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Good: Big dungeons, Multiplayer

Bad: Repetitive, bumper car physics

Where's: The originality?

Almost 14 years ago, SquareSoft released Secret of Mana for the SNES, an RPG that mixed real-time combat and the ability to play with up to two other friends to make what many consider a classic. Now, SquareEnix brings us Children of Mana for the DS and shockingly, what made the original so unique doesn't hold up so well.

That's not to say the game lacks promise, just originality. There are plenty of elements borrowed from The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, like using a recently acquired weapon to solve puzzles or topple a dungeon boss. There are also some traditional RPG elements here like equipping items and leveling up.

Like the original, the best aspect of Children of Mana is the ability to progress the story with three other friends. Playing the game this way emphasizes teamwork and makes some of the later, harder levels much more manageable.

Whereas Secret of Mana emphasized exploration, this title is a dungeon crawler, with much more emphasis on the combat. No longer do you travel the world on foot or via airship, choosing your next destination and finding secrets. Instead, your path is preordained as you travel from one dungeon to the next on your way to the game's conclusion. There are times when you can do sub-quests, but they just recycle the same areas.

You would think a game whose focus is on dungeon exploration and combat would actually feature quality dungeon design and entertaining combat, but it doesn't. Every dungeon, regardless of how large, follows the same formula: hack your way through recycled enemies with the same three-hit combo or secondary weapon, find the key to the next level and exit. Repeat this 7 to 12 times and you get the idea.

Worse yet, it's only possible to save after you've cleared a certain number of levels. Die before you reach one of these save points and it's back to village and back to square one.

Another annoying aspect is the game's perpetual motion physics. Strike an enemy with a larger weapon like the hammer or connect on all three hits of a combo and they go sailing across the screen, crashing into the environment and other enemies like a loaded Kelsey Grammar behind the wheel of a bumper car. Likewise, if you get hit hard you'll go flying, losing health the whole way. There's no way to recover from this and that makes cheap deaths from a single attack an almost certainty.

Ultimately there's just not much to Children of Mana. It fails to take advantage of any of the DS' unique features and the gameplay is simplistic and completely uninspired. There are better portable RPGs out there like the recently released Final Fantasy III or Valkyrie Profile for the PSP. Either of those are much more satisfying in depth, presentation and execution.

Graphics: 7.0

Sound: 6.0

Gameplay: 5.5

First Play: 5.5

Replay Value: 4.0

Overall: 6.8