First off, let me say that I think game demos are a beautiful thing. With next-gen games running about sixty bucks at the checkout counter it's a pretty big investment to plop down on something that just might not click for you, no matter how many reviews you read (perhaps I will share my GTA IV experience at another time). That is why after reading about Valkyria Chronicles and becoming intrigued, I was happy to see a demo available in the Playstation Store. I downloaded it, played it, and thought these guys were really on to something. So I put it on my Christmas wish list and was very pleased when Santa (a.k.a. my wife) surprised me with it on that day. I have now had a chance to complete the game and I'm happy to say that the demo is no fluke and only hints at the great experience of the full version.
Valkyria Chronicles is all about the struggles of the country of Gallia, a small nation caught between the huge opposing sides of the Federation and Empire during Europan War II. EWII is an analogue to our own WWII but in this altered universe there exists a mineral called ragnite. Ragnite has many medical and scientific uses but he majority is used as fuel. It just so happens that Gallia is rich with the stuff and when the opposing war factions begin running low on resources they set their sites on the neutral country. The game does an excellent job of dealing with many heavy subjects like war, casualties, racism, and massacres without becoming oppressive and dark. This isn't achieved by artificially glossing it over though, instead it simply focuses on the hope and drive present in the main characters and the way they band together to pull through. Through the game you follow Squad 7 of the Gallian militia and take command of their role in the war. It is a good story which, while often predictable, stays interesting through to the end and does hold a few memorable moments. Also of note is while you are commanding a whole squad of units with many possible members, each one had a very distinct personality which easily shines through. By the end of the game I actually felt a certain attachment to most of the squad members that I used regularly and would refer to them by name with my wife as she watched me play.
When actually playing Valkyria Chronicles the first thing that will hit you are the graphics. This game is beautiful. The experience is presented in the context of a book detailing the history of the war and the art style reflects that perfectly. Everything has a wonderful hand-drawn look to it and is colored in a vibrant water color style. Almost everything is rendered in the real-time graphics engine and I would have to say this is the first game I've ever played where the pre-rendered CG cinematics look worse than the in-game graphics as they lose some of the distinct black line edge that makes the normal graphics come across so well. Added to this overall presentation are comic book style onomatopoeias added for certain sounds ( for example vrooooom drifts up from a tank's engine). While some I've talked to find this unappealing I thought it was never intrusive or overused and helped to maintain the overall lighter atmosphere conveyed by the graphics, especially when dealing with the serious subjects mentioned earlier.
The second most striking feature of the game is the gameplay itself. Valkyria Chronicles is such a unique game that it could arguably be called it's own genre. While I would say it's most accurately described as a strategy RPG it also has a healthy dose of 3rd person shooter thrown in. For battles, you are presented with a tactical map representing the battlefield and the positions of any enemy units which your units can see. You have a certain allotment of command points on each of your turns which you use to take command of your individual units or issue battlefield "orders" which are basically commander level special abilities. When you take command of one of your units the game literally zooms down into the tactical map and you control that unit. There is an AP gauge on screen that depletes as you move the unit and you can only take one action (such as shooting, healing, etc.) which limits what you can do in one turn, however, you are in complete command of that unit. It is up to you do dodge enemy defensive fire (called intercept fire) as you run about the battlefield and line up your shots. Thankfully things never get to extremely intense since when you pull up your gun to aim the game essentially pauses, allowing you to breathe and line up the shot you are looking for. It all comes together beautifully in a way that I think can appeal to more action driven shooter fans while not alienating traditional SRPG fans like myself.
There are many different unit type to choose from when selecting with squad members to take into battle, all of which are very diverse with complex interactions. First and foremost, your tank serves as the backbone of your army and a mandatory inclusion on any mission. It deals the most damage, is invulnerable to standard enemy bullets, and can even provide cover your other troops can hide behind. The drawback is it takes two command points to activate (versus one for any other unit) and has a vulnerable spot in the rear which if not protected can lead to a one shot kill (consequently an instant game over). The rest of your unit types have their own strengths and weaknesses. Scouts have a huge movement range and good field of vision for spotting enemies but have low defense and low firepower rifles. Shocktroopers are heavy assault units with powerful machine guns and resistance to enemy gunfire but have very short movement range. Lancers are a mobile artillery unit with powerful anti-tank rocket lances but are slow with somewhat limited movement range and no counterattack or intercept firing ability. Snipers have zoomable scope rifles capable of one shot headshot kills but have the lowest movement and weakest defense of any unit along with no defensive firing. And lastly, Engineers are a support unit with low firepower and defense but many indispensable abilities such as repairing tanks, disarming landmines, and rebuilding defensive structures like sandbags, barricades, and sniper towers. Taken all together it is much more than a simple rock-paper-scissors setup which offers a nice depth of strategy and normally more than one way to complete an objective.
Though something of a hybrid game, the RPG elements are still well represented in Valkyria Chronicles. Based on your performance in battles you earn experience which can be spent to level up your units. With over 30 possible units in your squad, a nice inclusion for streamlining this process is that you don't level the individual units but the different class of units instead. So if you spend your experience points to level up your scouts, all scouts level up. In addition you earn money from your battles which is spent to upgrade your equipment. For the most part, this is handled in the same way as your experience so once you purchase an upgraded sniper rifle it's automatically equipped for all snipers. There are some exceptions though where you will receive special rewards of unique equipment which you can then choose to equip on specific individual. There are also additional customization options for your tank including the addition of extra parts that take up certain block sizes and must fit together within limited space (think inventory management in Diablo).
Last but not least the game sounds terrific. The music is of the basic orchestral variety but is varied and does it's job well. Voicework is mostly wll done with only a few exceptions and is put to especially good use as each squad member has their own voice responses which really bring additional personality to each of them. Overall, though, the sound effect presentation is what really stood out to me. When you are zoomed out to the tactical map you only hear the background music but as soon as you take command of a unit and the scene zooms in you hear the battle all around you. The rumble of tank engines, crack of enemy gunfire, and even the occasional radio transmission from either side are all presented in terrific surround sound to really draw you into the moment. It's just another element of the great presentation and attention to details found within the game.
In Summary:
+ Beautiful and original graphical presentation
+ Innovative and exciting gameplay merging two distinct genres
+ Wide unit variety with complex balancing
+ Distinct unit personalities conveyed well through abilities and voicework
+ Serious and deep story elements handled without oppressing gloom
- Sometimes predictable story
As you can see here, there really isn't much negative that I can say about Valkyria Chronicles. In a time where most companies rely on bankable sequels this is a great original game which really drives the SRPG genre forward with it's innovation and is all wrapped up in a beautiful package. Valkyria Chronicles comes highly recommended.
