"If you are ever planning on importing a game, this is the one to import."

I first got Jump Super Stars because it was supposedly like Super Smash Bros. I had no interest in anime or manga (at the time). This game actually changed that. In fact, I'm a huge fan of the original japanese version of One Piece and Bleach now, and I've enjoyed several other series (some not based on this game even). This game is excellent on a gameplay standpoint, you don't originally have to be a fan of anything this game offers. But if you are, thats a huge bonus. Characters fighting styles are very faithful to their manga/anime counterparts.

Graphics: 9/10
It may not take advantage of the DS's 3-D capabilities, but this game looks great. Its animated very nicely, which is surprising. There are so many characters to choose from that I would have thought animation would have suffered due to the sheer amount of characters needing animation. This is not the case. Stages are pretty simple in design, but look nice. The graphics are very colorful, special attacks are incredible looking, and the menu interface is very crisp and professional looking (it may take some getting used to if you don't know japanese, but it is intuitive for the most part). I really liked the attention to detail put into the Koma that make up the bottom screen. They are colored versions of specific manga scenes in each respective series, and are very well done. For the DS, this game is graphically impressive.

Game Play: 10/10
Okay, put simply, this game is a ton of fun. It's very easy to get into, but it definetely takes skill to master, which is a rarity. Most fighting games are either so easy that a newbie can dominate an experienced veteran at the game my pure luck, or so hard that it puts most people off. It doesnt play exactly like Super Smash Brothers, but it is very similar. It's not a combo based fighting system for the most part, rather each button does a different attack based on what direction you press that specific button, like Super Smash Brothers Smash Attacks. This game incorporates a very interesting character selection system, where you put several different types of Koma into a "deck", which basically you can switch between at any point in the battle, as long as said character is in your deck. But you deck does not consist of only battle characters, but also support/help characters that can either act as a summon and do a grand attack, or can heal you or give you some sort of power up. The characters are fairly balanced (specific characters are meant to be more powerful because they take up more deck space) if you were to play them all on the same koma level. Basically, the Koma level is how many spaces a koma takes up on your deck, the bigger it is, most often the better it is. However, a deck with a 7 koma goku does not automatically win, a deck with a two 5 komas in fact would probably be better then just having a single 7 koma. It's up to the deck creator to make such decisions, and figure out what size koma he/she should use.

The story mode is fairly fun. It'll take a decent amount of time to complete, especially if you try to unlock everything you can. Basically, there are 750+ unlockables, and each stage has about 5, sometimes less (usually 4 is as low as it gets). You get these unlockable by completing certain missions in a stage. For this, you will definetely need the assistance of a GameFAQs mission translation. With a mission translation, you shouldn't have much trouble understanding and completing missions. Some are fairly easy, like ringing out an opponent at least once, while some are hard, like never getting hit. Computers are actually fun to fight in this game, which is a huge plus. And multiplayer is a huge plus. You can play it single card, but Multi-card lets you use your custom made decks, which is where the heart of the game is. Playing against friends is a lot like playing Super Smash Brothers, great party game, or great 1 on 1 game. You'll have a blast, and probably want to play several matches.

Sound/Audio: 7/10
I will admit, some of the sound effects in this game are really cheesey. There is no voice work since the game is based of manga mainly, even though almost all of these have an anime counter part. Some may consider this a blessing, while others may be dissapointed by this (personally, I prefer it this way, even with good voice acting it's bound to get annoying). The music is good, just nothing spectacular. It doesn't get on your nerves, but it's not catchy. If your like me, you might prefer to mute your DS and listen to your own music while you play this game, you won't be losing from the overall Jump Super Stars experience if you do this.

Story: 5/10
I don't know much about the story since I can't read Japanese, but apparently its just thrown in there to give you a point. No plot twists, no character interaction, nothing at all really. There's probably 4 "cut-scenes" which judging by the pictures depicted in them, is meant to be humerous, and purposefully cheesey. You aren't losing much by now knowing Japanese and being able to read the cutscenes, they each last about 15 seconds, and consist of simple manga style frames.

Overall: 10/10
This game earns a 10 in my book on gameplay standpoint alone. It's very fun, and never gets boring. There are so many characters to choose from it's almost overwhelming. If your an anime/manga fan, you will be in heaven. If your not, you'll at least be in for a game thats tons of fun to play. I reccomend this to everybody.

Buy or Rent: Buy
Doubt you could rent it, but even so, it is definitely worth a purchase. Multiplayer lasts forever, especially if your friends have copies of the game.

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 08/16/06