The whole fashion aspect of the game actually makes sense when you look at it as a whole. The entire game is stylish, not to mention drowning in Japanese culture. Square should be commended for taking a risk on bringing over such a Japanese game to a largely unsuspecting audience here in America. Of course, the dialogue has been translated to include as much American slang as possible, and the items you picked up in battle are referred to as “bling,” but it’s still very much an Eastern experience.

This style carries far past the artwork and extends into the music, which is a fabulous mix of J-Rock, techno, and J-Pop. Most of the songs have lyrics, both English and Japanese. However, to really get the most out of these tunes, you need to use headphones while playing the game. For example, I never realized that the excellent title screen music had a bass line until I popped in my earbuds.

The World Ends With You is the most fun I’ve had with my DS in quite some time. Sure, it’s not perfect, but it is wonderfully innovative and maddeningly addictive. Anyone with a DS owes it to themselves to check this one out. Word.