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PreviousValkyria Chronicles II Hands On
PSP Hands On by Keza MacDonald
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Japan's not short of games that have seen far greater success on portable systems than they ever did on under-telly gameboxes, but Valkyria Chronicles seems a strange choice for downsizing. It's remembered for its beautiful sketchbook-style graphics and hour-long strategic battles - two things that have had to be scaled down to fit the PSP. Thankfully everything else that made it interesting is present and correct. This is still a game where your gay engineer will enjoy a stats boost if you make sure she's deployed near female squad-mates, or your racist scout won't fight with Darcsen soldiers. It's still a complex, politically engaging storyline framed in an innovative semi-real-time battle system, with likeable, developed characters. Superb!
Valkyria Chronicles II is part Japanese high-school drama, part war story. The main character is a 17-year-old called Avan Hardence, a student at a European military academy. It's set in 1937, two years after the original, and familiar racial tensions have stirred up a civil war in Gallia. The insurgents want to run an ethnic cleansing campaign to rid Gallia of people of Darcsen descent. This being two years after a world war, though, the regular army is depleted, leading wide-eyed cadets to be deployed on the front lines.
It's an odd juxtaposition - whilst the war gains momentum in the background, the little band of main characters is more concerned with the day-to-day drama of high school. It's a bit weird pressing X through screens and screens of Political Happenings and then being suddenly dropped into an adorably awkward conversation between Avan and one of his female classmates. According to Shinji Motoyama, the game's producer, it's an intentional contrast.
Still packs a graphical punch, doesn't it?
"Everyone goes to elementary, middle and high school - that's very familiar to us," he says. "It's set in a military academy, but still we wanted that element of familiarity so that the setting resonates with players. It's important to the storyline that you're an everyday civilian; you're just a student in a military academy, but all of a sudden you're thrown into war. We wanted the familiarity of everyday school life, and then in contrast the unfamiliarity of war - of being thrown into extraordinary life."
It certainly feels familiar once you're thrown into an actual battle. The Blitz system, remarkably, remains exactly the same as it was on the PS3, if less impressive visually. It's turn-based, but within your turn you move each of your units and fire at enemies in real-time. The blend of third-person action and top-down strategy feels as seamless and refreshing as it ever did. The maps are smaller and more compact than they were on the PS3, but there's an even greater choice of units and weaponry to populate them with.
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Latest Videos
Valkyria Chronicles 2 history trailer [1] 9 October, 2009
Valkyria Chronicles 2 trailer [2] 24 September, 2009
Latest News
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Valkyria II to have multiplayer modes [5]
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Valkyria Chronicles II heading West [9]
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Valkyria Chronicles sequel is on PSP [4]
Latest Screenshots
7 October, 2009 [1]
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Comments: 1-40 of 40 in total
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SleepyMagpie
14/10/09 @ 12:55
+6
I love Valkyria Chronicles. I hold it as the single strongest reason - yet - for owning a PS3 for gaming. So... a bit miffed this one is coming out on the PSP, but I'll have to get it and brush off the old handheld then.
Btw, you should all see this: "Hitler hears about Valkyria Chronicles 2" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3OITEFCfTHw ^_^ |
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-1
Can't see it being different from every Jap war game ever made. Young heroes fight old, corrupt, power/technology mad bad guys (often with German surnames/titles), bit of a lull before the battle, minor romance/'humour' bit, battle, repeat ad infinitum with youth and unity winning out over superior technology, tactics, cunning and massive odds.
Still getting it, mind, but the Jap approach to war is fucking mental. Do they know they're doing it, I keep asking myself. I find it hard to believe a culture has produced such a one-note symphony in the medium of games without conscious collaboration. |
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actionfitz
14/10/09 @ 14:56
0
Im crying geek tears because I loved the original and now cant play this because I dont (and wont ever) own a psp :/
no chance of it appearing as a download PSN? :/ |
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LilithsCurves
14/10/09 @ 15:23
0
Possibly there will be a sequel on PS3 after this, i read about it somewhere but no promises yet. to me the PSP version looks more like a side story (a very good one). somehow i just hope that a sequel will come to the ps3. i am not really into my psp unfortunately.
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ShinMegami08
14/10/09 @ 15:39
+2
GO PSP!
valkyria chronicles2, silent hill, resident evil portable, littlebigplanet, disgaea2, persona3, assasins creed: bloodlines, army of two, mgs peace walker, ffxiii, tales of, kingdom hearts .... damn, what isnt coming to the psp? |
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-3
"@Oh-Bollox: Still it's better than the Western version of war games."
Only if you enjoy a large dose of teenage melodrama - which is pretty much the sole reason I've given up quickly on every JRPG I've tried. I usually love their turn based combat and even the worlds and art design, but it's just not enough to make up for the apparent Japanese obsession with child heroes and awkward teenage emotions, which I tend to find downright nauseating. |
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+1
Still it's better than the Western version of war games.
I don't think either one is better than the other. The typical Western war game is so Yankified I personally cannot understand it. Probably because of the massive influence American war films have on Western war games design. There's a lot to criticise, certainly, the demonisation of the enemy (whoever they are), the suffocating patriotism, the cheap sentimentality, etc, but there have at least been a few variations. Japanese war games could, thematically, have been knocked out by the same person. You've got the youthful heroes, with one or two 'old timers' (this phrase is often actually used), just brimming with beans and spunk, who have great talent but terrible attitudes, versus some bad guys who have evil powers/technology, are militarily expansionist and very often researching/discovering a world-ending power. The young heroes (who are often nobility, royalty, or military officers) have the odds stacked against them, they're callow and unexperienced, but apart from a few minor squabbles (like if one of the characters is an ethnic minority, say, and the others pick on her for it) they band together, and their unity and youthful enthusiasm ensures they overthrow the Evil Empire (apart from that setback by the traitor when they're in the enemy stronghold), no matter the numbers, weaponry, tactics, skills, etc of the EE. I like VC, good game, but Jap war games are all cut from the exact same cloth. They're still fighting WWII in their heads. "The old corrupt generation of warmongers must fall or the world will be destroyed, OMG!"
Edited 1 times,
most recently on 14/10/09 @ 19:02
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LilithsCurves
14/10/09 @ 18:23
0
@Oh-Bollox, good observation, though..
Archetypes like the young hero, naive but on his journey to find himself and restore the balance, the old-timer, hehe, and so on... such things are not only common to games and movies, also coming up in books, fairy tales, myths,.... I guess there are developers who construct the plot and characters in their head, taking the things out from successful predecessors and tailor it to fit the new incarnation. But that is not all to it, the reason why these things work and are applied over and over again is because they are a part of every human being in their own mind. It is not a thing of evolution since these things are there since a long time, cave times i would guess. So, i would say, not every outworn cloth is a work of uninspired developers, although there could be some, hehe. |
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+4
"Archetypes like the young hero, naive but on his journey to find himself and restore the balance, the old-timer, hehe, and so on... such things are not only common to games and movies, also coming up in books, fairy tales, myths..."
I suspect the problem might be that it become increasingly difficult for some of us to identify with these young characters as we get older. Looking back around 15 years to when I was a teenager myself, I can remember countless examples of emotional outbursts and conflicts and exaggerated feelings of self-importance - things that tend to be there in spades in many Japanese games - and while they might be perfectly normal and acceptable for a teenager, they would frankly quite often be embarrassing in adults, at least when they are put on display. I have a lot of fond memories from my childhood and teen years, but hormones and melodrama typically aren't prominently featured in those. |
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LilithsCurves
14/10/09 @ 19:06
+3
The japanese seem to have a fable for over exaggerated emotions, looking at animes and the games. Perhaps that has to do with their very disciplined social behavior which they show outwardly. The thing about the stories with the archetypes was more about the setting, eg, young hero on a quest and so on, get the girl at the end and if a little darker also kill the father on his way, things like that. About exaggerating emotions, that is a thing i also notice a lot in things from japan. that may also be one of the big differences between western and japanese games. the huge amount of exaggerated emotions which seems to a lot of us a little forced, i guess.
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NegativeZero
15/10/09 @ 02:31
+3
@Oh-bollox
You've got the youthful heroes, with one or two 'old timers' (this phrase is often actually used), just brimming with beans and spunk, who have great talent but terrible attitudes, versus some bad guys who have evil powers/technology, are militarily expansionist and very often researching/discovering a world-ending power. Modern Japan has some fairly different ideas regarding these sorts of things. You have to keep in mind that this is a country that seventy years ago was an expansionist military superpower who committed dozens of war crimes, had world domination goals and very high levels of technology compared to their contemporaries. You also need to keep in mind that Japan is the only country in the world who have literally got a post-Apocalyptic culture. As a result of spectacularly losing a major war, you'll find that there's been a fair amount of reflection and soul-searching in the country regarding these sorts of things. Now this is purely speculation on my part, but I wouldn't be surprised if you find that the youth-fighting-the-evil-empire deal is actually on some level an allegory to the youth of modern Japan fighting against their own past conduct. The other aspect to it is that you're forgetting the target audience for most of these sorts of games are high school kids. Video games have a fairly negative stigma in Japan, more than most western countries. Adults don't generally play video games as much, because doing so is considered unproductive. So the core audience is younger to begin with. Additionally youth is a desirable trait in Japan, at least partially because of their issues with declining birth rates and rapidly aging population. Add these factors together and it's not surprising to see what you're talking about. And it's not just 'war' games either, a lot of these trends are pretty much across the board in Japanese games. |
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actionfitz
15/10/09 @ 08:26
0
Steroyd
14/10/09 @ 15:59 Yes it will be on PSN.... AS A PSP ONLY DOWNLOAD. /rubbing salt in wound ---- Noooooo! /self harm. ^^ |
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oldschoolsoviet
15/10/09 @ 13:30
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Now somebody "just" needs to get Sega to understand that we need real online/infrastructure multiplayer in the west."
Ad-Hoc says "Hi !" |
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SpaceMonkey77
15/10/09 @ 13:33
0
@Parablax
If you are stuck on Valkyria Chronicles, there are plenty of guides online that can help you. Gamefaqs.com is good, and if not I'm sure there are plenty of vid guides on youtube. Valkyria 2 sounds cool, and I too might import it, such are the joys of a PSP 1000. I'm glad Sega are building this up and it should reach more people than an exclusive PS3 version, which unfortunately never sold as goo as they expected. Hopefully, next time, Sega will spread the series multiformat. The tropes of such japanese games are as prevalent ever, but Sega deserve a pass for going into problems like racism and politics (both big issues in japan, as anywhere else) in such a game. How many western games can we honestly say have tried to tackle these subjects? Very few if any western games like to touch these subjects. The closest we've come was Call of Duty 4, and even that was watered down to not offend or ruffle feathers, many of them more than likely american gamers. If there are others feel free to highlight them. I also agree with the allegory bit too. The recent controversy of Shadow Complex shows how things can get, but I believe its healthier to raise and air these kinds of topics in games, than ignore or water them down. Sure, some will get upset or enlightened, but we need to see more of this, especially for games to mature as a medium. Hey, don't agree with Mr Card's views, but how we should be answering such views, should be reflected in other games. Perhaps the Ballad of Gay Tony might do just that. But I digress, kudos to Sega though, as I know there's even still some parts of japan that don't like Darcsen like foreigners, but I guess such people exist in any country. I'll support Valkyria and buy a copy. |
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0
My Phatty is getting increasingly busy. With games like Persona 3, Kingdom Hearts - Birth by Sleep, Ys 7, Mana Khemia 2, 3rd Birthday (yes, Aya Brea is going portable), Phantasy Star Portable 2, FF XIII - Agito and Valkyrie Chronicles 2 incoming. I'd say we will have the first three months of the 2010 booked
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RandomTerrain
20/10/09 @ 10:39
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This first game is ace, this one sounds better. Multi-player? Yes yes yes! I'm so excited. :D
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Comments: 1-40 of 40 in total
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