Previews

Xanadu NEXT in line

It’s time to polish your sword and brush up on your spell craft

Xanadu NEXT in line
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| Xanadu NEXT

The N-Gage is about to get a much-needed dose of fantasy role-playing courtesy of the Xanadu franchise, one of Japan’s most popular swords-and-sorcery sagas. Rendered in glorious 3D visuals and employing a third-person perspective, it’s a departure for the N-Gage as previous RPG titles have largely been steadfastly 2D.

The storyline is typically twisting and complex, beginning with King Dragon Galsis rising from the abyss and unleashing a plague of darkness upon the virginal lands of Xanadu. You play the role of a sword-for-hire and strike out on a quest for the village chief’s daughter who’s been abducted by the evil forces.

While this might sound more dungeons and dragons than is healthy, the game tries hard to be accessible by the more casual gamer. Although character development plays a part of the game, the statistics and numbers are kept to a minimum. Whenever you encounter one of the 19 types of enemy, combat takes place in real-time with weapons and magic of equal importance. As you progress you accrue points to spend on enhancing your character’s abilities and through this you can cast yourself as a wizard or warrior.

Shinya Yamada, one of the game’s producers, promises a playing experience similar to that found in Nintendo’s iconic Legend of Zelda games and says that Xanadu next will boast 35 hours’ worth of play across 5 puzzle-filled locations. Look out for it this July.