Valkyria Chronicles 4
SEGA celebrates the art of war in beautiful strategy sequel Valkyria Chronicles 4.
For everything it gets right on the battlefield, Valkyria Chronicles 4 is defined at least as much by what it does off it. For all the narrow escapes, the nervy sorties into uncharted territory and stressful defensive missions, it understands that war involves plenty of preparation and downtime. It captures both the intensity of conflict and the effort (and occasional tedium) of the long hours in between. And all without losing the player’s attention. The series has always managed to find a balance between considered strategizing and bursts of action. Each turn begins with you looking down at a tactical map, from which you can spend a supply of action points: You’ll either select a soldier to move and fire, or sign an order to buff or heal a frontline unit beyond easy reach. Whether you’re sending a scout for recon, launching a brute-force assault with a tank, or flanking the enemy with a sniper or shock trooper, you’re not limited to moving individual units just once. But once they have moved, they’ll be left with less stamina to reposition during subsequent actions. Their meter only resets when a new turn begins.
While you’re moving them, they’re at risk. Should they wander into the sightlines of any enemy units within range, they’ll be fired upon. Once you’ve committed to firing, the barrage will stop, letting you aim shots, with success determined by everything from visibility to range to the aiming stat of the weapon you’re using. And, crucially, by individual personality quirks and how they pertain to the battlefield situation.
These character traits have a chance of triggering at any given moment. Take Neige, a timid sniper who suffers from stage fright. Should she wander into a position where she can be spotted by several enemies at once, she’ll freeze, her stamina bar instantly drained. And yet if shock trooper Fleuret is nearby, she might well avoid taking a hit: Her eagerness to impress her colleague gives her a boost to her evasiveness. Some traits might seem silly, but it’s remarkable how these idiosyncrasies give the units under your command personalities. You might find yourself growing attached to particular troops: Despite her shyness, I decided to keep Neige around after a desperate move on the last action of one turn saw her take out a crucial enemy unit with a perfect headshot when she was a single health point from death.
Squeaky moments like this aren’t uncommon. There’s probably some behind-the-scenes number fiddling that ensures you finish most missions feeling like you survived by the skin of your teeth, or maybe it’s my own risky tactics and determination to leave no soldier behind. The game has a knack of finding ways to keep you on your toes throughout, in fact, whether it’s a change in objective, or simply through the mission objectives themselves. The middle section has several standout battles. One asks you to rescue units behind enemy lines while keeping your base protected. Another asks you to clear a path through snow with Imperial troops approaching from the rear, letting you trigger avalanches that can sweep away units—including your own.
The game has a knack of finding ways to keep you on your toes
Painting a picture
Sometimes it’s merely the unusual context that livens things up: In a flashback, two units must sneak into a training exercise, shooting targets while remaining unseen to trick their superior into believing that their sniper friend is a crack shot. The painterly art, meanwhile, makes for an arresting vision of war, and though the violence is sanitized, the story does offer some stark reminders of the consequences of conflict. After encountering a tradesman selling Imperial goods, your squad stumbles upon a grim sight showing just how they’ve made an example of him.
It’s a pity that moments of relief sometimes strike the wrong note, and later chapters introduce far-fetched ideas that sit awkwardly next to the sober character work. Yet these aren’t ruinous: Valkyria Chronicles 4 has the narrative depth to match its tactical smarts, with enough refinements to outrank its predecessors.