Harry Potter references abound in Nintendo's latest DS RPG, Magical Starsign. The game stars prepubescent wizards in training that must stop a former student (Voldemort, anyone?) from hatching a sinister plot to destroy the universe. It's not exactly the most original story, but developer Brownie Brown manages to keep things interesting by stepping outside Will-o-Wisp Academy and plunging the game's heroes into the depths of space. The result is a decent adventure with a unique gimmick and attractive visuals. All it asks for from players is a lot of patience.

Similar to most RPGs, Magical Starsign takes too long to get going. The first 30-40 minutes are spent wandering the Academy, wading through boring tutorials and suffering through cheesy dialogue. From there, the students board rocket ships and crash land on a mysterious planet, but even that doesn't improve the situation, as the next hour or so involves figuring out what the heck's going on. It also doesn't help that the story is just plain mediocre. All of the kids in this game have nothing but annoying things to say, and more often than not, the dialogue should be skipped without hesitation.

Even with these faults, the game is still worth playing, if for nothing else than to ogle at the detailed planets, slick looking magic attacks, and humongous boss characters. The combat system is equally appealing, as all of the characters' powers are tied to the position of their respective planets. It's an interesting dynamic that works quite well, as it becomes important to know when characters are at full strength. The closer their planet, the more powerful they'll be.

The only real downside to the gameplay is its emphasis on magic attacks. Melee strikes don't do enough damage and are therefore unnecessary. That would be sweet if there were tons of magic attacks to fall back on, but for the most part, the same ones need to be selected over and over again. But on the positive side, all of them are extravagant looking and fun to watch. Giant blocks of ice, humongous 3D cubes, and raining balls of fire are among the more attractive effects.