#2 Most artistic Game

In the number 2 spot we find a game that is relatively new (past 5 years) and in many ways is a sleeper hit. With a base game style that seems to be all its own Valkyria Chronicles possesses a style that both impresses and intrigues.
Released in early November 2008 by Sega, Valkyria Chronicles had a bit of work ahead of itself. Sega as of late has had poor reception for its games and since most of them have been rehashes of the Sonic Franchise or similar spin offs I was hopeful for this change.
Valkyria Chronicles is a hybrid FPS (first person shooter) strategy war game in a classic anime style but with a beautiful cell shaded twist. This game in all honesty boasts some of the greatest cell shading I have seen in a game which amplifies the lighter moments in the games while still bringing the range of detail not normally seen in this style of rendering. Bright colors illuminate urban battle fields and brings action to life in cartoon glory, and while the game does touch on several darker themes I do not feel that it loses its general tone set by the art style.
After its release Valkyria Chronicles gained quite of bit of attention getting high acclaim from4-TV, IGN, Gametrailers, and Gamespot however despite this acclaim its sales were less then stellar in the US which in many ways could have been predicted as the US market seems less inclined to buy Anime styled games (A prime example is the total drop out of the Sega Dreamcast game market).
Regardless of it's sales Valkyria Chronicles is a very strong title and boasts many awards such as "Best Artistic Graphics" from GameSpot, "Best Original Soundtrack" by GameSpy and Strategy Game of the Year 2008.
At the least Valkyria Chronicles has earned a spot on my shelf and a place in this countdown a great title that I would recommend to anyone looking for a stylistically impressive game with game play that they would not find anywhere else.