The funny thing about Kingdom of Paradise is that I thought it was going to be a bad game. In some sense it’s lacking in certain departments (it could’ve used a more developed storyline and more intensive gameplay element), but overall the game winds up providing a positive handheld experience.

The game is an action/RPG set in a completely fictional world that combines Chinese and Japanese mythologies (and names). You control Shinbu, an outcast from his clan who has to step up and become the new leader after his clan is exterminated. And what’s more, the central clan is trying to take over the rest of the world – typical RPG story, right? Along your journey you’ll learn to utilize hundreds of different sword techniques and magic (Chi Arts) to destroy your opponents. For the most part you’ll be smashing the attack button repeatedly and use magic during boss battles. The fighting system is real-time, and is really on-par with button-mashing beat-em-ups. Still, it’s fun.

The biggest problem I found with Kingdom of Paradise is that the story feels so bland and rushed. You can blaze through most of the game in one sitting if you have enough time, and the voice-acting is pretty atrocious by today’s standards. The story picks up somewhere around the middle of the game, and by then you’ll probably learn to ignore and take it for what it is.

In the end, it’s a good game that is, as I’ve heard, getting a sequel, which will hopefully improve upon some of the better aspects of the game.