Customer Reviews

Valhalla Knights: Eldar Saga

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

The negative press on this game is overwhelming and it has probably kept some people from buying this game. I am going to address some of the "problems" frequently discussed regarding Valhalla Knights: Eldar Saga and set the record straight.

1. "The graphics are horrible and too dark! I can't see anything!" (one critic even went so far as to say he could barely see the outline of his character while playing the game)

Don't believe this rubbish. Sure, the graphics aren't as good as Super Mario Galaxy, but they aren't horrible either. Just check some screen shots and you will quickly discover that your character is very easy to see. There are some rather dark colors used for the scenery, but they don't interfere with the game. Some enemies do camoflage in the grass and dark colors, but that's not a problem. It's just part of the game and it gives you incentive to pay attention to your surroundings (just like in real life). The only time the screen gets overly dark is when it becomes nighttime, it rains heavily, or both. Doesn't that make sense, though? If you walk outside in heavy rain or in the dark your visibility is limited. Valhalla Knights just tries to be realistic in this regard. I have no need to increase the brightness of my TV to accomodate Valhalla Knights (as another critic claimed was necessary), so I can only assume that critics are playing on 30 year old tvs or they are blind. It's one thing to say that you prefer bright colors to the darker shades of Valhalla Knights, but to say that you can't see anything and that you run into walls on accident as a result is just ridiculous.

2. "The controls are slow and clunky! Fighting is a chore because of the poor fighting mechanic!"

At the beginning of the game this is true to a certain extent. You miss your enemy as much as you land a hit because you attack very slowly and your accuracy is in the dumps. Combos are executed very slowly, and enemies can land several hits before you even get one. However, as you level up your stats (you get skill points to allocate each time you level up) this "problem" is solved. Increasing Dexterity raises accuracy and increasing Speed raises attack speed. It won't be long before you land a hit almost every time and attack at an improved rate. Furthermore, equipping longer weapons gives you better range and different attack styles (thrusting swords use fencing moves, knives use short swings, etc.) and shields give you a good chance of guarding against your enemies. Patience will lead you to being a formidable opponent for virtually any monster.

3. "Boring quests keep the game from being interesting! Killing rabbits and fungi is a joke!"

I've heard multiple people complain about these two quests. Well, guess what. Those are the first two quests in the entire game and are used to make sure you are ready for the bigger quests that open afterwards. One has you meeting up with a mercenary--one of several that you can later hire to accompany you in your adventures (one mercenary at a time, of course)--and getting to the top of one of the mountainous areas in the game (no small challenge considering how weak this guy is when you first meet him). Another sends you looking for a troll that killed the father of a young boy. Trust me, there's plenty of variety and more than enough interesting monsters to fight--Ogres, Dragons, Zombies, Fairies, etc.

4. "The sound effects are annoying (specifically the sound of your footsteps) and make it difficult to enjoy the game!"

I didn't think anything was wrong with the way my footsteps sounded when I started playing. In fact, after reading these complaints I figured I would go back and listen to see what I was missing. Naturally the footsteps weren't annoying to me at all. And if they are annoying to you then just turn down the sound effects volume in the options menu.

In my humble opinion, I really think the people that are bashing this game didn't even try to give it a chance. The longer you play the better the game gets, and I loved it from the very start. The only real problems I have come from the incomplete instruction manual. Several semi-important features don't seem to be explained and required lots of experimentation on my part to figure out. For example, in order to access more than one item from your belt (items that can be used by pressing the "1" button rather than by going through the inventory screen, which doesn't pause the game BTW) you have to HOLD DOWN the "1" button which lets you see all items in your pockets, then you let it go and hit the "2" button to switch which item is available to be used with the "1" button (normally "2" is used to change the camera view). Also, to switch to your secondary weapons you have to hold down "B" (normally to attack) and hit the "-" button. There are also some items I am unable to equip and I don't know why. I'm still trying to discover this issue.

Otherwise I love this game to death. You can choose classes, learn skills, customize stats, customize appearance, master physical and magical combat, use bows (haven't tried this yet), and fight cool monsters. The story may not be anything spectacular, but it doesn't need to be. Valhalla Knights: Eldar Saga is a great game without it.

EDIT: I now know why I couldn't equip certain items. Armor is devided between females (Red triangle) and males (Blue triangle), so that's not a problem. Now that I have beaten the game I can also say that the experience is truly wonderful. There's a classical feel about Valhalla Knights: Eldar Saga, and it kept me hooked. Hopefully more RPGs like this one will come to the Wii in the future.

Worth the wait. It affords customizability and options which have sorely been lacking on the Wii.

Pros:
- First full-fledged RPG for the Wii, almost total control over character capabilities and appearance
- Wii Connect for Co-op play.
- Free-form gameplay (but see below regarding episodic nature)

Cons:
- Limited Wii motion support (shake the remote for a special attack.)
- Depressing brown and grey and green palette
- Limited voice acting

Standards for the genre:
- Tedious initial level-grinding killing mostly harmless critters
- Starting off w/ limited equipment, less money and managing selling stuff and fiddling to determine optimal (or aesthetic) equipment choices
- Mysterious NPCs spouting dubious advice and sharing limited (or obvious) information, episode-based storyline, where certain things have to be achieved before the episode ends

Unique features:
- All characters share a common inventory storage area and money bank
- The customized character's appearance is used in all cut scene animations

I'm sure I'll enjoy playing it until someone makes an RPG w/ the fluid interface and movement of Legend of Zelda Twilight Princess, the dead-on targeting of Link's Crossbow Training, and the swordplay and archery of Wii Sports Resort.

When you first start Valhalla Knights your character is slow and weak. Every time you level up you have to go to the status screen (by pressing down on the D-pad) and distribute your status points. This will make your character stronger and faster. The character you pick at the beginning effects the game more then it seems. If you pick to be a fighter then you will be stronger with swords (it's one of your skills), but if you pick to be a Mage then you won't do much damage with your sword so you need to use magic to do anything significant (the magic is sometimes very helpful against guys with strong physical defense but with a weak Magical defense). One complaint is that at the beginning you have to rely on your mercenary a lot (Cassius).

A lot of people complain about the graphics. In my opinion, the graphics are quite good compared to other games. They complain about how the fog and heavy rain makes it hard to see, but isn't that the point of fog?

Overall I think this game requires patients, if you play the game for a while then it will start to become fun and addictive.

I initially bought this game because it was so cheap. The short part of my review is that if you like RPG's, then spending $12 on this game is a no-brainer; it's totally worth it. Even if you're new to the genre, it's probably worth a try.

I noticed a couple of very interesting things about this game when I started playing it. For one thing, it's not a top tier production. It's not one of those RPG-lite, dazzle-your-pants-off eye candy fests like many popular RPG's today (Final Fantasy comes to mind). This game has character; the graphics are not unbearably amateurish--they're passably professional, but just barely. It's one of those games that's kind of bad, but you like it because it's unique and ends up offering you more than you expected, and it keeps calling you back. If the game lacks anything in style, it more than makes up for it in substance. The more I play this game, the more I am pleasantly surprised by discovering its unfolding depth, and I'm slowly becoming convinced that this is perhaps the best RPG for the Wii among the best RPG releases in recent memory. That's not to say it's a perfect 10, but it succeeds in areas that higher budget RPGs often fail. This is more of a meat-and-potatoes RPG--it's nutritious and filling even if bland.

Somehow this game has managed to pull off a really old-school RPG feel that turns turns out to be extremely satisfying. It offers up a solid, no-frills experience that is sure to please vets of the genre. This is how I remember RPG's being when I was a kid; not because of the graphics, but the way the game plays, is organized, presented, and things like the dialog and characterization. The lack of voice acting is a godsend; I'm sick of games with obnoxious voice acting. With this game you just have to read the dialog and let your imagination take flight; this makes the game more relaxing.

I didn't think we'd get any games like this for the Wii, but I'm pleasantly surprised.

What it lacks in graphics and sound, Vallhalla Knights more then makes up for in gameply with a staggering amount of character customibility.

With 4 races (with 3 locked), 12 classes (with 7 locked), and ten skills per class, the game makes for a dizzying amount of various combinations to be used and experimented with. The number of items and equipment seems infinite, with most items having very few differences stat wise so you can mix and match strictly based on appearance then build up your item yourself at the Dwarf Forge to suit your character type. I cannot stress enough how incredibly deep making your character ends up being.

The graphics are ok, the color palette is horribly washed out (I actually really like the effect though) and the sound effects are simply atrocious; there's no other way to describe them. But if you ever got into playing Diablo II, Phantasy Star Online, Monster Hunter or Demon's Souls, give this game a try. It's what the Wii has been starving for.

Executive summary:

* Fun game that is addictive... if you are a fan of the genre.
* Graphics are not great and story is Japanese; thus foreign to people like me.
* Loved the flexibility in building my character. Strongest part of the game, IMO.
* Deep and involved. No spoon feeding here. The game makes you work to be good.
* Wii controls are not that bad. I beat the game with regular Wii controls. Again, don't expect to pick this game up and master it in 30 minutes. Some people like this, some don't.
* Really nice dungeon set up. Good mix of mobile and immobile mobs.

I got this game about a month ago... I beat both episodes a couple days ago so I finally feel that I can discuss this game with some credibility.

I can say that this game, while not perfect, is addictive and fun to play. But it is not for everyone. If you need graphics and a big story, this game is not for you. If you like to grind, experiment, and build from zero... and you know who you are... then this is a good game. Definately worth the $15 and much better than final fantasy.

If you're looking for a game that is addicting, this is it.

Customizability to the max, in regards to armor, weapons, and many many stats. It' good ol fashioned pen & paper D&D brought to video game.

If you like to solo on World of Warcraft, you'll probably like this.

The sound and graphics aren't on par with the king of video games (WoW), but it is still similar enough to feel at home. The story is good, the gameplay is good, and man oh man is it addicting. I have to force myself to turn it off and go to bed each night.

Hope you'll be the same way. :)

As far as this game goes, it's Valhalla Knights...end of story.

Graphics:
The graphics of this game are sub-par for the Wii. You could find similar graphics on the PSP, which is what Valhalla Knights originally came out for. Textures are lacking, models are poorly created, edges are rough, the whole shibang.

Sound:
I can't really delve into this much, because I normally play with the sound off so my kids don't come running and crawling all over me because I'm testing/playing a game, but the little bit that I did have it on, I noticed that it was just a step above what you would find on the PSP. Not spectacular, in other words.

Gameplay:
The gameplay is what you would find on any Valhalla Knights game. You walk around, you kill stuff, you get items, you sell items, you do missions. Missions on this version of the game are significantly easier compared to previous games, therefore making it more enjoyable. Combat and controls are a little awkward, but that's just standard for Valhalla Knights. The addition of teammates you don't have to create has come in handy, especially if you like soloing games. Battles have been set into the world and you don't have to be mystically teleported to some ring with a forcefield around it. Appraisal of items is also free now, so you can save your much needed money for pretty much anything you want.

Cons:
In order to equip items, you need CP, which you get by gaining levels, so you can't just equip whatever you want at the start, which ALSO means that your character is going to look ridiculous at some point and time due to lack of CP.
Gets a little repetitive.
Prepare to figure out EVERYTHING. The tutorial only goes through the basics of combat and item usage. Everything else you will have to figure out on your own. Have fun!
Lacks direction.

What fun - I have long looked for a Diablo like game for Wii. It isnt Diablo but it's good. :)The background can sometimes be difficult to see --- but it suits the story, it's night or rainging when its difficult to see. so far, I'm enjoying it - although I must say I will be very disappointed if I find that I finish it too soon. I'm just in episode 2 portion - still reconoitering the towns. If it's over too soon/not as deep as I hoped for - I'll update this review.

I have found this game to be really entertaining.
I like that it allows the player to rollover the equipment from one game to another.
I have worked through 7 games from start to finish and have upgraded my equipment each time.
I have found the controller action to be slightly delayed which can be slightly annoying, though it is much better then the delay in Monster Hunter Tri (but that is another story altogether).