[Multiplatform] How good are: Shadow Hearts, Valk Profile, Dark Cloud, & Arc the Lad Series

Never played any of the Shadow Hearts games -- didn't ever show enough initial interest in them to even get started. And after I bought and played one of the three Arc the Lad games that was included in a collection for the PSone, I swore never to play the series again. Just not my thing.

Valkyrie Profile (and the remake, VP: Lenneth) is a fantastic game. Let me reiterate: it's fan-fucking-tastic. I'm a story kinda guy myself, and VP's is practically tear-jerking in some moments. Very tragic story that really pulls the player in. The battle system is great as well -- enemies appear on-screen and if you attack them, you'll start the battle sequence first. If they get to you first though, well it's a gamble -- either they could get the initiative or not.

The battles play out in pseudo real-time, meaning that while turns are involved, the timing of your attacks is very crucial. The correct timing will result in the maximum combo further resulting in the "Purify Weird Soul" finale; a series of ultra-attacks that are truly fun to watch.

The music is VP is fantastic, composed by I believe Motoi Sakuraba. Voices are easy enough to listen to, especially considering the game was made before the advent of voice acting hit the U.S. Some would probably argue "lol wut advent?" but I digress.

Valkyrie Profile 2, on the other hand, is like the pretty younger sister who's kinda shallow and somewhat limited in her worldliness. VP2 is a very, very attractive piece of gaming, no question. The battle system is mostly still intact, with the addition of being able to split up your party and the 3D movement on the battle screen (VP1 just had you facing the enemy on a 2D plane).

Valkyrie Profile 2 isn't quite as deep as it's predecessor though, which for me was a big plus to the first game. It's still deep, but VP1 was able to give detailed back-stories on all the characters, and VP2 neglects to do that for any of the Einherjar (your soul-bound warriors who fight with you) save for one, maybe two. Still, it doesn't detract much and the game is damn good either way you cut it.

At least a handful of members on the board know how big a Dark Cloud fan I am. The first one was, at the very least, unique and entertaining, and pretty damn impressive graphically for being such an early PS2 title (pretty near launch, if I'm not mistaken). The premise is something like this: the world has a catastrophe that basically wipes everything clean, and i's up to you, wielder of the Atlamillia, to restore the world to what it once was. Sounds easy huh?

It's a dungeon-crawler, city-builder, action-RPG hybrid. You crawl through dungeons, engage in battles with enemies on-screen and collect Atla, which are spheres that hold pieces to the town you're trying to rebuild. I think there were four or five places venues to rebuild. The game can get extremely monotonous, but it's fun nonetheless, just gotta persevere.

Dark Cloud 2, on the other hand, is the definition of a complete do-over for a sequel. I'll swear by this comment -- if every game's sequel made the improvements that Dark Cloud 2 did over Dark Cloud 1, every single sequel title would be triple-A. DC2 is an awesome example of how cel-shading can truly make a game vibrant and alive.

It follows the same premise, but the story is a good bit more involved. In DC1, you had I believe 7 other characters to choose from, but their stories were a little less than fulfilling. In Dark Cloud 2, only one truly joins your adventure, and you can freely choose between Max and Monica as you desire/require. You also gain followers whom you can place in houses or take them with you to provide you with their particular service, though they remain unplayable.

The Georama system (the system you use to rebuild each place you come across) has been completely overhauled and for the best. The environments and places are much more detailed, and when you place everything down, it somehow manages to look like it had always belonged that way. Truly a fantastic game.

Plus there's a bunch of stuff to do. As you conquer each level of a dungeon, you'll be given the choice to play a game of Spheda, a golf-like game where you have to hit a ball into a "time distortion" or something to that effect. Anyway, it's arcade golf and crazy fun. There's also fishing, where you can fish for the hell of it or participate in a Weighing Contest or a fish race.

Early on you're given a camera and that's a whole freakin' sidequest of its own. By taking pictures, you'll open up new ideas to use in the invention system. By combining ideas, you'll get Invention Notes, and using collected materials you can turn those notes into very useful items. I'd be lying if I said I didn't spend quite a bit of time taking pictures and inventing items. I spent equally as much fishing.

Dark Cloud 2 is most definitely one of my favorite games of all-time, and that will likely never cease to be. The first Valkyrie Profile ranks right up there with it.

Jam it back in, in the dark.

After you get done with Dark Cloud 2, move on to Rogue Galaxy, the latest of Level 5's games. If you've got a PSP (which I believe you do), check out Jeanne d' Arc, also done by them. For next gen, check out the trailer for White Knight Story.

Big Level 5 fan, myself.

There's nowhere I can't reach.