Ragnarok
The vast online universe of Ragnarok has come to the small, hand-held world of the Nintendo DS. It was originally a massive multi-player online role-playing game (MMORPG) for PCs created by Korean developer Gravity Corporation.
In the opening sequence, we see our heroine Sierra and her two rescuers being pursued by some military personnel. After a bit of a chase, she falls off a cliff into a river.
She miraculously survives the fall and the story pretty much becomes your usual RPG plot. Our hero Ares, who has just set off on his inaugural adventure, finds our mysterious heroine. She has amnesia so Ares decides to take her along with him.
At the beginning, there are simple tasks, but as the story unfolds, we find out there is a much more sinister plot and Sierra is at the centre of it all.
Like most MMORPGs, gamers earn experience and money by fighting monsters and exploring creepy dungeons and caves. Weapons can be upgraded in two ways - with the help of monsters, or that of blacksmiths.
There are no save points in the dungeons, so if you die, you will have to start the quest all over again. The only advantage is that you keep all the experience you've earned and go back a little stronger than the first time round.
The online graphics and look of the original PC game has been brilliantly ported over to the smaller screen. There's a small problem though. The camera is too close so, even with three zoom levels, you might feel a little claustrophobic. Until you manage to find the treasure chest that holds the map to the dungeons/caves, you'll be wandering around for a while.
The game has taken Japan by storm and is ranked in the top three online games there. This is quite a feat considering that even World of Warcraft is not in the Top 10. Overall, this is a nice and somewhat addictive game. If you are looking for a MMORPG experience on your Nintendo DS, this is it.
