The videogame world has had precious few female heroes, especially (recently) ones that are more warrior than sex symbol. However, the post-Xena pop culture world has produced many great, tough female heroines. Joining their ranks is Lady Sia, who is certain to make a mark on the Game Boy Advance soon in an action-packed sidescrolling adventure, that is being developed by RFX Interactive and published by TDK Mediactive.

A race of beast men called the T’Soas have risen up under the guidance of an evil known as Onimen, and seized the land of Lady Sia. Sia is a daring warrior princess who fights back, determined to free those enslaved unjustly and reclaim her ravaged homeland. However, the T’Soas capture Sia and lock her away to prevent her from causing any more trouble…

The game begins in Sia’s jail cell, where she must try to escape. Once free from her cell, she’ll have to proceed through the dungeons to try to escape, fighting numerous enemies along the way. Sia then must locate a giant griffin that will aid her in her journey by taking her to the main lair of the T’Soas. It seems griffin riding will be a playable aspect in part of the game too.

The game has over 36 level maps distributed over four vast and unique worlds: The Human World, Peripheral Realms, Sia's Kingdom, and the T'soa Empire. Each area breaks down into five segments, with two bonus areas where you face off against Onimen. Each level is packed with hidden secrets, bonuses and objectives, including rescuing political prisoners. Fortunately, the game cartridge comes equipped with a battery pack so you’ll be able to save your progress along the way.

There is a virtual zoo of 38 bizarre enemy types that Lady Sia will face off against such as Tigermen, Pelicanmen, Waspmen, Weaselwomen and Chameleonmen. Every enemy has a unique set of animations and attacks as well, giving Onimen’s T’Soas army quite a bit of personality.

Lady Sia’s is no slouch though and is ready to kick T’Soas butt. Her basic attack is swinging her sword, though her blade has a limited reach. Sia will also have a few magic powers at her disposal. The magic is elemental in nature, and by end game, Sia will have to obtain the power of flood, firestorm and lightning to face the final battle. Going along with Lady Sia’s impressive graphic nature, some of magical attacks will display full-screen effects. Progressing throughout the game Sia will pick up both new weapons and magic abilities.

Lady Sia doesn’t just go medieval on monsters swords n’ sorcery style though… At various points in the game, she will change into a gigantic Sasquatch to stomp baddies. It seems that this transformation may only take place during boss battles but the Bosses are HUGE, so it’s good Sia has this trick up her sleeve.

Anime-style art fused with a good dose of mythology provide the backdrop for one of the best looking GBA games yet. Screenshots will show how beautiful and detailed the game looks, but do not do it justice; Lady Sia’s appearance in motion is an astonishing testament to the GBA’s 32 bit graphic abilities. All of the characters, enemies, spells and even backgrounds contain an enormous amount of animation. Lady Sia’s character reportedly has 100 frames of animation in herself alone. The fantastic Sasquatch vs. Giant Boss battles involve enormous game sprites, but cause no slowdown & Lady Sia is said to possess fluidity unrivaled for a side-scrolling platformer. Our only hope that the great looking graphics and animation are backed up by solid gameplay. We’ll see…

Lady Sia should be hitting retailers in North America by the end of this month and we’re looking forward to putting it to the test.