Down, Down: The DS screen is not very big, and if you're going to try to use the sniper abilities of the gunslinger, you're going to have a rough time putting space between you and the monster. This is yet another game where the 3D feature is more or less pointless, and I've come to hate the return of finite inventories I've noticed in modern games.
Be prepared to really explore the player trade option as you burden yourself with other classes' treasures. You'll run out of room long before you get back to a place you can save or sell. At least you actually earn money killing things in this game as opposed to loading you down with a thousand little trinkets to sell instead.
Left, Right, Left, Right: It's another game that for some reason won't let you use the 3DS d-pad to move around, but maybe my hand is finally getting used to the awkwardly placed control stick. Your thumbs are more than adequate for the touch screen features, so there isn't any annoying switching between stylus and buttons.
It's a little bothersome that the left shoulder button is your interact with command as well as your mike activator. You get used to it, but it seems very out of character for a Square Enix game.
B, A: So, I did discover another reason that I don't particularly like cooperative online play. When you've got a fussy three-year-old who won't stop calling you to come into the room to pinky swear she's getting a tricycle for her birthday, you feel like a jackass to the nice people waiting on you.
It was good to finally enter the interactive world with the rest of the gamer community. I kept it at arm's length, but I started to feel maybe it all wasn't so bad after all.
Start?: If you're already a pro at games like Diablo, then you might not get much out of Heroes of Ruin besides a chance to play something similar on another system. That being said, the 3DS and DS are systems that work incredibly well with RPGs, and Heroes of Ruin is a worthy entry in the catalog. For longtime Square fans it's definitely new and exciting, and the 3DS continues to do what it's always promised, bring players together a little more.
