So I got up the other morning and as I was getting ready to do my usual daily gaming, I caught wind that Sony Online Entertainment was in town showing off their newly completed, waiting-on-the-release-date-Action-RPG for the PSP, Untold Legends: Brotherhood of the Blade. After shooting off a few emails here and there and a short ride into the city, I found myself 41 floors over San Francisco with a shiny fresh PSP in hand and Sony's newest original property, Untold in the slot. It was definitely a good day to be me, and soon Untold Legends shall rain its goodness down upon you – if you're into that sort of thing.

Sony is boasting the first Action-RPG for the PSP that will be available at launch of the PSP come March, or whenever Sony decides to stop punishing the rest of the world. Simply put, Untold is very similar to Sony's other very famous property Champions of Norrath, only smaller and without the large-breasted, half-naked elf on the cover. Good or bad, take that as you will, but don't let that discourage you from picking up this game if you dig on these types of hack-n-slash RPG's. Seriously, check out what Sony has in store for us:

  • Epic Adventure: Create a unique hero and set out into the wilds of Unataca to battle powerful creatures, save your city of Aven from imminent extinction and unravel the mysteries of a looming peril.
  • Wireless Multiplayer Game Play: A wireless multiplayer mode features gameplay for multiple players through the PSP handheld system's wireless feature. Connect directly with multiple PSP handheld systems for the ultimate in hack 'n slash action with no wires!
  • Four Playable Character Classes: Select from four unique character classes including an ancient order of valiant Knights, a foundation of brilliant Alchemists, an order of noble Druids, and a race of feral hunters known as the Berserkers. Each character class has unique fighting abilities or magical spells.
  • Beautiful 3D Environments: Battle through more than 100 diverse levels that come alive with brilliant 3D graphics, stunning lighting, dynamic visual effects and highly-detailed player characters and monsters.
  • Organic Game Experience: Play in randomly generated environments and fight against unique monsters for a different experience every time you play.
  • Items and Artifacts: Collect hundreds of items, usable gear and rare magical artifacts to aid in your battles.
  • Character Customization: Modify your hero for a completely customized look and ability set.
  • Hordes of Monsters: Battle over 150 types of monsters with 50 unique models and textures.
  • Challenging Boss Monster Battles: Engage in strategic combat with humongous bosses, each with their own distinctive combat techniques.

The nice thing about Untold is it really is what their press kit claims it to be, only better! I couldn't believe how amazing it looked on the screen in my hands. Not only that, but it is a great deal of fun and they kept things pretty reasonable – it being a handheld game and all. For example, instead of taking numerous hours to wander around the world just to do one thing, they put in a ton of portals – no muss, no fuss, just get in and start wailing on the bad guys. Another awesome feature is the fact that you get a map, complete with labels when you zoom out. This makes finding that annoying shop keeper easy and the portals you need to go through even easier. And the best feature of all? These guys really did something special and allow you to bypass all text with the press of the O button. So let's say you're out waylaying banditos and you come across some saucy wench who wants to tell you more about your quest, blah, blah blah, whatever. It's 10 pages of text but you're itching to get back to waylaying, just press O and *poof* no more text, get back to some butt-kicking for goodness, or evilness, whatever it is you do. Even better is the fact that you can go back through your character screen and see what you missed, Untold has a really decent quest log.

Gameplay is very similar to Sony's Champions properties in that the control scheme is pretty much the same, as is spell and ability casting. Navigate with the little thumbstick, use the X, O, square and triangle buttons to insta-cast abilities or spells and R and L buttons to cast potions. For the record – and a little off topic – I liked the little thumbstick on the PSP. I'm of the opinion that you have to be a complete monkey to break that thing off. Regardless, it was a little odd to navigate with at first, but once I got used to it, navigation was simple. You can adjust the camera by using the d-pad and really I found the default view to be the best.

Levels consist of randomly generated maps that you teleport to from inside the city of Aven, chock-full of monsters, booty, sub-bosses, and bosses – all of which drop "phat lewt." Oh yes, the loot is indeed worth the fights. Sony has made it even easier to figure out what your character needs and doesn't need, and they did it by using this funny little thing called "common sense." It's a crazy thing – nay, rather a risk – but it all worked out for the better. Sony color coded everything. If you can't use it, it's red, if you can, but can't equip it yet, it's yellow, and if you can start rocking people's world with it now, it's white. When you go to the shop keeper – get this – all he sells are items for your character type. Holy crap, this is wacky! What will they think of next? Well, how about an easy way to tell if the item you picked up is more powerful than the one you have equipped? You mean they did that too? Oh hell yes they did. In your inventory menu, simply put the cursor over the item you want to equip and press up on the d-pad. In the character view screen it shows the stats of the item you currently have equipped. Press up again and it shows the stats of the item you're hovering above. Did I mention I loved these guys?

I don't know about you, but I really like my games to last longer than 10 – 20 hours, so I pressed Producer Rob Hill into giving me a truly accurate picture of how long the game will last. The answer is "longer than the PSP battery." Okay, so I made that one up, but seriously, Rob and Executive Producer Nicholas Beliaeff stated that their testers were able to crank through the game in about 15 to 20 hours when they ignored all side quests and story. However, with all the side quests they've put in and the amount of story they're delivering in this tiny package, you should be seeing about 40 hours or so the first time through. Oh and don't be worried about the game ending when you've reached the "end," Untold is set up to give you love even after the main story arc has been completed. Satisfied with their answers and the things they showed me, and as various people milled about, the ever-thoughtful Tamara Sanderson – Sony's PR Manager – baited me away with a PSP and a copy of Untold for me to sit in a corner with and play for a few hours.

Folks, if I didn't say it once, I shall say it again: this game looks great! The game played so smooth and the environments – while a bit repetitive like all console hack-n-slash RPGs – looked great for such a small handheld. When you cast spells they look spectacular, when you cast aura buffs, you get just that, a visual aura of the buff so you can see it affecting you and your enemies. Rob and Nicholas showed off one of the bosses, a giant spider, and when I say giant, I mean this thing dwarfs the PSP itself. Everyone who was in the room – jaded writers from other magazines included – were floored by this thing. It looked and felt incredible on the PSP, all without stuttering or lagging. These guys really did a great job. Boss fights look like they should and give the impression that you're really in a challenge here. Ladies and gentlemen, if you don't like the way this game looks on the PSP, then you're going to be hard pressed to enjoy the graphics the PSP is capable of turning out. I'm not kidding, this thing ran like butter.

Okay, enough raving here, Untold Legends: Brotherhood of the Blade is scheduled to ship the same day as the PSP. Folks, I was able to play a near-final build (they said we were playing the build they shipped for approval), and let me tell you even if the game shipped in the state I held it, I would be one happy young man. Check back in March for our look at what Untold Legends is capable of in the wireless department and what nefarious purposes I will be using said capabilities for. Until then, keep salivating!