When I picked up the PS2 controller to start playing Rogue Galaxy, I found myself in control of a duo of heroes, Kisala and Jaster, visiting a town of darkness called Myna. Unfriendly characters were found in great numbers, as the town is under the control of a mafia family-of-sorts. Rogue Galaxy is looking to be a quite gorgeous game graphically, featuring some very pretty cel-shading. The gameplay elements are also varied and interesting.

This game is an involving and unique fast-paced action RPG, yet it still features random battles; every so often, while walking about in hostile territory, a warning will appear on-screen and enemies will attack the party. Despite this, combat was actually pretty fun and never really became a chore during the fifteen minutes that I played. To attack enemies, each character has a short and long-range attack; one for the X button and one for the circle button, both very easy to use. Enemies are easy to target as well. Other unique features help to make battle even more interesting; occasionally, options will appear allowing your choice of powerful special skill to be used through either the L1 or L2 buttons. Furthermore, it is possible to pick up and throw enemies a fair distance. While I was able to control one player, others were controlled by AI, which seemed to be pretty good.

The game is still in the early stages of development, but shows lots of promise even at this point, and is on track to be released in the Fall of 2006. Stay tuned for more information in the coming months!