The Legend of Heroes II: Prophecy of the Moonlight Witch review

Over a year after its release, the PSP is finally packed with enough good games that you should be able to painlessly fill most of your travel time. The lingering problem, though, is finding an engrossing fantasy adventure to pack in that nylon case. Just like last year's edition, The Legend of Heroes II just about gets the job done... with very little panache.

In fact, it gets off to an even slower start than the prior game. The story begins with Jurio and Christina, two spunky teens set on a quest to visit a bunch of shrines - because that's just what people do, apparently, in their town. By 2006, the amount of time RPG players have wasted on fictional religious rites is almost comical. Anyway, this quest has a tendency to feel rather pointless at first - but of course, as it rolls onward, you begin to learn about the tragic fate of the world.

Solving this mystery won't be possible without engaging in a slew of turn-based battles. The good news is that they don't occur randomly, and it's plenty easy to avoid the enemies you don't feel like tangling with. The bad news is that they never stop being dull and basic.

Yes, you have four characters with a pile of abilities and spells to draw from, but there's not too much in the way of actual strategy. Every so often a meter charges up that lets you throw out a massive attack. Otherwise, it's whacking enemies with sharp things and magic for the win.