Eternal Ring

"Strong Potential, but slow delivery."

Before you assume that I am coming to bomb this game, think again. It actually is a good game with great elements of action and a very unique system which I will get into later. It is a really interesting Action/Adventure game with a first person view. Not bad, but it makes it a bit hard.

Graphics- 8
The graphics are NEVER the reason I would even THINK about buying a game, but in this case, they are very nice. It's not Final Fantasy X's graphics, but it is good. What you see in the television screen is a sword in the main character's hand and a meter with your health and other status things. There is also another ability that you get which is a power ring. Its job is to fire an elemental blast at your enemies or things that need to be destroyed. The graphics for that are very nice. Good graphics don't make the game, but they make this one better!

Gameplay- 8
The gameplay is sort of like playing a shooter-game, but you have a sword instead. You get to whack stuff with your swords and use blasts of fire, ice, etc. The reason which I didn't give this game a better rating is because it is pretty hard. Now, I can see how this would be an easy game with a keyboard and a mouse, but you actually have to use buttons on the PS2 controller to look around for in-coming enemies. There are also many status-affecting things to look out for.

One great element included in here is the rings. You sometimes find random rings and different parts for them as you kill enemies. When you get a certain number of things, you can combine them all to the ring and get a really strong elemental ring. Customizing them certainly is a lot of fun.

Sound- 8
Nothing much to see here, but they are pretty good. It's just the basic noises that you'd expect. You hear a whack when you hit an enemy with your sword, you head a buzzz when a wasp is by you, nothing too special, but you've got to think about it. The game would be total crap without and sounds!

Buy/Rent
I would recommend that you rent this game. It is not the best, but CERTAINLY not the worst game out there. If you have a lot of money, I think it is pretty cheap, now (that is if you already researched it and want to buy it-- and have plenty of money to spare). I would also recommend a strategy guide if you can find one, they are pretty helpful. Do some more research and play it for once!

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 09/07/03