TGS 2005: Tao: Mamono no Tou to Mahou no Tamago Hands-On

TOKYO-Konami's booth at the Tokyo Game Show is always packed full of games, big and small. While it's easy to lose sight of some of the smaller releases with big-name marquee games like Metal Gear Solid 4, there are definitely some interesting gems lying behind Konami's curtain. One of these upcoming games is a turn-based dungeon crawler for the DS called Tao: Mamono no Tou to Mahou no Tamago.

Tao is a polygonal game that takes place from a three-quarters perspective. It's also tile based, so movement is done one square at a time, though a run button lets you pick up the pace, if necessary. The game is turn-based, so every time you move, all of the enemies and other objects in the world also get a turn. During your turn, you can attack, move, cast magic, and so on. But the game doesn't beat you over the head with its turn-based nature. If there isn't anything else on the screen with you at the moment, you won't know that it's counting your movements one turn at a time.

The game can be played entirely with the stylus, though its interface is currently a little clunky. A wheel full of directional arrows sits on the right side of the screen, and this eight-way wheel allows you to move your character. Holding the stylus on one of the direction points will keep you moving until you release it. To the left of the wheel, the game has a series of text commands. Tapping on these is how you attack and access your character info, your inventory, and so on. One tap also brings up what appears to be a casting area. The game seems to have you cast spells by drawing specific shapes and lines with the stylus.

Graphically, Tao is a little chunky in some spots, so it's occasionally difficult to make out what, exactly, is attacking you. But the dungeon-crawl-like nature of the game means that if it's moving in your direction, you should probably start attacking it. The game rewards you with experience points and gold, and it appears that the dungeon you'll be working through has well over a dozen floors.

Tao is currently planned for a Japanese release on December 22. No North American release has been announced at this time.