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Dragoneer's Aria (PSP)

Reading Time:1 minute
Why you can trust SCMP
James Whittle

Dragoneer's Aria from NIS America and Hit Maker is a wonderful world of magic, monsters and, of course, dragons.

You are responsible for guiding the hero Valen on his quest to save the elemental dragons of Granadis from the evil black dragon. The storyline is fairly standard: boy with limited power must save the world from a huge threat, killing countless monsters and making friends along the way.

In terms of game play, Dragoneer's Aria borrows heavily from other role-playing games (RPGs). There are the ability crystals from Final Fantasy 7 and the forging device from Brave Story: New Traveler. However, it seems to have taken them without the main advantages, which defeats the purpose.

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As for fighting, you have standard physical and magical attacks, plus special attacks that reduce your enemy's health points. The one major drawback to the battle system is the shared mana pool. Mana is required for using special attacks and spells such as healing and resurrection.

Without mana, battles could last twice as long and the chances of surviving a monster attack drop to 20 per cent. Mana can be earned from normal attacks, successful defences or a mana stream that can be found out of battle.

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Graphics are superb - on par with your average 3D PS2 console game. Sound is unexceptional, although character voiceovers are of above average quality.

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