Rondo of Swords (Nintendo DS, 2008)

This strategy rpg does things offbeat and rather than definitively spotting good or bad choices, the mechanics leave you off balanced at first and ultimately reward you with fresh a fresh take on a genre that often feels like a line of T-shirts with "witty" remarks that all too soon find inspiration from one another. Here I will explain how the game works since many people gave up before bothering to understand it.
First off, melee attacks are accomplished by moving through your opponent rather than running up to his face and exerting your steel authority, lending many units on both sides to the hit-and-run variety. This mechanic requires you to take more consideration into defensive formations to avoid being overran yourself, since melee units need at least one space adjacent to the target (discounting their path of attack) in order to make an effective assault. On the offensive side of things, the run-through mechanic allows you to hit someone and double back, edge uncomfortably close to an opposing mage or archer, or attack multiple enemies at once. More tank oriented units are often gifted with a skill called "ZOC" that usually stops foes in their tracks and sends them to the nearest adjacent space.
Mages and archers are similar in the fact that they deal punishing ranged blows but can only attack OR move in a turn. Archers get free attacks with good range and power while mages are armed with Area Of Effect attacks, mp costly long ranged attacks and healing. Typically mages are geared to either offense or support but a few possess a mixture of both. Many journalists complained that these classes, in particular the mage class, were hampered beyond salvation by the move-or-attack restriction, but to make up for this mages MURDER with ease and archers can stay safe, and with proper placement and support mages can take out half of the opposing force in just a few turns while archers weaken or pick off survivors.
A major mechanic is the Momentum Counter (MC), a number that increases for each unit the more success they have at a given task like healing, dealing damage, ect. If the MC gauge is high enough, the character will gain a boost in experience at the expense of being targeted by enemies more often. It's possible to use this technique to draw attention away from mages, but it can be risky since foes can just rush through your posse in any order. I would suggest using a ZOC equipped unit in front and a mage behind him for maximum safety while advancing both in the front lines.
Item shopping is accomplished with the help of units on standby that you send off to the market to buy or sell items. Managing the budget for buying items will give you an idea of whether they will return with 4 crappy equips or one powerful medal, and different units have varying degrees of how successful they are at haggling when buying or selling, and how many different items they can buy/sell in one trip. If not sent to the market place, units can train to up their stats or go on quests to obtain items to use/sell and upgrade their class. Indeed this game likes to keep people busy.
The one complaint I have for this game is the lack of polish. Many characters move in the run-through sequences, but few have animations and just seem to fly, and some voice clips are cut off when attacking. The game looks clean and the story is servicable, with some interaction between units on the field that can be enjoyable. Patients pays off in here.