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.

It’s not often that a game utterly drains my time like this. The usual suspects are Mario and Zelda when those are released, plus it’s been a long time since a JRPG has stirred something inside me. I believe the last JRPG I played that I loved this much was Final Fantasy Tactics back in 2002. Over the years I became jaded to the JRPG genre as it interested me less and less with each new game released. Nippon Ichi can release sequels that are essentially the same as their predecessors in every way and no one cares (CoughDisgaeaCough). Final Fantasy is not something I particularly love either besides the aforementioned Tactics and FFVI.

That brings me to Valkyria Chronicles. I absolutely love everything about this game. Great presentation with watercolor visuals and a story that unfolds like chapters in a history book (in a good way). The story opens in a fictional 1930′s Europe as an empire that bears more than a passing resemblance to WWII Germany invades a peaceful, neutral country called Gallia. A young man named Welkin Gunther is drawn into the conflict and soon joins the local militia to repel the invasion.

The gameplay is stellar with turn based strategy that lets you manuever units and fight from a third person perspective. It really sucks you into the battlefield as you scramble for cover behind sandbags or dive into the safety of a trench in a hail of gunfire. Turn based RPGs are usually far from frantic but Valkyria dares to challenge that standard. The centerpiece of the gameplay is getting to drive the tank, and the thing is a beast on the battlefield. Of course the tanks are toned down for the sake of gameplay, and it’s odd that enemy infantry can take a tank shell to the chest and live albeit with low HP.

The cast is fleshed out and convincing in portraying their motivations for fighting. The main characters grow over time and their personalities are dynamic and interesting. The villains are… Villainy. They do villain stuff well and you’ll love to hate them. Even the generic units are lively and have plenty to say, although their role in the story is non existant.

Valkyria is the best game Sega has produced in a long time and almost makes me forget about the recent Sonic games and the travesty we call Shining Tears. The only downside I can think of is that the story can be a bit preachy and formulaic. I expect JRPGs centering on war to be varying amounts of preachy. After all, the publishers would get bombarded if they featured a story that condones war. At least Valkyria handles these matters tactfully without ever being too forced. Formulaic isn’t necessarily bad though as the story is told well.

I just wanted to briefly talk about the game but it turned into a mini review. If you have a PS3 and haven’t played Valkyria Chronicles yet, do yourself a favor and get it or I’ll Bright Slap you into tomorrow.

PS: A Valkyria Chronicles anime is slated for Spring 2009. It’s earned a place on my watchlist and should also earn a place on yours.

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.

So I logged on today to see what Sony was serving up. Among the many movies and TV shows, there were a dozen anime titles to choose from. While the list of anime is small right now, it’s certainly a step in the right direction for Funimation to make anime more mainstream. I wonder if Bandai will follow suit and make an offer to Sony. Well you probably want to know what’s up for grabs. All shows are $1.99 for purchase with one exception noted below.

Afro Samurai
Astro Boy
Basilisk
Burst Angel
Desert Punk
Gunslinger Girl
Kiddy Grade
Moon Phase
Robotech: The Shadow Chronicles
Samurai 7
Trinity Blood
Xam’d: Lost Memories (Bounen no Xamdou)

Most of the anime titles currently available have been licensed for a good while, but one eluded me… Xam’d: Lost Memories. What a weird name. According to this post at Japanator it’s an exclusive Playstation Network anime created by Bones (Eureka 7, Darker than Black, Fullmetal Alchemist). Xam’d is only available for rental and will cost $2.99 (SD) and $3.99 (HD). Ouch. Sony has a nice deal going on there. Guess I won’t be watching this show, especially since it’s only a rental. If anyone is going to watch Xam’d, tell me how it is.

Sources:
Japanator
Giapet

And if you want more info on Xam’d, check out this post at Giapet.

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!”