Kombo's Review Policy: Our reviews are written for you. Our goal is to write honest, to-the-point reviews that don't waste your time. This is why we've split our reviews into four sections: What the Game's About, What's Hot, What's Not and Final Word, so that you can easily find the information you want from our reviews.

What the Game's About
Witch's Tale for the Nintendo DS is the latest handheld title from NIS America. Taking place in a Halloween type world, Witch's Tale has unique characters and a very unique storyline. A young witch named Liddell has accidentally released an evil witch from the past known as the Eld Witch, whom seeks to take over the world. Joining forces with a timid young Vampire Loue, our heroine witch must gain the necessary power to rid the world of the most powerful wicked witch the world has ever witnessed.



What's Hot
Most games that see releases by NIS America don't have amazing 3D graphics and Witch's Tale fits that category, too. Using nicely animated and drawn 2D sprites, the characters are actually quite impressive for the DS. The environments are quite beautiful and the entire game is presented with a marvelous art style. Similar to the Mario & Luigi styles in graphical presentation, each character and environment is vivid and very cleanly drawn. Even though the graphics are presented in typical 2D fashion, the game is still a wonderful sight for the eyes to behold.

The level themes are great. There are six kingdoms to save from the Eld Witch, and each world has a unique theme to them. The Sweets Kingdom is loaded for candy shaped objects and characters, while the Ice Kingdom is mostly populated with ice fixtures and other wintry objects. As you explore the six kingdoms, each level will change in look according to the theme of the world. This keeps the game feeling fresh as you explore these six different kingdoms.

The main story of the game is pretty interesting, though a bit too light-hearted for the hardcore RPG audience. As the game caters to a younger audience, it plays out to the crowd accordingly. You'll also find a solid voice track and haunting musical scores to accompany you on your journey.



What's Not
Once you get by the impressive graphics, music, and interesting story, you are greeted with an otherwise lackluster experience. The worlds, though beautiful to look at, are empty. You'll need to explore levels to find keys and other objects to move onward, but you won't see much on your travels. The levels are barren for the most part and at times will have some object you can destroy with your umbrella, which may give you some money or an item. Had the game featured enemies roaming the levels, the world would look much fuller and not feel like you are just exploring an empty hall.

The battle system is based on random encounters. Once you enter battle, though, you won't really feel too much of a challenge. Your party will consist of Liddell and a doll she possesses. Liddell's mostly equipped for magic based attacks and she comes well stocked with a variety of spells like Fire, Ice, Thunder, and the typical stuff you've come to expect from any RPG title. The battle system is just too slow. The turn-based system feels slow and is boring.

Since it's not catered for the hardcore RPG player, the game is a bit easy. It suits the audience it's intended for fine, but NIS fans will only find a cute RPG title that won't offer much of a challenge.

Final Word
Witch's Tale is a good light-hearted RPG. Featuring a fantasy world of interesting characters, unique worlds, and intriguing storyline, this a solid title to give to the younger gamer or the not diehard RPG gamer you know. If you are looking to get your girlfriend into RPGs, then this is a good title to try it with. The cute story and characters are very charming and the game is worth experiencing as long as you aren't expecting a massive challenge.