If you’re gonna buy the game at a retail store, try K-Mart for the best price, per the advice of Russ’s weekly RPG Deals column.

The Tokyo Game Show is right around the corner, and who knows, perhaps Sega will reveal a third installment on the Valkyria franchise. It was, after all, just before the Tokyo Game Show in 2007 that the first Valkyria Chronicles was revealed. The game flew under the radar for a long time, but thanks to word of mouth and respectable used game sales, there’s a lot of hype built up for part 2.

Our own review is available here.

IGN’s review, while not quite getting into a high level of detail, praises all key aspects of the game with the exception of the story:

EDGE gave the game a 6/10 and JPS hit it with a 4.5/5, though I lack quotes from these.

With a change in system and a lot more name recognition, number crunchers will be interested to see how this game performs in the market. To those who take the trip back to Gallia: enjoy.

* = Me and my homie Steve.

Be they eaten or not, all the coolest gods follow RPG Land on Twitter and Facebook.

Source: Famitsu

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New screens of the PSP-bound Yakuza game by Sega.

Follow RPG Land on Twitter and Facebook or…don’t, like if you don’t want to.

Source: Gamikaze

Anywhere you go, I’ll follow RPG Land on Twitter and Facebook down.  Wait….

Source: Famitsu

Because I’m still amazed you made it out alive after following RPG Land on Twitter and Facebook.

Source: Famitsu

Deals I Have Used:  Nothing last week.  I’m trying to be a good boy and save some money.

K-Mart is offering Alpha Protocol and Resonance of Fate on both systems for $35 apiece.  Alpha Protocol is pretty tempting, since I have a $20 certificate to use.

Best Buy’s @Gamer magazine has coupons in it – $15 off Dragon Quest IX and $20 off Final Fantasy XIII, among others.  It’s $6 for the magazine and you do have to sign up for Best Buy’s gamer rewards program, which is free; but that’s a pretty good deal if interested in both games.

I have seen at certain Best Buys a ‘buy 1 get 1 free’ on certain games.  Resonance of Fate on the 360 is among them.

Preorder Fable III at Amazon and get a $20 credit two days after the game ships.

K-Mart gamer has posted up and coming deals.  Next week will see $15 off Valkyria Chronicles 2, $20 off Starcraft 2, and a $10 coupon when you buy Kingdom Hearts: Birth By Sleep.  There are also confirmed deals for the following games:

• Front Mission Evolved
• Final Fantasy XIV
• Two W0rlds 2
• Final Fantasy: 4 Heroes of Light
• Fable III

If K-Mart keeps offering coupons, one might be able to perpetuate their deals until the end of the year.  Go K-Mart!

That’s all I got for this week.  Happy Hunting.

Disclaimer: Deals may not be available in all stores. Deals may stop and any time.  Prices in each store may differ. You can try different stores to mitigate this, and always ask if a store has the item before leaving the store. You might be able to get a raincheck. Many deals are in-store only, except where specified.

Because I’m still amazed you made it out alive after following RPG Land on Twitter and Facebook.

Source: Impress

Hummell gets the rockets, then he follows RPG Land on Twitter and Facebook.

[Querying whois.jprs.jp]
[whois.jprs.jp]
[ JPRS database provides information on network administration. Its use is    ]
[ restricted to network administration purposes. For further information,     ]
[ use 'whois -h whois.jprs.jp help'. To suppress Japanese output, add'/e'     ]
[ at the end of command, e.g. 'whois -h whois.jprs.jp xxx/e'.                 ]

Domain Information: [??????]
[Domain Name]                   VALKYRIA3.JP

[????]                      ??????
[Registrant]                    Sega Corporation

[Name Server]                   fixer.sega.co.jp
[Name Server]                   ns2.sega.co.jp

[?????]                    2010/05/31
[????]                      2011/05/31
[??]                          Active
[????]                      2010/05/31 11:10:22 (JST)

Contact Information: [??????]
[??]                          ??????
[Name]                          Sega Corporation
[Email]                         isp@mark-i.jp
[Web Page]
[????]                      144-8531
[??]                          ????????1-2-12
[Postal Address]
[????]                      03-6892-9950
[FAX??]

This was registered in May, but Sega could very easily be saving up for an announcement at September’s Tokyo Game Show, which would also allow the US version of Valkyria Chronicles 2 to become available and make a bit of a splash. The timing is right and the move makes business sense, but as for now this is still just a rumor.

Bard-Prince Ragnus:

He’s the prince of Wyndaria and Rufina’s older brother. He likes to play his harp in the castle gardens. On the outside, his mannerisms might seem frivolous, but deep down, he’s really a dependable leader for the group. He attacks with a sword, and can summon a sword of light.

Tea Princess Rufina:

She’s a gentle, kind and tender princess of Wyndaria. Rufina is also a bit of an herbalist, growing tea and other herbs in the palace gardens where she spends much of her time. In battle, she has the abilities of a priestess, healing the party with various recovery magic.

Shadow Maid Rona:

Rona is Rufina’s maid, and doubles as a palace chef. She can be clumsy, but despite that, she’s an expert with knives and other sharp things, which she hides beneath her clothes.

In Shining Hearts, the MOE (Mind Over Emotion) system allows players to collect hearts through conversations and building relationships with other characters and by doing various quests around the kingdom of Wyndaria. Depending on responses given in coversations, and the time taken to choose a response, either red, green, blue, yellow or black hearts can be collected, each representing a different type of emotion (such as anger, happiness, or hatred). Hearts can be both gained and lost, and seem to also have some use in battle, though exactly what use isn’t clear.

Shining Hearts is scheduled for a Q4 release in Japan, with no announcement as to other localizations at this time.

Here is the first promo video:

Source: Famitsu Online

I’ve been playing Ys Seven all weekend, and boy are my hands tired.  This will be a quick one, folks.

Best Buy’s deal this week is buy any two videogames or videogame accessories $40 or over and get a $25 gift card.  Nice, actually, if you have upcoming games.

Toys R Us is offering  ‘bogo’ for 50% off on all Wii and DS games.  I may have to purchase some DS titles this week.

Buy a DSi XL from Target and get one of five Pokemon games for free:  SoulSilver, HeartGold, Platinum, Diamond, or Pearl.

K-Mart has some upcoming deals for KH: Birth by Sleep and Valkyria Chronicles 2.  More on that when I know more.

That’s all I got for this week.  Happy Hunting.

Disclaimer: Deals may not be available in all stores. Deals may stop and any time.  Prices in each store may differ. You can try different stores to mitigate this, and always ask if a store has the item before leaving the store. You might be able to get a raincheck. Many deals are in-store only, except where specified.

The company will introduce a new pricing system that allows for completely free gameplay up to level 50 while offering vanity items, potions, and other conveniences at a price.  Those already with monthly subscriptions and happy with the system need not fear, as those who choose to keep shelling out will get extra benefits.

There will be Free, Premium, and VIP account types.  The free player, for example, only gets one character slot; the Premium gets three, and the VIP gets five.  Free and Premium players also have a cap on gold, though they can purchase a removal of the cap.  A VIP player, however, is allowed to obtain unlimited gold.  Also capped for Free and Premium players, to different extents, is customer service, though VIP accounts are given “full access.”

Last year, Turbine applied this same game model to Dungeons and Dragons Online, and not only revitalized the game, but made it 500% more profitable.

You come into my RPG Land Twitter and Facebook pages?  While I am asleep?

Source: Impress

Etrian Odyssey III

Me and my dad follow RPG Land onTwitter and Facebook.

Following RPG Land onTwitter and Facebook? That’s a paddlin’.

Sources: Famitsu magazine, Famitsu Online, and Impress