KezarHighwind

Final Fantasy XIII is a mess. That simple. It has not only changed the face of the series, but has also damaged the image of the JRPG to the world. With an amazing concept of the floating world above Gran Pulse, where the people have been enslaved by god-like beings called the fal'cie, amazing a beautiful art, as well as memorable and majestic music, the game itself was only destined to fail. Then, what happened? Aren't these things enough to make a good game? No, they aren't. Final Fantasy XIII is one of the most awful and annoying RPG's I've played. Indeed, the game can only be compared to a cheap iOS game in modern days. The story is so boring and confusing, that people can't even get what are Lightning and friends talking about. Not to mention the gameplay, which, again, was a good concept terribly executed. These new Final Fantasy titles are sinning of having extreme complexity, which it is supposed to be good, but this case is not. The gameplay is boring, frustrating and hard for both, simple gamers and hardcore RPG gamers, like me. The great factor that joined all these together, is the linearity of the game. You, are practically not playing at all, as 2/3 of the entire party is played by the AI. The linearity is described by Motomu Toriyama and Square Enix as a "story driven game", but don't cheat on me, it's like if you were playing a visual novel. I can't save much of Final Fantasy XIII, except the great wasted music, as well as the nice visuals, but this time Square Enix, that didn't save your game at all.

In an era of Call of Duty, Halo, Battlefield, or shooters being called Role Playing Games, Tactical RPG's from Japan look like if they were made for people of the 90's. Besides all the world against SEGA WOW, Valkyria Chronicles stands alone, as the best Tactical Role Playing Game I have ever played. With memorable characters, beautiful art style, epic story and amazing music, Valkyria Chronicles stands as the best RPG of the current generation, the one known for its Shooters. "Tactical Adventure Third Person Shooter Role Playing Game", that's how we can call it. Yes, that intense this game is. Valkyria Chronicles showoffs of what it is done, and it is done of poor quality. Extracting great elements from RPGs, as well as amazing controls for battle, the game itself marks the revival of the JRPG's in general, and is clearly one of the most revolutionaries of the history. From Bruhl to Fouzen and Randgriz to Barious, the game tells us the story of a squad of the Gallian's Liberation Front, in their struggle to save the beloved country from the invader Empire, who, with their Emperor Maximillian, is seeking for the lance and power of an amcient civilization known as the Valkyria. The game is not predictable, I can ensure that, as the story twists are real unexpected. In brief, Valkyria Chronicles is the best RPG of the current generation. Just a few flaws on the moving units, as well as the issues with the Third Person perspective are remarkable, but beyond that, the game is fully enjoyable and likeable. Valkyria Chronicles, is by far, the best PlayStation 3 exclusive title, and a must-have game on the valuable collection of this system.

[SPOILER ALERT: This review contains spoilers.]