Turn-Based Strategy with a Heart

For some odd reason I felt a hankering to pick up Valkyria Chronicles again.  Maybe it's because the fourth installment of the game is coming out in September; maybe it's because I think I have carpal tunnel and games with a lot of clicking keep making my wrist sore; or maybe I was just in the mood for some anime-style, turn-based, story-filled goodness--who knows?  The point is that I've been re-experiencing it, mostly having fun, and only sometimes yelling at whatever dumb choice I just made (RIP Alex...I didn't mean to get you killed).  I realized that I never really wrote up a formal review after the first time I completed the game, so here it is.

If you haven't heard of Valkyria Chronicles it's most likely due to the fact that it was originally a console port.  Not just a console port, but a console port that ended up being primarily released for handheld devices like the PSP.  A few years ago the first game in the series (there are three, but so far only one has been ported to PC) made the crossover to the magical land of the PC and I decided to pick it up.  I thought the story and characters looked interesting and that the blending of those aspects with turn-based strategy seemed novel.  I did feel a little weird about the whole anime-style of the characters--I'm not into anime and have always thought it was kind of strange, but found it mostly bearable.

The game takes place in a fictional country called Gallia that gets caught in a struggle between two superpowers.  A war breaks out and the citizens of Gallia find their tiny, neutral country invaded by the much larger and more powerful Imperial Empire.  Gallia happens to have major stockpiles of a resource known as "ragnite" that is used as fuel and the Empire needs it to help power its war machines.  The story begins in the peaceful town of Bruhl as the citizens work to fight a losing battle against the power of the Empire.  Players are introduced to the two main characters--Welkin Gunther and Alicia Melchiott--as they struggle to defend their town.  As the war spreads, Welkin and Alicia get pulled into the militia draft and find themselves part of the unit known as Squad 7.  Squad 7 winds up fighting in many of the major battles of the Second Europan War in an effort to keep Gallia from losing its independence.

Squad 7--Move Out!

Pros:
--Character-based story.  In many turn-based strategy games your units tend to feel like pawns that you move around on a board.  They typically don't have a backstory or anything that makes them feel unique--they are just some random class that can do some random thing.  Valkyria Chronicles gives each squad member their own unique story and abilities.  The main characters in the story get more screen time, but even the minor characters at least have some sort of backstory.

--Unique abilities that tie-in with each character.  Periodically these special abilities will trigger and give that character some kind of minor combat bonus.  One of the weirder bonuses belongs to Largo, who will occasionally get a boost from his love of vegetables.  Other characters might get boosts that improve their evasion rate or damage.  These special bonuses add to the uniqueness of each character.

--Many, many options for who you want to fill your squad.  There is a very long roster from which you can pick up to 20 different characters to be part of your team.  Throughout the game new characters are added and you can alter your roster at any time (between combat missions).

--Combat missions have quite a bit of variety.  There are many different environment types and missions can vary from being more offensively oriented to being more defensive.  Each mission has its own challenges and part of the fun is figuring out how to overcome them.

--You can swap team members out during combat.  It does cost command points, but allows you to utilize the units that you need at the time when you need them.

--Command point system is somewhat flexible.  You can choose to issue orders, which are like buffs that can boost one member or the entire squad, or you can use all your points to have your units move and attack.  Learning how to utilize both is the key.

--Choice in how to spend experience points and the money earned on missions.  You can spend XP learning new orders or head to the training field to level up each individual class.  The money you earn can go toward unlocking special story-based chapters (which usually involve a combat mission that grants more XP and money) or toward R&D to develop new weapons and equipment for your tanks.  It's up to you how you spend both.

--Killing enemy aces offers bonus XP and unique weapons.  Part of the fun of each mission is finding and killing these special enemies.

--Positive, uplifting story.  At first the members of Squad 7 find themselves bickering and questioning each other, but as the story stretches on, they eventually find each other becoming like family.  They are able to overcome serious differences while fighting in a terrible war.

Cons:
--Combat mechanics are wonky and can be frustrating.  Each turn is made up of a certain number of "command points" which allows you to move a specific unit.  A unit can move and perform one attack on each turn.  The weird part comes when you attack a unit--basically you attack, then the enemy gets a chance to counterattack--the sucky part is that they will continue attacking even after they've finished their counterattack...your unit won't.  It behooves you to end each turn as quickly as you can after the enemy unit has finished their counterattack--if you don't, your unit will sit and get shot at.  There's also a bit of a delay when attacking that allows the enemy some extra hits.

--Moving units can feel cripplingly slow.  There are some maps that are very large and it takes forever to get everything into position.  Some units have very low action points and take forever to move.

--Tanks are difficult to drive.  Somehow they are partially impacted by the camera angle so steering them requires trying to position the camera and pick a direction on the keyboard.  Don't be surprised if your tank is all of a sudden turning in circles or doing something completely opposite of what you're trying to do.

--Characters are unique but do feel a little stereotypical.  Take Leon, the tank mechanic, he is described as a "free spirit" and says "bro" a lot.  The main characters for the Empire also feel a bit like goofy, villains.

--Story is positive (which I like), but can feel cheesy.  Maybe it's some part of anime that as a non-fan that I just don't understand--but when there's blushing and weird, eyes-closed laughter....I get sort of cringey.

--Combat ranking system is never really explained and can be confusing.  Basically, the goal is to complete each map as quickly as possible.  Higher scores result in more XP and money.  I am a failure at combat rankings and am lucky if I get higher than a C.  I guess I am too slow and methodical to try for the mad rush.  I kind of don't see the fun in rushing through each map, but I suppose it is a big challenge.

-The PC version is plagued by a weird bug that can cause some sound effects not to work.  Anytime you take out an enemy sniper, the normal sounds of gunfire will be replaced by nothing or a quiet popping noise.  It's not something that's causing a crash or making the game unplayable, it's just something that's annoying (apparently it has something to do with Windows 10 and can possibly be fixed by changing your audio adapter settings to default.  I didn't test this, but some people were reporting success)

I enjoy Valkyria Chronicles for its story and characters--even if they are stereotypes.  The combat aspect of the game can be frustrating and is definitely the weak point.  There are better TBS games out there if that is strictly what you're looking for.  VC offers an opportunity for players to be invested in their characters rather than viewing them simply as movable pieces.