Valkyrie Profile is the newest masterpiece from tri-ace (of Star Ocean fame). I have had a chance to play the import version, and from what I can tell, this game is a must-buy once it is translated and released in the USA.

You play as Valkyrie, the Norse goddess of battle. Your mission is to recruit human souls to help Valhalla, the home of the gods, prepare itself against the coming of Ragnarok. Now, here is what will await you...

Graphics - 94%

The graphics in the game are great. Instead of pre-rendered 3D backgrounds, you have equally nice-looking pre-rendered 2D backgrounds. Like many other modern games, Valkyrie Profile also has its share of FMVs. While not quite up to the FMV quality of FF8, the videos come quite close. What stands out, however, is the beautiful character art. Every character has hand-painted portraits that truly make them feel more "real", in addition to some spectacular battle effects. The meanest graphical battle effects are as impressive as even some jaw-dropping animations of FF8 battles. If you want eye candy from a game, Valkyrie Profile will not disappoint you.

Sound/Music - 91%

The music of Valkyrie Profile is composed by none other than Motoi Sakuraba, who also is responsible for Star Ocean: the Second Story's soundtrack. For those who have played Star Ocean 2, the resemblance in style is quite obvious. The music in Valkyrie Profile works very well. There are plenty of catchy tunes playing in the background to make your gaming more enjoyable while walking through long dungeons. Of course, one should not forget the few touching, sad tracks which play in the more dramatic parts of the game (of which there are quite many, in fact.)

If you liked the music of Star Ocean 2, it is a sure bet you will love the soundtrack of Valkyrie Profile as well. Even people who did not enjoy Star Ocean 2's soundtrack may find Valkyrie Profile easier to listen to, since the general style of Valkyrie Profile, while much like that of Star Ocean 2, is more catchy and atmospheric.

Valkyrie Profile features a lot of voice acting as well. The Japanese voices are excellent. Full of life and emotion, they bring your characters to life. However, what the English translation will bring about remains to be seen. I certainly hope Enix will be able to find voice actors who will do justice to this game.

Gameplay - 99%

Next comes probably the biggest part: gameplay. Describing the gameplay of Valkyrie Profile would be very hard without writing several pages. Still, I will try my best to describe the main parts as shortly as possible. The reason why writing about Valkyrie Profile's gameplay is hard is simply because it is very different from any other game out there. Just about everything, from the battle system, to moving around, to progressing in the storyline is done in a fashion that completely differs from traditional RPGs. Moving around is done in a sidescroller fashion. Now, before everyone jumps up and claims how Super Mario and RPGs don't mix, Valkyrie Profile is not a platformer, at least no more than Xenogears is a 3D platformer. Think of the 2D sidescrolling as a way to move around, instead of walking on 3D backdrops. Next, there are no random encounters, which is always a nice thing. However, in addition to just seeing monsters before fighting them, you can actually avoid 99% of them if you want (unlike Lunar or Grandia). Then, about the game itself... instead of hopping around towns and dungeons, and having to complete some dumb little quests in order to be able to progress, you just go wherever you want. Yes, there is a set linear path for you to follow, which has dungeon exploring and town traveling, but you don't have to follow that path if you don't want to. In fact, you can skip any game event you want. You can even skip all the way to the last boss right away (though it is a sure way to get killed fast). There are also plenty of characters for you to recruit (around 20 or so), yet they all are believable. Despite their number, none of them feel like simple images with no substance. Everyone has a name, a story, and a personality that will stick to you.

The battle system also deserves some thorough explanation. At its core, it is turn-based. By pressing the Select button, a menu comes up and lets you do the usual RPG stuff, such as using items, casting spells, changing settings, running away, and the rest. All of them function like in any turn-based battle system. Attacking, however, is not simply done by selecting an Attack command from a menu. Instead, each of your 4 characters is controlled by one of the buttons of your controller. When you press a button, the corresponding character will execute his/her attack. Now, you ask, what's the big deal? The idea is that the order and timing of attacks is VERY important. In order to successfully deal damage to enemies, you will need to coordinate everyone to attack efficiently, and that takes both strategy and careful timing. If you are successful in building a good "combo" with your attacks, you can then pull off the real soul of the battle system. Every character has a special attack which is extremely powerful. Not quite unlike Ultra Combos from Killer Instinct, these have your character pounding on the enemy repeatedly for tons of damage. These attacks are always very spectacular. Not only are they fun to watch, but being able to deal damage with them is essential if you want to survive against some of the tougher monsters. In other words, the battle system is great fun, but it also requires careful thinking. It is certainly the most original battle system I've ever seen.

Story - N/A (although I'm very tempted to give it something in the 90's)

Since I have no understanding of the Japanese language, I will refrain from ranking the plot. However, the plot is almost certainly great. Not only is it original (based on Norse mythology), but the way it unfolds is very unique as well. Rather than having a single storyline with its plot twists, Valkyrie Profile's storyline is composed of many short stories. These stories explain the background of your companions and your mission. Even though separate and short, they all tie together loosely. Think Pulp Fiction, and you wouldn't be far from the idea. The overall mood of these stories is nearly always sad. If you cry at movies, you had better prepare a handkerchief or two for playing Valkyrie Profile. How the English translation will turn out will greatly influence the plethora of emotional scenes in this game.

Control - 85%

One "weakness" of the game is the control. While good, in comparison to everything else that is polished to the very end, the controls could have used some improvement. The main gripe is that moving around isn't quite as responsive as you would want it to be. Jumping is a bit awkward at times, you may have to try several times to make a precise, critical jump. Another quirk is opening chests: when you try to open a chest, sometimes the game will think you wanted to "pick up" the chest. So now, your character is holding the chest high above her head, ready to throw it, when in fact you wanted to open it to get to the treasure inside. The worst that can happen is unwanted combat, when your character is goofing off with a chest and letting monsters come near, instead of preparing for them. Despite these few quirks, the control is still very acceptable.

Before concluding, there are a few things that need to be mentioned. The game's difficulty (easy to very hard) comes from being able to select the difficulty level yourself, right at the start. On the Normal level, I found Valkyrie Profile an adequate challenge, comparable to some of the more challenging RPGs. However, if you want to unlock all the secrets of the game you will have to play in Hard mode. Like other tri-ace games, Valkyrie Profile also features a long and insane bonus dungeon that is suitable only for true masochists. Those who loved the Cave of Trials of Star Ocean 2 will be filled with joy at Valkyrie Profile's comparable bonus task. The playing time (5 to 50 hours) comes from the ability to finish the game as quickly as you want. While you could finish it in less than 5 hours if you tried, I have made an estimate as to what could be the least possible time to finish the game in realistic terms (i.e. being able to kill the last boss, and at least pick up one or two important characters and storyline items).

Overall - 93%

To sum this all up: Valkyrie Profile is different from any other game out there. What is certain is that it is extremely well-done and polished to the end, and most people are sure to like it. What may be its greatest turn-off is the lack of any traditional RPG elements to familiarize oneself with. While this is not a real weakness, it means that if you are a diehard purist who swears by Lunar, you might be wary about Valkyrie Profile's unorthodox approach to just about everything. However, in any case, this game is without a doubt one of the best RPGs of 2000.