Valkyria Chronicles 4

Valkyria Chronicles was a slow-burn success for Sega on the Playstation 3 and a big hit again when it got a remastered release on Steam, but its later entries were not as well received for a variety of reasons.  Valkyria Chronicles 4 was released nearly a decade after the original game, but does it reignite the Valkyria's flame, or does this sequel also fizzle out?

Valkyria Chronicles was a definite fan favorite on the Playstation 3 and also famously became the top-selling game on Steam the week it launched there (surpassing other major IPs like Call of Duty and Assassin's Creed), leaving fans yearning for a worthy sequel for quite a long time.  It took almost a decade to happen, though, with a lackluster PSP sequel (with ill-thought-out reworked mechanics) proving a pretty big disappointment and the third game never getting localized at all.  Then came Valkyria Revolution; a spinoff title set in an alternate history which, while having an interesting premise, was too much of a jumble of gameplay elements to be much fun.

Valkyria Chronicles 4 was the first proper HD entry for the franchise, and thankfully, it also proved to be a return to form in its core gameplay.  The awkward split class system from 2, as well as the superfluous ArmoredTech class, are gone, snipers are back, and the balance overall has been significantly refined - Scouts no longer dominate 90% of the game, and obtaining A ranks on most missions requires far less painstaking perfection in movement and AP use (and generally allows you a turn or two to spare - a good thing as the maps are much larger and more complex in 4).  Your tank is also substantially more useful, only requiring 1 AP to move instead of 2.

A few new tweaks are added to the gameplay, that said.  One is the inclusion of an entirely new class called the Grenadier - they fire mortars with extremely long range (aided by allies' line-of-sight), which can deal heavy damage to soldiers and even provide interception fire over that same long distance.  However, they are hampered by having no short range attack, overall low movement range and having to stop and set up their mortar before they can fire it, which takes several seconds and leaves them open to attack while they do so; in short, you want to keep them well away from enemy fire or they'll get taken out easily.

Other balance tweaks are evident right away too.  Scouts once again have impressive move range, though their overall low durability and mediocre damage and accuracy ensures they're relegated to more of a sneak-attack and scouting role than a proper combatant (or sneaking in to capture unguarded bases).  Snipers and Lancers can actually hit things pretty consistently now without having to train them up at least a dozen levels first.  Engineers can also unlock a "Revival Ragnaid" to revive a downed ally and get them back in action right away, which is quite handy in later missions.

A major problem in the first game (again going back to Scouts being so overpowered) was that units with low move range would get left behind.  Valkyria 4 mitigates that somewhat with two new additions.  One is an APC vehicle that can load up to two infantry units and deploy them elsewhere; it's less well-armored than a tank, though, so while it can take a significant amount of small arms fire, Lancers, Grenadiers and Tanks are a major threat to it.  Another is that, once per turn, a squad leader can use the "Direct Command" ability to order up to two other infantry units to follow them; they will stay behind the leader even if they have a much shorter movement range than them normally, and can still move their full normal range afterward if they wish.  So, for example, it is possible to have a Scout lead a Lancer through a safe route to get behind a tank, at which point they can use their own move to get off a kill-shot and retreat to cover.

Another changeup is the Morale system.  When a unit's morale is high enough (usually after landing a kill), they'll get a boost to their stats that lasts for the rest of the round, or until they take another turn.  This ties into another new mechanic called the Brave System - when a unit is downed by enemy fire, there's a chance they'll get the option to take a Brave action.  They can Inspire an ally to instantly put them in high Morale status (as well as restoring 1 AP to your total), or choose to Stand Up, which restores their movement meter and makes them immune to all damage until they take their attack, at which point they will be downed as normal.  If downed on the enemy's turn they may also get off one final Counterattack before being put in downed status, potentially taking down their attacker too.  These effects have a low chance of occurring so it's not something you can rely on, but it's a nice bonus when it does happen.

As in the previous game, all of your units are relatively unique, with differing stats and Potentials (both positive and negative) that come into play on the battlefield.  Some sidequests can turn negative Potentials into powerful positive ones, though, so they're worth doing if you plan on using certain characters.  As in the first game you also have several paths for weapon upgrades to take, as well as special ones awarded for achieving certain ranks in missions or downing enemy Aces.  Grenadiers in particular benefit from this, as you can fit them with mortars better suited to taking down armored targets or infantry depending on the mission.  All units can now equip one accessory too, giving them a small bonus to their stats that can help offset some of their innate weaknesses or boost their strengths.

So, was Valkyria Chronicles 4 a successful return for the franchise?  I'd definitely say so.  It takes everything that made the original great - its storytelling, memorable cast of characters and inventive gameplay - and changes it for the better.  The gameplay is drastically rebalanced and substantially more tactical, missions are grander in scale and consistently throw new challenges your way, and the story is a gripping tale of a desperate struggle against an empire, with no shortage of tense moments and some very inspired character writing.  Not just another great wartime epic, but I dare say the best Valkyria Chronicles game to date.  Now if only we could get some Kiwami-style high quality remakes of 2 and 3...

Developer: Sega, Media.Vision
Publisher: Sega
Released: 2018, 2020, 2021
Platforms: Playstation 4, Switch, PC, XBox One, Stadia, Amazon Luna

Recommended Version: All versions are pretty much identical as far as I can tell.

Valkyria Revolution

An offshoot of the Valkyria franchise set in an alternate history, which on paper sounds like a great idea - the series is known for its wonderfully realized world and characters.  Sadly, Revolution does not implement the idea well; in fact, it has far too many ideas and no clue what to do with any of them.  Like the Chronicles games you move about in real time and pause to take actions like aiming and shooting, but you're afforded many more options now - almost too many.  You have spells, grenades, a rifle and a melee weapon with an array of special attacks, and you still use the cover system from the old games to reduce damage and heal your troops.  On top of that, the game tries to jam in elements of just about every popular action title of the last 15 years; so you get Metal Gear Solid 4's emotion system, cover shooting, hack-and-slash (with one button press doing a combo followed by a lengthy recharge period), commanding your squadmates and reviving them when they fall like in Mass Effect, and managing morale as you capture points a la Dynasty Warriors.  All actions besides simple melee combat and defensive dodges and blocks are handled in the clunkiest way possible - by having you press Triangle to bring up a menu to completely pause the action, then selecting your commands from a circular menu.  The gameplay already is an enormous mishmash of half-cooked ideas, and that's before you even get into having to buy and scavenge materials to craft new gear and weapons for later missions, which just adds a layer of tedious micromanagement on top. Despite ostensibly being set a century before the timeframe of Valkyria Chronicles, the technology level is far more advanced and distinctly unbelievable, with gigantic mecha and mechanical limbs with superweapons, and the protagonists all wielding improbable weapons like buster swords and giant spears; a stark contrast to the more grounded low fantasy take on World War 2 the mainline series presents.  But on top of all that, the pacing is absolutely atrocious - you get maybe one or two missions in between solid half-hour blocks of nonstop cutscenes, all with a dopey framing story about a teacher and her student going through the history of the Five Traitors.  The rest of the series uses a graphical engine designed to resemble a pencil-drawn story (complete with onomatopoeic sound effects), but Revolution goes for more of a watercolor painting look that just looks overly busy and distracting; not to mention it really doesn't pair well with the exaggerated anime designs of the characters.  Valkyria Revolution tries very hard to take the series down a new path, but with no goal in mind other than desperately trying to appeal to everybody, it ends up pleasing nobody; not even the most die-hard of Valkyria fans.

Developer: Sega CS3, Media.Vision
Publisher: Sega, Deep Silver
Platform: Playstation 4, Playstation Vita, XBox One
Released: 2017

Valkyria Chronicles

Valkyria Chronicles debuted on the Playstation 3 as a new IP from Sega and it did surprisingly well, selling over one million copies worldwide on PS3 and another 500,000 on Steam within a year of its launch there (even briefly becoming the top-selling game on the platform), getting high marks from critics and gamers alike and kicking off a franchise that continues to this day.  But is this blend of real-time and turn-based combat in a low-fantasy world still worth a play today, or is it just lost in a sea of modern tactical combat sims? 

The Playstation 3 was a tough sell in its early days for many gamers, myself included; its ridiculously high price point, paired with a serious dearth of high quality exclusive titles owing to its cell processor being notoriously difficult to develop games for, had many people taking their chances with the likes of the Xbox 360 and its serious hardware issues instead.  It was also because of this that many of our favorite Playstation 1 and 2 RPG franchises wouldn't see a proper HD release on the Playstation, usually getting a downgraded port/sequel to DS or PSP instead. 

Valkyria Chronicles was one of the games that made believers out of some, though - an original IP by a well-regarded company on an HD platform was something Japanese RPG fans had seen surprisingly little of to that point. It was certainly one of the first PS3 games that really caught my eye as well, and it became one of the first I picked up when I finally got a PS3 myself circa 2010 or so. 

The game was certainly a pretty original concept at the time of its debut, taking place in a war-torn continent with many parallels to real-life events (in particular the second World War) and a dash of low fantasy on top - supernatural powers and forgotten civilizations playing prominent roles. Gameplay-wise, Valkyria Chronicles is a fairly unique blend of turn-based strategy and real-time action elements - when you activate a unit, they move around and evade enemy fire in real time, though pressing a button will stop the action (after a short delay) and allow them to take aim at the enemy; once they take a shot, their turn ends.  Additionally, you're allotted a number of actions each turn, and while you can move the same unit more than once in a round, their movement range will decrease each time you do.  Still, it's often worth it, particularly if a unit is in a good place to take out a dangerous enemy target (like a tank) but will require multiple shots to do so. 

Being a tactical game at its core, your characters are divided into five types of units, each of which serves a particular purpose in battle.  Scouts have long move and sight range but relatively weak weaponry and armor (making them good at outmaneuvering and picking off vulnerable units, but they get taken out easily by Shocktroopers and tanks), Shocktroopers are slower but carry heavier weaponry and are sturdy enough to withstand much more gunfire, Lancers wear heavy anti-blast armor and carry powerful anti-tank weapons but are extremely slow and vulnerable to bullets, Snipers can pick off enemies from afar but are sitting ducks at close range, and Engineers are weak fighters (light armor, low stats in general, though their move range is second to only the Scout) but disarm mines, replenish ammo and repair tanks and barricades, as well as carrying more grenades than any other class (able to use three per round rather than just one) .  Finally, Welkin (the game's protagonist) and one later character command tanks; as you'd expect they can shrug off damage from most firearms, deal heavy damage and roll right over barriers, but are vulnerable to mines and their engines are exposed from behind, requiring that you escort them with infantry to ensure their safety.  They also use two turn icons per move, so relying on them too much is a detriment.  The player can also spend multiple action points on "Orders" which give their units a powerful bonus for the rest of the turn - resisting interception fire, boosting accuracy, dealing extra damage to infantry or tanks, or even fully healing injured units; more of these are earned as the story progresses and the player levels up their classes, but also by visiting the graveyard between missions and paying the "Aged Gentlemen" to unlock them.

Adding another layer of strategy to the game, each character the player commands also has a unique set of advantages and disadvantages (called "potentials") that can activate under certain circumstances - being near another character, on a specific type of terrain, when their health falls below a certain threshold, and so forth.  Some of these can be quite powerful - getting a significant boost to aim or damage on a particular terrain type on a map that has a lot of them will definitely give you an edge. Thus, the strategy for each mission is not just in picking the right mix of classes, but the characters who will have the most advantages (and least disadvantages) on that particular map. Fortunately, this is made easier by the fact that classes, not characters, level up - spending points to upgrade the Scout class, for example, will cause all of your Scouts to power up.  Likewise, buying upgrades for weapons and armor will give them to all characters of that class, not just one. 

It is important to not fall into the trap of thinking the game is too easy, though; sure, you can win most by slowly advancing forward and taking few to no risks with your units, but your rank will also suffer for it and you'll get significantly less experience, money and items once you're done.  Finishing missions efficiently - using as few turns as possible - is key to getting a high rank and maximizing your rewards.  This starts to show itself at roughly a third of the way through the game, where lacking in money and squad levels will quickly begin to bite you - enemy troops become very difficult to overcome, shrugging off multiple headshots and taking out your units almost instantly once they enter firing range.  However, while you cannot replay story missions, you can undertake side missions ("skirmishes") to earn more experience points and money, so fortunately it never becomes impossible to progress; you may have to stop and grind for a while at times to catch up, though.

Like any good war epic, Valkyria Chronicles also has quite a solid story to enjoy, with a well-defined and memorable cast of characters, some surprisingly good voiceover and more than a few creative twists, which in turn lend themselves to creative missions (such as a stealth mission where you have to sneak out of enemy-occupied woods, or prevent a would-be kidnapper from escaping the city).  Seeing all the main cast interact, as well as go through some interpersonal strife (racism and manipulated history being prominent elements in the story) adds a lot of weight and some positive messaging to the game.

In short, it's easy to see why Valkyria Chronicles was so highly regarded, especially on a platform that had a severe shortage of quality Japanese RPGs during its early years.  With gameplay that blends real-time and turn-based strategy in a pretty innovative and fun way, a solid storyline and quite a lot of side content to experience, it stood as proof that the genre still had a foothold in the west that wasn't going to go away.  While its sequels and spinoffs had their ups and downs (with the third game never being officially localized, though a fan translation exists), the original game is a well-regarded classic whose popularity has only grown over the years.  Most gamers swore by Mass Effect or Dark Souls as the big definitive console RPGs of the 7th Generation; neither of those did very much for me, but Valkyria Chronicles is one I'd heartily recommend.

Developer: Sega, Media.Vision (Remasters)

Publisher: Sega

Platform: Playstation 3, PC, Playstation 4, Switch

Released: 2008, 2014, 2016, 2018

Recommended version: The remasters of the game (PC and later) run at higher resolutions and have all the content that was paid DLC on the Playstation 3 version, so any of those are good.  As ever, though, I would also recommend the PC version for some player-based mods that give balance tweaks or additional challenge if that's something that tickles your fancy.