An interesting mix of puzzle and RPG gameplay that will suck you in and make you look past a couple obvious problems.
You see in every puzzle game, luck plays a huge factor. Whatever gems drop down on the screen can change the game greatly. Especially in these 'battle' puzzle games. So while playing a battle, you sometimes feel like the outcome has more to do with luck than skill. And when you factor in how "lucky" the CPU AI gets in battles, it leads to me yelling at my screen in frustration. Don't get me wrong, your character will get a fair share of lucky breaks as well. But even when I am the one benefitting from that luck, it takes me out the gameplay experience and lessens the need for actual skill.
My other frustration is that the battles are the worst part of the game, in my opinion. And you will be battling a lot, which is obviously the case in a RPG. The problem is some of these battles can take quite awhile and when you add in the sheer number of them you will be doing, and the "luck" factor I mentioned earlier, it left me with a feeling that I just wanted to move on to the next quest without having to fight a battle. Obviously that is not the feeling the developers would have intended me to have. I admit, when you are making a game with a puzzle game aspect interwoven with a RPG, there really isn't a way around it. That doesn't make the game any more fun, however.
Other than those two complains, I really liked the game. The game looks fantastic for an XBLA release. The storyline is actually very good and I liked all of the characters. Even the dialogue is good and has some pretty funny moments. And I have to give credit to the developers for the outstanding music here. This is easily the best XBLA game in that department.
And it really is fun to build up your character. There are a few different character classes to choose from with all of them having different abilities and spells. You can recruit new members into your party that give you bonuses when you start a battle. One of the best ideas was to let you build up your own fortress/castle so you can research new spells, capture enemies (and then learn spells from them), train your character's skills, etc. You can even create your own items by combining different ruins that you find throughout your quest.
It is a shame that the developers chose to saddle a great RPG with a fighting system that is entirely puzzle-game based. To the developers credit, it is an original idea and some people seem to really like it. I would have prefered a more traditional RPG fighting system, but the game is still good either way. If you can past the sometimes irritating, luck-infused battles you will find a game that is actually worth the $15 they originally charged for it (it's down to $10 now and is a steal at that price), as you will get many, many hours of quality RPG-ish gameplay here. There are many $15 over-priced games on XBLA right now, but this is one that is really worth every penny you pay for it. Especially when you consider the game now sells at the lower $10 price. Just be sure to bring your patience with you, as the puzzle battles might leave you a bit irritated.