Publisher: SEGA
Genres: JRPG
Release:  June 27th, 2017
Platforms: Playstation 4, Xbox One, Pc
Review Copy: Xbox One Version, Provided by SEGA (Thanks, guys! c:)
Introduction
Valkirya Revolution is a game in the long running Valkyria series, and is sort of a departure from previous entries. That’s not always a bad thing, however. This is a strong game that I really enjoyed despite its flaws. It made me (a veteran RPG player, and relative newcomer to the series) really want to play this and the rest of the series. I’ll break down what I thought about the game in the next few sections.
Story
I won’t get into the specifics of the story here to keep this review spoiler free, but The game’s Story is told through cut scenes(And trust me, there’s a lot of them!). The game was a little cut scene heavy for my taste, but you may not mind it. I felt as if it kept me from the gameplay a little too much. Overall, the story is interesting and the game is in a cool setting. Newcomers to the series might want to read up on some lore to be up to speed on the game though.
It is a long game!
Gameplay
This is where the game changes up the formula the other games have set as a series standard.  The game is split up into sort of a Hub world to select missions and visit town  and do all the usual RPG things (Upgrade equipment, talk to townsfolk, buy spells and items, etc.). Once a mission is selected, you go into an open world Dynasty Warriors  style, semi-full action combat sequence. There is an emphasis on strategy and sneaking up on the enemies to take them out. You can attack head-on if you want, but you will be barraged with gunfire and you probably won’t survive.  The combat is really where this game shines and where I fell in love with it. In combat skills feel so fun to use and work in a certain area on the map, so you are always trying to move to maximize the number of enemies you hit with a skill.
Missions are split up into many different types, so you won’t be doing the same thing over and over again.
Like I said before, this is a crazy departure from the formula the rest of the series has, but in my opinion was a good risk. It is very fun, concise, and the best part of this game. Don’t be hung up by the fact that it is different. Different is good in this case.
Graphics
I’m really torn here. I am in between loving the visuals of this game, and not liking them. On one hand, I love the anime style characters and the stylish menus, but on the other hand the character animations and the environments are somewhat lacking. It ins’t anything super major, it just looks dated and not what I want to see in 2017. Overall, this isn’t something to turn you off of the game.
Sound Design
The music in this game is wonderful. I love the orchestrated soundtrack and every song seemed to fit the situation. I sometimes just sat back and listened to the music because I enjoyed it so much. They really had some good people work on this!
On the other hand though, the English voice acting isn’t very good. Everything seems so forced and the characters don’t really have the voices that fit them. This is a running theme in SEGA games sadly. Good thing it has dual audio for us picky folks! :]
Conclusion
You’ll be seeing this…a lot.
Overall, I love this game and what it offers. Despite its long load times, bad voice acting, and long cut scenes, this is a great experience that shouldn’t be skipped by anyone that loves RPGs. For the $39.99 price point, you can’t go wrong. This is well worth your time and money! Go pick this up now! 🙂
The game is out today on PS4, Xbox One, and PC for $39.99.
