The Nokia N-Gage has been pretty starved of quality role-playing titles with both The Roots and Requiem of Hell receiving less than stellar reviews. Nokia turned to the land of the rising sun and experts Falcom to bring them the game N-Gage owners have been crying out for. The Xanadu series has been loved by role-playing fans for a great many years, and hopes were high that Xanadu Next would really deliver. Unfortunately, that is simply not the case.

The plot to Xanadu Next is a simple one. You play a hero new in town and eager to make a name for himself. Upon learning that the village chieftain's daughter has been taken captive by an evil ruler, it is up to you to set forth on a quest to save her. The game format is extremely similar to that of Blizzard's Diablo series. Viewed from an isometric standpoint that is quickly becoming an N-Gage trademark, you need to explore the large dungeons, hacking and slashing your way through an army of vicious monsters. Just like Diablo, there is one town that acts as the central hub to the game; however, there is only one main dungeon too, which is something of a let down!

On the positive side, there is a nicely unique take on character enhancement. At the start of the game you are asked to choose a guardian that dictates your character powers, choosing one for example that focuses you toward melee combat while the other focuses you on magical attacks and defensive spells. There are other skills that you can manually level up, which also affect what your character can do in the field. In typical RPG style, there is also various weapons and armour, which you can acquire throughout your quest to aid you. However nice the guardian system is though, it is also a fatal flaw in the game; unlike most other games of this type that grant you these level bonuses straight away, Xanadu Next forces you to return to your guardian's shrine each time you wish to level up. This is actually very awkward and means leaving the dungeon and returning to the village each time.

Graphically, Xanadu Next leaves a lot to be desired on even the humble N-Gage. Characters and monsters have very low polygon counts, meaning they look very indistinct, with the chosen colour pallet not helping at all. While I realise that the developers were trying to convey a foreboding and darkly atmospheric world, I couldn't help but be put off by the sheer amount of brown and grey in use. The other issue with the 3D world is the amount of slowdown that occurs during fights. After the brilliant conversions of Tony Hawk's Pro Skater and Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory, it's hard to believe that Xanadu Next is running on the same system. Any amount of serious activity and noticeable slowdown kicks in, which really starts to hurt the gameplay; this really should have been tweaked during play testing and it makes me wonder if the game was simply rushed to the shelves.

Sonically the game is to be honest just like the graphics; drab and monotonous. The music is bearable but dull and combat is accompanied by the usual twangs of swords clashing and squeals of monsters. There is certainly nothing bad about the music and effects, it's just that when you combine them with the graphics and repetitive gameplay it starts to make you wonder what life is all about.

On a plus note, Xanadu Next does feature some connectivity options. During the game you can collect artwork cards that can be traded over a Bluetooth connection with other owners of the game, which I suppose is an interesting diversion. Two players over Bluetooth would have been better though. Over the N-Gage Arena wireless portal you can download three different time trial missions, which gives the game definite longevity. Essentially you start at the village and proceed into the dungeon to take on a boss monster, and your time can then be posted to an online leaderboard.

The core problem with Xanadu Next is that while there is no one thing that's really bad about the game, the whole is the sum of its parts and in this respect all the aspects I have highlighted come together to make one incredibly dull experience. The core gameplay boils down to nothing more than going to the dungeon, fighting some monsters, returning to the village to level up and repeat until you are ready to play something else. With little variety, the game falls into levels of utter tedium. Most casual gamers will be bored with this title, although I am sure there are some N-Gage owners prepared to give Xanadu a home.

If you are one of the stat crunching RPG hardcore and you are looking for a new game for your handheld, then by all means give Xanadu Next a go - it might just be what you are looking for. For more casual RPG lovers, I would suggest that you avoid this and pick up the infinitely superior Rifts: Promise of Power instead.

Reviewed by Ashley Martin for AceGamez (All Rights Reserved).