Japan Review Check: SaGa 3, Mass Effect 2

Some highlights from the console games hitting Japanese stores around the New Year season, courtesy of the review pages of Famitsu magazine:

- SaGa 3: Shadow or Light (8/8/8/8, 32 points): The Nintendo DS remake of classic portable RPG Final Fantasy Legend III isn't exactly the most high-profile Square Enix release of the year (or even the past month), but Famitsu figured the game was solid enough regardless. "The character-raising system is unique and a bit hard to get to grips with," wrote one reviewer, "but it's fun and oddly addictive once you master it. The play environment is also very kind to players, from the ability to fast-forward battles to automatic healing after a fight ends."

"The quick pace the game runs at is really the standout feature," another writer added. "Your goals are always pretty simple and the story keeps going at a fast clip, making the game hard to put down since you want to know what happens next. The story, which bounces you between the past and future, is a bit trite but still interesting."

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