I got around to finishing this up yesterday. The problem I alluded to earlier (#64) is present all the way to the end: there are 21 normal stages (including area bosses) with Grade rewards before the final boss, and you need 38 Grades to open the door to the evil Emperor O-Dor. This is no Super Mario 64; getting more Grades doesn't involve new challenges as much as it involves doing the same level in a slightly different way. The monotonous backtracking really kills what would otherwise be a consistent stream of fairly creative content.

The level design is actually quite good. There is a great deal of variety in the default goals of the stages, though a couple of them toward the end are a bit on the lengthy side. The first few boss battles are very creative - usually fought in the cockpit of a giant fighting robot or other mechanical weapon - but the last ones are just ninja-jumping and sword-slashing. Ninja's combat system is solid, but not very deep (with the exception of the aforementioned occasional 'action tube' miniboss fight).

In fact, that can unfortunately be said for most of the gameplay mechanics in I-Ninja. There is a great variety of obstacles to overcome, but the vast majority of it, including fighting, is done by tilting the analog stick and/or pressing the B button. While it is fun to do, in the end it doesn't create much of a sense of achievement.

The game's plot fails to impress, as it revolves largely around juvenile humor (which, somehow, managed to produce several voice-acted cutscenes). I can't really comment on the audio, because I had it muted the majority of the time (other things were going on). Graphically, it's par for the times, nothing mind-blowing but certainly not bad. The presentation is passable, nothing more.

Overall, I would call I-Ninja a mildly entertaining diversion, but not deserving any significant attention.

Progress: Beat O-Dor

Think a combination of the original MvDK and Lemmings. You don't have a real Mario this time, but have to lead the Mini Marios through trap-laden stages to an exit. It's entirely stylus-controlled: shove them in directions, push them down pipes, make them jump on springs, et cetera. There are tons of mechanisms to exploit (elevators = awesome), and new ones are frequently added to the mix.

The first two worlds were pretty easy, so the challenge thus far has been in getting the Gold Star score, but if it's anything like its predecessor later levels will be impossibly difficult.

Progress: Stage 3-1

I've been playing ACWW on a daily basis for a while now. At first I spent some time fishing and bug-catching for the museum (I hate my neighbors), but lately I just put in half an hour a day to check for fossils and collect some cash. My long-term strategy is just to make a killing in the Turnip market and get my mansion.

There is a lot to do in ACWW, way more than in the Gamecube version. But the true genius of the game is that it's very approachable for casual play. If all I want to do is harvest fruit trees, I can do that. If I just want to extort my animal neighbors, that's possible too. Wi-fi town visitation isn't especially useful - mainly just for trading goods from person to person - but it's pretty easy to do.

Wild World is what you make of it, and though it isn't very engrossing (unless you really want that Golden Watering Can), it is easy to pick up and have fun.

Progress: Three floors!

Based on Doubutsu no Mori / Animal Forest, a Nintendo 64 game in Japan, the Gamecube game Animal Crossing is an open-ended, cartoonish life simulation. While the concept may seem simple, there is an absolutely incredible amount of things to do, and the game changes every day.

Animal Crossing is as good as you want it to be. Whether in maintaining an entire town, or just going on nightly fishing trips, AC has something for almost everyone.

Being an open-ended game, the story of Animal Crossing is fairly simple: you're moving. Enter your name, a name for the town you're moving to, set up some things, and bada-bing bada-boom, you're in the village ready to start. At first, you'll have to run some odd jobs for the shopkeeper Tom Nook, to pay off your mortgage (you have to buy a house, after all); but after that, the game releases you into a wide array of things to do.

Variety is the name of the game in Animal Crossing. You can upgrade your home to up to three total floors, including a basement; decorate your home with hundreds of furniture items, as well as wallpapers, and floorings; change clothes; play up to 55 different musical tunes; play several emulated NES games; catch insects and fish; dig up fossils and other items; donate insects, fish, fossils, and paintings to the museum; buy and sell items; run errands for your animal neighbors; send and receive mail; cut down trees; the list goes on and on. Your computer-controlled animal neighbors will reward you for doing favors for them, will talk to you whenever you wish, and even have dynamic emotions depending on how you treat (or don't treat) them. A very interesting feature of Animal Crossing is the ability to give items to other people. Tell Tom Nook someone else's town and character names, then give him and item, and he'll give you a 28-digit passcode; tell the other person this passcode, and they can give it to Tom Nook, and receive the item you gave. There are a lot of other interactive features in Animal Crossing, too, including multiple people in the same town and visiting other towns via train. Animal Crossing also takes advantage of Gamecube/Game Boy Advance connectivity - with a GBA and the Gamecube/GBA link cable, your Animal Crossing character can visit a tropical island ("Animal Island"), which can be stored on your GBA's RAM and played on the go. The eReader can also be used with Animal Crossing: special eReader cards will give you items in the game.

Animal Crossing also takes advantage of the Gamecube's internal clock. Hours will pass in real-time within your town, from morning to day to afternoon to evening to night, and all over again. It also keeps track of the date, and seasons will change: Spring will have growing plants, Summer will have green scenery, Fall will have a leafy atmosphere, and Winter will have a beautiful snowy look. It can also rain in your Animal Crossing town - or, if it's Winter, snow. There are in-game events which happen on specific days: there are Spring and Fall sports festivals that happen once a year, there's a celebration for New Year's Day, the last day of every month is raffle day at Tom Nook's store, there's even a special event on your birthday, and dozens of holidays and special times of the year are celebrated in the game. There are multitudes of day-specific events, and the time of day and time of year can also affect other things in the game, such as what insects and fish will be available to catch.

The graphics are, though, somewhat unimpressive; the textures particularly don't look so good, and there's a fair amount of jagginess in character models. But much of the scenery is very nice-looking, like the trees and the water. The sound is nothing to complain about, and with an incredible variety of (customizable) sound themes, chances are that anyone will find at least a few they really like.

Animal Crossing has endless replay value. As the box says, the game is "...happening every second of every day, whether you're there or not!" Since most of the game is time-based, it changes every day, and there's always more to get. In the extremely unlikely event that you completely finish everything in a town - acquire all the items, upgrade your house completely, and completely fill out the museum - you could always move to a new one. A town's terrain is randomly generated upon its creation, meaning that if you make a new town, it's almost like a new game.

Perhaps the only major issue with Animal Crossing is the fact that it's so addictive. It's hard to get anything else done when you're hooked on AC. But if you let yourself be immersed in it, and you have the time to do so, it's one hell of an experience.

Progress: Gave Up

Rare's developers have a history of doing great things with odd concepts. Banjo-Kazooie is a perfect example of this; not only did it manage to meet the high bar just recently raised by Super Mario 64, but the concept and story are at times so off-the-wall you may have to pause until the laughter dies down.

In typical 3D platformer style, Banjo-Kazooie has you jumping, swimming, punching, and doing other stunts that you'll learn throughout the game in order to achieve your final goal. B-K is a near-perfect blend of established mechanics and innovative ideas, which in some instances helped pave the way for games to come.

The game is named after its two main characters, Banjo the bear and Kazooie the bird. However, it's probably easier to think of them as one character - Kazooie is perpetually housed inside Banjo's backpack, and the two operate essentially as a single entity, cooperating to achieve things that separately they could not do. The game begins with Banjo's sister, Tooty, being abducted by the evil witch Gruntilda, who means to use a magical machine to steal Tooty's youthful beauty and make herself less ugly - but ruining Tooty's innocent look in the process. Banjo and Kazooie must save Tooty by storming the witch's lair, solving puzzles, defeating enemies, and making their way slowly to the witch herself. The story doesn't have any twists or turns, but the frequently comedic dialogue is very well-written, and almost every character is amusing in some way or another.

Similar to Super Mario 64, Banjo-Kazooie is played through a central portal world (the witch's lair is similar in concept, though not in design, to SM64's castle) which connects to a number of action worlds. There are nine total worlds in Banjo-Kazooie, obeying most of the staples of level design: a desert, a beach, a swamp, a haunted mansion, a snowy mountain, and more. Each of these worlds contains ten 'jiggies' (jigsaw puzzle pieces), 100 musical notes, and two honeycomb pieces for you to collect. Jiggies are required for getting to new worlds in the game - every world's door is locked by a wall portrait puzzle, and the puzzle must be completed in order to open the door (different portraits are missing different numbers of pieces, but any jiggie can be used in any puzzle - they aren't world-specific). Jiggies are obtained by completing certain objectives in a world, similar to SM64's stars. Several doors within the witch's lair are locked by magical spells that can only be broken by possessing at least a certain number of musical notes collected that are scattered arount each world. Honeycomb pieces increase your life meter (six pieces will increase your health by one segment). Yes, Banjo-Kazooie is somewhat centered around collecting things, but most of them are a challenge and/or joy to get. There's a heavy emphasis on teamwork, despite Banjo and Kazooie's mildly clashing personalities: in order to succeed in the game, they must learn new moves from Bottles the mole, who is found in several of the worlds waiting to teach the duo a number of new moves, like running on Kazooie's legs, flying, temporary invincibility, and a number of other bizarre tricks. Another character found in several of the worlds is Mumbo the shaman, who will change Banjo and Kazooie into an odd creature (like a termite or a seal) in order to get to otherwise inaccessible areas.

B-K's graphics were very good for their time, and while age shows, they're still respectable. Draw distance is somewhat limited, and there are several noticeable instances of slowdown - but the models used in the game are fairly well-detailed. Sound effects fit the game to a T, perfectly suited to all their uses, be it a fan blade clinking off an invincible bird wing or a toilet flushing a pumpkin down the drain. The music is very well done, not only crafted well for each world, but also blended and changed within the worlds to dynamically reflect the different areas within them.

Being a highly collection-oriented game, there's a fair bit of replay involved in Banjo-Kazooie. Getting things you missed - notes, jiggies, etc. - that aren't necessarily required for completing the game can be a fun thing to do after beating it. But outside of that, there's little reason to play it again; and even the first time through, it can be short by today's standards. One particularly dissatisfying note about the game is that boss battles, including the final one with Gruntilda, cannot be replayed without starting a new game and doing the whole thing over again.

However, despite its lack of length, Banjo-Kazooie is a very well done game carried out excellently from concept to execution. It's a classic 3D platformer seasoned with rich British wit the likes of which few people but Rare are able to do. Give it a play.

Progress: Complete

Explosions. Admit it, you love to watch them. You've probably observed building demolitions on TV, seen large structures come crashing down in a grand display of flame and dust. Perhaps you've dreamed of being there and having a hand in the destruction itself. Well, now you can.

Blast Corps is an organization devoted to creatively destroying things that need to be destroyed. While the game does have a story, and a few non-destructive mini-levels, the focus is to blow stuff up. A lot of stuff.

Blast Corps makes you a member of the Blast Corps organization, who uses their unusual machines (more on this later) to level buildings. The premise of the game is that a nuclear missile truck has run into a slight snag - a small leak has killed the drivers of the truck, and the automatic pilot system for the truck has put it in a fixed path towards a safe detonation zone to keep the missiles from destroying everything. Unfortunately, there are tons of towns and buildings in this path, and if the truck hits any of them, the entire country will become a baked potato. So, Blast Corps has to destroy all the buildings in the way - and also gather a few nuclear scientists to help prepare for the detonation. Altogether, it's a good excuse to make things go boom.

You already know that you're going to blow stuff up in the game - but how? You'll have a variety of vehicles to destroy buildings, including a bulldozer, a dump truck, a giant robot that rolls into things, a motorcycle with rocket launchers, and more (plus some non-destructive vehicles for racing around, like a muscle car and Mr. T's van). Each vehicle has its own advantages and disadvantages, and you'll have to adapt whatever one you have to the particular level you're in in order to clear out a path for the carrier. Most of the vehicles are hideously fun to use in your quest for destruction, typically by ramming headlong into structural targets. There are dozens of main levels, plus dozens more bonus levels (some are destroying things just for the sake of destroying things, some are races, and some are something else entirely). And once you complete the main game, your goals will extend outside the planet (dun dun dunnn).

Blast Corps's graphics are fairly good. They're nothing phenomenal, but they get the point across. The game's explosions are very fun to watch. Sound effects fit the game quite well, and the musical themes are nicely composed and executed.

Admittedly, Blast Corps is not a long game - but it makes up for this with a fairly large dose of replay value. You can earn medals (bronze silver, gold, and later, platinum) on every level depending on what/how well you do. There are a ton of bonus levels that you can unlock, and even some bonus levels unlocked from within bonus levels, which provide a distraction from the standard save-the-carrier gameplay. Plus, blowing stuff up is just plain fun.

N64 owners should play this game at least once. After all, who doesn't like blowing stuff up?

Progress: Complete

Hide from undead enemies. Solve block puzzles and mathematical riddles. Shoot zombies with a solar-powered gun. Explore numerous dungeon corridors. Purify immortal demons with the power of the sun. Sound interesting? Welcome to the world of Boktai.

Masterminded by Hideo Kojima (of Metal Gear Solid fame), Boktai is one of the best games you've never played. It practically redefines innovation, and gathers together a variety of gameplay elements - only some of which will be familiar - to produce a nearly flawless masterpiece of a game.

The story is simple. You are solar boy Django, son of the famous vampire hunter Ringo. Formerly famous, that is - he recently died at the hands of the Count, an immortal demon wreaking havoc on the world. The undead are taking over; entire species are dying out, and the earth is changing for the worse. As his son, you are not only entitled to revenge, but also to his legacy: the Gun Del Sol, a potent weapon which uses the power of the sun to defeat undead foes. A solar sprite named Otenko is in on things too; for the good of the sun, he must help you save the world, which he does with advice and some other vital assistance. The plot gets a bit thicker later on, but not until near the end, so it doesn't affect a whole lot.

As far as gameplay goes, Boktai's claim to fame is the cartridge's most prominent feature: a solar sensor. The sensor picks up on solar light (typical artificial light won't fool it - it detects UV rays), which is used in the game for multiple purposes. The Gun Del Sol is charged by sunlight. The piledriver, which Otenko summons to purify immortal bosses (more on this later), is powered by sunlight. Many in-game events are affected by the amount of light hitting the sensor, such as traps, puzzles, even enemies. It's obvious that the sensor wasn't just a tacked-on gimmick. In a related (and nearly as deep) area, Boktai has an incredibly sophisticated timekeeping feature. After entering an initial time and date, and selecting the region where you live, the game will intelligently determine near-precise times for sunrise, sunset, and even full moons. This is reflected in-game with changing environments depending on time of day - for example, zombies won't go outside in the daytime, but other enemies may be more prevalent.

Boktai's gameplay is more than just a glossy polish, though. Kojima's influence is clear, as a major element of the game is stealth. Sure, you can run up to an enemy and blast him to smithereens, but more often than not this will make Django very dead very fast. The trick is to use your stealth techniques - looking around, wall-crawling, and wall-knocking - to distract and manipulate your enemies, making them easy to defeat or avoid entirely. Here's an example: a Bok (basic zombie) is walking towards you in a room with pillars. Hide behind a pillar and wall-knock on it to lure the Bok towards the sound. Run away from the pillar, and while the dimwitted Bok stands confused, you can run around him and blast him in the back with a solar spray. He'll never see it coming. These techniques can be used in more depth as well - for instance, a great way of getting rid of multiple golems is to attract the creatures' attention to a certain spot, then wait for them to ram headlong into one another, knocking them both out. You get graded on each dungeon you complete, and while there is a grade for avoiding detection, there is no grade for defeating enemies.

There are three types of areas to navigate in Boktai: world map sections, undead dungeons, and immortal dungeons. The world map sections are very tiny, mere paths connecting the other areas. Undead dungeons are small, usually consisting of a half-dozen or so rooms, with puzzles and enemies you need to get around to progress (undead dungeons typically do nothing but get in the way of a path). Immortal dungeons are the big, bad boss areas of the game, headed by an immortal entity that you must defeat in order to move on (magical blocks with the immortal's power block paths, and disappear when they're defeated). The immortal dungeons embody another fairly innovative element of Boktai, in the immortal fights. After completing an immortal dungeon's myriad chamber and puzzles, Django must do battle with the immortal guardian of the dungeon. Each battle offers up different strategies for evasion and attack. After this battle, the immortal is sealed in a coffin, which must be dragged out of the dungeon to be purified. It's not as much of a chore as it sounds, though - each dungeon has a shortcut for getting out, allowing for a relatively quick (though not puzzle-free) exit with the coffin in tow. When you get outside, you must place the coffin on the piledriver summoned by Otenko. With the power of the sun, and the Gun Del Sol, the piledriver charges up to carry out the second part of an immortal battle. The immortal fights the power of the piledriver, which you must continually defend with the Gun Del Sol, and also occasionally throws out an attack at Django. You must keep the piledriver powered-up and pummeling the immortal's coffin to achieve victory.

That's not all, though. The Gun Del Sol has interchangeable components (lenses for attack attributes, frames for attack types and power, batteries for charge capacity, and grenades for assorted capabilities), which you both find and earn throughout the game. There are disposable items for restoring health, recharging the Gun Del Sol, running faster, temporary invulnerability, even shrinking. The Solar Tree, which you unlock early in the game, can be used to generate new items from what's planted in its roots. A solar bank will store your unused solar charges and give you interest on them, and a dark bank offers high-interest solar loans with more than a bit of malice. Boktai will surprise you with its depth almost every step of the way.

Graphically, Boktai is shown from an overhead 3/4 viewpoint. The graphical style of the game is fairly unique, and very well done - Django's red scarf billows as he runs, and short cinematic scenes introducing immortal dungeons are beautifully imposing. The quality of the game's graphics is maintained consistently. Boktai's soundtrack is also well executed, with a number of dark, dank, mysterious ambient tunes to fit the dungeons. Sound effects are pulled off very well, from footsteps to enemy cries of alarm.

Much replay value is evident in Boktai as well. The game has a handful of unlockable emblems, which, when earned, can be used in a special dungeon for special prizes. More powerful items, and slightly different play modes, are available after completing the game a certain number of times (which isn't too difficult, considering the game is short but sweet, at a peak of about 12 hours if you take your time). There are even multiplayer modes where you can compete with your friends in ghoul-busting. There is, however, one great shortfall in Boktai: the game's key feature is also its greatest downfall.

Being tied to the sun in order to play is a bit too demanding and problematic. Foul weather, daytime schedules, where you live, even the time of year can make the task of finding a good time to play into a chore. And if you're in school or you've got a day job, it's almost necessary to wait until the weekend to play (especially in the Winter). That said, the solar element is definitely not something that should be condemned, for it is a fun feature of the game when you get the chance to use it. Don't let the inconvenience stop you from playing Boktai; poor weather is a poor excuse for missing out on this beauty of a game.

Progress: Complete

Konami's Castlevania series is one of the gaming industry's most tried-and-true. Though things change over the years, over the consoles, and over the many, many installments, one thing remains the same: the player's goal to survive the lord Dracula's massive castle and defeat the undead terror.

Circle of the Moon was the first Game Boy Advance installment in the Castlevania series (it was also one of the GBA's first titles), but not the last - as of this writing, two more GBA Castlevanias have already been produced following CotM's success. It borrows some old Castlevania elements, makes some new ones, and blends them together to make quite an impressive pocket adventure.

If you've ever played - or even heard of - a Castlevania game, you can probably guess the plot of this without much trouble: Dracula has been revived, and it's your job (as main character Nathan Graves) to stop him from wreaking havoc upon the mortal world. There are other minor players in the drama, and some familiar names are dropped, but in the end they're really rather irrelevant. The story does what it needs to do: facilitate the destruction of innumerable baddies.

The fundamental basics of CotM's gameplay are nothing greatly new; Nathan walks, jumps, and smacks enemies around with the legendary Hunter's Whip. You've got HP for getting hurt, MP for using magic abilities, hearts for using special items; strength (for attacking), defense (for enduring blows), intelligence (for magic strength), and luck (chances of getting good stuff) stat points. In tried-and-true real-time action-RPG fashion, killing enemies nets you experience points, and leveling up increases all your statistics. There are also items which, once found, increase your HP, MP, or hearts maximum; items which, when equipped, can alter your other stats; and items which, when used, can restore your status (from replenishing HP to ridding yourself of poison). There are magic items which permanently give you new abilities, like pushing blocks or jumping to the ceiling. But in addition to these slightly-above-the-norm platform/action/RPG facets are two great gameplay areas: DSS cards and the castle itself. From defeating certain enemies, you'll get Dual-Setup System (DSS) cards: there are two types, Action and Attribute, and ten different cards of each type (named and modelled after mythological figures like Jupiter and Cockatrice). When one of each type is activated, the two-card combination produces a magical effect ranging from elemental attack abilities to enhanced statistics, to summoned creatures, to defensive shields... almost every one of the 100 combinations has its use, and it's fun discovering each of them. And finally, Dracula's castle in CotM is laid out in a similar fashion to that of Symphony of the Night - that is, a Metroid-style map wherein you can roam around the interconnected areas of the castle and return to old areas at your leisure. The areas of the castle are varied greatly, including a mechanical-themed clock tower, a sewer area, and moonlit levels high atop the castle.

Taking a departure from most GBA platformers where the main character has exaggerated physical stature in order to stand out, the characters in Circle of the Moon are rather small; however, this serves only to help them better fit into the massive castle's environments. Everything in CotM looks duly sharp, from enemies to spells - however, a major graphical failing of the game is that it is dark. If you don't have good lighting, it's unplayable. But anyway. The sound effects are perhaps perfect (you'll love whipping things just for the sound it produces), and the music's respectable quality is enhanced by remarkable composition.

There's more to Circle of the Moon than just killing Dracula and his minions, though. There are many, many hidden areas the castle has in store, many hidden items, and even several modes of play (available from beating the previous ones) which modify statistics and abilities to give the game variety and challenge.

Castlevania: Circle of the Moon is a solid platform action RPG, and despite difficult patches, a joy to play. Its length is nothing to scoff at either, especially if you mean to collect every item and fully explore what the castle has to offer. Dracula is calling you... But make sure you have a good light.

Progress: Complete

The one, the only, the legend, Chrono Trigger. So great that it couldn't be confined to a Super NES cartridge - Chrono Trigger was also packaged as part of the Playstation game Final Fantasy Chronicles. CT was a revolutionary game, in its length, its depth, and its relatively non-linear nature. Its reputation lives on today as one of the finest productions of all time.

Many of the features Chrono Trigger first implemented are still innovative by today's standards. It was an ambitious project, and has yet to really be equalled. With its charming blend of startling features and familiar archetypes, Chrono Trigger is a game to be remembered.

Once upon a time, in the year 1000 AD, a boy named Crono went to visit the Millenial Fair. He bumped into a pretty girl named Marle, then went to watch his friend Lucca demonstrate her remarkable new invention: a teleporter. While Crono got Marle to demonstrate the device, disaster struck, and she vanished; desperate, Chrono follows her through the strange portal into which she disappeared. One thing leads to another - apparently the teleporter accidentally functions as a time machine, apparently Marle is the daughter of the King, apparently there's a great and undying evil ready to take over the planet - and Crono and his friends, as well as more he meets along the way, are off to save the world. It's a delightful story, full of twists and turns, and highly dynamic because of the time-changing concept of the game.

Chrono Trigger has you going back and forth through time to save the day over and over again. Every era of the world, from prehistoric times to a post-apocalyptic future, builds upon the same basic world map to make a wholly believable continentally-drifted overworld. Part of the greatness that is Chrono Trigger comes from taking many tried-and-true RPG elements (often refining them to set the standard for RPGs to come) and mixing in a few of its own spicy additions. CT's battle system expands upon the attack/magic/item norm with techniques (CT's magic equivalent), which have different effect methods, such as in a line or within a certain radius, and can be combined with what other party members have learned for Double or even Triple techniques. There are tons of technique combinations, enough so that it's a challenge just to witness all of them. A distinctive difference from most RPG enemy-encountering methods, like random battle initiations or running into a single enemy representing a party, is CT's system of seamlessly blending battle into the normal overhead walking view. If you get in an enemy's way, battle will start with everyone getting into combat position (including the enemy's friends which were probably hiding behind a nearby bush). An interesting facet of this method's implementation is that there are no battles in CT that are actually random; every single one is written explicitly into the game. Thus, when returning to an area, you'll know where the monsters are (unless new ones have come in since your last visit).

For their time, CT's graphics were simply amazing. They're still more than respectable today. Chrono Trigger really shows off the Super NES, giving it more graphical prowess than one might expect of it. Sound effects are fitting and perfect. The game's soundtrack is beautifully composed, with many of the tracks addictive and readily hummable.

Once through, Chrono Trigger is easily 15-20 hours of game. It doesn't skimp on replay offerings either - there are several sidequests, each with their own great rewards, be they a powerful item, a greater insight into the story, or even a party member. There are also a dozen different endings to keep you coming back for more. And if starting from scratch doesn't appeal to you, Square's got you covered: once you beat the game, the New Game + option opens up, allowing you to use character stats from your finished game to start over again from the beginning with an unstoppable superparty.

Chrono Trigger simply reeks of creativity and fun. Every era is a blast to visit, and somehow, dancing through time with the Epoch never gets old. The characters are fun, the story is intriguing, the gameplay is well-varied and enjoyable, enemies and bosses are a joy to fight. If you haven't played it yet - what are you waiting for?

Progress: Complete

Diablo II took the concept and gameplay of Diablo, and built on it to turn a simple gameplay concept into a remarkably deep product. It's more than just a glitzy rehash - Diablo II and its expansion pack, Lord of Destruction, also continue the story of Diablo to the end.

Diablo II gives you five (seven in the expansion) character classes to choose from. Each has its own niche, its own strategies, its own weaknesses. Add an amazing range of equipment and class-specific growth opportunities, and you've got a game varied enough to please almost any action RPG fan.

What the deeper story of Diablo didn't include in the game, Diablo II goes by. The hero of Diablo, after defeating the Lord of Terror, shoves the shard of the demon's soulstone into his own forehead. Though he does this with the intent of keeping the evil at bay, he is eventually overcome by the spirit of Diablo; now the wanderer possessed by Diablo roams eastward, to release his brothers Mephisto and Baal, the other two Prime Evils of Hell. Once all three are released, they mean to reclaim Hell and let loose its terrible forces upon the mortal realm. A new breed of heroes must step forth to stop this horror.

Diablo II's gameplay improves upon that of its predecessor in ways unimaginable. Where there was once a single multi-leveled dungeon, D2 has four acts (a fifth in the expansion), each with a number of quests and a greater number of dungeons and areas filled with experience-yielding monsters, concluded by a powerful demonic boss. All of these areas, even between acts, are connected by a system of waypoints, granting easy access to almost anywhere in the game. Each of the game's character classes - Amazon, Assassin (LoD), Barbarian, Druid (LoD), Necromancer, Paladin, and Sorceress - has its own individual skill tree, into which a player pumps skill points from quests and from leveling up (using the classic "kill things for experience for levels" formula). In addition to the normal, magic, and unique items of Diablo, there are randomly generated rare items, set items which work in combination with each other, socketed items for magical gems, and other new attribute types. There are even brand new items, like boots, gloves, and belts (bigger belts can store more hotkey-accessible potions and scrolls). D2 also solves Diablo's inventory problem of being overloaded by gold and scrolls with a high-capacity invisible wallet, and scroll-holding tomes. With a wide array of enemies in diverse environments, and too many skills to possibly master even with a fully-built character, the game has plenty to offer.

Diablo II's graphics are an improvement upon Diablo's, and everything from items to environments to characters are very well-designed. Sound effects are nicely done, and the ambient music, as with Diablo's, creates a feel that goes very well with whatever area you happen to be in.

With randomly generated dungeon levels, a virtually infinite number of items, seven character classes, tons of skills to learn, and a lengthy (for an action RPG), detailed story with cinematic interludes, Diablo II: Lord of Destruction is a massive game with amazing growth potential. You can even play online, with or against up to eight people on Battle.net. Enough to keep you busy for a few lifetimes.

If you're not already sick of hack-n-slashing games, give Diablo II a look. It's famous for a reason.

Progress: Complete