I've had this game on my radar for a while, and the more I read about it, the more I was confused as to whether or not I would like it. The concept sounded cool, but I wasn't sure if a two-screen simultaneous battle system could be pulled off. Well, I was proved wrong. This game is great! One of the best DS games I have played in a while, and definitely the best game I have played this year.
The beginning seems kinda confusing and might be scary for players who are not used to RPG's. It thrusts you into the storyline head-first and spares no expense throwing more details at you then you need. But after a while it all starts coming together once your main goal is explained. My only other beef with the storyline is that it would cut-away to flashbacks and I would not realize it was a flashback until after it was over. That got really confusing, but you'll get used to it.
Now I REALLY want to talk about the battle system. I love that fact that this game does away with random encounters and lets you choose the enemies' group size, the number of consecutive battles, and you can choose not to fight any if you want. You are only required to fight when it is meant to complete an objective or when you are attacked by a boss. The battles themselves take some getting used to. The character on the bottom screen, Neku, is controlled by the stylus. His attacks are trigged by tapping, dragging, and slashing certain areas of the Touch Screen. You choose your set of 3-6 different attacks (known as "Pins") in the main menu, and the attacks you choose are the only ones available during the fight. It does not allow you to switch them out until after the fight. Depending on the attacks you have equipped, certain elements on the screen activate the different moves. For example, tapping an empty space on the screen will activate an attack while slashing or tapping an enemy activates another. If two Pins use the same action to activate, the game will use the one that comes first in order from left to right, which adds a good strategy the game. You can also choose to turn pins on and off throughout a fight if a certain attack is getting in the way. This strategy can also be used to pull off really effective combos, but I wouldn't try that until much later in the game, as it is difficult to pull off. Pins can only be used a certain amount of times before they have to recharge during battle, so using the same move over and over will not help One thing about the Touch Screen I do not like is that the only way to move Neku around is by dragging him. Sometimes, when I meant to drag Neku, I would accidentally activate a Pin and Neku would not move out of the way. Also, there is no way to defend from attacks other then to dodge them.
While your slashing and tapping the bottom screen, you also use the DS's D-Pad (or the ABXY buttons for you lefties) to control your partner on the top screen, who changes throughout the story. When you press a direction, a combo map will appear on the top screen. While reading this you must press the corresponding arrows in order to reach the desired attack. Depending on what attack you reach, you will get a different card. These cards are used for a sort of minigame on the top screen. I will just explain the first partner's minigame, as they are different depending on who your partner is. Shiki, your first partner, has a guessing mini-game. 3 cards will be flipped over on the top screen and you have to guess the highlighted card by reaching your guess on the combo map. If guess all three of t.hem you will unlock a super attack that damages all enemies on screen and gives you a little health. These attacks are very effective and will keep you alive much longer if you unlock them enough.
While controlling both screens at once seems pretty harsh, you can always let the computer take over the top screen, leaving you to focus on Neku on the bottom. However, controlling both screens gets you a lot of bonuses, such as the unlockable special attack I mentioned. When Neku pulls off a successful combo with a Pin, he passes a "light puck" to his parter. This doubles the partner's attack power. When the partner successfully gets a card after going through the combo map, the puck is passed back to Neku and doubles his attack power. You can continue doing this throughout the battle. A rare bonus occurs when both Neku and his partner defeat the same enemy at the same time. (Enemies share health between both screens, as do Neku and his partner) When this happens, your health gets completely recharged!
As for the story, it is very deep and interesting. Offering suspense at every turn, with a cast of colorful and complex characters. I don't want to go too deep into the story, so here is a quick summary: When people die, they get sent to a place called the UG. (UnderGround) In the UG they are forced to play The Game. In order to win, players must complete missions sent to them by the Reapers, people who run The Game. Reapers are also required to kill players in order to survive, so everyone is pitted against each other. If you fail a mission, or get killed by the Noise (the monsters in The Game) You get "erased" which is essentially death. The Game takes place takes place over the course of one week, and those who win get to come back to life. This whole thing is run by The Composer, who created the UG. You play as Neku, who does not remember how he died. He sets out to win The Game and discovers a plot much deeper behind The Game.
Now all that is left is to describe the little things about the game. When you are not fighting battles, there are plenty of things you can do to up your stats. You can buy clothes from different shops that boost your Health, Attack, Defense, and Sync. Those are the only four stats you have to worry about in this game, which is simple and I like that. It also offers a good customization of your character to fit your fighting style. There is even a mini-game where you use pins as tops and fight other people Beyblade-style by knocking them off of a board. You can play against people in The Game, or with your friends through wireless multi-player. You can also use the Wireless Function to up your stats even when you are not playing. If you leave your DS in "Mingle Mode" your DS will pick up other DS's transmitting info no matter what game they are playing. If you pass those DS's, you gain EXP points and other stats. If the person you pass has a copy of "The World Ends With You" you can trade items with them. There is so much more to do then just fighting and going through the storyline.
In conclusion, this is a deep and intricate RPG that can be customized to fit almost anyone's play style and offers plenty of things to do during this summer. I highly suggest that you pick it up, this game is a blast.
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