Don't worry, no spoilers

There I was, at Gamestop with a few of my friends. I had sixty dollars in my pocket; I was all set to get Demon Souls. I had played my friend's copy of the game, and enjoyed it immensely. It was time for me to get my own copy.

I head over to the PS3 games, and look around. I don't see Demon Souls anywhere, not even under the "used" section. Slightly panicked, I quickly go the cashier and question him. Apparently Demon Soul's wasn't in stock.

Dejected, I began to look around the store some more, the money burning a hole in my pocket. I had to buy a game; I wouldn't leave the store without one.

And so I searched. I knew I wanted to get a game for the PS3 (no matter how good Uncharted 2 is, it can't be my only PS3 game). Killzone 2 interested me, but I didn't want to spend sixty bucks on it. I knew inFamous was coming in the mail (my dad ordered it off Amazon). There were seemingly no games to buy.

My eyes fell upon a game who had an interesting boxart. Colorful, anime-inspired, but not with a completely androgynous protagonist (he's still androgynous, but not as badly as say, Cloud Strife).

The game was Valkyria Chronicles, and it was only twenty dollars. After glancing at the back of the box, I quickly took it to the counter and purchased it.

"You're lucky, that's the last of this game we have in stock," he said. Hmmm, did that mean the game was good?

Yes, yes it was.



/end anecdote

Games nowadays aren't necessarily bad, but they're not unique. Modern Warfare 2: quite a fun game, but original? Hell no. Uncharted 2: game of the year to me, but original? Hell no. Halo: ODST: loved the narrative, but was it original? Hell no. I think you get the point.

Valkyria Chronicles however, is a game unlike any I have ever played. It's a third person shooter mixed with tactical RPG, and strategy seen with RTSs. The characters are lovable, especially Welkin. He's not your typical JRPG hero; he's bumbling, awkward around girls, not moody, cheerful, and intelligent.

The art style blew me away. It looks like I'm playing a watercolor painting. Voice-acting ain't half bad either.

But why did it restore my faith in video games?

Because everything was new. Every single thing in the game was unique, and it was all good.

Don't even get me started on the romance between Alicia and Welkin. It was cute, not overdone, and to me was the best relationship in a game since the original Uncharted with Nate/Elena.

I wish more games would try something different like Valkyria Chronicles did. We don't get enough uniqueness nowadays, and that's a bad thing.

Hell, Valkyria Chronicles blew me away so much that I watched the anime that released in Japan that follows the game, and I hate anime. That should tell you something. I loved the universe and characters so much I watched a TV show based on a game I just played. Same plot and everything (well, some differences, but same for the most part).

Sure we get uniqueness from Indy games, but I want uniqueness from main-stream studios. Though I think Hell would freeze over before EA made a game completely unique XD.

After reading this, if you don't know what the hell I'm talking about, just go buy Valkyria Chronicles. You'll understand after playing it.

-Nate