When Sega's "Valkyria Chronicles" arrived on the PlayStation 3 in 2008, its tactical role-playing format, unique visuals and epic storyline received high praise around the gaming community. Set in an alternate version of World War II-era Europe (dubbed "Europa"), the game offered massive amounts of gameplay and customizability, and become a fan-favorite title of sorts. It's sequel, "Valkyria Chronicles II," brings much of the same qualities to the PSP, and despite the move to the mobile platform, it manages to retain much of what made it so popular on the PS3, with some exceptions — good and bad.
The Basics
The story moves ahead two years in the sequel, set just after the events of the first game and plunging the nation of Gallia into yet another war within its borders. This time around, you take on the role of Avan Hardins, who enrolls in the Lanseal Military Academy after the mysterious death of his brother, a former cadet. You're quickly made the leader of a misfit unit and then thrust into battle against a rogue rebel group looking to dethrone the queen and rid the country of the dark-haired Darcsen citizens.
Much of the play style carries over from the original "Valkyria Chronicles," with multi-stage combat that has you choosing which characters and classes to deploy, moving them through the battlefield one-by-one, then alternating turns with the enemy. Battles are won by either eliminating enemy soldiers, taking over the enemy base camp via capture-the-flag, defending your own camp for set period of time, or recovering objects from the map. Characters can be leveled up and change classes, and the over-arching story develops between battles via a series of cutscenes.
The Highs
Same Great Play, Less Stationary
When it was first announced that "Valkyria" was headed to the PSP, fans wondered whether the PS3 version's epic storyline, deep customization, and other celebrated elements could be effectively ported to a mobile system. Well, there shouldn't be any cause for concern, as nearly everything fans loved about the PS3 "Valkyria" can be found in the PSP version — with some tweaks that actually improve the overall product.
Maps, Maps, Everywhere
One of the aforementioned improvements in the PSP "Valkyria" is a change that seems to have been made to squeeze the game's massive battlefield maps into the mobile platform, but might be worth considering for future versions, no matter what platform. Instead of one sprawling map, the battlefields in "Valkyria II" are dividied up into smaller maps with "gateway camps" that you must capture in order to move between the various areas. The addition of these gateway camps also serves to break the battle down into smaller skirmishes to control each camp — something that keeps the action rolling more than it did in the original.
Less Cutscene Is More
By far one of the most frustrating elements of the PS3 "Valkyria" were the recurring, extended cinematics that, although beautifully illustrated, could grind the game to a halt for far too long. "valkyria II" manages to streamline the story development by breaking the major arc down into smaller, between-battle scenes that you can choose to initiate... and fast-forward through whenever necessary.
The Lows
OMG! The Secret Life Of The Lanseal Teenager!
While the original "Valkyria" offered a compelling narrative that drew you into the nation of Gallia's struggle to fend off invasion and the untrained civilians who took up the cause, "Valkyria II" takes a more "Saturday Morning Special" approach. While the bigger issues of racism and love in wartime are part of the greater narrative, there's a similar amount of time spent on furthering story points in which students bicker over who likes who, how to attract boys (and girls), and even some comparison of the female classmates' breast sizes. It doesn't help that the main character is a slacker who spends most of the story arc looking for food or places to nap.
Joystickery
Much like the original "Valkyria," there are some control issues when you're trying to fine-tune your character's placement on the battlefield or capture an enemy's camp. The tendency to overshoot the desired position on the map using the PS3's analog stick is exacerbated by the PSP's less-exact control nub.
The Verdict
Fans of the PS3 "Valkyria Chronicles" should have nothing to fear from the PSP version of the game, and will get a game that's essentially the same, offering everything you liked about the original in portable form. Those who haven't played the PS3 version should have no problem jumping into the world of "Valkyria," too — and if they like what they find, it's an easy jump to the larger console. Where "Valkyria" changes in the PSP version are almost all improvements, which is great to see in a sequel, and despite the "II" in the title, the game is a great entry point into a unique, very fun experience.
"Valkyria Chronicles II" is likely to be a long-term resident in my PSP, as I've logged more than 35 hours on it thus far with no sign of stopping or diminishing enjoyment.