Nostalgia is a new original adventure from the team behind the Final Fantasy III & IV remakes for the DS. Set in an alternate 19th century Earth, the player takes the role of Eddie, a young British lad who embarks on a quest to find his missing father, the famous adventurer Gilbert Brown. Nostalgia has a lot to live up to. The developers have proven they can take a classic and remake it well, but can they be just as successful with a new IP?

The game's storyline is a fun light-hearted one. It proves a little weak in some areas, the biggest one that comes to mind is the very beginning where Eddie finds out his father is missing. The dialogue is something along the lines of "Oh, dad is missing? I'll go on a dangerous quest to find him. Bye!" But despite the somewhat weak start, it definitely picks up later on.

Set in an alternate Earth during the "Age of Adventure", airships have become the most common method of travel. Perils exist in the skies however, in the form of monsters and sky pirates.

The game really does capture that spirit of adventure. Soaring over new lands and exploring sites like the pyramids of Egypt and the Tower of Babil, all the while feeling the threat of the game's antagonists, The Cabal, it feels like an Indiana Jones movie.

The mechanics are crisp and work very well on the DS. Exploration mode has the bottom screen displaying a map, which can be moved by using the stylus, while the main window is up top. Combat uses the bottom screen to display information such as character stats and turn order while all the action takes place on the top.

Combat is fairly traditional. The four characters each fulfill a different role- warrior, rouge, mage, priest. Each character unlocks skills as they level up, which in turn can be improved by spending skill points, allowing for some customization. The only flaw with normal combat is that the game is way too easy. I found one strategy early on (I won't mention it here, even though it was a very simple one), that allowed me to essentially defeat almost any boss in one or two turns.

More difficult is airship combat. Your airship can be upgraded with different parts to improve performance throughout the game. Each party member mans a different station on the ship, allowing for some strategy.

Enemies in the air are typically stronger and with the freedom of being able to fly anywhere, it's sometimes all too easy to stumble into a battle you can't win. And with fleeing sometimes impossible, if you aren't careful, you could find yourself loading your last save regularly.

Eddie gains three more companions throughout his journey and is regularly joined by guest party members- uncontrollable NPCs that provide different benefits in combat from damage to healing and buffs. Each character has their own backstory and are well developed.

In addition to the main quest, there's loads of side quests that can be picked up at the Adventurer's Association. Each mission has a rank and by completing it, you earn points. These points improve your own rank and allow you to take on more difficult missions.

Of course you also make a good amount of money from these missions as well, allowing you to outfit your characters and airship to deal with challenges in the main storyline.

For the collector gamer, Nostalgia won't disappoint. An adventurer's journal can be found in the main menu, providing lists of everything the player can complete in the game, with percentages cataloging the progress. Everything from main characters you've met to side quests and items all are listed and trying to complete it should keep the dedicated gamer busy.

The graphics look great for a DS game. A similar style to the Final Fantasy remakes, the world is all in 3D, as are the characters, although they're somewhat more anatomically correct than the FF characters (No oversized heads). No voices will be found in this game, but plenty of cut scenes and lots of action make up for that.

Overall, with very solid gameplay, a fun, lighthearted storyline, memorable characters and loads of side quests, Nostalgia is a fantastic game and one that no RPG fan with a DS should pass up.

Final Score - 8/10