2008 was a good year for the PS3. With big name exclusives like Metal Gear Solid 4 and Resistance 2, it was inevitable that at least 1 game wouldn’t get much time in the spotlight. Valkyria Chronicles was that game. The beautiful RPG won a lot of gamers’ hearts, including my own, with its unique design and strategic gameplay, but never managed to sell all that well until recently. Rumblings of a sequal have been heard before, but now it’s offical; Valkyria Chronicles 2: The Gallian Royal Military Academy (expect that name to change by the time it hits the US) will be launching for the PSP next winter in Japan.

Famitsu revealed the game to be set in 1937, two years after the events of the original, which ended the Second Europan War. This time round, Civil War has broken out across Gallia, and its up to the students of the Military Academy to stop it. Character designs show off a bunch of new kids, but there’s no sight of favourites from the previous game such as Welkin, Alicia, or Largo. What can be seen is a red head guy, looking likely to take up the role of main character with his cocky stance, a young and panicy medic, another serious looking soldier, and perhaps most interestingly a Valkyria that looks a lot like Selvaria, the Valkyrian villain from the previous game. IGN revealed the main character’s name as Aban Hadens, and the focus on him and his friends switching life between school and being on the battlefield.

A full blown sequal heading to the PSP is a strange move one might say, but given the recent development price slash announced at E3, and the risk of producing another PS3 game after the first game’s sales, it starts to make sense. The wait for more information on this title will be hard, what new gameplay mechanics will there be? Will we see the old characters? For a lot of gamers though, it’ll be worth it.