For the average mortal, living a thousand years would certainly prove to be a daunting and next to impossible feat. An immortal's life would see countless generations pass and whilst many others are born, live and die, he or she would have little worry of their own demise, only that of others. This is the story for a man who is neither average nor mortal. For him, living the stretch of a thousand years is inevitable, with only mere mortals lucky to see even a tenth of that. Commonly, tales tell of immortal life being desirable, but Lost Odyssey tells the story of how living through a millennium can take its toll and how it can often be a lonely and isolated affair.

They say you can tell the measure of a man by the way he fights; this certainly holds true for Kaim Argonar, a man of immortal proportions. The opening scene is set at the epic centre of a fierce battle between two nations. With over a thousand years to hone his fighting abilities, Kaim dispatches opposing soldiers effortlessly, bringing even the most heavily armoured soldiers to their knees, en masse. It's in this scene that you are given a taste of the game's turn-based, random battle combat system, with no time wasted in getting you into the game's crux, the battle mechanics.

Upon first glance the combat appears underwhelming, leaving you to simply select the attack option repeatedly and defeat row after row of grey-scaled, red eyed soldiers. This is a sight to see but not an entirely accurate representation of the game's combat; advancing through the next few hours of gameplay slowly reveals the title's true colours, and they're prettier ones at that. As made apparent by Blue Dragon, Lost Odyssey's creator Hironobu Sakaguchi isn't afraid to return to his Final Fantasy roots. It's inevitable that a pixel-by-pixel comparison is to be made between the mega-RPG franchise and Sakaguchi's new intellectual property, but the similarities are there. Initially the combat appears typical of last generation Japanese role-playing games. A menu-scrolling, element-based and by the numbers combat mechanic is the foundation of Lost Odyssey, featuring the usual Attack, Spell and Item options. But this is where the basics end and a little more creativity begins.

Not too far into the game, the ring aim system is revealed. Kaim and the other characters in his party equip rings, each containing their own unique attributes and levels of strength. Each has a physical representation within the realm of combat. For example, a fire ring engulfs Kaim's sword in flames and ups the damage dealt to any enemies who are weak to that particular element. This also creates a mini-game for attacking, as timed and pressured presses of the right trigger based upon the position of an onscreen aiming circle surrounding an enemy can produce Bad, Good or Perfect ratings, with the level of damage altering accordingly. This introduces a subtle layer of tactics to a battle, forcing you to change rings during combat to accommodate for an opponent's weakness, which isn't necessarily always static. The ring aim meta-game also gives a great sense of contact to what would otherwise be an non-interactive canned animation and enhances a traditional turned-based combat system with a more active, exciting and involving feel. Being immortal doesn't quite make you invincible though; immortal characters may still be knocked out and will return to life several turns later, unless brought back via a spell or item. If all players happen to fall though, as is tradition with JRPGs, it's game over.

Whilst taking a few steps forward, Lost Odyssey also takes a single glaring leap back with the bane of random battles. Exploring a new area only to encounter 'thin air' can be aggravating and is a method of enemy encounter that I thought to have died along with the last generation and the dinosaurs. This is also surprising since its spiritual predecessor had visible enemies waltzing around the game world to give you at least some choice as to whether you brawl or not. Thankfully (well, I would've been more thankful not to have random battles at all), seemingly dice-rolled encounters aren't even half as frequent as you might expect, making them about half as irritating. However, this leaves hardcore level grinders struggling to find enemies to duel and so it takes a little more time to get to the higher levels.

The seemingly irremovable staple of role playing games - levels - is present (and the games scales to your level too), but they are by no means the source of your characters' strength. To buff up your party you must 'skill-link' immortals with ordinary characters; since mortals are the only ones who can learn new and unique abilities through conventional level-ups, immortals rely on the non-immortals to learn their abilities through fighting beside them. This provides a nice incentive to use the game's varied and vast crew of central characters in the hope to customise your immortals with different kinds of spells, skills and upgrades. Accessories may also be equipped to the same effect and abilities acquired from them are stored in a character's bank of skills. Slots are assigned to each immortal for equipping abilities, and whilst they're initially limited, this is remedied through items and equipment that expand the amount of abilities available for use at any one time. This prevents you from becoming overpowered early on but can often make some of the earlier boss battles more difficult and hit and miss to which abilities you might need from your characters, sometimes putting fights down to trial and error.

Without spoiling too much, Lost Odyssey provides a mature and complex, four-disc story, with adult and well-developed, fleshed out characters. After surviving a catastrophe in the game's opening sequence, others discover the extent of the immortality granted to amnesia-stricken Kaim, who sets out to discover his memories along with others, some mortal, some not. Story twists and turns are in no short supply, presenting a layered and engaging tale. The game strictly follows the 'discover bad guy, locate bad guy' overarching plot device, but its strength is derived from the characters' interpersonal relationships and smaller events within that arc. Though some parts lack proper explanation and can often leave your head raw from scratching, it manages to remain cohesive through the cut scenes, story battles and text-based memories, as Kaim and his companions rediscover their past. Game progression is mostly linear with optional side quests dotted alongside the main story. The last disc suddenly presents a flurry of quests, granting those who bother to complete them a selection of powerful and unique items. These are handy and a nice distraction, but spreading them out over the four discs would've been preferable.

Visually, Lost Odyssey is a mixed bag, showcasing some seriously impressive graphics in parts, only to be followed by warts, slowdown and the occasional rash - and that's not to mention the lengthy loading times. Environments are generally well detailed, both in and out of combat, though some areas appear lacklustre, often making you wonder where the 'next-gen' went. Others will leave you looking behind the television screen, searching for the rest of the wonderfully detailed world! The difference between some areas is at times jarring though, almost suggesting that a 'B' team modelled various parts of the game. Characters models, highlighted in combat, are breathtaking and wonderfully imagined, with lighting and spell effects to match. The art style is solid, vivid and vibrant and characters well expressed. Unfortunately, large masses of NPCs onscreen as well as the heavier spell effects can make the game buckle under its own weight, losing a few frames, but with that being said it doesn't really ruin the experience.

A key element to any RPG, an element that stands out in Lost Odyssey is its Nobuo Uematsu powered soundtrack. Although not quite as memorable as that of the Final Fantasy series, it captures each scene and provides an appropriate tone and great pacing to cut scenes, story sequences and battle. Just don't always expect the faster, more up-tempo tunes of yesteryear's RPG. Sweeping melodies and subtle overtures will leave you humming its tunes for months afterwards. A complaint if any can be the grazing noise of the electric guitar that makes its way into several of the tracks - it's not mood breaking, but not quite in-keeping with the game's musical themes.

To describe Lost Odyssey as groundbreaking wouldn't be quite right, yet it adds new flair to a tried and tested formula and benefits from doing so. Clocking in at somewhere between thirty to fifty hours, you can't say that you're not getting money's worth either. Non-fanatics of JRPGs won't be swayed and the seas won't part upon its release, but Lost Odyssey is a solid, enjoyable and rewarding experience that every fan of the genre should check out.

Reviewed by Adam Meadows for AceGamez (All Rights Reserved).