Lost in Blue 2 Hands-On

Life just isn't fair for the stars of Konami's Lost in Blue series. In the upcoming sequel, you'll take control of a boy named Jack or a girl named Amy, both of whom have been stranded on a (nearly) deserted island after their cruise ship was lost at sea. Unlike in the original game, which required you to play as hero Keith from the outset, you can choose either gender at the beginning here. But as in the original game, Lost in Blue 2 is all about the trials and tribulations of staying alive in a harsh, wild environment. That means using your wits--along with your touch screen and microphone--to craft tools, secure food, fight off wild beasts, and yes, milk more goats.

If you played the original Lost in Blue, you should feel at home here. You'll run around the island searching for anything you can use to get by, traversing sometimes dangerous terrain and occasionally interacting with other characters. This sequel purportedly has twice as many activities as the original game, including diving, during which time you'll do battle with sharks, and archery, at which Amy is apparently more skilled than Jack. You'll have more dangerous animals to contend with as well, though not all the beasts you run up against will be foes. One sequence, for instance, will have you speaking to a gorilla through the DS's microphone. Natural disasters such as storms and earthquakes will also make your survival more difficult.

Lost in Blue 2 can be played entirely with the stylus, which ought to make the game ideal for younger players and even those older DS owners who are just getting into the system. Given the DS Lite's incredible sales figures over the last holiday season, a lot of those nascent gamers will be looking for a unique gameplay experience, and it looks as though Lost in Blue 2 may fit the bill here. The game is due out in just a few weeks, so we'll bring you a full review when it hits shelves.