Golden Sun (GBA)

Whereas it took the PS2 about six months to get even one genuine classic game, the doggedly reliable GBA is quietly feathering its nest with barnstormer after masterpiece. Golden Sun is the first proper role-playing game on the portable and it's a stonker. RPG fans will be completely un-shocked to learn that the game centres on a spiky haired hero who discovers that the small town life is not for him and he's actually destined to be the saviour of the universe, or something.

Although it's not much of a surprise to discover that the game doesn't shy away from the story clichés of the genre it is perhaps a shame that it sticks so close to the usual gameplay traditions, i.e., random battles, turn-based combat and an over-complex spell system. Still, it does do the old customs proud and the combat sequence look particularly good with a rather spiffing 2½-D graphics system and some great 3-D world map views. The puzzles are also more interesting than the norm, most being Zelda-esque physical puzzles as opposed to the usual super-obvious RPG no-brainers.

Mired in sentimental tradition it might be, but Golden Sun is certainly more enjoyable than the po-faced interactive movie that is the modern Final Fantasy game. At the time of writing there's nothing quite like it on the GBA, so it's hard not to recommend it. --David Jenkins

Golden Sun is a role-playing adventure for one to two players that lets you delve deep into a new world of fantasy and wonder, and experience the dawning of a new series. Your quest is to recover a powerful artefact that was stolen from your secluded village and now threatens the world with absolute destruction. You will make use of psychic powers, magical spells and the lost art of alchemy to undo the evil that has befallen the land. Gather the four elements--fire, water, wind and earth--and use them in different combinations to master new, more complex spells. New interactive possibilities are possible with the multiplayer mode that allows two players to quest together (requires link cable).

In Golden Sun, ace developer Camelot forges an epic story of good vs evil, brilliant graphics, a great combat system and even a multiplayer vs mode into a stunning RPG. The game transpires in a world shared by two immense continents, Angara and Gondowan. Here alchemy rules and rare individuals called Adepts have mastered Psynergy, or the ability to telekinetically move items and attack. As the game begins, two villainous mages hatch a diabolical plot to use four Elemental Stones to wreak unspeakable horror on Angara. And so Isaac and his fellow Adepts embark on a perilous journey to reach the stones first and save the world.