Boy, when you go back and look at your early stuff, you can be really surprised at how awful your early stuff is.

I guess most of the panels I picked out here aren't that awful, but boy do I feel embarrassed by some of the early comics I've done!

Now then, allow me to shift my embarrassment to ... awe!

*ahem*

Ho.

Ly.

Crap.

So finally those of us outside Japan are getting Ragnarok DS. It came out on the 16th of February stateside, a little over a year since it was released in Japan (which was December 2008).

I decided to pick up the game, even though the initial reviews were pretty bleak. The main reason why I did? A lot of the reviews I'd read seemed to ... kind of miss the point. Gabe of Penny Arcade once complained of this, that reviewers often talk in circles and often don't play a game far enough to get a real idea of what it's like.

That seems to be the case for Ragnarok DS. Granted, I didn't start the game with very high expectations; you can't really cram an MMORPG into a DS game, even one like RO. And there's signs of it; sprites with reduced frames of animation, lack of shadow maps, and such. The entire range of classes isn't available; only the first and 2-1 classes, including the Taekwon branch.

And yet, Ragnarok DS puts its own spin on things. For example, I was pleasantly surprised by the ability to control the actions of Ales' party to the extent that is possible in the game. That and the whole guild system I've heard about from friends who've played farther in than I have; and nobody I know regrets buying the game.

Anyway!

You'll notice that Ales and Lisir, the mage girl here, are not drawn the same as other RO characters. If you ever compare the Ragnarok DS artwork with the original art done by Lee Myung-Jin, you'll see that their clothing is somewhat different. More simplistic in some cases. Their eyes are also a bit different, too.