Valkyria Chronicles 4 (PS4/Switch/Xbone, 2018)

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Immryr
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Re: Valkyria Chronicles 4 (PS4/Switch/Xbone, 2018)

Post by Immryr »

why is it so important to have 60fps on a turn based game? doesn't seem like the end of the world to me, even if it is pretty surprising they can't hit 60fps.
ZellSF
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Re: Valkyria Chronicles 4 (PS4/Switch/Xbone, 2018)

Post by ZellSF »

It's still a game with 3D camera movement. For gameplay it doesn't make a difference, but visually it makes a huge difference.

It's sort of like if the game would be 480p only.
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Re: Valkyria Chronicles 4 (PS4/Switch/Xbone, 2018)

Post by Infiltrator »

Finally snatched the PS4 version of the original a few months back. Guess this is as good time as any to finally fire this game up. Heard many good things about it.
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Immryr
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Re: Valkyria Chronicles 4 (PS4/Switch/Xbone, 2018)

Post by Immryr »

i played about an hour and a half of the demo today. it's good. i don't see why anyone who liked the first game would not like this judging by what i have seen so far.

-edit- just got done with the demo, it's about 4 hours or so if you do the skirmishes and bonus mission. all good stuff. i like the new troop type, well i say new, i dunno if you could get a grenadier in 2 and 3 as i haven't played them.

i'm pretty confident the game is gonna be good.
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Re: Valkyria Chronicles 4 (PS4/Switch/Xbone, 2018)

Post by evil_ash_xero »

I played the demo, and it was quite good.

It was easy though. I've asked a lot of importers, and they say the overall game has similar difficulty to the first game.

If anyone can chime in on that, once they've played it for a while....that's be groovy.
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Re: Valkyria Chronicles 4 (PS4/Switch/Xbone, 2018)

Post by ZellSF »

The PC version despite some worrying signs is apparently pretty good. Sadly I can't comment on it personally as I got the PS4 version. The PS4 version I would say isn't very good. At that graphic quality and 30 FPS, a PS4 Pro should not have this much aliasing.

General thoughts about the game is pretty much as expected. It's a "sequel" that plays it very, very safe. If you like Valkyria Chronicles, it's pretty much the same thing, with some mechanical improvements. Story I think starts weaker, but ends stronger (sort of, see spoilers). Graphically I think it looks fantastic, but the music is a disappointment. I'm really struggling to remember a single track from the game.

Difficulty wise it's very much Valkyria Chronicles: a very casual game. You might have to replay a few missions since it also does Valkyria Chronicles' random surprises during the map, but once you know what a map is about there's no way you should struggle. Level design is a huge improvement from Valkyria Chronicles.

Oh and a FYI: It does some true ending bullshit, where after you finish the game you can load your game, watch a few scenes and replay a harder version of the final boss battle that gets you the true ending. I don't think there's New Game+ as you can now replay story battles anytime you want to and post-game resurrect characters.

The biggest weakness of the game I felt, was the twins and the villain. They felt like cartoon characters that doesn't belong in a game that takes itself sort of seriously.
Spoiler
I think the game would have been much better if it ended before the submarine appeared. Especially since after that it goes on about the origin story, where Claude thinks he made a mistake from preventing a child from running into a burning factory. This is also the cause of some initial conflict between those two characters. Maybe I missed something, but it seems Claude did the right thing and shouldn't have any issues with it and Riley shouldn't be mad at him either?
Also it wasn't Valkyria Chronicles III, which is clearly a much better game. Sort of inevitable though, people are way too graphic-obsessed to tolerate a console iteration of Valkyria Chronicles III.
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Blinge
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Re: Valkyria Chronicles 4 (PS4/Switch/Xbone, 2018)

Post by Blinge »

ZellSF wrote:Also it wasn't Valkyria Chronicles III, which is clearly a much better game. Sort of inevitable though, people are way too graphic-obsessed to tolerate a console iteration of Valkyria Chronicles III.
III was that good??
Damn! :o
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Durandal
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Re: Valkyria Chronicles 4 (PS4/Switch/Xbone, 2018)

Post by Durandal »

ZellSF wrote: Sort of inevitable though, people are way too graphic-obsessed to tolerate a console iteration of Valkyria Chronicles III.
It always struck me as funny how well the VC franchise embodied the usual whiplash trajectory in terms of style when headed by people who aren't sure where to take it next.

"Our first game was an astounding success, must've been because of all the cute girls. Let's up the ante on those battle waifus and rev up that high school setting!"
"Okay, fuck, that was a terrible mistake. No more cute girls, no more high school shenangians, and no more fun allowed. The people have spoken and they want a SERIOUS and REALISTIC game."
"I don't know anymore man, what more do you want from us? Do you want VC1 again? Because that's what you're getting."
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Re: Valkyria Chronicles 4 (PS4/Switch/Xbone, 2018)

Post by Blinge »

JP only release for III was probably a factor. just sayin.
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Re: Valkyria Chronicles 4 (PS4/Switch/Xbone, 2018)

Post by evil_ash_xero »

Blinge wrote:
ZellSF wrote:Also it wasn't Valkyria Chronicles III, which is clearly a much better game. Sort of inevitable though, people are way too graphic-obsessed to tolerate a console iteration of Valkyria Chronicles III.
III was that good??
Damn! :o
No. I mean....even if you look past the MASSIVE repetition of maps...it's still not as good as 1.
The story is interesting though. I cannot deny that.

As for this game, the little I've played, Raz sure does have a potty mouth. :lol:
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Re: Valkyria Chronicles 4 (PS4/Switch/Xbone, 2018)

Post by Steamflogger Boss »

Durandal wrote:
ZellSF wrote: Sort of inevitable though, people are way too graphic-obsessed to tolerate a console iteration of Valkyria Chronicles III.
It always struck me as funny how well the VC franchise embodied the usual whiplash trajectory in terms of style when headed by people who aren't sure where to take it next.

"Our first game was an astounding success, must've been because of all the cute girls. Let's up the ante on those battle waifus and rev up that high school setting!"
"Okay, fuck, that was a terrible mistake. No more cute girls, no more high school shenangians, and no more fun allowed. The people have spoken and they want a SERIOUS and REALISTIC game."
"I don't know anymore man, what more do you want from us? Do you want VC1 again? Because that's what you're getting."
This makes me sad, mainly because it is extremely true. And don't even talk to me about Revolution.
Immryr wrote:why is it so important to have 60fps on a turn based game? doesn't seem like the end of the world to me, even if it is pretty surprising they can't hit 60fps.
I realize this post was awhile ago. My question would be, why NOT have 60fps. It's doable. To me a good stable framerate is more important than as far as they can push the graphics. Plus, this game isn't pushing anything graphically, so the fact that the framerate is bad boils down to what, just someone being bad at their job? Still looks like a blast though, and I'm going to play it when I'm done with some other games I need to wrap up.
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Re: Valkyria Chronicles 4 (PS4/Switch/Xbone, 2018)

Post by evil_ash_xero »

I'm not entirely sure why it doesn't do 60fps...at least on Pro. I mean, Monster Hunter World is ranging in the 40s.

I'm playing it on PC, so.....

It seems like at this point in the gen, you gotta have a PC to run just about anything at 60fps. Which is frustrating, as I like consoles moreso.
When Shantae: Half Genie Hero has noticeable frame drops, on a Pro in boost mode...you know you're gonna be disappointed a lot with console performance.

I tend to use my PS4 Pro for exclusives or Remasters, and the PC for new releases. I'm sure when PS5 comes out, it'll be the same thing all over again.
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Re: Valkyria Chronicles 4 (PS4/Switch/Xbone, 2018)

Post by ZellSF »

Blinge wrote:
ZellSF wrote:Also it wasn't Valkyria Chronicles III, which is clearly a much better game. Sort of inevitable though, people are way too graphic-obsessed to tolerate a console iteration of Valkyria Chronicles III.
III was that good??
Damn! :o
Well it was that good, but it was also different. II and III were much more focused on gameplay mechanics than I & IV. I & IV has much better presentation values, but often at the expense of gameplay.
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Re: Valkyria Chronicles 4 (PS4/Switch/Xbone, 2018)

Post by Blinge »

Update time!
Did anyone actually play through 4 and can they comment on if game good / bad ?

I chucked VC1's main theme on youtube earlier and it hit me right in the feels o_o
Flashbacks to playing it in snowy winter 2010 or 11 and wishing I was at war with my anime buddies about to take a bullet and die. :lol:
but at least I could've said I lived.
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Re: Valkyria Chronicles 4 (PS4/Switch/Xbone, 2018)

Post by Steamflogger Boss »

Blinge wrote:Update time!
Did anyone actually play through 4 and can they comment on if game good / bad ?

I chucked VC1's main theme on youtube earlier and it hit me right in the feels o_o
Flashbacks to playing it in snowy winter 2010 or 11 and wishing I was at war with my anime buddies about to take a bullet and die. :lol:
but at least I could've said I lived.
It's great. PLAY IT.
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Re: Valkyria Chronicles 4 (PS4/Switch/Xbone, 2018)

Post by ZellSF »

I've already commented on it and my opinion hasn't changed over time: Valkyria Chronicles 4 attempts to be a ridiculously safe sequel to Valkyria Chronicles 1 (while pretending 2 & 3 doesn't exist). I think most people who liked 1 will like 4.

Still really disappointed there was no official soundtrack release for 4. Not even a digital release.

Also couldn't comment on the PC version earlier and I have played that some now and it's pretty good. If you have a decent PC it's definitely the way to play it, 120FPS and 4K support. Ultra-wide support too. Only thing that was sort of bad in my very limited testing of the PC version was that UI scaling was just nearest. So non-1080p integer scales look bad:
https://steamcommunity.com/app/790820/d ... 836183823/
Obviously downscaling fixes that, but that does require better hardware.
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Re: Valkyria Chronicles 4 (PS4/Switch/Xbone, 2018)

Post by Sengoku Strider »

The first VC was my favourite rpg of that generation. I really loved it, 100%ed except for that last mission of the Edy dlc which I just couldn't seem to crack. It was one of those rare games where when finishing it, instead of a sense of accomplishment I was mostly just sad that it was over.

The second game I tried so hard to like. I was willing to look past the change in art style and move to Persona-fy things with the school section. What got me in the end was how much it wanted me to grind & grind & grind the same few (small) maps. I just put it down one day and never went back.

Didn't play III because I sold off my PSP in like 2007 (bad choice in hindsight, that was just when it started getting really good) and didn't have a JP account on my Vita.

Tried the demo of Revolution and was turned right off.

Haven't bought 4 yet, I've been thinking of getting it physical on Switch, does anyone have any experience with that version?
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Re: Valkyria Chronicles 4 (PS4/Switch/Xbone, 2018)

Post by Blinge »

Okay Steamflogz but i might just buy 1 on Steam and play that through again. :lol:

guess i'm being hit by nostalgia for a ps3 game how the fuck. Anyway I heard 60fps makes the intercept fire double as much and makes the game impossible? Obscura reports not being able to throw a grenade further than a few inches..

Anyone got experience with the steam version ?
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Re: Valkyria Chronicles 4 (PS4/Switch/Xbone, 2018)

Post by ZellSF »

Blinge wrote:Okay Steamflogz but i might just buy 1 on Steam and play that through again. :lol:

guess i'm being hit by nostalgia for a ps3 game how the fuck. Anyway I heard 60fps makes the intercept fire double as much and makes the game impossible? Obscura reports not being able to throw a grenade further than a few inches..

Anyone got experience with the steam version ?
It's not a great port, but it's serviceable. The interception fire damage scaling badly at higher framerates was fixed with patches, but 60 FPS still feels a bit off, though I can't put my finger on why.
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Re: Valkyria Chronicles 4 (PS4/Switch/Xbone, 2018)

Post by ZellSF »

I think I would definitely recommend the PS4 version to newcomers to the series, not that Blinge was asking about that. It has a rather annoying UI scaling problem and no PS4 Pro support, but it feels much more polished than the PC version and doesn't have the shit framerate/resolution of the PS3 version.

I should note my main problem with the PC version: cutscenes stutter at 60Hz, they only playback properly if the game is limited to 30 FPS. Edit: well I sort of fixed that by scripting FPS Limiter to limit framerate to 30 in cutscenes.

Edit 2: also while the game supports 60 FPS, it's important to mention that 59.94hz (which you would ideally want for cutscenes) is mildly broken. Text / symbols in targeting info will be washed out.
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