Valkyria Chronicles

If you are a fan of strategy based rpg games, you will notice that there seems to be a lack of titles available on the playstation 3. Despite winning great reviews, Valkyria Chronicles has not fared well in terms of sales in the U.S. market. You can currently purchase the game for less than $20 at locations such as Gamestop and Bestbuy. That makes it worth a try at least.

Valkria Chronicles offers up an impressive storyline plot that has cascaded into an anime series as well. Its set in the year 1935, in the continent of Europa which is dominated by two superpowers: The Autocratic East Europan Imperial Alliance in the east and a commonwealth of loosely allied democracies known as the Atlantic Federation in the west. These powers both rely on a precious mineral called Ragnite that is growing scarece due to the war between the two powers. Gallina, a neutral country which happens to be rich in Ragnite is now the target of the Imperial Alliance.

Gameplay wise is based on a unique turn-based battle system called BLiTZ (Battle of Live Tactical Zones). Between turns the player views an overhead map in Command Mode, then zooms in to control each individual unit on the battlefield during Action Mode. The movement and other actions are handled in real-time during Action Mode, but limited in movement by an AP gauge that varies for each type of character. Target Mode, enables the player indirect control of the character's aim while the action freezes, hence allowing for head shots and other tactics.

Some gameplay elements (a tank that runs over your characters will actually do very little damage to them) have some room for improvement. But coupled with the solid storyline, beautiful graphics and style of the game, Valkyria Chronicles is a must for all turn based rpg fans. 5/5.