What’s New In Valkyria Revolution? Everything You Need to Know

A Brand New Story and World

Valkyria Chronicles has seen three different entries at this point: one on PS3 and two on the Vita. While all three of these titles are technically in the same world they remain largely unrelated with self-contained stories. Valkyria Revolution, however, cuts all ties by putting things in a brand new world, with new characters, nations, lore, and more.

This means that it’s a brand new experience for fans of the series, and anyone unfamiliar with Valkyria doesn’t have to worry about jumping straight into Valyria Revolution. The game still retains many of the themes and story ideas that are integral to the series, however, with a small country going to war with a large empire. You play as the Vanagard, an elite anti-Valkyria unit in the military of Jutland, which is a small country in the south of Europa. After being put on an economic blockade, Jutland decides to go to war with the Ruzi Empire, the main instigator of the blockade.

Whereas Valkyria Chronicles echoed the era of World War II with a twist, Valkryia Revolution is a fantasy infused version of the industrial revolution. Themes of war, liberation, patriotism, and more all weave into the story of Revolution and the big emphasis of the game is still on storytelling and character development.

Explorable Main City

Valkyria Revolution definitely gives you a bit more control over the main character Amleth than previous entries have. In between battles and missions you’ll get the chance to run around the city of Elsinore, with plenty to occupy your time. Talking to citizens and your party members can give you more context on the story and how the people feel about the ongoing war.

At the same time, you’ll get chances to purchase materials to create new equipment, purchase items, and upgrade your characters and weapons. Besides talking to characters, most of this is what you could do in past Valkryia games, but being able to actually run around the city at your leisure certainly adds more to the experience of Valkyria Revolution.

Circles

Another addition to Valkyria Revolution’s city exploration comes in the way of Circles. These group certain party members and important characters together, and function somewhat like Social Links from the Persona series. Sometimes after returning to Elsinore you can check the Circles option in your main menu. Character will hang out at certain spots in the city when in a circle, and interacting with them will allow you to view a short scene with some character development or humorous conversation.

Of course, seeing story isn’t the only benefit to circles, as you’ll also be granted a reward. Each scene grants you a new tactic for your characters, that you can use to customize the way your party functions in battle. Because of this, it’s definitely in your best interest to be on the lookout for circles meeting up.

Completely New Combat System

The most unique aspect of Valkyria Chronicles was its blend of tactical and action gameplay, and Valkyria Revolution is no different. This time around, however, the focus is much more on the action aspects. You’ll take a party of four characters into each battle scenario, with each character corresponding to a certain class just like previous games.

Battles play out in real time, with you being able to launch basic attacks, guard, and dodge. At the same time, a skill menu is mapped to the triangle button that lets you launch different elemental attacks known as Ragnite, as well as use items, guns, and grenades. Whenever you use the skill menu the action pauses, allowing you to strategize the next move you want to make. Battles can get incredibly hectic in Valkyria Revolution, as tons of enemies get thrown at you. Figuring out and making use of each enemy’s elemental weakness is key, especially when it comes to boss battles.

There’s also a high degree of customization between battles, where you can boost character’s skills and equip them with new Ragnite, Guns, and Grenades. Combat is certainly different from what you’ve seen in past Valkyria games, but Valkyria Revolution has plenty of action and strategy for new and old fans.

History Book Presentation and Optional Scenes

One aspect that remains very similar to past games in Valkyria Revolution, is the book-like presentation. Revolution has an intriguing setup focused on helping you, as well as characters in-game, learn the truth of past events. A history book contains all the scenes and events from the game, and you’ll be able to go back and rewatch anything you might want to. At the same time, optional scenes will be unlocked throughout the game that you can use to get more context or information on the story.

There’s even a second book that allows you to view specific scenes that relate to party members, and will reward you by doing so. There’s a ton of story packed into Valkyria Revolution, so expect to be watching quite a few scenes over the course of the game.