I have loved and supported the Fullmetal Alchemist series since the very beginning when it started out as an unknown manga, then turned anime, and now finally us Fullmetal fans can control Ed and Al on their adventure to find the Philosopher's Stone. Here's how it goes: Ed and Al have commited the worst possible sin against alchemy: attempting human transmutation. Ed and Al try to ressurect their deceased mother, and in the attempt, Ed's left leg is taken from him, and Al loses his entire body. Ed transmutes Al's soul to a massive suit of armor, which takes his right arm. The result: the thing they brought back wasn't even human anymore, and Ed missing two limbs and Al's soul trapped in a suit of armor. As Edward sys in the anime:''This is what happens when you tresspass in God's domain, or whatever the hell it is.'' Ed has to then get fullsteel prosthetic limbs, and becomes a State Alchemist at the age of twelve, hence his alias,'Fullmetal'. Now, Ed is 15 and Al 14, and they're on a journey to find the Philosopher's Stone, and finally return to their original bodies, and finally bring their mother flawlessly back from the dead.
The story continues on the PS2 in the form of Fullmetal Alchemist and the Broken Angel. It's definitely not the best Fullmetal spin-off, but it's enough to hold over serious fans such as myself for other products, which I hope are much better.
Game play is average, and you have the ability to transmute objects in to weapons, such as katanas, bombs, arbalests, cannons, and swords. My favorite is a small dagger that allows you to pull off a deadly seven-hit combo. You can also issue orders to Al, who doesn't always listen, but it's nice knowing that there's a big suit of armor next to you who will gladly serve as your scapegoat whild you make a hasty getaway to heal up. Don't waste too many potions on Al, because when he runs out of HP, he'll come back to life after about 3 minutes, or you can transmute him back, if the enemies don't beat you down first.
Controls are simple and effective, but the difficulty varies so greatly from one part to the next, which is very odd. The anime cut-scenes are nice for fans, but the in game graphics definitely would've looked better cel-shaded.
All in all, this is one adventure which all you Fullmetal shouldn't miss, but you may want to rent it first.
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