Valkyria Chronicles 4 Complete Edition Review Summary

Solid and Enjoyable Gameplay: The gameplay is frequently praised for being solid, tactical, and enjoyable. Players appreciate the combat system, replay value, and overall game design.

Improvements Over Previous Game: The game shows improvements in gameplay, story, and character arcs compared to the first game. Players note the overall enhancements in various aspects.

Turn-Based Strategy Mechanics: The game features turn-based strategy gameplay with unique mechanics, blending turn-based and real-time tactical elements. It is recommended for fans of turn-based strategy games.

Visually Appealing Graphics: The game features visually impressive and timeless graphics with a charming visual style. Players appreciate the graphical improvements and unique art style.

New Mechanics and Classes: The game introduces new mechanics and classes, such as the Mortar and Grenadier classes. Players appreciate the added strategic options and new features.

Weak and criticized story: The story is widely considered weaker compared to other games in the series, with criticisms directed at its narrative quality, tone, and structure. Many players find it uninteresting, cheesy, and not as engaging as previous entries.

Underdeveloped and unengaging characters: Characters in the game are often criticized for being underdeveloped, unmemorable, and poorly written. This includes both main and side characters, leading to a lack of emotional engagement.

Game length and difficulty issues: The game is criticized for its length, with some players finding it too long and others finding it too short. Additionally, the difficulty is often seen as poorly balanced, with some missions being too easy and others too hard.

Problems with enemy AI: The enemy AI is often criticized for being inconsistent, predictable, and poorly implemented. This leads to a less challenging and engaging gameplay experience.

Repetitive gameplay and elements: The game suffers from repetitiveness in various aspects, including gameplay, soundtrack, story, and boss fights. This repetitiveness makes the game feel tedious and reduces its replayability.

Hybrid turn-based strategy gameplay: The game combines turn-based strategy with real-time elements and other genres like RPG and shooters. This fusion creates a unique tactical combat experience similar to tabletop games.

Diverse mission objectives: The game offers a variety of missions with unique challenges and different objectives. This variety adds strategic depth to the gameplay.

Side missions and post-game content: The game features side missions and post-game content, providing additional gameplay beyond the main missions.

Puzzle-like levels: The game includes levels with puzzle elements, creating a linear puzzle-like experience alongside strategic gameplay.

Dynamic and large-scale maps: The game features large-scale and dynamic maps, enhancing the strategic depth and variety of the gameplay.

Positive performance on specific hardware: The game runs well on specific hardware configurations, including the Steam Deck and older hardware. It supports various frame rates and resolutions, providing a smooth experience on compatible systems.

Frequent game crashes: The game experiences frequent crashes, including crashes on launch, during gameplay, and to desktop. This issue is widespread and significantly impacts the game's playability.

Performance optimization issues: Players report mixed experiences with game optimization. While some praise the performance, others experience bad optimization and occasional lag, indicating inconsistency in performance across different systems.

Advanced graphical settings: The game supports advanced graphical settings, including 4K resolution, customizable resolution, unlocked FPS, and adjustable down/upscaling. These features enhance the visual experience for players with high-end hardware.

Graphical and visual bugs: There are various graphical issues reported, including camera angle bugs, minor visual bugs, and lack of good anti-aliasing. These issues detract from the overall visual experience.

Recommended for SRPG and JRPG fans: This game is highly recommended for fans of anime JRPGs, turn-based strategies, and tactical RPGs. It is particularly suggested for those who enjoy games like Fire Emblem and other strategy RPGs.

Recommended for both veterans and newcomers: The game is highly recommended for both longtime fans of the series and newcomers to the genre. It appeals to a wide audience, including those familiar with the original game and those new to the franchise.

Worth buying on sale: The game is considered worth buying, especially when it is on sale, offering good value for money.

Play additional chapter post-completion: Players are advised to play the additional chapter after completing the main chapters to get the full experience.

Save frequently: Players are advised to save their progress often to avoid losing significant progress in the game.

Community fair range: $20.00 - $40.00.

Game completion: 40.0h.

Endgame: 15.0h.

The game has a slow start with a boring story but becomes highly engaging and fun as players progress, particularly around the 60% mark where the game picks up its serious tone.

Reported time to anchor: 3h.

Friction: Slow start; Boring and repetitive story; Repetitive character models; Tedious missions.

Unlock drivers: Complex and engaging battles; Strategic planning and thinking ahead; Progression of the story.

Newcomer Strategist: Enjoys turn-based strategy games with a strong narrative. Motivation: Strong story and fun gameplay. Stance: buy.

Franchise Veteran: Enjoys deep turn-based strategy with a focus on story and character development. Motivation: Nostalgia and improvement over previous games. Stance: buy.

Accessibility Advocate: Enjoys accessible yet challenging turn-based strategy games. Motivation: Accessibility and beginner-friendly gameplay. Stance: buy.

Steam Deck: The analysis of user feedback reveals significant issues with controller compatibility and stability on the Steam Deck. Users reported crashes, incorrect button recognition, and difficulties with control configurations. However, there were also positive reviews highlighting the game's excellent performance and controls on the Steam Deck.

Linux and Proton: The game runs exceptionally well on the Steam Deck, indicating strong compatibility with Proton/Linux.

Monetization: The primary concerns among users revolve around the high base price of the game and the additional cost of DLC, which together make the game feel overpriced and incomplete without extra purchases. Many users suggest waiting for a sale or comparing it to other similar games that offer better value. The perception of the game being an exact copy of the first one also contributes to the dissatisfaction with its pricing.

Desire for previous games: There is a significant wish among players for previous games in the series to be made available on Steam.

Spoilers in start screen: Players have reported that the initial game start screen contains spoilers, which can affect the gaming experience.