So this will be up 12AM tonight in Asian stores? Or will we have to wait for the US release? :<Just beat the game <3
It's really long - probably 5-6 hours, compared to the original's ~30 minutes or so. The length is a bit misleading because the game is designed to be looped through several times, just in a smarter way than IB1.
There are branching paths, so you'll fight ~4 intro fights, choose left or right, work your way to that path's boss, and either succeed or fail at killing him. Then you're booted back to the start and can go through again, taking a different path.
To put it another way, the original launched with I think ~10 "combat locations" (more were added later), and this game probably has 30-40?
Regarding the ending - no spoilers - just wanna say the game has a really great, really tough NG+ mode. So there's some excellent replay value here beyond just maxing out equipment. That was a nice surprise (and is an excellent argument for why reviewers should have to BEAT the games they review, even long after they're sure they've played enough to form an opinion).
Anyway, my review will be online TOMMORROW (Wednesday) at 9AM PST / 6AM EST, on IGN.com
Edit:
Sorry for nextpaging you, Justin. Quoted your post, so it won't be forgotten.