After deciding on a warrior you can then choose a skin tone, of which there are roughly 48 different shades to select from, and then you must decide on a hair style. However, if you'd rather not stress over such things you can select the Randomize function and the game will assign these to you. Moving on, you must then distribute 10 attribute points spread across Strength, Stamina, Intelligence, and Dexterity, though this won't be the only time that you'll have to do this. As you whoop ass you'll level up (which is cool because doing so refills your health meter), and you'll press Select and then distribute the achieved points. You can also unlock new special attacks, of which there are well over 35 and each character has between 10-12 personalized Specials, which gives The Warrior's Code more replay value. These include attacks such as Frost Breath, Sunburst, Toxic Ball, Inferno Ball, Hypothermia, and Shock. What they do is pretty self explanatory by just looking at the name, though others such as Coil (unleashes electricity onto your enemies) are a bit vague and therefore quite mysterious.

Controls in the game are quite easy to learn. X is attack, and if you hold the button for a little while your character will unleash a charged attack. L+O switches between your melee and ranged weapon, and L+X blocks. Square opens chests and there's lots of these scattered throughout the game, many of which contain gold and other cool items, and R activates health potions. Other controls worth noting is O and Triangle, which both handle special attacks, and Square also controls essence strikes. But keep in mind that these controls work in my preview build of the game and are subject to change.

Essence strikes can be performed whenever you've stunned an enemy, whereupon which the message Attack of Opportunity appears. These attacks let you deliver crushing blows while your opponents are dazed and confused and they're actually a bit tricky to pull off because pressing Square for varying lengths of time results in different maneuvers. But they're all useful and fun to watch, nowhere near as cool as seeing the various Specials, but they're a nice addition to the gameplay.

Thankfully, the game teaches you the controls during the first level and you can totally ignore them, so you're not being strong armed into completing some tutorial. As for your starting point, you begin in some undercity known as Sewer Safehouse. The goal is to rendezvous with some allies, but from the get go it's obvious that evil has penetrated this supposed safe haven. You're immediately attacked by slugs and other creatures, and when you finally reach your friends all hell breaks loose, though I'm not going to spoil any of the game's surprises. But from there you'll need to escort some unarmed NPCs, and test out your alter ego since you're a changeling. All of the characters can transform into a gigantic beast after picking up a set amount of essence from dead enemies, and for a brief period you become super human, moving at much faster speeds and killing tons of bad guys in a short amount of time. It's by no means an overly complex system, but just something fun to mess around with, especially during boss fights, which are at times tricky affairs.

There are more than 10 titanic boss characters in The Warrior's Code and based on what I've played they love to use the environments to their adventure. In the sewer, for example, you run across this amphibious freak known as a Sludge Beast, and he spits green crap at you and leaps about the platform. But no more shall I say! Surprised you must be!

Whenever you need to mess around with the game's various options you'll press Select. From here, a series of menus pop up and you can easily navigate through them using the L and R triggers. A map, a detailed bestiary, your inventory, list of specials, and leveling up can all be accessed here.

Concerning the gameplay, it's rock solid and immensely enjoyable. There's a very slight delay before characters actually swing their weapons, but it's less a programming issue and just a realistic interpretation of how someone would bring the weapon back before letting it cut through the air. But yeah, The Warrior's Code plays just fine. There's lots of action, and while things are a bit linear, the levels are big enough that they don't feel too narrow and constantly urging me to forge onward. If I want to stop and break boxes (not every box in this game can be destroyed, which is slightly disappointing), I can certainly do that for an extended period.

I'm really not a fan of gushing, so part me feels a little guilty for praising this game (preview code, really) so heavily, but I really think that you'll be impressed when you see The Warrior's Code and you'll become ensnared by its presentation. It's just a really well made hack-an-slash adventure game that bolsters what's already turning out to be an exquisite 2006 PSP lineup. Definitely pick it up when its released this March, but if you're still unsure, wait for the GameDaily exclusive review, which will post before Untold Legends lands in stores.