Today Sega updated the official website of Valkyria Chronicles 4, including a lot of new screenshots.
First of all, we meet a couple of new characters.
Sergio Maskyura (voiced by Masaya Takatsuka) is the military doctor belonging to the Edinburgh Navy, stationed on the snow cruiser Centurion. He used to be a pediatrician at a town hospital before the war. He’s a funny and kind person, but he can become scary when someone tries to escape treatment. His hobby is bodybuilding, boasting the top physical strength on the ship.
Andre Dunoa (voiced by Shin Aomori) is the Chief Engineer aboard the snow cruiser Centurion and also e veteran with thirty years of service, used to serve with Captain Roland for a long time. He’s a stubborn old man who often shouts at his subordinates, but his hand is steady and his ability is very trustworthy. His hobby is alcohol.
We also see and learn a bit more about the story at the beginning of the game.
The story begins on March 6th, 1935. In a flower field located within the territory of the Atlantic Federation the hero Claude Wallace has stopped his tank to take a break and take notes, while his subordinate Raz is resting on the front of the tank. The beautiful landscape seems completely untouched by the war, but Claude has strong intuition and notices that something is amiss, calling it “something in the wind”. Claude immediately prepares a counterattack and positions Squad E in the appropriate formation. Eventually, an imperial attack does come, and Squad E manages to defeat the enemy. Instead of rejoicing for his victory, Claude feels pain looking at the flower field destroyed by the battle.
After the successful counterattack, a new order is waiting for Claude, informing him of a major offensive called “Northern Cross Strategy.” the Atlantic Federation has been losing several battles against the Empire. In order to reverse the situation, the goal is to attack the Imperial capital directly. Claude and his Squad E have been selected to participate, alongside Squad F led by his former classmate Minerva Viktor.
Unfortunately, their advance into Imperial territory grinds to a halt as they reach an Imperial base in a fortified castle. Heavy artillery would be needed to pave the way, but it would take a week for it to get into position. Claude, who feels that speed of crucial to the success of the operation, decides to storm the fortress without waiting for reinforcements.
His decision is influenced by startling information brought by Christel, Minerva’s second in command: Imperial forces have launched an invasion of his motherland, Gallia. The only thing he can do for his country is to complete Operation Northern Cross and end the war as quickly as possible. This is why he left Gallia to volunteer in the Edinburgh Army.
The However, the defenses of the fort appear to be impregnable. Yet, Claude’s childhood friend Riley appears to provide reinforcements with a new artillery weapon named “Grenade Cannon” that can shoot long-range grenades. They were separated when she went to university in the United States of Vinland.
Yet, the reunion between the two is not exactly pleasant. When Claude approaches to greet her, Riley’s expression changes and she gives Claude a rather painful greeting.
On top of this, we also get a look at the menus available in Claude’s quarters. We can access the personnel and weapon files, setting information, and the medals earned during missions.
This reveal includes some really interesting information. First of all, this is the first time that we hear that Claude and Riley are actually from Gallia. The wording is a bit iffy, as the pronoun could have been both about Claude or Christel. The first hint is that Claude’s tank, the Hafen Go, is named after his birthplace, and Hafen definitely sounds like a place in Gallia. The second is more conclusive, as Riley’s profile in the gallery states explicitly that she is from Gallia, and we know that her and Claude hail from the same village.
Another interesting element is the map in the gallery. We finally learn about the “Edinburgh” that we have heard about for a while. Many thought Claude’s army was American-inspired, but this is not the case. The United Kingdom of Edinburgh is basically Valkyria’s version of the real United Kingdom. The equivalent of the United States of America is the United States of Vinland, where Riley studied.
This was caused by the fact that maps of the continent only indicated Dokkum (the equivalent of Great Britain) and Delfziji (the equivalent of Ireland), but not the name of the whole Kingdom, which is indeed United Kingdom of Edinburgh. Now we know, and it’s certainly interesting, as it gives us an indication of what kind of cultural inspiration we can expect.
You can check out the screenshots below. If you want to see more, you can enjoy a trailer showcasing the Imperial cast, another trailer, some videos and art featuring Kai and Raz, more videos revealing Zaiga and Ferie, similar videos and art about Riley, abother reveal about Claude, the latest batch of screenshots focusing on the Snow Cruiser Centurion and her crew, an earlier trailer, some more screenshots from a couple of weeks ago, two recent gameplay videos from Taipei Game Show, the first gameplay footage, a recent trailer showcasing the crossover DLC with the first game, another showing a wide range of gameplay features, the previous batch of screenshots and information, the first trailer, more screenshots, more artwork and info, and the first gallery of images.
Valkyria Chronicles 4 will hit the shelves both in North America and Europe for PS4, Nintendo Switch, and Xbox One in 2018. It will release in Japan for PS4 on March 21st, 2018 and for Nintendo Switch later in the summer.
