Simulated MMORPG. Would that be MMO...SPG? Massively multiplayer single player game?
Story 9/10
The story in this game is totally original. While playing an MMORPG, your friend Yasuhiko, ingame known as Orca of the Azure Sea and the Descendant of Fianna, falls into a coma after a strange event. So, being the good friend that you are, you go off to try to find a way to save him. You recieve a strange book from a girl in white which becomes a bracelet that allows you to hack the game. This, of course, is against the rules, and starts to gather some... unwanted attention.
Gameplay 10/10
This game plays like an action hack and slash RPG, but really it's just a clever guise to cover up an almost turn based battle system. While you run around and hack at enemies with your swords, whenever you go into a menu to cast a spell, use an item, or give orders to your allies, the game automatically pauses. It works really well for a game that is trying to recreate an MMORPG. As for the NPCs in the game, it sometimes can get scary, they act so realistically. They will post on message boards, talk to each other, and even e-mail you. It really makes you feel like your playing an MMORPG.
Graphics 10/10
The graphics of this game are amazing. the character models look very good, and the cutscenes are beautifully animated. The characters move very fluidly, although there is some occasional slowdown in the games "Root Towns" when there are more than about 8 characters on screen.
Control 10/10
The control of this game also feels very much like a refined MMORPG. The left Control Stick is used to move and select things in menus, R1 and L1 are used to rotate the camera, the X button is your basic attack, O is used to go back in menus, and not used in combat, the Triangle button is used to open the personal menu, where you can cast spells, use skills and items, and change equipment, and the square button opens the chat menu, where you can give commands to your party such as "heal" and "use magic", and give individual commands to your party members, such as telling one person to use a certan skill on someone of your chosing. It is very fluid and it'll become second nature very soon.
Multiplayer N/A
This game would've done good with some multiplayer, but even without it, it is still a very good game.
Rent or Buy: You could probably finish this game in a rental period, but I recommend that you buy it. Givin the nature of the game, there are many secrets to uncover, rare items to trade for, and nearly endless areas to explore.
Final Thought: This is a great game, and if you have a PS2 and you can actually find it somewhere (it is a very hard to find game), buy it. I can almost garuntee that you'll love it.