Reviews// Valkyria Chronicles II

Valkyria Chronicles was one of the best role-playing games to come out of Japan this generation. Its turn-based strategy gameplay was as addictive as it was challenging, while the watercolour and sketch-style presentation helped tell a deep story sprinkled with many subtle messages about the impact and repercussions of war.

It's just a shame nobody really bought it, isn't it? I've filed that fact under the 'Tragic Injustice' folder over here. Luckily for all of us, Sega saw fit to continue the brand and has followed the 2008 PlayStation 3 classic with a sequel on the PSP. And I won't mince my words here - Valkyria Chronicles II is a truly great game.

The story centres around a group of cadets in Lanseal, a town sporting a military training camp in the neutral country of Gallia. A civil war rages after the ruling monarchy's race was made public (Darcsen – a supposedly 'cursed' race that a lot of people have hangups about), and the military can't get involved. So the local enforcement is looking for as many people as possible to help cool down the flames of angry revolutionists.

Enter Avan Hardings, a fiery go-getter who enrols in the academy to discover the truth behind his soldier brother's death. He is joined by a snooty Darcsen trooper, Zeri, and cheerful engineer Cosette Coalhearth in Class G – the underachievers. As you progress through the story, Class G ends up leading the charge against the rebel army whilst trying to claw themselves through graduation at the same time.

Missions are played out exactly as you would expect from the PlayStation 3 original – before you move any of your soldiers, you're presented with a 2D birds-eye view of the map, with your characters (and enemies, if you can see them) represented as selectable icons. It's a bit like looking at pawns in a war room.

You're assigned a number of Command Points, which you can spend on special orders to turn the tide, or to control anyone in your squad. Selecting a soldier transports you to a 3D battlefield, with the ability to control your chosen character.

An ability gauge limits the distance you can travel, and you can only attack an enemy or make a defensive manoeuvre once per 'command', so you have to be careful about the distance between you and that next bit of cover. Enemies won't be afraid to gun you down if you leave yourself open.

When you review the mission objectives, you get the choice of deciding exactly who in your squad should enter the field. Here's where it becomes an interesting game of rock-paper-scissors – the many soldier classes you can use have advantages and weaknesses against one another. The base classes you start off with include Scouts, Shocktroopers, Engineers, Lancers, Tanks and APCs.

Scouts can travel longer distances, fire rifles and grenades but aren't too strong in defence, while Shocktroopers pack machineguns and can take down powerful Lancers in a spray of bullets. Lancers are anti-tank soldiers, able to blow up vehicles that can otherwise decimate all of your squad.

Engineers are your healers, essentially – they can fix tanks, fix people and fix a bullet in the head of a weakened foe. Engineers used to be able to disarm mines too, but that job has been left to a brand new base class – the Armour Tech. Carrying a huge steel shield and a massive hammer, they essentially act as your Roman Turtle, deflecting heavy fire to help your squad progress.