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Valkyria Chronicles |OT| Beautiful art meets genre-redefining gameplay

Hcoregamer00

The 'H' stands for hentai.
Yazuka said:
Huh?! Why would you do that?

Because good official art of anything related to the game is few and far in-between.

So if we were to continue this trend of posting game art, it would eventually go to crappier art.
 
I feel like I'm apart of something special just by knowing about this game before its release. I've never felt this way before about an upcoming game. It is like i know I am laying witness to a sleeper hit unfolding before my very eyes.
 

Yazuka

Member
Hcoregamer00 said:
Because good official art of anything related to the game is few and far in-between.

So if we were to continue this trend of posting game art, it would eventually go to crappier art.
Ah, well that's true. =/
Didn't think of that. Oh, well.
 

Hcoregamer00

The 'H' stands for hentai.
Dr. Kitty Muffins said:
I feel like I'm apart of something special just by knowing about this game before its release. I've never felt this way before about an upcoming game. It is like i know I am laying witness to a sleeper hit unfolding before my very eyes.

That is what I felt about Phoenix Wright.

I saw the trailer in E3 '05 and I knew that the game would be special, and I was right. Unfortunately it sold like crap in the beginning and it only took world of mouth to get 5 subsequent printings to fulfill demand.

I hope Valkyria wont sell like crap to become a classic to a small audience.
 

Tiktaalik

Member
Does anyone else think that releasing this game at this time is a huge mistake? I'm well within the market that Sega is hoping to sell this to, but even I am not going to pick it up until well after the holiday game rush.
 

Hcoregamer00

The 'H' stands for hentai.
Tiktaalik said:
Does anyone else think that releasing this game at this time is a huge mistake? I'm well within the market that Sega is hoping to sell this to, but even I am not going to pick it up until well after the holiday game rush.

Looking at my post history

Hcoregamer00 said:
So true,

Valkyria Chronicles is a high budget game (that will likely receive some critical acclaim), and you know it will sell like SHIT.

As much as I want the game to succeed and sell 300,000+ copies, there is no chance in hell. The game will likely not even get past 150k, especially since Sega is stupid enough to publish it in November, instead of September like originally planned. Good job guys, put a big budget strategy RPG right between big Sony games like Resistance 2.

Hcoregamer00 said:
True, and Sega should have launched Valkyria Chronicles in August/September before the Sony lineup is released.

After all, when someone has to choose between Resistance 2 and Valkyria Chronicles, they would likely chose R2. As opposed to the PS3 lineup in August that is pretty barren except for D3, and Valkyria definitely has more potential to go "mainstream" compared to every other SRPG out there.

Never mind, I should rephrase that. They had the potential to go "mainstream" but wont because they were stupid enough to release it in November. It is a horrible decision for two main reasons:
1. It is right after the JRPG onslaught on other platforms, and most RPG gamers have more than just the PS3 console.
2. It is in between the Sony lineup, which is absolutely stupid because the same people who would buy these games may be privy to experiment if the game was released in a dead zone.

Valkyria will be a bomba, quote me on it. Shove it in my face if the game sells more than 300,000 copies in the USA. Hell, you can even ban me for week if that proves to be true.
 

speedpop

Has problems recognising girls
If it sells or not is really of no consequence to me, I merely get to enjoy a game I've been waiting a good while to play. I'll let the sales worry the executives at the company and the sales crew on several gaming forums.

Just hope that Sega take the engine by the scruff of the neck and make more games using it.
 

toneroni

Member
speedpop said:
If it sells or not is really of no consequence to me, I merely get to enjoy a game I've been waiting a good while to play. I'll let the sales worry the executives at the company and the sales crew on several gaming forums.

Just hope that Sega take the engine by the scruff of the neck and make more games using it.
well......

we would like it to sell well so they can be rewarded for their work and keep making games like this.
 

Hcoregamer00

The 'H' stands for hentai.
speedpop said:
If it sells or not is really of no consequence to me, I merely get to enjoy a game I've been waiting a good while to play. I'll let the sales worry the executives at the company and the sales crew on several gaming forums.

Just hope that Sega take the engine by the scruff of the neck and make more games using it.

Yeah, but the last statement really is determined by sales.

If Valkyria fails in sales, they will likely blame the sales on the "anime" art style. That could mean that the engine will be scrapped and it dies right there.

On the other hand, selling well will ensure that the game gets sequels and they will create more games like this.
 

el Diablo

Banned
Tiktaalik said:
Does anyone else think that releasing this game at this time is a huge mistake? I'm well within the market that Sega is hoping to sell this to, but even I am not going to pick it up until well after the holiday game rush.

Nope. Great timing as far as i'm concerned, people who want an original next gen (sorry Disgaea 3) JP styled S/RPG will finally have it (been waiting since launch myself). The fact that it's around the holidays gives you no excuse not to buy it.

For the record though i don't see this doing anything special sales wise which is going to be a shame.
 

Hcoregamer00

The 'H' stands for hentai.
Fournier said:
It will be my first RPG for PS3 :)

Unless your first RPG is Eternal Sonata, Disgaea 3, or Enchated Arms, then your First RPG is this game.

el Diablo said:
Nope. Great timing as far as i'm concerned, people who want an original next gen (sorry Disgaea 3) JP styled S/RPG will finally have it (been waiting since launch myself). The fact that it's around the holidays gives you no excuse not to buy it.

I agree, if anything, this game should have priority over other PS3 games by virtue of it being an Exclusive AAA evolution of the Strategy RPG genre.
 

Durante

Member
Tiktaalik said:
Does anyone else think that releasing this game at this time is a huge mistake? I'm well within the market that Sega is hoping to sell this to, but even I am not going to pick it up until well after the holiday game rush.
I don't get this argument. it seems to assume that for some reson the other games released around this time are inherently more worthy than VC, and that it can't go up against them. I vehemently disagree. If I could only buy one game in all of October and November this would be it. (Luckily I'm not in such a position)
 

Hcoregamer00

The 'H' stands for hentai.
Durante said:
I don't get this argument. it seems to assume that for some reson the other games released around this time are inherently more worthy than VC, and that it can't go up against them. I vehemently disagree. If I could only buy one game in all of October and November this would be it. (Luckily I'm not in such a position)

What a coincidence, Valkyria is the main game I am buying in November.

The rest of my money is going to buying a Canon Xsi Digital SLR.
 
Quixzlizx said:
The story is happening
while someone is flipping through a book
. It's supposed to look flat.

I disagree with that. Art style is driven by story by some degree, but what you're saying is kind of pushing it a bit, especially for this game.

Odin Sphere's tale is happening while a child is reading a book, but none of the art in it seems to illustrate "flat" in fact, quite the opposite. There are many other examples of games' art styles that aren't limited by the story or premise, but I can't think of any off the top of my head right now.

Hcoregamer00 said:
:/

This game should be a priority.

Ohh it definitely is! I'm putting aside purchases such as the new Tomb Raider so that I can get this game.
 

Durante

Member
Valkyria Chronicles isn't flat, in fact it has very well done and unique shadowing. That those shadows are subdued is an artistic choice that, in my opinion, goes well with the whole sketchbook-style presentation. You obviously disagree, but it's clearly a matter of taste. I for one prefer the original look of the screenshot to the one you "improved".
 
I agree with everyone else the demo was really solid, and I was surprised by how much I ended up enjoying it. I really dig the art style and the music was very well done and had a great RPG feel to it.

Sleeper Hit of the Year.
 

Chris R

Member
Any way to speed the game play up in the full version? I enjoyed the demo, other than the fact that it was way too slow.
 
Durante said:
Valkyria Chronicles isn't flat, in fact it has very well done and unique shadowing. That those shadows are subdued is an artistic choice that, in my opinion, goes well with the whole sketchbook-style presentation. You obviously disagree, but it's clearly a matter of taste. I for one prefer the original look of the screenshot to the one you "improved".

Well, sketchbook shadows can still be darker to give it more definition and value. I haven't done anything other than provide more definition. Honestly, when I was painting it, there were some areas where I couldn't tell if it was in front or behind something, or even what the shape was supposed to be.

I'm not saying that I don't like the art style. I honestly think that having a little more contrast would help with the depth, and make things pop much better.

Even in your own avatar, Durante, you can see the distinct shadows defining a round Prinny tummy, and the ground on which their feet stand on.
 

Yazuka

Member
Hcoregamer00 said:
Thats okay, they get the game early, but we got the artbook/world guide

What? Even more info I've missed? =(
So is that artbook going to come with every US version of the game? If then I'm really going to wait for the US date and import as usuall.
 

Durante

Member
rhfb said:
Any way to speed the game play up in the full version? I enjoyed the demo, other than the fact that it was way too slow.
What do you mean? I found it very quick for an SRPG. What specific part could be faster? The menus are already very responsive and well laid out and the characters move as quickly as possible while still being able to control them and retaining some kind of "realistic" animation.
 

el Diablo

Banned
Durante said:
I don't get this argument. it seems to assume that for some reson the other games released around this time are inherently more worthy than VC, and that it can't go up against them. I vehemently disagree. If I could only buy one game in all of October and November this would be it. (Luckily I'm not in such a position)

It's based on the argument that the other titles are big budget franchises that people already know. I have a sliver of hope for VC though because it's in a genre by itself. Resistance 2, Gears 2, Fallout 3, all those games are aimed at a totally different audience. I keep hearing that J-S/RPGs are dead and that there's no market for them, yet i constantly hear people bitch about the lack of them on the PS3. Hopefully these people will put their money where their mouth is (i will be) and delay the purchase of yet ANOTHER FPS for VC.

shift J said:
Just a heads up, it's in Circuit City's 11/9-11/15 ad for only $44.99!

Well if they don't have the artbook guess i'll have to bring this over to gamestop and get them to pricematch it. At $45 there is absolutely no reason that people interested in this game shouldn't buy it.

Speaking of the artbook what are the details on this? Is it Gamestop only? Is it shipping before the game, is it a release day first come first served pickup or what? This info would be really helpful in the OP.
 
el Diablo said:
It's based on the argument that the other titles are big budget franchises that people already know. I have a sliver of hope for VC though because it's in a genre by itself. Resistance 2, Gears 2, Fallout 3, all those games are aimed at a totally different audience. I keep hearing that J-S/RPGs are dead and that there's no market for them, yet i constantly hear people bitch about the lack of them on the PS3. Hopefully these people will put their money where their mouth is (i will be) and delay the purchase of yet ANOTHER FPS for VC.

i agree completely
Resistance 2 is guaranteed to sell in it's millions, that purchase can wait, people should support the so called 'dying genre' and chose VC as the priority.
 

Tiktaalik

Member
Durante said:
I don't get this argument. it seems to assume that for some reson the other games released around this time are inherently more worthy than VC, and that it can't go up against them. I vehemently disagree. If I could only buy one game in all of October and November this would be it. (Luckily I'm not in such a position)

The argument is valid because SRPG fandom is extremely niche, even among hardcore gamers. For an SRPG to do really well it has to go above and beyond folks like yourself (with Disgaea avatars) and also draw in folks like myself, which have bought many SRPGs in the past, such as Fire Emblem, FFTactics, and Advance Wars, but for whom the genre remains of smaller interest when compared to other genres.

If Sega has planned this game with a budget so that it can be profitable on only the backs of super hardcore SRPG fans that would have this game as #1 on their list, then Sega is in good shape. However if Sega is hoping for sales from hardcore gamers where SRPGs are only #3 or #4 on their favourite genre list, they could be in trouble, since so many other games in other genres of interest to hardcore gamers are coming out in this time frame.

Considering how high budget the title looks, It's certainly possible that it can't be profitable without drawing in hardcore gamers that are not SRPG fans first, so that's why I'm questioning the release date. It probably could have been better to release when there was a lighter schedule, so that hardcore gamers would have less offerings to look at, and a high quality SRPG would rise to the surface as a game worth looking at. As it stands it looks to me that it could easily be lost among other high profile titles such as Fable 2, Fallout 3, Little Big Planet, Dead Space and many, many, many more.
 

ukiraros

Member
As Hcoregamer00 mentioned in the demo thread about the artbook. The artbook is already available at my EBGames and I just brought it back home. It's not a hard cover and it's about 32 pages. It's actually pretty nice.
 

el Diablo

Banned
ukiraros said:
As Hcoregamer00 mentioned in the demo thread about the artbook. The artbook is already available at my EBGames and I just brought it back home. It's not a hard cover and it's about 32 pages. It's actually pretty nice.

Weird, looked at the demo thread and it said around Nov. 4 for the book. Called the Gamestop i use if i do preorder as well and they said they haven't seen any yet, hopefully you just got lucky heh. Really don't feel like calling everyday between now and release looking for this thing :lol
 
Tiktaalik said:
The argument is valid because SRPG fandom is extremely niche, even among hardcore gamers. For an SRPG to do really well it has to go above and beyond folks like yourself (with Disgaea avatars) and also draw in folks like myself, which have bought many SRPGs in the past, such as Fire Emblem, FFTactics, and Advance Wars, but for whom the genre remains of smaller interest when compared to other genres.

If Sega has planned this game with a budget so that it can be profitable on only the backs of super hardcore SRPG fans that would have this game as #1 on their list, then Sega is in good shape. However if Sega is hoping for sales from hardcore gamers where SRPGs are only #3 or #4 on their favourite genre list, they could be in trouble, since so many other games in other genres of interest to hardcore gamers are coming out in this time frame.

Considering how high budget the title looks, It's certainly possible that it can't be profitable without drawing in hardcore gamers that are not SRPG fans first, so that's why I'm questioning the release date. It probably could have been better to release when there was a lighter schedule, so that hardcore gamers would have less offerings to look at, and a high quality SRPG would rise to the surface as a game worth looking at. As it stands it looks to me that it could easily be lost among other high profile titles such as Fable 2, Fallout 3, Little Big Planet, Dead Space and many, many, many more.

The most probable reason is because November is basically release month. It's an almost unbreakable pattern of Black Friday. You want to tag as many shoppers as you can to buy the game for the holiday season.

Sega doesn't have to worry about the hardcore SRPG gamers out there. Their marketing tactics have been to bombard us with PSN trailer downloads and freebie promo wallpapers and themes. Admit it, you were pretty much sold when you first saw glimpses of this game.

In terms of FPS players and other hardcore gamers, let me put it this way - FPS is a tried and true formula. People will continue to flock to it like how people continue to buy NHL 98 -er I mean NHL 08. Sega fighting this mindless crowd is a lost cause.

I think that their target for this release date is actually the semi-casual gamer. The art style, the ingeniously simple gameplay, and cleverly attractive character design, not to mention a flashy high contrast box art is aimed at people who don't know much about the game but are curious enough to give it a try, or to buy it for their significant others.

It's the same reason why people buy those Petz or Cooking Mama games.
 

Quixzlizx

Member
el Diablo said:
It's based on the argument that the other titles are big budget franchises that people already know. I have a sliver of hope for VC though because it's in a genre by itself. Resistance 2, Gears 2, Fallout 3, all those games are aimed at a totally different audience. I keep hearing that J-S/RPGs are dead and that there's no market for them, yet i constantly hear people bitch about the lack of them on the PS3. Hopefully these people will put their money where their mouth is (i will be) and delay the purchase of yet ANOTHER FPS for VC.



Well if they don't have the artbook guess i'll have to bring this over to gamestop and get them to pricematch it. At $45 there is absolutely no reason that people interested in this game shouldn't buy it.

Speaking of the artbook what are the details on this? Is it Gamestop only? Is it shipping before the game, is it a release day first come first served pickup or what? This info would be really helpful in the OP.

Gamestop does price matching?
 

Durante

Member
So many of you honestly believe that the game would have sold much more in total if they had delayed it until April or May or so next year? Because I don't see the flood of good games in various genres stopping before that. Anyway, I'm certainly happy Sega decided to release it next week.

Also, and this is important, I feel that some may be overestimating the budget of this game - mostly because of HCoregamer's incessant sales bickering :p. Sure, it's no Disgaea, but it's even less of a MGS4. Here's what Faf, an actual developer, said about the cost back in some Media Create thread:
Fafalada said:
That's tech - and tech is cheap (well, relatively speaking).
High-end Art assets aren't - but Val assets are high-end by PS2 generation standards, not PS360 standards.
Note also that he said this about the graphics in the recent demo thread, before you think the game looks bad ;)
Fafalada said:
Great execution across the board. And it looks great to boot (It really looks better in person then any of the videos I've seen in the past).
In other words, the art style and rendering technology allowed them to make an excellent looking game with assets that aren't any more expensive to create than last-gen ones.
 
This game is truly a work of art. I'll be supporting this over the garbage that is fallout 3, thats for sure..(where the devs didn't even make sure to at least give the ps3 players an equal experience to 360 players).

Anyone that loves games or loves what makes gaming great, should buy this game.
 

RpgN

Junior Member
KeioSquad2 said:
Anyone that loves games or loves what makes gaming great, should buy this game.

I love this quote and it's so true. VC reminds me why I love games so much. It's my number one priority for the holiday as well.
 
KeioSquad2 said:
Anyone that loves games or loves what makes gaming great, should buy this game.

WELL SAID. When I played the demo, I found myself really getting absorbed into it, and having a lot more fun, more so than many other games.
 
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