Square's latest offering, a 3D fighter, comes with an RPG adventure and four mini games, but is it any good? We sent the lads out to take a peek...
Gideon Kibblewhite

God Bless the Ring? Phhht! Geddit?
Oh, for God's sake.

(Guffaw, gnnng!)
You're so childish.

Oh deary me. Sorry. Please (wheeze), do go on - we've got to get this piece finished (howl!).
If you're going to be like that I shall just ignore you. Ehrgeiz -

What? (Phhht!) Ehrgeiz: God Bless the Ring? Hee, hee, hee, phht! Whooa ha ha ha haa!
- a 3D beat 'em up, first appeared as an arcade game in Japan and the US, where it achieved only modest success. This PlayStation version has been freshly polished up, and it now has an RPG quest which you can get involved in too, plus a few mini games as well, so it will be interesting to see how the gaming public receives it. Are you with me yet?

What? Oh yes. Sorry.
Sigh. Before we come to the special extras that are on offer, let's deal with a few basics of the game. It tries to break the traditional boundaries of the genre. Its dynamic battle system allows you to not only literally run circles around your opponent, but also jump to different levels in multi-level playing fields. You can even interact with these levels by using obstacles as weapons and by using your knowledge of a particular arena to your advantage. Holding the high ground, for example, may give you an edge in a fight, while a swift retreat to another level may help you regain the advantage if you've been on the back foot.

Ah... You've piqued my interest. What about the combat itself?
Each of the characters (which are drawn from a host of familiar Square games, like Final Fantasy) has their own set of special short- and long-range moves. Godhand, for example, shoots off missiles from his hand (snarf), and Cloud is pretty tasty with his giant sword.