To be quite honest with you, personally I find most RPGs to be as exciting as watching a "Gilmore Girls" marathon after dropping a few shots of Nyquil. But Shining Force is such an outstanding game that I have absolutely no reservations in recommending it to any video game fan looking to use a bit of their noggin.

The story is the usual "hero with a secret that holds the key to saving the world" crap far too many RPGs have, the graphics are decent at best, and the music will drive you nuts after about fifteen minutes.

But Shining Force sets itself apart for how the battles are fought. It contains a lot more strategy than your usual RPG. Each character has unique abilites, and knowing those, along with when to use them, makes Shining Force a very challenging, but very rewarding game.

Since most of the characters can only be unlocked at certain times, Shining Force has a huge amount of replay value. This is one of those rare games that is different each and every time you play it, and it's one of the best available on the VC.

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