Deep Labyrinth (Nintendo DS) Preview

Deep Labyrinth is a three-dimensional action role-playing game, meaning that battles take place in real-time rather than the somewhat restrictive turn-based format of Final Fantasy or Golden Sun. For those that are unaware of this, it is actually an updated port of the world's first ever 3D RPG game for 3G mobile phone handsets. According to the development team the game is aimed at an age group of children as young as ten years of age up to eighteen, with aspects that should appeal even to the adult market. Currently there is no confirmed European or even North American release as the game is presently under negotiation regarding this matter. However, it is a safe bet that it will be translated as Interactive Brains' website states how it intends on spreading its talent across to the Western world. Only time will tell on this matter, and hopefully it will be met with strong sales in Japan later this month to spur on the chances.

The game appeared in its mobile phone format way back in July 2004 over in Japan, where it garnered a plentiful supply of followers that held nothing but praise for the game. But now it has been completely reprogrammed in order to take full advantage of the Nintendo DS's unique features, both the two screens, as well as the lower touch screen. In fact, not only is this the case, but the work is being conducted by some of the Videogame Industry's finest staff so that the new functions can be implemented to the best possible standards. Also the power of the DS is to be pushed to create some better-than-ever 3D graphics on not just one, but both screens at the same time!

In terms of the storyline, it may come across as quite basic, but leaves the game quite open for twists and turns at every corner. It all starts on a normal Sunday afternoon, with the lead character going for a drive with his family and faithful mutt Alf. On the way back everything goes awry, with Alf barking like crazy and jumping out of the car window. And so begins a long and mysterious adventure; one that sees Alf act as your journey partner, guiding you and always trying to protect you throughout. He constantly watches your back and helps you to solve the puzzle that is Deep Labyrinth.

The whole scenario has been revamped for this Nintendo DS adaptation, alongside the updated visuals and beautiful music. In fact, you might be more familiar with the team members than you think. Masato Kato is on-board for the scenario re-write and he was the genius behind the extravagant scenarios for Squaresoft's Chrono Trigger, Chrono Cross and Square Enix's Final Fantasy XI. Then there is Yasunori Mitsuda who is behind the magical soundtrack, with the pieces of music heard so far easily living up to his previous work on Squaresoft's Chrono Trigger and Chrono Cross (again), as well as Namco's XenoSaga Episode 1. All superb RPGs with engrossing stories and captivating soundtracks

But fancy techniques only go so far and graphics whores need to be pleased as well. It is luckily enough then that 3D graphics are one of the many feathers in the company's cap. IB has promised to serve up powerful 3D graphics, smooth action that they describe as being beyond anything released on the system so far, and clever use of the two screens (with a useful map displayed quite frequently at the top, but also used for other aspects depending on the situation).

There are high hopes for Deep Labyrinth as in the mobile phone world it has already racked up a very laudable 100,000 NTT-DoCoMo and Vodaphone users in Japan. This was helped out by the innovative 'GRAPE' system. This is the name for the way magical spells can be cast

Defence is important, though, especially when certain enemies are attacking you from afar. Swinging your sword at just the right time can deflect projectiles with ease, or you can just raise your shield to fend off enemies briefly before jumping back in for the kill. The touch-screen also comes in handy during dungeon-crawling as when you spot a cracked wall nearby you can grab your stylus and break it down with several swift swipes...

If the GRAPE system seems a little confusing at the moment, here is a brief description. There is a 3 x 3 square displayed on the touch screen and players use that are the basis of their spell crafting. Reminiscent of Castlevania Dawn of Sorrow's Magical Seal ability, players in this case start at one point on the nine-squares of the grid and must sequentially push the stylus from one box to another to cast magic spells. Then you need to keep inputting repeatedly if you want to use more or even combine different magic spells when battling against stronger enemies. This is no easy job and from watching the videos of it being played it certainly appears to have added a forceful tension to the gameplay that is more than welcomed.

However, the many different combinations to access stronger and stronger spells are not available right from the start, or else the game would be far too simple. Instead you must work toward gaining more attributes to help on the journey. Whilst travelling through dungeons you can discover ancient characters, the shape of which is actually the graphical pattern for spell casting. And it must also be remembered that the in-game magic is versatile, meaning you can also use it for healing yourself, protect yourself from elements such as fire, lighting up dark areas or even for finding hidden rooms in addition to using it as the key to exploiting weaknesses in monsters. Magic is an integral part of Deep Labyrinth and is a primary source for solving the mysteries of the dungeons...Using a new function called 'Loud', though, can be those spells even more potent, as it is a special move that connects up to three different spells at once, potentially creating a brand new one completely by accident. You may stumble on the most powerful purely by chance...