You know, I never really noticed how much variety there is in my bookmarks. When reading something with moments that I'd like to note down, but don't want to dog-ear the page/can't use the cover, I'll use any scrap of paper or card I have lying around. Including the occasional $5.00 bill.

And that, people, is probably the most random thing I've ever mentioned on the internetz. Hurray!

Moving on, The World Ends With You is probably the most captivating DS game I've had. Sure, Phantom Hourglass was neat graphically, Tetris DS has great local multiplayer in push mode, and Elite Beat Agents is a really cool DDR-esque-but-not-really music game I'd love a sequel for. However, as a whole, The World Ends With You shines. It's got great, unique gameplay: You fight battles against "noise," half-tattoo animal variants which actually don't randomly attack you. The battle itself occurs simultaneously on two screens, the top being d-pad operated, the bottom using the touch screen. It's fast, epic, and gratifying; you really feel that you deserved the win when you get it.

Then there's the story. Without revealing anything deep, you play (mostly) as Neku, a confused guy who wakes up in Scramble Crossing, a real location of Shibuya Tokyo. As a part of The Reapers' Game, in which he receives a task (and a painful appearance of a timer on his palm) every day for seven days, each with its own time limit. With no memories of his life or why he's here, he has to make pacts with other characters and fight off the noise.

The brilliance of all that is that it occurs in a real location. You can look up pictures of the landmarks in the game. Though shops are spin-off names of their real counterparts, they are no doubt stylized versions of the originals. All the time that you're running around town, invisible to the normal folks (as are the noise), you feel like it's a real place. To only strengthen that preposition, the game offers a method of reading the thoughts of the people around you; you'll find them thinking about things like watching concerts of spin-off bands, or reading someone's blog. It all feels one step from reality, with only the noise and such to keep you out of the mainstream.

On a final note, there's the music. though most songs differ from the Japanese release, they share the qualities that made them such a success. The music has an up-beat feel that, at the same time, complements the world in which you play. It only strengthens the idea of it being a living city, while simultaneously keeping you ready to erase the noise.

I could go on quite a while about this game. Really, it boils down to this: Buy this game. NAO! It's got fantastically innovative gameplay, upbeat music, and a story to keep you hooked for its many hours of entertainment. There is no doubt in my mind that any fan of RPGs, Action Games, or pretty much any genres should have a copy of this game. It's from the creators of Final Fantasy and holds that quality, just with an upped storyline and the coolest combat ever.

10/10