Another school semester has come to an end, and I’ve gained a short respite from the drudgery of essays and tests. Instead of catching up on animu like I planned to though, something else has occupied my attention. That something would be the sheer gaming ecstasy known as Valkyria Chronicles. It has utterly consumed me. I’ve pushed aside everything on my watchlist to play this incredible game, including Clannad which I so dearly love and religiously watch. Sorry Clannad, I’ll get around to you… Eventually. At any rate, let’s talk about Valkyria for a bit.

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Sony and Funimation are bringing downloadable anime to a PS3 near you in a big way. As part of yesterday’s press conference at E3, Sony unveiled their new video service that will allow you to purchase/rent movies and other videos on your PS3. The big surprise was the fact that Funimation was casually mentioned alongside several big movie studios during the announcement.

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Eye of Judgment is a card game in the vein of Magic the Gathering on the PS3. Wizards of the Coast is actually making the physical cards you use to play the game. It uses the Playstation Eye peripheral and brings your cards to life on the screen in Yu-Gi-Oh: Duel Monsters style. I’ve been reading up on the game and it sounds extremely intricate. It sounds like a fun but gimmicky pitch.

This really takes me back to my junior high days back when I played card games like this, but talk about a niche genre on an overpriced system. I suppose it would be worth the cost if you had a few friends with PS3s and Eye of Judgment. The costs don’t just stop at the initial game package though.

You will inevitably have to purchase extra booster packs to strengthen your deck and advance to a higher level of play. I figure that Sony’s mindset is that if the consumer has enough money to buy the system, then they must naturally have enough cash to shell out money on extra booster packs, because the packs carry a premium to them. It looks like a risky investment because the game isn’t fully established yet like MtG, the high end price tag is killer, the player base will no doubt be very small, and the good players that are out there will probably be at an advanced level of play (Meaning they’ll kick your butt to Mars and back faster than you can say Rofflecopter).

Estimated cost of play (before taxes and/or shipping):
PS3 – $400-500
Eye of Judgment pack with peripherals – $70
Theme decks – $15/each
Booster packs – $4/each

Oh okay. I know you want a Yu-Gi-Oh Abridged reference. “Let’s settle this by playing a children’s card game!”