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BATTLE SYSTEM
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INTERACTION
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ORIGINALITY
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STORY
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MUSIC & SOUND
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VISUALS
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CHALLENGE
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Easy to Moderate
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COMPLETION TIME
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40 to 50 hours
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OVERALL
4.5/5
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Rating definitions
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Valkyrie Profile 2: Silmeria has an impressive set of credentials to recommend it. Possessed of a high-energy,
yet tactically challenging combat system, a unique and unexpected soundtrack, some truly impressive
visuals, and a sharp, well written story, Valkyrie Profile 2: Silmeria is a remarkable title which
should appeal to a wide variety of gamers. However, those expecting an experience similar to Valkyrie Profile: Lenneth will be
disappointed, as most of the gameplay mechanics that made it so unique have been gutted or outright omitted. There are also a few
problems with stiff animation, poor lip sync, and a bit of excess deus ex machina late in the plot, but the game offers an entertaining
and thought-provoking take on the Valkyrie Profile world to those willing to accept the changes it makes to the series.
Valkyrie Profile: Lenneth dealt with the most famous conflict in Norse mythology, that of the
apocalyptic war of Ragnarok. Valkyrie Profile 2: Silmeria takes place well before that era, during a time in which Odin
and the Aesir were at the height of their power, holding sway over both Asgard and Midgard. It focuses on the youngest
of the three Valkyrie sisters, Silmeria, who was banished from Asgard for some unknown transgression against the All-Father and
reincarnated on Midgard as a mere human. However, an error in the transmigration process resulted in Silmeria being bound to the body
of Alicia, the young princess of Dipan, goddess and human co-existing in the same body. A far more traditionally-told story than that
of Valkyrie Profile: Lenneth, this game forgoes the Period system used by its predecessor. It still progresses in chapters, but
time inside each chapter is infinite, which allows for backtracking and level building without fear of running out of time.
Valkyrie Profile 2: Silmeria’s plot deals with some of the same ideas as Valkyrie Profile: Lenneth, but it does so
in a much more focused and concise manner. The cruelty and arrogance of the Aesir is shown through characters like Alicia and Rufus, her
archer companion, both forced to live under constant threat of annihilation due to the whim of the gods. The game is an effective and
well-written tale about the dangers of arrogance and bigotry in the use of power, and the ultimate futility of allowing oneself to be
held servant to those powers. The dialogue is sharp, and the characters develop along interesting and believable lines,
ultimately producing one of the more memorable casts of recent memory. The final stages of the story may not be quite as accessible
to players new to the series as it will be to veterans, but overall, the story stands well on its own as a unique and intriguing tale.
Equipment can link together to form new skills and abilities.
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The game’s combat system is a hybrid between the 2D system of Valkyrie Profile: Lenneth, and the 3D field-style
combat of games like Radiata Stories. When combat is initiated, the player drops into an irregularly shaped 3D playing field,
which can be anything from a wide open plain to a series of small, enclosed corridors, depending on the player’s location. These areas
are highly diverse and creative, incorporating environmental hazards and even hidden passageways for enemies to burst out of. The party
moves around on this field with a large circle to indicate attack range, while enemies have a variety of shapes to indicate where they
can attack. Enemies only move when the player does, though the player can perform a dash to get around troublesome enemies, meaning that the
system isn't entirely real-time. When one
group comes in contact with another, the game switches into a 2D mode of combat which should be familiar to those who have played
Valkyrie Profile: Lenneth. Each character has a limited number of attacks, and is mapped to one of the four face buttons. The trick is
to attack in such a way that each character’s move connects in sequence, forming a combo that fills up the Special Attack bar. When the
bar is full, characters can unleash flashy, highly damaging Soul Crush attacks. Using these attacks in succession, and attempting
to do so every round, is the key to winning most of the tougher boss fights in the game. Normal encounters, however, are not quite
so challenging. Every enemy group has a leader which can be destroyed to immediately end the fight. The game encourages this by use of
a Bonus Gauge, which slowly empties as the fight drags on. Quite simply, the faster the opponent is defeated, the more EXP and Oth is
received.
The system Valkyrie Profile 2: Silmeria uses is highly inventive and challenging, requiring a certain amount of
tactical creativity to use properly. There is still a certain amount of visceral thrill to be had, especially when one considers Break
Mode. Each enemy has specific hit areas that will separate from the foe’s body after taking a certain amount of damage. When this
happens, there is a small chance that the game will enter Break Mode, which will allow the player to make unlimited attacks for a
short period of time, unhindered by the amount of AP the party has. The game actually encourages the player to attempt Break Mode
as often as possible, awarding items for each body part removed from the enemy. These items can be used as skill-teaching accessories,
or in crafting new weapons and armor.
Silmeria uses wall-rebounding photons to freeze her foes.
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One of the things that made Valkyrie Profile: Lenneth such an unusual game was the way in which new characters
were recruited. Lenneth could see the last moments of an Einherjar before their death, meaning that each new character joined the party
fully developed with a unique backstory. This system allowed for an unusually high level of character development, especially
considering the number of characters that were available to be recruited. Valkyrie Profile 2: Silmeria also uses a system of recruiting
Einherjar, but rather than seeking out the souls of those about to die, Alicia can recall the souls of the dead through the items they
carried in life. To this end, weapons belonging to the Einherjar are scattered around dungeons, waiting for Silmeria to come along
and find them. Unfortunately, the game provides only a short couple of paragraphs describing their lives, meaning that the Einherjar are a
largely underdeveloped crowd.
The voice acting on Valkyrie Profile 2: Silmeria is something of a mixed bag. The main characters all have very
solid actors assigned to them, with the vast majority of their work coming off as quite professional and believable. The Einherjar
voices tend to be slightly inferior, but the largest problem with their voices isn’t the level of quality, but rather the fact that most
of the voice clips are re-used for two or more characters. Given that the Einherjar were already suffering from a bit of homogeny, the
lack of distinction amongst their voices causes bit of a problem when trying to get a feel for them as people.
Motoi Sakuraba’s work on Valkyrie Profile 2: Silmeria comes as something of a shock. As a composer more
traditionally known for creating high-energy techno and electronica-inspired pieces, the symphonic style of this soundtrack is
a genuinely pleasant surprise. The music works extremely well in its setting, creating a slightly melancholy feel to go with the towns
and fields, while the dungeon themes tend to be a bit more hard-driving, adding in electric guitars and other decidedly non-symphonic
elements. The most unusual tracks, however, are the combat themes. Widely considered to be Motoi Sakuraba’s strongest point as a
composer, the combat themes of Valkyrie Profile 2: Silmeria still hold to his energetic style, but show a degree of flexibility not
previously attributed to his work.
Alicia's wide-eyed enthusiasm plays well against Silmeria's determined cynicism.
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Control is probably the most significant improvement over the previous title. Where Lenneth had trouble
jumping precisely and dodging environmental traps, Silmeria’s control is solid, responsive, and intuitive. There are certain issues in
combat, with characters getting hung up on obstacles more often than is strictly comfortable, but it isn’t a horrible issue. Translation
is very good, and as far as can be told, without error. It still has a touch of the old-style speech that typified dialogue
in Valkyrie Profile: Lenneth, but it mostly forgoes the melodramatic style of it’s predecessor in favor of a more naturally flowing
script.
The visual style of Valkyrie Profile 2: Silmeria is significantly more coherent than that of Valkyrie Profile:
Lenneth, abandoning hand-drawn character portraits and anime influence for extremely detailed 3D rendering. This new visual design
presents an impressively realistic world, full of tiny quirks that make it seem alive, such as hanging ivy blowing in the wind, or
the shifting of grass in an open field. Character animation is less solid, however, coming off as jerky and unrealistic at times. The
lip sync is a particularly serious problem, with mouths moving at cross-purposes to the voiced lines, when they bother to move at all.
Valkyrie Profile 2: Silmeria has an unusually variable level of difficulty. In each chapter, the game presents
certain sidequests that offer a chance to significantly improve the party’s abilities. These sidequests are entirely optional, of course,
but not finding or completing them will cause spikes in difficulty that can make the game far more difficult. In addition to this,
Valkyrie Profile 2: Silmeria has a unique New Game + option, wherein the difficulty increases slightly for each new playthrough. Overall,
the game shouldn’t be challenging enough to cause frustration, but it does require some active involvement by the player to keep the
difficulty level in check through the forty to fifty hour play time.
Given the highly unique ideas presented in Valkyrie Profile: Lenneth, the changes in style and gameplay shown by
Valkyrie Profile 2: Silmeria are bound to disappoint some sections of the series' fan base. However, with a unique take on real-time
combat systems, a remarkable musical score, and a memorable cast of characters, Valkyrie Profile 2: Silmeria is highly recommendable
in its own right.
Review Archives
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