Valkyria Chronicles 4

We are long overdue for a Valkyria Chronicles 5 that builds on this game's formula. Even in 2025 I still find myself coming back to play this occasionally because of the experience it offers.
The gameplay is fun, The Characters are interesting, the music is fitting. Until we get 5, Grab this one.

Of the mainline Valkyria Chronicles games, VC4 is by far my favorite one.
VC1 is a classic, but also very simple gameplay-wise. Especially considering scouts are so over powered. I actually recommend watching the anime adaptation of VC1 over playing the game as the anime gives the characters so much more depth.
VC2 is the worst of the mainline games by a wide margin. Very odd choice to make a PSP sequel to a PS3 game. Overall its very generic, even having a school setting. It is the only game in the series to NOT take place during the Second Europan War.
VC3 is the darkest of the 4 games. You play as the Gallian black ops which are made up of condemned criminals basically being forced to go on suicide missions. It shows Gallia in a very different light. Unfortunately its the only game to not have an English release, so you have to emulate it with the fan translation patch.
VC4 is the most well written of the games in terms of characters. The added gameplay mechanics and larger scale battles really do wonders cause this is the first time we are actually playing on the front line of this war. Its the longest of the 4 games and has an admittedly slow start, but once it gets going, its non-stop enjoyment.

Pretty nice game. It's held back by its ranking system, though.
If you want to get higher ranks, you need to finish missions in the fewest turns possible. That means that you have to rush objectives while ignoring most enemies. Not particularly fun :C

Preface this by saying that I played the original Valkyria Chronicles many years ago on PS3, and also played this one on my PS4 a good many years ago. I own it on my PS4, Switch, and on Steam. Just getting around to playing it again and decided to leave a review on it because I feel I have more than enough hours from the years of playing it on and off to make a few quick generalized takes on it. There was little to no thought to how this all flows, and I typed as I thought of things to say, so I'm sorry for any redundancy in advance. I don't usually write these, but I have a real soft spot for this game, so it deserved me wasting a quick ten minutes to type this up.
In a nutshell, this game is anime WW2 with some "modern" twists, like single-man portable mortars, APCs, and other things I won't get into too much. If anime tropes or style of story telling make you roll your eyes, you will have a hard time enjoying the story and majority of its cutscenes. I can't act like this isn't an anime game, because it very much is, and it's not trying to pretend it isn't in the slightest.
VC4 is not ground breaking, as VC1 existed over ten years ago already and literally invented the system this game is based on... Turn based, infantry-focused WW2 with light elements of tactics and decision making. And usually a tank you can control. But VC4 isn't trying to be ground breaking. It's just an easy to enjoy ride, much like VC1, but with a new story and new characters, who are all very lovable for the most part. So long as you don't try to take VC4 too seriously, you're likely to enjoy it.
With all of that said, mechanically, VC4 feels like a much fresher, more streamlined VC1, with some minor quality of life and overall refinement/slight balance changes. That means it took a tried and generally favorable formula, and +1'd it. The game still suffers from some issues that were in VC1 that veteran players will be familiar with, but for the most part, the foundation makes for an enjoyable game all the same, as the formula was always novel and unique.
Like mentioned before, the game tries to tell a serious story, which it sometimes succeeds in, while sprinkling in the usual anime tropes to help ease the tension between story beats. To an extent, this is present in the gameplay mechanics to a degree. Much like how I feel about the story, if you don't try to take the game too seriously, it's a solid gameplay loop, with a familiar mechanics system that can begin to feel very samey, but missions and circumstances around them are always unique, keeping the gameplay loop fresh. The missions usually reflect what is going on in the story well, usually centered around otherwise decent twists and surprises and character growths. Nothing ever seems to get too stale or overstay its welcome, even on some of the longer missions.
With all that said, the game is 100% weeb trash, if I haven't made that clear enough by now. Much like anyone familiar with the life cycle of an anime fan, you will ultimately realize all anime is trash, but it's enjoyable trash, if you choose to enjoy it and not be a total square who can't enjoy things. This game is no different. It's the box mac and cheese of video games. Very much something you can turn on and jump right into with little to understand outside of fundamental mechanics, something that is easy to consume, low effort to play (generally) and not really need to use your head too much to enjoy it, especially if you play on easy.
All and all, a splendid time for those who either played the original Valkyria Chronicles on PS3, or if you enjoy video games with anime aesthetic and think you'll enjoy a turn based strategy game with an action-oriented twist. The game really does climax around the two thirds of the way in, and it's an absolute blast leading up to it and the resolution after. I'll always love this game, even if it's ultimately anime trash by my otherwise much more mature standards these days.

Overall game is good, story is ok-ish.
Still going to recommend it but there's one big gripe: Your evaluation of a stage (A, B, C) is based on the number of turns it takes to capture the enemy's base camp. There are many large scale battles where you are "punished" with a lower evaluation if you don't try to optimize your run by rushing through the most efficient route to capture the enemy camp in the least number of turns possible. Not to mention many camps are barely guarded with only 1 scout. It's your main camp people, station more troops!
I want to go ham, destroying all the troops and tanks on the map with my flashiest Bollywood moves and be rewarded for it, not slapped with a D in the face (oops)!
In that sense, many covert operation stages give me more thrills. You need to solve the puzzle with limited resources, which is fine. You just can't apply the same puzzle-solving formula to large battlefields where there should be other ways to enjoy them.

Arguably the most underrated anime game series ever. Wish more strategy games had this format of gameplay since it fits so well. Its hard, engaging and funny with a good story that makes you care about your squad mates, enjoyed playing this again now PC. Wished we can get a 5th game soon

A truly unique and engaging tactics game complimented by a great aesthetic and cool setting.
Valkyria Chronicles is a turn-based tactics RPG set in an alternate reality WW2-esque setting, featuring a unique, hybrid take on gameplay and combat, a standout aesthetic/visual style, an engaging story with a good variety of missions, a large cast of fun characters of varying quality with a decent amount of playstyles and synergies, and a great OST.
The real bread and butter of Valkyria Chronicles
Valkyria Chronicles stands out for a few key reasons, but the largest among them would definitely be the gameplay. The "BLiTZ" system is such a cool take on a tactics combat system that allows for a more personal and engaging gameplay loop than most of its contemporaries.
Instead of just clicking on a character and choosing their action through very binary options, you have a mix of a 2D map overview that switches over to a 3rd person view in a 3D environment when a unit is acting. You (and the enemy) have a certain amount of Command Points per phase that can be used to either take a turn with a character, activate orders to buff/heal/support units, or evacuate units from the field/call in more units from your reserves at a camp.
In a turn, you expend the character's Action Points (AP) to move around the map and get one action (attacking/throwing a grenade/using a healing item). Every individual unit's starting AP diminishes each turn they take to the point where they can only take a couple steps on their 4th turn until the next phase. You can take cover, capture camps and interact with environmental objects as a free action, while readying your weapon to shoot switches to a free aim mode, where manually aiming for headshots matters.
During a turn, you don't have completely free reign to just run past enemies to get to a prime position, as passing into range of enemy units triggers interception fire. It's very easy to overextend into a high damage character's range and get shredded before getting to attack or run out of AP in a bad position after taking your action. It works both ways though, and positioning your own units to take advantage of interception during the enemy's turn is a large key to success. Once a character takes aim, interception fire will stop after a short buffer, so sometimes it's worth taking the gamble to burst an enemy down through interception fire.
There's a nice variety of troops that fill different niches.
Scouts are your most versatile troops, boasting the most AP for movement, decent HP, all-rounder rifles with good range and decent damage, and exclusive access to rifle grenades.
Shocktroopers are the other half of the coin from Scouts, with more HP, better defense, decent AP, and are armed with SMGs which absolutely obliterate anyone at close range, as well as flamethrowers to clear groups and enemies in cover. These 2 troop types will typically be your most reliable units.
Lancers serve as an anti-tank unit, equipped with launchers and explosive resistant armor. They do also gain access to AOE anti infantry launchers later on which make them a great bunker buster.
Engineers fill the support role, equipped with an enhanced medkit that can revive downed teammates, a repair tool for tanks, the ability to restore ammo by walking near teammates and defuse landmines. Otherwise, they're very similar to Scouts, with slightly less HP/AP and the same pool of rifles.
Snipers do what you think they would. They have limited AP and are great for deleting priority threats before they become a problem.
Grenadiers are new. They can be outfitted to work against infantry or tanks, and provide strong interception fire for any defensive situations. They're a solid addition to the game, being a great commodity for the player and a very high priority target to contend with.
Last but not least, Tanks. They're vastly improved from VC1 due to only taking 1 CP per turn like every other unit. They can serve as portable cover, take out high priority targets and enemy armor, clear groups with mortars, lock down areas with interception fire and provide cover with smoke. You additionally get access to an APC which allows you to safely transport slower troops across the battlefield.
The Story and Aesthetics
Valkyria Chronicles is set in a fantastical alt-reality universe with many less than subtle analogues to WW2, from the nations, events, equipment and even the battles themselves. It's mostly handled well and the game is rich with interesting world-building. It's all enhanced by the distinct painted, pastel artstyle that matches up well with the theme of the game being a retelling of a war through the medium of the protagonist's journal.
Also pertaining to the gameplay, a significant chunk of the game's runtime is spent in visual novel-style dialogue sequences, as well as a few different varieties of cutscenes. I don't mind it, but it could be a point of contention for some. The story has quite a lot of anime schlock in it, but it manages to reign in it enough to deliver a compelling story with some really strong moments.
The Cast of Squad E
Your squad is made up of a large collection of characters, all of different roles, with different personalities and potentials (character buffs/debuffs that will proc in battle at random or when certain conditions are met). They all have personal stories with extra missions that you unlock by using them enough in missions, which gives a decent reason to branch out and try out different units. A lot of the characters have very one note, trope-y anime personalities, but they're endearing enough that it doesn't really detract from the game that much.
Also just wanted to fit this in here but the uniform designs across all factions are very neat. The game handles its alt-history inspiration well on this front.
Improvements over VC1
Personally, if you were to only play one game in the series, I'd say to play VC4. VC1 still holds up imo and if you have an excess of time and are interested I would recommend playing both as the 1st game starts smaller and sets up the setting better, but the 4th game really improves on what the 1st laid the groundwork for in basically every way.
One of the biggest improvements is the general mission design and being given more slack on A ranking missions. A ranks were really strict in VC1 and it came at a strong detriment because you were basically encouraged to ignore most of the mission and scout-rush the enemy HQ. That's still pretty viable in this game if you really don't feel like engaging with the game as much, but you're given way more leeway to try other strategies or wipe out all enemy units on the map, which is slightly incentivized with certain story missions giving you reward weapons based on killing all enemy leaders/taking all camps/no friendly casualties. I personally love trying to wipe out all the enemies in the levels and capture all the camps, even when there isn't an incentive to do so, so it's nice to not get punished for going above and beyond. The new APC and direct orders allowing one unit to get 2 others to follow them allow for the slower classes to shine as well.
The story is also generally better. It doesn't become lost in its own premise nearly as hard as VC1 does at a few points and it delivers some impactful story beats. There's definitely still a good bit of anime tropes that will make you shake your head, but I was enjoying the game enough to be able to move past them.
Final Thoughts
There isn't really much like Valkyria Chronicles and now I'm hoping that the series gets revived someday. I'd say even at it's normal price, it's worth it, but at a good sale price (like it's currently sitting at during the winter sale), it's an absolute steal with a good 40+ hours of entertainment.