Difficulty:

Easy

Time Spent:

40 to 100 Hours

The Bottom Line:

"Revolutionary"

Somewhat of a cross between Turn-based strategy, Puzzle, Anime, and RPG, this game is extremely difficult to classify. So instead i'll break down the core elements of it;

The story is set roughly 50 years before the time Heroes of might and magic 5 takes place. It revolves around a group of five children (Some new faces, some old) who are forced to fight against(What else?) a Demon plot to invade the world. Overall, the story, while not being boring, seems somewhat done-to-death. An anime group of kids who are basically on their own have to save the world from a megalomaniac set on destroying the world for his own personal gain. On it's own, you probably won't love the story, but if you've played HOMM5, it's pretty enjoyable.

Something that i find strange (but refreshing) in this game is the amount of customization. Between about a Dozen different relics for each of the 5 races, you also get to pick your army. At any given time, you can only bring about half of your army into battle. While this may seem like a downside, you don't really think about it. You play each creature, find your favorites, and for the most part, stick with them. Plus once you've gone through the Campaign once (Which will take you less then 24 hours even if you're a slow player), you unlock a second set of characters to play as in multiplayer. Each with whole new abilities.

The battle system is where this game really shines. In all there are 3 types of Core units(The weakest), 3/2 Elite units, and 2/3 champion units.
Core units are the weakest and most plentiful type of unit, they're unlimited, so don't worry about losing them in battle. To make these units attack, you have to line three of the same color, same type units in a vertical line. This makes them "Charge". Every unit takes a certain amount of turns to charge, as they do this they gain power, until their timer reaches 0 and they attack. Conversely, you can make a horizontal line of three Or More core units, and create a wall, protecting your units from the enemies attack.
Elites and Champions are more powerful, and also have abilities (leaping over walls, healing the hero) to help them overcome the enemy.

Another new thing about the battles is that unlike other hero games, your units are unlimited, but if your hero dies, you lose.

So the Story is so-so, the battle system is Great, and all around, the new concepts are a breath of fresh air. If you're sick of your same old DS games (I certainly was), you should definitely try this out. And if you're already a Heroes fan, This is a Must Buy.