Plot

The game is set in a fictional version of Europe in 1930, in the country of Gallia. Because of its abundance of ragnite ore—which can be refined into a powerful fuel—it has come under attack from the East Europan Imperial Alliance, which itself is engaged in war with the Atlantic Federation. Players take control of an uprising of Gallian nationals, dedicated to repelling the invasion. The game's visuals, which feature SEGA's CANVAS graphics engine, have received a lot of attention - with CANVAS, the game's entire graphical style is built to resemble a watercolor painting in motion.

Review

When I first saw Valkyria Chronicles, I was quickly impressed, and the game was kept under my radar ever since. The art style and graphics were amazing, and the battle system was unique. After months and months of waiting, the game has finally come out. Does the game live up to the expectation?



The story is presented by a book. The game is set in Europa 1930s. It’s about the Gallians and the Imperials fighting against each other in a war. Welkin Gunther, Squad 7 leader and tank commander, returns home to be greeted by Alicia and then the Imperials invading his town. After fighting, Welkin and Alicia start talking only to be greeted by more Imperials. Welkin decides to join Alicia and fight in the war to get rid of the Imperials from their homeland.

Anyone who has seen screens or videos of Valkyria would agree that the game looks amazing. The game uses Sega’s CANVAS engine which makes it look like a watercolor painting. The cutscenes are beautiful to watch. The style of the game will keep you looking at the game and admiring the looks. The presentation of the game is pure quality. A beautiful introduction with every area of the game filled with quality: music, characters, story, etc. There’s also a 4GB optional install if you like.

The music of the game is very well done. It is relaxing and very beautiful. The music fits perfectly on the situation it is given in the game. Just don’t expect the music to stay stuck in your head. The sound effects are a little weak. Gunshots, explosions or things breaking could’ve used some work. They sound sort of fake. The voice acting is good, not great but not terrible. Finally someone learned to include the Japanese voiceovers in the game. If you hate the English voiceovers for some reason, then set the language to Japanese. 



The gameplay is where the game really shines. It is a pretty unique battle system called the BLiTZ (Battle of Live Tactical Zones) that a very few, if any, have in an SRPG. There are no blocks like the SRPGs have. The game is a TPS and an SRPG put together. You can move freely through the field and battle your way. The controls work well for the game, except for maybe using the left analog stick for aiming since I’m used to using the right analog stick for aiming in FPS. In the battles, you can also capture some of the enemies’ bases. It is helpful to capture these because you can call for reinforcements for people that have low mobility. The battles never feel repetitive. Each battle is set in different environments, with different situations and mid-battle twists that will keep you on the edge of your seat hoping nothing goes wrong with your squad. The story battles can only be played once. There are, however, skirmish battles which are optional battles. They are pretty much the same thing you played in the story, so that you can get more Exp or money.

Speaking of squad, there are five classes in which you can choose from other than the mandatory tank: lancers, shocktroopers, scouts, engineers and snipers. The lancers have anti-tank lances that are able to take out tanks, and they can also withstand a lot of damage. Their AP, which is their mobility, is average, but they walk really slow considering that they carry the big lance. Don’t expect to travel long distances with them. The scouts have a lot of AP, which means they are able to travel in long lengths. Their rifle deals moderate damage. They’re more like the go to guys. The Engineers use the same rifles as the scouts. The Engineers are helpful for disarming land mines and repairing things like tanks and sandbags. They can also restore ammo to tanks and other squad members. They have the second highest AP behind the scouts. Snipers use the sniper. Duh! They have very low AP. They are useful for long range attacks. Using the d-pad helps for more precise aiming. Finally, the schocktroopers use a submachine gun that deals moderate damage, and they shoot a lot of bullets. They are very helpful in defending bases, and they can withstand a lot of damage. They run very fast, but have low AP. Using each of them wisely is the key to victory. The tank commander can call for orders such as building up their defenses or attacks. Among that, you can upgrade or win new weapons for your squad. Buy and shape up the tank. There are 50 characters to choose from, but you can only have 20 in your squad. You can remove or switch whenever you feel like.

Saving your allies and watching your health is important. If your ally dies in the battle, you can still save him/her. Reach the body before the enemy does. The medic will carry the ally out, and the character is saved. If you don’t, you lose the character and never seem him/her again.



The story starts out pretty simple. As pointed earlier, it starts out as a simple war story. The story flows pretty nicely. The story gets really interesting around the second half of the game. The story is filled with suspense, drama, etc. The game is cutscene heavy and most of the cutscenes are just the characters head moving their lips missing the lip-synch. The characters are well developed. Each of them are filled with their own personality and backstory. Welkin is a nature enthusiast while Alicia is a baker. The main characters and non-main characters will touch your heart, and in the end, you’ll feel you’re a part of Squad 7.

Overall, the game is an amazing RPG every PS3 owner should try. Even if you’re not an SRPG fan, at least give this game a rental. The demo doesn’t do the game any justice. There are so many things to read, buy, upgrade and achieve that this game will keep you busy for a long while. Along with that, DLC has been confirmed for this game. Pretty much everything in this game in top-notch. This is the hidden gem of 2008.


Overall: 9.3/10(not an average)

Our review system