One of the most unique tactical role-playing game series out there, the Valkyria Chronicles titles are known for their awesome tactical combat and compelling storylines. The Steam-downloadable Valkyria Chronicles 4 is no different from other titles in this series. It features another intriguing chapter in the ongoing saga of the European nations. Its gameplay offers a few modern tweaks that make it slightly more transparent and even appealing to someone who hasn’t played the previous titles.
How to Download Valkyria Chronicles 4
You can get the game for PC, Nintendo Switch, PS4 or Xbox One. To start downloading click on the Download button at the end of the review. You can also get the DLC Valkyria Chronicles 4 – Squad E, to the Beach! which contains a new mission.
The Game Review
Developed by Sega CS3 and published by Sega in March 2018, Kei Mikami’s ode to a fictionalized version of Europe is no less a masterpiece than the other three games that came before it. Introducing a new soldier class, the grenadier, Valkyria Chronicles 4 largely rests on the established conventions of its predecessors and focuses much of its innovation on the interface and making the game flow in a more optimized way.
The grenadier can fire artillery rounds at attacking soldiers and is a ranged fighter as opposed to an up-close-and-personal class. It does add a new element to ground combat both ways and is a sensible if somewhat unremarkable addition to the player’s arsenal in Valkyria Chronicles 4.
Graphically speaking, the game resembles an anime film with its colorful, hand-drawn characters and pastel worlds that depict a fictional, idyllic Europe. Often cited as a World War II game on an alternate timeline, Valkyria Chronicles is actually quite different from that. This timeline imagines a consistently imperial Europe, not a Nazi Europe, and much of the conventions and tech presented are inspired by the World War I conflict between empires than it is the later conflict.
Consuming a lot of the gamer’s time in between battles, Valkyria Chronicles 4’s storyline is compelling and hews much to the conventions established in the other games.
Fans of anime and manga will find a lot to love here and new players won’t find anything terribly off-putting though the game’s narrative may fall flat for them.
And that’s a shame as the narrative is a large component of what makes this game a must-play title.
Though Valkyria Chronicles 4’s tactical role-playing game combat is some of the best out there. It really doesn’t try to do anything that differs from its competition. Innovation is not the name of the game when it comes to Valkyria Chronicles 4’s gameplay and instead what we have is an evolutionary expression of that classic formula. What is there is fun and will offer hours of gameplay enjoyment but the narrative might bog gamers down if they don’t find it entertaining.
As much or more of an integral part of Valkyria Chronicles 4, the storyline of the game is hit or miss and that’s a shame because the gameplay is anything but that. The perfect game for people who love tactical role-playing games, Valkyria Chronicles 4 will offer hours of intense gaming action while also putting on offer a story that is “take it or leave it” at best for people unfamiliar with the Valkyria Chronicles oeuvre.
