Think dark and drab, then add a bit of medieval, and you've got King's Field: The Ancient City. Although the game has many good lighting effects, the majority of King's Field is a plethora of stone and rock walls, floors and ceilings. Characters and enemies look nice, but truly seem as though they could have looked much better.

The game's music track will certainly get you into dungeon-exploration mode, as it continuously plays in the background. Sound effects consist of simple things like the swinging of your mace, to the step-slide of the barely-able-to-move walking undead. Again, nothing special here, but you'll definitely be able to distinguish between noises and know what lies ahead in the dark underground tunnels.

When you think of a first-person video game, titles like Quake and Half-Life usually come to mind. There are have been very few first-person role-playing games. But fear not, the next chapter in the King's Field series is finally here. A long time ago, when the Sony PlayStation first came into the picture, so did the first of the King's Field games. Using the first-person perspective, the game gave a refreshing new look and feel to RPGs. King's Field: The Ancient City brings back that refreshing feeling, finding its home on your PS2.

It's not just the look and feel of The Ancient City that gives you a bit of that nostalgic feeling. Everything about the game takes you back to the good old days. For those who have never played any of the King's Field games, the premise is simple. You'll be making your way through dungeons and open areas alike, all the while trying to collect weapons, armor, and items that will help you fulfill your quest. And just like any good RPG, you will be able to interact with many different people and encounter many different enemies ranging from killer plant life to the great undead.

Those of you who have been a fan of the series for some time now will immediately recognize the game's control system. But for those that haven't, you may be amazed at how slow King's Field: The Ancient City feels. It is a learned trait to be able to time those ever-crucial strikes with your handheld weapons, as sometimes it feels like an eternity before your arm follows through onto your enemy. Moreover, even walking/running around the environment is much too slow, adding to the frustration. It is too bad that The Ancient City didn't stray a little farther from the original on this point.

Don't worry too heavily, as the game also allows you to build up and use your magic powers from a distance. As you progress throughout the game, you will continuously build your magical abilities and learn new attributes. Combine this with increasing your character's level as you would in any RPG, and you'll soon be disposing of enemies without worry... or will you?

Here's where some games make it or break it. The best game in the world could become a flop if the difficulty level is either too high or too low. In the case of King's Field: The Ancient City, the enemy AI (artificial intelligence) is absolutely horrendous! First off, like you, enemies seem to move in slow motion, so sometimes you will be playing the waiting game when trying to draw them into an area you want to do battle in.

Once you do draw them toward you, you can just back up until the skeleton/insect/blob reaches the outskirts of its obviously programmed limits. Then all you have to do is wait for the evildoer to turn its back and slash away. If you do try to play fair and fight like a man, you'll very quickly and easily be able to figure out the patterns of each type of baddie. All of these combined make for a pretty dull fighting/gaming experience.

Aside from the slow gameplay and movements, King's Field: The Ancient City has very usable controls. And if you don't like them, you have the great option to reprogram you controller to your liking (although you won't be able to switch the analog controls). The menu system is also very well organized, making it easy to cycle through your inventory quickly to find the highly important first aid items.

If you have ever played and enjoyed any of the King's Field games during the PSX era of gaming, you will probably want to check out The Ancient City. However, you may want to first rent the game to develop a taste for what you'll be spending your money on. The slow gameplay can easily get annoying, but the overall experience is enjoyable to have the first-person perspective in a true role-playing game.