accesses the menu, where you can also switch suits, refuel using sub tanks, and check your map and mission log. The touch screen isn't used for controls at all, so the hands stay on the buttons at all times to keep the Mega Man feel of the game. Everything is quick, and it has to be: the action is fast, and mistakes cost lives, which leads to...

How it Plays: Fun!
Gameplay is simple: kill minor robots in a level to get to the midboss, then kill more minor robots to get to the big boss, then beat him and get his power. Same formula for every Mega Man game, and the same can be sa— oh, wait. They changed the Mega Man formula! How ludacris! How outrageous!
How... refreshing! While it hasn't changed much, you take on a human character this time around (you get to choose male or female), who is chosen by the X model Biometal. Biometal allows humans to get some robotic assistance. The X model, for instance, turns our hero into X from the Mega Man X series, with dash and charge shot included. Eventually, you get the Z model, and the X and Z model fuse to get the titular Biometal, the ZX model. This turns you into Zero from Mega Man Zero fame, with a weak buster and a strong Saber. There is a map, which connects each level with a couple of starting areas and a city. There are save points scattered throughout the zones, with some connected to a transporter for easy reach, since the map is fairly large. The main goal is overtaking missions (most of which means facing mavericks and regaining Biometal from them). The main missions yield new Biometal that fuse with the X model. Each model has a different play style with it: HX allows you to dash in the air (even up!), one allows you better movement in the water, one can destroy big blocks and melt ice, and one allows you to cling to roofs and ledges while throwing projectiles. Each one also makes use of the bottom screen in different ways: The ZX mode doesn't use it for anything however, HX shows the health of the last enemy you attacked, FX allows you to plot the course of its bullets (though how is unknown to me... maybe in the manual I haven't read?), LX shows a layout of the surrounding area and has a homing dot that moves to any item in the screen, and the PX shows a smaller version of the LX area map, but does show where enemies and secret passageways are.
Besides those changes, its straight Mega Man action: shoot stuff, jump over pits (bottomless or spike-filled), shoot more stuff, shoot bosses, shoot more stuff. Just be sure to save often, as you can die almost anywhere if you're not careful.

Game Length: 10-20 Hours (aproximation)
If you just complete the main missions, it will be over in 8-10 hours (less if you're on easy mode and/or are a Mega Man veteran), but factor in some optional missions, some minigames, and a normal (hard) difficulty, and you've got yourself some playing time. Unfortunately, this is a solo campagn, so no multiplayer.

Verdict: Buy!
If you are a Mega Man fan, you'd be nuts to pass this up, as it is the same tried-and-true formula, only evolved. Plus who doesn't love some platforming with large guns. If you aren't a Mega Man fan, this is definitely a game to try out, as it is a basic platformer that tests your quickness with the controller more than your brainpower. When the only downside to the game is finding where to go (and that isn't so bad in the age of walkthroughs), you know you've got a hit on your hands.

Xenosaga III: A Semi-Interactive Movie!

The Xenosaga series has taken a lot of criticism for its long cutscenes, linear gameplay, and overarching story. This has caused some poor sales, and Namco Bandai decided that the 6-part series would be cut short, making Xenosaga III the final game of the now-trilogy series. While the storytelling hasn't changed much, the gameplay has, and for the better.

How it Looks: Excellent/Poor
How can a game get an excellent AND a poor rating? Because the graphics are great, but perhaps a little too great for the engine to handle at times. Characters are nicely detailed, with a style that is more of a balance between the anime-style Episode I characters and the super-realistic Episode II characters. Essentially, keep the detail of Ep. II and make the eyes bigger and mouths smaller, and you get where the character design is going. Naturally, all the main characters gets new outfits, which are a mixed bag, but that's only subtle things.
What gives the graphics a poor grade as well is the fact that during cutscenes, if there are more than 3 characters on the screen, or 2 or more with a lot of action, explosions and such, then the graphics will skip, passing over a couple of frames at a time. It keeps going at the same speed, meaning when the action should stop, it does, but it looks choppy.
Environments look absolutely tremendous, with lots of detail, even when close up. The camera is perfect for the layout of each level, though it is annoying (to me at least) when it stops moving forward/back when you run into a wall when coming towards the outside of the screen.

How it Sounds: Excellent
The musical score for Ep. III is again very good, reminiscent of Ep. I, but adding a couple of tunes in the style of Ep. II, but more in place than in Ep. II. Each piece of music fits the location or the situation, and plays smoothly throughout, without any hiccups. While none of them will stick in your head for very long after the power goes off, it has kept me from playing with the volume off since I've got it.
Voice overs are, once again, a mishmash of sorts. The original voice actors for Shion and KOS-MOS return, and the original voices for Jr., Albedo, Ziggy, Allen, and Margulis all stick around for the third installment (there may be more, but those are the only ones I could pick out). chaos, MOMO and Jin keep their Ep. II voice actors (I like chaos and Jin's Ep. II voice actors better anyways), while the rest of the cast seems to get new voice actors. Minor characters aren't heard from much, so annoying voices are kept to a minimum. I'm still disappointed that Tony's voice from Ep. I didn't stick around for the entire series, and his Ep. III voice is the only annoying one. VO play smoothly throughout the cutscenes, but through the meat of the dialog, there seem to be a lot of awkward pauses when sentences are cut up (whether using normal or auto mode of dialog advancing).

How it Feels: Awkward
Controls are still the same as the other two installments of Xenosaga, but it is rather awkward that way. Instead of the standard X button for confirmation and advancing, everything is done with the O button, which is different from almost every other RPG I've played. Worst still, you can't change the controls. At this day and age, that is unacceptable. Shortcuts are nice, like the Triangle button automatically gets you out of any menu screen and back into the field, and pausing cutscenes and dialog scenes with start and skipping them with Triangle, but it doesn't make up for the O/X swap. I find myself adding a 5-minute learning curve to each game I play after I finish a session of Ep III, and another 5 minutes getting used to Ep. III again.

How it Plays: Somewhat Boring
The gameplay has been simplified a fair bit from the last two, probably due to the fact of a limited budget. Battles are still turn-based, but instead of pushing key combinations, you now just input simplified commands, like Fight and Ether (magic), which removes a bit of interactivity. Also, the random battle panel is gone, which removes more of the randomness of the battle, so your enemy doesn't all of a sudden hit you ten times for criticals and cheese you out of a battle, or you find yourself getting mad boost because you hit them hard on the Boost panel. Speaking of boost, for those who haven't played the game, the battle system is a lot like Final Fantasy X: a turn-based fight system, where order is decided by speed, and you choose commands for the character when their turn comes up. There is a boost gauge that fills up when you hit an enemy. By holding an R button (besides R3) and pressing either O, Triangle or Square buttons, you can make it so that a party member goes right after you do, as long as you have one boost in your gauge. A new gauge has been added to this game: the Break gauge. D&D fans can relate it to subdual damage: some attacks (usually punches, kicks and choking) also do break damage, and when that bar is full, you go into Break status and skip your next two turns. It's a good strategy on hard-hitting enemies, since you also do normal damage with break attacks, but do note that they can do the same to you!
Most of the gameplay is somewhat far in between the cutscenes, with 1/4 of it walking from cutscene to cutscene, hence the somewhat boring part. However, the areas in which you fight are large and good for exploring. Scattered among the levels are 15 Red or Gold doors called "Segment Files", which need a decoder to open. Find the decoder, then find the door to get a goodie from inside. It's about the only thing to distract you from the monotony of the main quest (there is a minigame called HaKox, but it's essentially Lemmings that forces you to use the face buttons and not much else to guide the poor souls to the end. Yawn). Boss fights do get intense, since there's a lot of skill involved in beating the later ones, because some of them can get lucky and off a character in one hit. Note that there aren't many bosses that can crush your party in one hit.

Game Length: 30-50 hours
The main quest does go on for a while, but mainly because of the story parts. Learning every skill and finding all the decoders are a couple of ways to add to the time, but other than some more Robot Building quests (like in Ep. I and II), once you finish the story, you're pretty much done with the game. If you want to complete HaKox, that supposedly doubles the game length, but I'm not a fan of it.

Verdict: Split
People who played through Ep. I and II and liked either or both: Buy!
The closure on the story is almost enough to get you to come back to this game, since you don't want to leave the story unfinished do you? Gameplay has changed enough to make it different, but still feel natural at the same time.
People who didn't play either Ep. I or Ep. II (or played neither): Rent!
It's hard to recommend a game so heavily driven by story to people who haven't played the first two games. The notes on Ep. I and II on the title screen are very helpful, but some subtleties will confuse players who haven't seen all of the first two games. Plus, there isn't much playing to do in the game, so take the game length and cut it in half and that's actually how much you play in the game. Also, the battle system feels a lot like Final Fantasy X to really make it stand out. If you are a fan of Japanese RPGs and don't mind the heavy story commitment, then give it a try. If not, you may want to steer clear, because this follows the Japanese RPG guide to a tee.
Do note that I'm not recommending you try to beat it by just renting it. It's a suggestion that if you want to try it, rent it or borrow it first. It's not that good on its own to be a pick-up and play title.

Advance Wars: Dual Strike: Jumping on the Wagon a Little Late

Although the game has been on shelves for almost a year, Advance Wars: Dual Strike is still one of the best strategy games on the DS right now.

How it Looks: Poor/Average
The graphics of Advance Wars DS aren't much of an improvement over Advance Wars 2 for the GBA: battles are still sprite-based units moving on a grid-based map, though for the DS the map is tilted down slightly instead of being a fully top-down view. This actually makes moving units with the stylus a little difficult since you may not touch the proper square because an adjacent unit is slightly on that square. The mini-battle screen that shows up on the bottom screen when battling an opposing unit is also sprite-based, but looks a fair bit better than the map graphics. The top screen is used for details on the square selected or any units on the square (it can show an alternate map for DS battles, but those look the same as normal maps). Menues aren't very detailed as well, but they are simple and easy to navigate.

How it Sounds: Good
The music used in Advance Wars DS varies a great deal, depending on menues, battle sequences, and so on. Each CO. (character that leads their units) have a different music playing on their turn, which reflects their character. The main character (Jake) is very upbeat and uses a lot of modern slang, so his music is more hip-hop in style, where one of the enemies (Jugger) is a robot, so his is more a technical sounding beat. Some music is very good, while others are somewhat annoying to listen to over and over again. Sound effects, however, are used very effectively in the game, and listening to the sound of explosions, gunfire and missile shots never truly get old, especially when you're destroying your enemies.

How it Feels: Intuitive!
There are two control schemes for Advance Wars DS: buttons and touch screen, and while both are constantly on, both have their pros and cons. Whichever one you use, though, you will have no problems maneuvering through Omega Land. Using the control pad and buttons, menus are much easier to navigate through and actions are much easier to select. Movement of units are a tiny bit slower, since for each square, you need to push the appropriate arrow key. Not hard by any means, but if you have to move 10 spaces, it takes a couple of seconds. Enter the stylus and touch screen. Movement is easier: touch a unit and its move distance is shown. Touch where you want it to move and it will move there. Then touch its action to do there and bam! done. Menus are still easy to navigate, but I find it's easier to memorize button calls then to find it on the screen.

How it Plays: Fun
If you've played any other Advance Wars game for the GBA, then this game will feel similar to those games. For those who haven't, the game is a simple turn-based strategy game where you move units in an attempt to take out the opposing units, or to capture their Headquarters. For the most part, units are well balanced: certain units are stronger than some units and weak against others, so no unit is unbeatable. New to this game are Tag CO missions and powers, and DS missions. Tag CO missions are what they sound like: You get two COs fighting in the mission as opposed to one, and at the end of each turn, you can switch them. It is wise to pick two that compliment each other, or have strengths that the other doesn't. As well, each CO has a power meter that fills each turn they are used and take out an opposing unit. When it fills to the max, it can use its Super CO power (They can use a CO power when it's half full, but the Super CO power is much better). When both COs have their meter fills up, they can use a Tag CO power, in which both COs use their Super CO power, one after another. After the current CO is finished, you don't end your turn, you switch to the other CO, and move everything again, making an unfair advantage for your opponent by giving you two chances in a row to crush him/her/them. Just remember that your opponents can do the same. DS missions are also pretty obvious: a mission that takes place on both screens. You only have control over one screen (can be changed in the options after a certain mission), and the second CO takes command over the second screen. This adds another dynamic to the battle: win the second screen battle, and your second CO helps you on the main screen, giving you the ability to use Tag CO powers while your opponent can't. If you lose, your opponents can use their Tag CO powers and you can't.

Game Length: Infinite
The campaign goes for 28 missions of increasing difficulty, plus the multitude of other modes (Survival - continuous battles with limited resources/time/money, War Room - fight on a multitude of maps for the high score, Combat - everything is in real-time, and Design Room - chance to make your own maps to use in multiplayer) makes this game have an immense lasting appeal with a lot to do. The only downsides to this is that the gameplay doesn't change overly much to really drive you to play for a very long period of time and single-cart download play is very limiting. While it states up to 8 players, only combat is multiplayer on single-cart download, with the rest of the modes singleplayer.

Verdict: Try before you buy
The game is good. Very good. But not everybody is going to love this game. If you are into turn-based strategy games and are not familiar to Advance Wars, this is a great game to get into, since the campaign has some built-in tutorials to help you get started. If you are a fan of Advance Wars, this game is more of an add-on than a new game, since it plays a lot like the others. If you're not a fan of turn-based strategies, at least give this game a try before you shut the door on it.