No, seriously this game is great! I played the demo a while back and i did suck, then. They've improved on [i]everything[/b] in the final version. Wheee!

I'm only a few hours into it and i'm already sucked in. For those that wonder about the gameplay, i'll put it like this: Take a bit of Zelda:OoT, a sprinkle of Tomb Raider
(for exploration), some D&D lore, and a heapin' dose of a bad ass dragon sidekick which you can call to your aid, mount, and wage war in the skies as well as on land, and "BAM!" you have what's definitely the most underrated game on the PS2.

The graphics aren't the best to grace the PS2 (but neither are GTA3's, right?) but the game easily makes up for it's minor graphical shortcomings whith it's epic scale of the lands, castles, tombs, catacombs, and caves you have to travel. Add to the fact that you can also take flight with your dragon and you're left with even more to explore. The game consists of a "main" story line with the addition of many side quests. One of my first was to take out this "Inquisitor" that had been hauntin the town, snatching folks at night to take to his undderground torture chamber. The reward for this mission was a fat sack of gold, $3000 to be exact, i had my eye on some nice little weapons so i took the job, some missions are not required to complete the game you see.

The voice acting is top notch. Incidental characters will sometimes speak with a british accent, while others will carry a scottish dialect, all of wich are very well executed. Monsters will also verbally taunt, and curse you in the middle of battle. During one fight with some sort of minotaur in wich i'd unloaded a half dozen arrows whhich were now sticking out of his chest and neck , he paused for a moment and yelled "Now you die!" and just went ape **** on me killing me in a matter of seconds.

Drakan could be considered an action RPG, you will gain experience points, buy/sell weapons and items, and manage and repair your equipment. Weapons and shields will wear down ad break if you don't have a blacksmith occasionally tend to them. You also have the ability to cast spells, and your dragon hase an assortment of magical attacks that range from fire, to an attack that sends souls to attack your enemies' life force which will in turn replenish yours. Oh, and he can also bite the $hit out of people when he's walking about.

Trust me people, i wouldn't suggest a game if i wasn't sure that it was top notch given my fickle taste in games. If you've been looking for something to satisfy you urge to play a Zleda type action RPG, complete with blood, big boobied women, dragons, feral dragons, undead monks, gold jackin' trolls, grand inquisitors, oh, and dragons that incinerate and bite the **** out of people, then get your ass to your nearest store and pick this baby up.

I picked this game up recently, and I must say that it is definitely underrated. Once you get used to the control scheme, it's just a fun game to play. It's a cross between Dark Cloud and Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance for PS2. Just what I was looking for.

I will have to check this out. I missed it even being released since I'm more focused on Maximo coming out. Sounds pretty good.

Good to hear they didn't screw this game up. The first one (for the pc) was very good, and also very much underrated.

Thanks for the review. I usually weigh personal recommendations over formal reviews in the media/internet.

Wow, Loma Linda! I use to live in Colton until a year ago.

heck yeah - I liked the PC game as well - I guess not enough to seek out the sequels, but when I heard that the PS2 version was getting poor reviews I thought maybe they half-assed it. Good to hear they didn't.

I'm about half-way through this game and it's GREAT.

Stay far away from the demo of this game, because it's awful and incomplete - .

The only negative thing I can say about this game is it's long saving/loading times. Other than that, it's a total blast.

Colton's a nice, quiet area. Not to mention a Best Buy, Circuit City, Costco, Sam's Club, handful of Blockbusters, a Hollywood Video, WalMart, (ex)KMart, and other amenities!

BTW, my permanent address is at Sunland. So woo hoo to the San Fernando valley!

LOL! I moved to the San Fernando Valley about a year ago too!

I'm in Canoga Park and 'm never looking back.