Square Enix and Tri-ACE's prequel role-playing game, Valkyrie Profile 2: Silmeria, is a refreshing role-playing adventure that is beautiful, at times highly difficult and ultimately engaging. This prequel to Valkyrie Profile (which was recently ported to the PSP) doesn't require any knowledge of the series, though fans of the portable game and the original PSOne game will certainly find some fun and familiar gameplay elements.

Valkyrie Profile 2: Silmeria takes place nearly a hundred years prior to Lenneth's adventure on the PSP, telling a new story about another Valkyrie named Silmeria, who has fallen out of grace with the Norse god Odin and has been banished into the body of a human. But the strong-willed Silmeria instead awakens within her host - who just happens to be a princess. The Princess Alicia and Silmeria find themselves sharing the same host, and Alicia's constant bickering with Silmeria causes her father to believe she is quite mad. Thus the king orders her to be locked away in a tower, but the timid girl and the strong-willed Valkyrie manage to escape into Midgard. Not only is she being hunted by her own kingdom, but also by the agents of an angry god who want the wayward Valkyrie to face her fate. And so begins the whirlwind adventure of two who share the same fleshy vessel, who must save the world and themselves in the process.

VP2 takes place in a number of towns wilds, and deep dungeons of Midgard. The game uses a combination of 2D art and 3D models to create a pretty unique "old school RPG" perspective. Much like many of Tri-ACE's other role-playing games, the world feels a bit linear at first but gives users freedom to go back and forth between the areas of the game with relative ease. Unlike its predecessors, VP2 has no time limits or restrictions on returning to previously visited areas, so there are plenty of places to return to and level your favorite heroes up. And leveling up is pretty important because the game ramps up difficulty in some places making it a challenge to survive.

Anyway, getting back to navigating the world, it is important to note that the game plays very much like a 2D side-scroller. That's because you can move up, down, left and right only where there are paths. The overland map and civilized areas feel very linear at first because of this but in the wilds of the world and in the dungeons there is one other element that lets you reach other paths - jumping. Using a special "photon" feature, players can freeze enemies for a limited time and use them as platforms that they can jump onto to reach out-of-the-way areas. While getting used to how this technique works is a bit troubling at first, it ultimately proves to be interesting and different. when we previewed the game many moons ago we questioned whether or not this kind of mechanic belonged in a role-playing game, but in the end it works. The developers used it enough to make it useful, without making it frustrating to players that aren't fans of platforming..

But the deepest part of VP2 is its battle system, which also happens to be fully 3D. The battle system focuses on combo attacks using multiple characters with different skill sets. Combining skills like magic, swordplay and ranged attack makes for a sort of blitzkrieg affect that quickly takes the average monster down to size in a matter of seconds depending on the conditions on the battlefield (positioning, timing, etcetera). Keeping these conditions in mind will enable you to activate break mode, which is a chain of targeted attacks that carves monsters up into pieces that can then be collected after the battle. These parts are useful in creating powerful items later on down the road at select merchants scattered throughout the towns of Midgard. The battle ends when your team is defeated (obviously) or the enemy's team is dead. But the quickest way to make a battle end is to find the leader of the enemy group and destroy it. Eliminating this boss will instantly win the battle and lead you to victory.

Each character is controlled using a button. For example, players wanting Alicia to attack might press the Triangle button, while the Square, Circle and X buttons might be used for three other characters. The game is all about timing, quick reflexes and using your skills. Players can also divide their party into two teams on the battlefield, allowing for some interesting tactics. Wielding two team can be a bit difficult but utilizing two different groupings allows you to use some sneaky attacks and tactics against enemies that are useful. There's the usual action point system that is used for every thing you do as well - movement, attacking, using magic, etcetera.

The other interesting feature in Silmeria is the ability to revive einherjar (fallen warriors) by using weapons that these warrior spirits are attached to. This allows players to find and recruit new heroes to aid them in battle, but training them and releasing them offers other bonuses. If a player trains these warriors and then releases them from their service, they become human and take up residence somewhere in Midgard. Locating them gives the player's party special gifts or items that are ultra useful in battle. Obviously players won't want to release every einherjar they materialize, but at least there's a real practical advantage to letting them go and revisiting them later on.

There's one more thing worth mentioning that directly affects combat and that's the use of Sealstones. Sealstones are special stones that cause area affects in an entire location by placing them in special spots scattered throughout the world. Some of these are connected to other spots in the world which has an obvious advantage. This special component of the game can be of great advantage to players who use them properly. Sealstones can affect players or the enemy depending on how they work. We're looking forward to fully exploring the possibilities of Sealstones.

Valkyrie Profile 2 is so different from other Japanese role-playing games that it really deserves a closer look by fans. One of Tri-ACE's strong points is that it creates role-playing games that aren't like every other game out there. You won't see any familiarity between this game and Square Enix's other games like Final Fantasy or Dragon Quest - and that's a good thing. Sure the game can be difficult at times, and some players might not like the way you have to navigate the world, but if you can look past that you'll find a unique storyline and some pretty engaging gameplay mechanics that are worth the price of admission.