Although it won't appear in the U.S. until the holidays, Microsoft and developer Hironobu Sakaguchi gave press a glimpse of Lost Odyssey, the Xbox 360 exclusive video game. Developed by Sakaguchi's Mistwalker studio, the game features a more realistic appearance than the company's other 360 game, Blue Dragon. This may work against it, since it resembles other RPGs.

The game takes place during the Magical Industrial Revolution, a time when humans harness magic energy. Its turn-based battle system feature real time elements, though Microsoft will not discuss what that means.

In the demo, two characters go to pick up a party member at a local pub. He comes out with three sexy women hanging all over him. Drunk and unwilling to leave, he stumbles about, thanking the ladies for time well spent and begging his companions for 45 more minutes (15 minutes with each women). Eventually, the female party member drags him away from his love interests and tosses them a coin, which they gush over. They attempt to come on to her but she pushes them off. Unfortunately, nothing was mentioned about the importance of this scene. It is to be assumed that these three adventurers are going on a quest, but that's it. No purpose. No enemies. No real reason to go anywhere.

Sakaguchi also unveiled a video featuring an underwater environment. A crude vehicle floated through a tunnel and entered an environment housing a twisted, blue mass. It slowly swirled around it producing thousands of bubbles. Again, no information was disclosed.

Powered by Epic's Unreal Engine 3, Lost Odyssey overflows with beautiful scenery. Forests, characters and industrial machinery have a realistic edge. At the same time, the game looks very Final Fantasy, perhaps too much like Square Enix's franchise.

At this early stage, the game looks cool and holds a lot of promise. Look for more information soon.