Valkyria Chronicles Catch-All

I know I've been waiting to get off work to go play.

Then you can all thank me for the sequel being approve when I bag the copy tonight.

(Can we all at least agree that it's stupid and more than a little disappointing to pay the new price for a game that's open? I know I'm not the only person who takes great joy and satisfaction in opening a game or movie for the first time.) Having it re-shrinked is not even close to the same feeling.

(Can we all at least agree that it's stupid and more than a little disappointing to pay the new price for a game that's open? I know I'm not the only person who takes great joy and satisfaction in opening a game or movie for the first time.) Having it re-shrinked is not even close to the same feeling.

Oh most definitely. I skrunch my nose every time it happens, and instantly check for scratches and the like, and sometimes scrub off the price sticker gunk with soap and water.

SpacePPoliceman wrote:
(Can we all at least agree that it's stupid and more than a little disappointing to pay the new price for a game that's open? I know I'm not the only person who takes great joy and satisfaction in opening a game or movie for the first time.) Having it re-shrinked is not even close to the same feeling.

Oh most definitely. I skrunch my nose every time it happens, and instantly check for scratches and the like, and sometimes scrub off the price sticker gunk with soap and water.

Then you and I share the same routine. But I try and use tape instead of resorting to the water. Plus I give'em the stink eye and some "good natured" crap about the game selling for the same amount despite being opened regardless of how many times they've heard it before.

EDIT: Anyway, I'm looking forward to waking up tomorrow morning and digging into it.

SpacePPoliceman wrote:

Right now, the guy at Sega who approves sequels is looking at the numbers of Valkyria, Magnus, and his finger is hovering on the "Approve" button. But he's wavering. He's looking at those numbers thinking "I dunno. If we sold one more copy, then sure, but...I just don't know."

Right now he's doing this.

That is some of the best enabling I've ever seen.

AmazingZoidberg wrote:

That is some of the best enabling I've ever seen.

You should see me throw down game when I want to keep people drinking at the bar.

Love it.

Mister Magnus wrote:
SpacePPoliceman wrote:
(Can we all at least agree that it's stupid and more than a little disappointing to pay the new price for a game that's open? I know I'm not the only person who takes great joy and satisfaction in opening a game or movie for the first time.) Having it re-shrinked is not even close to the same feeling.

Oh most definitely. I skrunch my nose every time it happens, and instantly check for scratches and the like, and sometimes scrub off the price sticker gunk with soap and water.

Then you and I share the same routine. But I try and use tape instead of resorting to the water. Plus I give'em the stink eye and some "good natured" crap about the game selling for the same amount despite being opened regardless of how many times they've heard it before.

EDIT: Anyway, I'm looking forward to waking up tomorrow morning and digging into it.

I use goo-gone to get rid of the sticker residue, but make sure I remove the insert first so it doesn't get messed up. I've been avoiding getting Ghost Squad at EB b/c I can't find a sealed copy, even though I'd like the have the game and they're $20 instead of the $30 everywhere else charges. I guess it's cheaper, but I'm not so into wanting the game to give up on the unwrapping ceremony. Also, it makes me sad that it is so hard to find Valkyria already. This is one of the few PS3 games I would want.

Yes. I was shocked + appalled regarding the availability/lack thereof.

And the unwrapping ceremony is worth at least $5. It's bonkers to me that they can even get away with charging new prices for something that's been opened.

It doesn't make any sense. It seems illegal, somehow.

It's is hands down my favorite PS3 game (the only other retail game I've played was LBP, but even if I'd played more it would still be my fave. I love strategy games and VC is a great "next-gen" take on the genre.).

Heads up that Valkyria Chronicles will be part of the Gamestop Gamedays sale starting next weekend. CAG doesn't have a discounted price yet, but discounts are "up to 50%" and there's a coupon available for an extra 10% for anything in the sale. I think I'll finally be getting this then...

Hey you all 'Valky kids' (that's what I've taken to calling fans of the game) a little bit of news from famitsu (via Joystiq). Apparently the producer is interested in making a sequel, and since the game has done so well in Japan, that is a possibility.

The downside is that Europe and America apparently do not love Valkyria Chronicles near as much as Japan, so those of us in the western market might need to get ready to import like there is no tomorrow.

I wonder if they could do something like Siren: Blood Curse, release a disk in one region and make the game downloadable in others. Even though North America and Europe sales weren't so great, perhaps there is enough to make a profit once the overhead of pressing and shipping discs has been stripped out.

And don't forget, DLC goes live on Thursday.

DLC is out. I'll report back tomorrow evening.

Or I'll report on Monday. So, I've played through the two DLC mission packs. Let me just say that you need to be a huge fan of Valkyria Chronicles to be willing to spend $10 on, essentially, three battles/skirmishes. That's what we get here.

The "Edy Brings the Pain" dlc takes some of the lesser characters in Squad 7 (most of which I never used, btw) and injects a little more personality into them by actually allowing them to have speaking roles. I found this mission to be only okay (and it's just one, protracted mission). It was a bit too easy and over way too soon.

The other dlc mission pack is much more interesting as it's about Selvaria, who you do actually get to control, but can only use her gun. The missions here (two) are much more interesting and I found them to be a tad more difficult as the Imperial soldiers are nowhere near as good at shooting as your Squad 7 mates.

All in all you get a few skirmishes and get to know a little bit more about some random Squad 7 characters and a fair bit more about Selvaria. If you're on the fence about the DLC, I recommend getting the one with Selvaria as I found it to be more interesting from a tactical view and from a story perspective. This isn't to say the other is bad, but I just didn't like it anywhere near as much.

I have not, and probably will not, purchase the harder mode. I don't see myself playing the game for a third time.

My favorite anime fansub site is starting to post fansubbed episodes of a Valkyria Chronicles anime. It seems to have the same art style as the game and even has a sort of "canvas" filter that adds texture to darker colors. I only watched one episode and really enjoyed it.

My question is, if I continue to watch the anime as it comes out, will I spoil the game for myself? I do plan to play it as soon as I get a PS3 (but who knows when that will be?).

LobsterMobster wrote:

My favorite anime fansub site is starting to post fansubbed episodes of a Valkyria Chronicles anime. It seems to have the same art style as the game and even has a sort of "canvas" filter that adds texture to darker colors. I only watched one episode and really enjoyed it.

My question is, if I continue to watch the anime as it comes out, will I spoil the game for myself? I do plan to play it as soon as I get a PS3 (but who knows when that will be?).

Would playing a videogame (e.g. Naruto) of an anime spoil the anime for you because you know some of the characters' stories already?

I don't know what's in the anime so I can't speak to how spoiler-ish it is, but I don't think knowing some of the plot details would detract from your enjoyment of the game. The plot is good, the voice acting is pretty good, the art style is great, (the pig with wings is awful) - but all of those things are complementary parts, side dishes, to the actual gameplay, which is what makes Valkyria Chronicles a great game.

I wouldn't have sat through a 40+ hour game for good side dishes.

I hope that answers your question.

LobsterMobster wrote:

My favorite anime fansub site is starting to post fansubbed episodes of a Valkyria Chronicles anime. It seems to have the same art style as the game and even has a sort of "canvas" filter that adds texture to darker colors. I only watched one episode and really enjoyed it.

My question is, if I continue to watch the anime as it comes out, will I spoil the game for myself? I do plan to play it as soon as I get a PS3 (but who knows when that will be?).

Watching it too! I actually started the game and am playing alongside the anime. I decided this would be an awesome way to pace myself! Although so far it follows the game very loosely.

The anime will spoil the game from what from the synopses I'm reading. Well, the major points at least.

Like Scaphism said, just because you know the plot doesn't mean a game is necessarily ruined (or vice versa). In fact, it may be more enjoyable to be able to play the battles you've seen on the anime.

*shrugs shoulders* It's up to you which you think would be better for your tastes.

Oh, and one last thing. I actually prefer the english voice track in the game over the Japanese. The female Japanese characters were entirely too childish sounding. I'm really getting sick of that in anime, which is a shame because otherwise the Japanese actors are so much better at inflecting emotion in their voices.

I got the game for Xmas, I waited all semester and now I'm hooked!

SpacePPoliceman wrote:

This is kinda interesting.

Sweet. I love the game. I'm a little burned out on normal grid tactics games, but Valkyria hit it out of the park, IMO. I love that game. It's awesome to see it selling well now.

That's great news. Especially if it improves the chances for a NA release of a sequel or even some other games that adapt the tactical mechanics developed by the title.

Just rented this game this past week after all the talk here and another podcast I listen to really pimped it as being a game that was really good but low on the radar.

Put some time into it this week, and love it. Will probably purchase because I want to finish it and can see myself replaying it. Hope they keep the DLC coming.

Yahtzee dug in to VC this week. Kind of a weird review. He goes on and on about how much he hates it because it's anime and WWII, then kind of reluctantly admits that yeah, he had some fun with it now and then. That was the only positive thing he said about it. One sentence. I can't fault the guy for not liking things he doesn't like but I've got to ask, what the heck was he expecting?

Huh. So this is what it feels like when Yahtzee slams a game you really want to like...

LobsterMobster wrote:

Huh. So this is what it feels like when Yahtzee slams a game you really want to like...

He's panned a few games that I really like, and in most cases I felt like he said very little of substance. The more familiar I am with a game, the less his review of it appeals to me. His best reviews are the ones where he digs into the mechanics of games; his worst are the ones where he hangs up on making sex jokes about the setting or meta-concerns surrounding the game.

The dude's schtick is to make fun of games and find very little to like. That's what he does. It's meant to be humorous. Nobody would watch the guy if he just gave honest opinions on games. He's a stand-up routine, not an honest-to-goodness review.

Really need to get back to this. Love the game, just got distracted by other stuff. Picked up the downloadable content; it was a little overpriced but I'm still happy to support the game.

LobsterMobster wrote:

Yahtzee dug in to VC this week. Kind of a weird review. He goes on and on about how much he hates it because it's anime and WWII, then kind of reluctantly admits that yeah, he had some fun with it now and then. That was the only positive thing he said about it. One sentence. I can't fault the guy for not liking things he doesn't like but I've got to ask, what the heck was he expecting?

Huh. So this is what it feels like when Yahtzee slams a game you really want to like...

Yahtzee hates everything except Valve games. It's in his contract somewhere. I think he's often really insightful about games, but gets hung up on the his schtick as Mr. I Hate Everything.

adam.greenbrier wrote:

The more familiar I am with a game, the less his review of it appeals to me. His best reviews are the ones where he digs into the mechanics of games; his worst are the ones where he hangs up on making sex jokes about the setting or meta-concerns surrounding the game.

That's pretty much my experience with the man. This one had plenty of eye-roll moments for me--Anime characters tend to look androgynous! ZING! POW! That's fresh!

Switchbreak wrote:

Yahtzee hates everything except Valve games. It's in his contract somewhere. I think he's often really insightful about games, but gets hung up on the his schtick as Mr. I Hate Everything.

And who can blame him. As previous videos where he talked about what he liked showed, it's hard to apply his brand of funny and abrasive humour when he's talking about how much he enjoyed something.

adam.greenbrier wrote:
LobsterMobster wrote:

Huh. So this is what it feels like when Yahtzee slams a game you really want to like...

He's panned a few games that I really like, and in most cases I felt like he said very little of substance. The more familiar I am with a game, the less his review of it appeals to me. His best reviews are the ones where he digs into the mechanics of games; his worst are the ones where he hangs up on making sex jokes about the setting or meta-concerns surrounding the game.

This review is a little bit of both: he does drill down into some of the flaws in the gameplay mechanics, specifically the menu/interface problems and the "selective" AI reaction to your turns, but he also burns a lot of time upfront belaboring his general distaste for JRPGs. And I do I think he could have commented a little more on the presentation; anime bias or not, it's probably the most notable thing about the game.

All that said, his review mirrored my overall impressions coming out of the demo. I liked VC, but there were some turnoffs here and there that have kept me from picking it up for rental/purchase to this point.