So I bought Lost Odyssey last week. I haven't really played a turn-based RPG since the heady days of Final Fantasy VII, and I decided I wanted to try delving back into it again. So I bought the game, and took a look in the case.

4 discs. Oh my... In the first disc goes...

Let me tell you, I have never had so much fun and been so impressed with a game within the first 10 minutes. I was hooked right from the start.

The visuals are lush, well presented and really look incredible. I was stunned with just how good this game looks. Character designs are very nice, with distinct appearances between the two races in the opening battle (the Khents and the Uhrans). FMVs are polished to perfection, looking incredible with some very stylish and nicely-placed box-in-box video sequences that show various character's reactions. Very nice.

The gameplay is fairly standard fare, not to say that's a bad thing. It's turn based, so you issue commands to your party members: wind 'em up, and watch 'em go! WHEEEE! Battle animations are nice though, with the camera following your characters as they charge at the enemy with a nice 'shaky' feel, really sinks you into the game. You can assemble 'rings', that essentially enhance attacks from characters. You have to time the pressing of the RB button to add additional damage or elemental effect to your attack. Nice. But what I really like is the guard condition, or 'Wall' effect. Essentially, the 'wall' is an invisible barrier that protects your magic casters in the back row, reducing any damage they take. This wall is as strong as your forward characters, and essentially represents your combat characters in the front row defending and blocking those in the back. Nice touch.

There isn't much in the way of 'grinding' to do, which is the one thing that worried me. I got tired in FFVII of running into a monster every 2 steps. They are better spaced out in Lost Odyssey, so you can actually make some progress on the map before going into a fight. Nicely spaced out, but not so far that you get bored or have to wander aimlessly to level up. The levelling works well too, and you tend to level at about the right rate for the area you are in. You'll never find yourself underpowered in a particular area (well, I did once, but that's because I went somewhere I wasn't meant to...).

Level design is nice, and some of the views and scenery is stuningly gorgeous. At one point you are walking across the ridge of a mountain, looking out across a deep valley to the peaks far across on the other side. Then you stare out across the ocean and vast tracts of land towards a giant magical tower. Great stuff.

The music is stunningly excellent. Battle themes are nice and pacey, with good rhythms and they for the most part sound fully orchestrated. They perfectly match the action on screen, and there are a couple of pieces that are really heart wrenching. One piece is bloody creepy too!

No game on the 360 has kept me so hooked as Lost Odyssey. I even tried playign Eternal Sonata and Enchanted Arms, so desperate I was to find more RPGs, but they pale in comparison to the awesome genius that is Lost Odyssey.

Highly recommended. 9/10