Maybe the only one of this year… or maybe not. Either way, overdue for another update about nothing.

First up, games.

Valkyria Chronicles (PS3): Until this game came along, my PlayStation 3 was something that I regretted buying. Metal Gear Solid 4 came and… well, stayed there, waiting for me to finish MGS3 before starting it (will happen eventually!); Soul Calibur IV was a decent timesink, even if I can’t help but keep comparing it to Soul Calibur II, a much more entertaining game; and Super Puzzle Fighter II Turbo HD Remix is every bit as awesome as it used to be, but the lack of anyone to really play it with puts a damper on things. But this game validated the purchase for me. I love Strategy RPGs (heaven knows I spent enough time on Final Fantasy Tactics back in the day), but it’s a genre that, whether due to how niche it is or other factors, has evolved very very little over the years. By all accounts they’re good games, but when you look at Disgaea and compare it to, say, Tactics Ogre, the core gameplay is still very very similar – turn-based movement on a grid map. But VC shakes that all up. Combining a 3rd person perspective Action Mode with real-time interception fire, the (admittedly poorly-named) BLiTZ combat system is a sorely needed step forward for SRPGs. Add to that the gorgeous visuals which looks like a beautiful watercolor painting brought to life, a great soundtrack, some interesting characters, and great Japanese voice acting (Lelouch-ian Maximilian = awesome), and you have a game that shows at least a part of SEGA is still capable of putting out amazing titles. This is the type of game that anyone who has ever wished for developers to try making new innovative games instead of making the nth iteration of a popular IP had in mind. Truly a masterpiece, and my favorite game of 2008.

Prince of Persia (PS3): I had my doubts going in for this game. Sands of Time was one of my favorite games from the last generation, and while the two follow-ups weren’t quite as amazingly, the trilogy still set a pretty high bar for this reboot-again of the PoP franchise. Does it live up to it? Well… somewhat. To get the first thing out of the way, this game is breathtakingly beautiful. Like VC, it impresses not by pushing obscene numbers of polygons or making them ultra-realistic shades of gray, but through fantastic artistic direction. I would say this is probably the best looking game I’ve ever seen, and actually made me wish I had a 1080P TV to play it on. As far as gameplay goes, I’d have to say it’s just decent. Much has been made about the (lack of a) death mechanic, but I honestly didn’t mind. It’s streamlined, and as far as an AI NPC sidekick goes, Elika is amazing, so it feels natural. But the combat system is really quite tedious, the Wings/Breath of Ormazd segments are terribly designed, and the story really wasn’t anything better than mediocre, capped off by an ending that I would have to say is very unsatisfactory. I did enjoy the game, but SoT it isn’t.

Next, anime.

ChäoS;HEAd: Based on a VN, this is a series I picked up on whim. It started off well, never making it clear to the viewer what is a hallucination and what is real, but it really faltered towards the end, when the story seemed hell-bent on compensating for the plot becoming clearer with terminology becoming ever more jumbled. The VN is certainly better, but somehow I don’t see me playing it anytime soon.

ef – a tale of melodies: I enjoyed a tale of memories a lot, so watching the sequel (of sorts) was a no-brainer. Maybe it’s because I watched memories together instead of week by week like melodies, but I wasn’t quite drawn into it. The music is fantastic though, and it was nice to see some cameos from the main characters from memories.

Other currently-airing series that I’m watching are Gundam 00 Second Season, Tales of the Abyss, and Toradora!. G00 S2 is coming along nicely, but TotA has become progressively less interesting, with some serious pacing issues – somewhat expected given that it’s based on a RPG and partially forgiven because of it, but still a problem. I’m sure I’ll finish it though. Toradora! is just light-hearted entertainment, but with some patience-testing thrown in due to the fansub group having some trouble with getting releases out.

And finally, books. The only thing I’ve been reading lately has been Star Wars novels. Since the last update, I’ve finished both the Legacy of the Force and New Jedi Order series. I’m not sure I’d call either of them great, but I suppose they’re entertaining enough. Now working through the previous books (almost done with the Callista Trilogy, and then read the Han Solo and Dark Nest trilogies).

Oh, and have to share this. A beautiful figure of Shiki from Kara no Kyoukai that I knew I had to have the second I saw it:

…of things of awesome. And a bit about each.

Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion, Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion R2: It’s been a very long time since there’s been an anime series that I’ve enjoyed so much that I will eagerly await each new episode every single week, but that’s precisely what happened with CG. I started watching it after R2 started, and from there I was hooked. Every Sunday afternoon was spent idling in IRC channels waiting for the newest episode to be released, and when the series finally reached its conclusion, I went back and re-watched the entire two seasons again immediately. And I don’t think I can remember ever having done that before – I just don’t have the time to re-watch shows usually. As for the show itself, I can’t say that it’s one of best I’ve seen, but I will say that it’s far and away one of the most entertaining, and the ending is one of the very few, from any anime, that I can say that I completely enjoyed.

Fate/stay night: After all this time, the final version of the English translation by mirror moon has finally been released, covering all 3 routes – Fate, Unlimited Blade Works, and now Heavens Feel. I really don’t think I can think of much more to say about this amazing piece of work that I haven’t already, but suffice it to say that Heavens Feel has done nothing to change my opinion. From disgust to elation, from hatred to love, from sin to redemption, the story of Heavens Feel really encompasses it all, and capped off by a true happy ending to boot. The only downside is that I now have to decide if I consider it to be superior to Tsukihime.

Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin, Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia: Finally went back and finished PoR, the first Castlevania that I finished since the old PlayStation days (just going to ignore Lament of Innocence on PS2 here…). Since I haven’t played any of the GBA ones (yet?) or finished Dawn of Sorrow, I really can’t say how it compares, but it was definitely a fun game in its own right. Sisters Mode was also neat, though rather too easy in many ways. Order of Ecclesia, on the other hand, is damned hard, at least at first. I hear it lets up after that, but still working my way through, so can’t say for sure. But Shanoa is a cool character, and the higher difficulty level is welcome.

Valkyria Chronicles: Finally, another reason for my PS3 to do something other collect dust. The art style, combined with the CANVAS system, makes the game look absolutely gorgeous. Since it just came out, can’t say much else about it yet, but I definitely think I’ll enjoy it.

Specter of the Past/Visions of the Future: Also known as the Hand of Thrawn duology, it’s by Timothy Zahn, probably the most famous of the Star Wars Extended Universe novelists. While I can’t say that this had nearly the same impact as the original trilogy that kicked off the opening of the post-movie trilogy EU, it’s still very much an enjoyable read featuring an interesting cast (more Mara Jade!). And it lead to me discovering once again the inner SW geek in myself, as I find myself also reading the other novels by Zahn (Allegiance, Outbound Flight, Survivor’s Quest), and now starting on the 9-book Legacy of the Force series. And I don’t see an end to that until I’ve exhausted books to read either…

Enchantment: Orson Scott Card, another one of my “old standby” authors, mixes Jewish and Russian peculiarities, folklore, and witchcraft to offer quite an interesting take on the age-old Sleeping Princess story in this novel. It’s a sweet story of course (it is a fairy tale at its core, after all), but it also mixes in quite a bit of interesting humor.

Alright, so not so short list. Oh well.

Firefox 3 is fantastic. Huge upgrade over Firefox 2. But Mozilla Weave is, so far, a terrible replacement for Google Sync.

PS3 is a nice system. MGS4 looks amazing. Need to finish MGS3 first. Super Puzzle Fighter II Turbo HD Remix is awesome. Need more FFXIII information. Game controller costs are getting ridiculous – $50 for a Wireless 360 controller, $55 for a Dualshock 3, $60 for a Nunchuck + Wiimote, and never mind Classic Controller attachments. The World Ends With You is a wonderful game, but I still need to finish it. Homebrew via CycloDS Evolution is cool (thanks David!). Phoenix Wright games are quite good. Picross is awesome.

The Hulk was pretty good. As was Get Smart. Anne Hathaway looks gorgeous.

Code Geass season 1 was amazingly awesome, even if I don’t like Lelouch. At all.