Valkyrie Profile 2: Silmeria - hands-on

It's rare to run into an RPG that gives up the goods so early on, when it comes to the battle system, but we're already hooked. If there's more depth here - and we have no reason to expect there isn't, as the ability system is still a near-total mystery - we're expecting major gameplay satisfaction.

We've not even covered the fact that you recruit, train and set free warriors by the wagonload, something that's sure to have profound effects on the gameplay. We haven't even dug into the weapon and item system, which allows you to link like items to boost their stats, because the developers are doling out these treats pretty damn slowly so far.

Yeah, there's a lot of meat on this one, and we're eager to tear into more of it. For now, let's just say that every time play VP2, it keeps getting better. If we're worried about anything it's the wimpy heroine... she could be a real downer. Otherwise, we're primed for more hard-bitten action with the souls of dead warriors at our side. Now how cool does that sound?