Jeanne D'Arc is one of the best roleplaying games I have played this year on the PSP, hands down. This tactical roleplaying game goes beyond the pale, delivering a tactical experience that is open-ended, fun and highly addictive. It is really a must own game for fans aching for a decent roleplaying game experience on Sony's hand-held.

Jeanne D'Arc is a bold retelling of Joan of Arc's adventures in 15th France, and while history buffs might bristle at the lack of historical accuracy, gamers will delight in what Level-5 has done with this story. And the story in Jeanne D'Arc can best be described as high fantasy as fantastical creatures stand side by side with French and English forces battling for king and country.

The game opens with Jeanne as a little girl in her village, along with friends and father. As the story unfolds her town is attacked by the English, bolstered by an army of demons. The town is destroyed, her father is killed and Jeanne (with friends in tow) barely manages to escape. It is at this moment that an armlet, passed down to her from her family, begins to speak to her. This voice, believed to be that of the king of gods, tells her that she must free France from the English.

If you have ever played a tactical turn-based roleplaying game, you'll be able to pick up on Jeanne D'Arc very quickly. Battles take place on a 3d map with height and terrain that can affect combat. Players start out by using generic attacks, as they wait to generate mana that can then be used for whatever skills each character has equipped. There are lots of interesting skills to choose from that you can buy or collect from defeated enemy drops. These come in different categories, but the bulk of them revolve around specific weapons types. These weapon types include swords, staves, spears, axes, bows, and knives. There are also two other general purpose categories: magic and buffs. Magic skill stones let you cast spells like fireball, ice shard, lightening, etc. The other accessories allow you to add bonuses to your attack, defense, and more. What is great about non-weapon skill stones is that most anyone can use them, though the more advanced types usually have a level requirement.

As you gain mana it enables you to use equipped skills to deal out damage to the enemy. The game also uses an attack of opportunity system where attacking from behind or on the side gives you a slight boost to the amount of damage you do. Attacking successfully will also leave a burning aura on the opposite side of the enemy that can then be utilized by another character that moves into that square - the result being a healthy amount of extra damage. One other element is the counter-attack system -- characters have a chance to counter-attack when attacked or to guard. This is most interesting when a group of weakened units tries to attack and is eliminated by a simple counter attack. There has been more than one occasion where multiple enemy units have been eliminated in this manner, so this system can dramatically affect the outcome of a map if you use the right strategy prior to getting into striking distance of a group of enemies.