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SkyKing's Valkyrie Profile: Lenneth (PSP)
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| [February 9, 2008 02:08:59 AM]
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Gameplay 2:
My guess proved true as I entered battle right after continuation. The battles are very intense and satisfying. Though turn-based, the ability to let any character attack at any time within the player's turn allows for some amazing combos to be created. I am not fully sure how it works yet but it seem when the player strings an especially good combo, characters may preform a devastating finishing move. These finishers are over-the-top and amazing acting as a reward for great playing. The characters even yell out the name of their attack in true anime superfight fashion. My friend, who was bored by the story and cut scenes, rooted and jumped with excitement every time I used a super move to decimate/purify a zombie.
The enemies are strange and I don't know why I am fighting them but they attack me without a second thought. A crystallizing move lets me skip over enemy fights but normal contact takes me to a battle screen. The transition between overworld and battle screen is a bit too long. The minutes before a battle always feeling the longest for soldiers and that seems to have carried over, but not in a good way. Sure the anticipation builds up but the wait gets annoying after a few times. The same pause is apparent in the switch to the menu. I don't like having to wait a few seconds just to check how much life my characters have.
The story has not progressed much seeing as my second hour has been very battle filled. I even took the time to fully search the dungeon for hidden items before confronting the first boss. The boss battle was a good change because I could finally string long combos where minions would die halfway through. I do not understand the blocking system yet and while it was not necessary for this first boss, I assume it will become essential later on.
So far, the game has been very interesting and I plan to continue.
Design:
Valkyrie Profile: Lenneth, while an RPG game, has some very clever aspects to set it apart from the pack. First off, the art design in this game is simply amazing. To pack so much emotion into little sprites take genius. The characters yells, laugh, scream, cry, and express emotions that sprites rarely touch. The backgrounds are wonderful, using depth to create atmosphere and a full world beyond the linear path the player travels on. The CGI cutscenes, though infrequent, were well directed and brought more depth to Lenneth.I have never played a PSP game before but and am thoroughly impressed with the graphics.
The music is similar to many RPG's so far but the voice acting is new. I was very surprised when I heard my sprites talking to me, which I shouldn't have been in this era of games, but the voice actors could have done a tighter job. The awkward spaces between sentences and the sometimes wrong inflections slightly tug me away from the magic circle. The music sets the atmosphere well but breaks no new ground so far.
The level design is interesting is for there is a hidden platforming aspect to the game. While traversing through the dungeon, the player must dodge enemies and spikes to get the boss. If the player comes into contact with enemies they must fight and contact with spikes means a loss in health.
I have not used the menu very much so far but I plan to fully customize my characters soon as I start playing again.
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| [February 9, 2008 12:57:55 AM]
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Summary:
Valkyrie Profile: Lenneth is a story-driven RPG by Square Enix that was remade for the PlayStation Portable. In this game the player takes the role of Lenneth, a goddess who hears the pain of humans near death and guides the souls of the dead. The game implements a turn-based battle system with individual characters mapped to different buttons.
Gameplay:
A few weeks back I played the RPG The Elder Scrolls: Oblivion and though it shares the genre title, Valkyrie Profile: Lenneth is on the opposite side of the spectrum. While Oblivion threw right into the game with no story, I am one hour into Lenneth and have only fought one battle. This game is very heavily story based. The only times I had control of the characters were when I had to walk from one cutscene location to another cutscene location.
That being said, the animations, CGI, and overall art is amazing. I sat in awe, enthralled by the beauty of this world presented to me, as the intro progressed. The voice acting is a little slow paced but helps match voices to the incredible character artwork. The stories of the characters themselves are very interesting but I'm positive there is much, much more I will learn. I have not found a character that I can connect with yet ( the swordsman is a bit to pugnacious and the girl too whiny and arrogant) but as Lenneth leads more to the land of the dead, my party shall grow and my favored character shall be discovered.
Thankfully the story is interesting for I have been exposed to almost no gameplay. With a boring story, I would have turned this game off long ago. The Norse mythology with Japanese culture mix is interesting for a setting but may grow forced in time. The visit to the Japanese restaurant was funny, a main character screamed for the manager at her raw sashimi, but I'd rather see inclusion through samurai party members and weapons.
As I have finally reached a save point, I assume some battle is to follow. I can't wait for this because the battle system seems very interesting so far.
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SkyKing's Valkyrie Profile: Lenneth (PSP)
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Current Status: Playing
GameLog started on: Friday 8 February, 2008
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