Valkyrie Profile

The game is divided into eight chapters, each with different quests, dungeons, and items available. Each chapter is further divided into periods, depending on the difficulty (16 in Easy, 24 in Normal, and 28 in Hard). Visiting towns, dungeons, and recruiting einherjar use up periods, requiring that the player budget their available time. Once the periods in a chapter are up, the Sacred Phase begins, in which Lenneth returns to Asgard and Freya updates her on the status of the war with the Vanir and the fate of her einherjar in Valhalla.

It also has a group experience system: battle experience is divided among the active party members, but experience points obtained from dungeon exploration such as solving puzzles and completing dungeons are banked for division among party members at the player's discretion.

There are three difficulty levels: Easy, Normal, and Hard, with different available einherjar, dungeons, quests, as well as three different endings. The "B" and "C" endings can be achieved in any difficulty level, while the "A" ending, which completes the entire story, is only available with the completion of certain tasks in the normal and hard difficulties. Also, the Seraphic Gate is only fully accessible in Hard.

Combat

Valkyrie Profile has a unique turn-based battle system. The two sides wage battle during alternate turns, with the whole party sharing one turn and able to attack simultaneously during that turn. Each enemy is given their own turn and do not combine attacks with one another. Each of the party members is assigned to one of the buttons on the controller (Square, Triangle, Circle, or Cross). Pressing the corresponding button on the player's turn orders that character to attack. Fighters have three character-specific attacks each turn, though weapons can limit how many they can use. Mages cast their preset offensive spells, which builds up their CT (Charge Time). Charge Time replaces MP, decreases slowly on its own, and prevents casting spells when above 0. While a mage's CT decreases, they can not perform any actions, though there are skills that allow exceptions to this.

Stringing attacks together produces combos that prevent a target from defending or recovering, yield Magic Crystals and Fire Gems that increase experience and reduce CT, and add to the Hit Gauge. When the Hit Gauge reaches 100% in one turn, a character with no Charge Time may perform a special attack ("Purify Weird Soul") that causes great damage and refills the Hit Gauge, possibly allowing another character to use their Purify Weird Soul. Using a Purify Weird Soul causes CT to rise, so characters must wait several turns before they can perform another one. Fighters have character-specific Purify Weird Souls. Mages use either multi-hit versions of their selected spells or Great Magic, elaborate versions of their selected spells that strike all enemies. Only certain scepters allow the use of Great Magic; human-forged Great Magic-capable scepters have a high chance of breaking with such use, and unbreakable ether-coated ones are extremely rare. Damage is not capped so the party may attack an enemy until they no longer have any available moves rather than being limited to the total DME (health points) of the target.

At the beginning of each battle, Lenneth summons her einherjar to combat. As she is needed to keep them materialized, if Lenneth is defeated in combat, she must be revived within three turns or the party will be defeated. Lenneth is also the only character who cannot be voluntarily removed from the party.

Equipment

There is no currency or shopping in Valkyrie Profile. At the beginning of each chapter, Lenneth receives a certain number of materialize points from Freya based on her previous performance. Materialize points can be transmutated into items and equipment and vice versa.

Five weapon types are present: Light Sword, Heavy Sword, Lance, Bow, and Staff, corresponding to the five types of characters: light warrior, heavy warrior, lancer, archer, and mage. Most characters will only be able to equip their specified type of weapon (though some swords can be used by both light and heavy warriors) and only certain weapons allow them to perform all three of their attacks (or Great Magic in the case of mages). Lenneth is the exception; she can equip both swords and bows and her Purify Weird Soul, Nibelung Valesti, changes accordingly. Some weapons have a chance of breaking with each use.

Setting

Valkyrie Profile draws heavily from Norse mythology, though it takes artistic liberty with the source material and does deviate from it significantly.

The nine realms of the world are connected by the roots of the world tree, Yggdrasil. Three of the strongest roots contain the five realms significant to Valkyrie Profile:

• Asgard, the home of the Æsir and Vanir, and Alfheim, realm of the elves, exist on the highest root. The only way to enter from Midgard is to cross the rainbow bridge Bifrost. It is home to the Hall of Valhalla, where warriors who died heroically are brought by Valkyries to fight alongside the gods.
• Midgard, the realm of humans, and Jotunheim, the home of the giants, exist on the middle root. Midgard is a war torn land, separated from the snowy land of Jotunheim by tall mountains and vast oceans.
• Nifleheim, the realm of the dead, exists on the lowest root. It is a dark, fog-covered land neglected by the other gods, where those who died ignominious deaths were condemned to an eternity of torment and suffering by the death goddess Queen Hel.

Four powerful artifacts ("the Four Great Treasures") ensure the stability and peace of each realm:

• Asgard - Gungnir, Odin's spear.
• Alfheim - the Sylvan Bow, currently in Odin's possession
• Midgard - the Dragon Orb. Once located in Midgard in the Palace of the Dragon, but Odin has stolen it as of Valkyrie Profile to prepare for the coming of Ragnarok
• Nifleheim - the demon sword Levantine. It was eaten by the dragon Bloodbane.

Valkyrie Profile takes place mostly in Midgard during the war between the Æsir and Vanir. Midgard consists of a several smaller islands surrounding a large continent where the majority of humans live. The kingdom of Villnore, which includes the village of Coriander and the Weeping Lily Meadow, are in the northwest. The kingdom of Gerabellum, including the village of Lassen, occupy the southwestern portion of the continent. The militaristic Crell Monferaigne controls most of the eastern half of the continent. The small kingdom of Artolia and village of Camille, located centrally, are often caught in wars between their three larger neighbors. The monarchy of Flenceburg, known for its magical academy, lies on a peninsula in the southeast. The rest of the continent is covered by mountains, forests, swamps, and ancient ruins. The land of Hai-Lan lies on the island of Yamato to the southwest while the Lost City of Dipan (featured in Valkyrie Profile 2: Silmeria) is on an island to the north. The Forest of Spirits, home of the elves in Midgard, lies on a large island to the south-east of Flenceburg. The Palace of the Dragon lies on a small island to the east. The castle of Brahms, lord of the undead, floats over an island to the west. Finally, the final part of the game brings Lenneth to either Jotunheim Palace, home of the Vanir, or Asgard Hill, home of the Æsir, depending on which ending is achieved.

Seraphic Gate

In typical tri-Ace fashion, Valkyrie Profile contains an optional bonus dungeon called the Seraphic Gate. It is only available by saving in the game's last save point and is separate from the rest of the main game. The player can use all einherjar recruited in the main game, including ones sent to Valhalla. Eight Flame Jewels found in dungeons exclusive to the Hard difficulty are needed to access all the sealed rooms, unique treasures, and hidden characters. It contains four distinct sections with only a single save point in the first room. One of the incentives for venturing into the Seraphic Gate are three secret characters--the vampire Brahms, the necromancer Lezard Valeth, and the goddess Freya, who exceeds even Lenneth in power. The dungeon features the best equipment and toughest opponents in the game as well as Gabriel Celeste and Iseria Queen (who appear similarly in most tri-Ace RPGs) as incredibly strong bosses. Defeating Iseria Queen will clear the dungeon and allow the player to return to the beginning to save without having to fight battles. The dungeon will reset once the save is reloaded so the player can play though it again. Defeating Iseria Queen multiple times is necessary to receive some items. Each time she is defeated, the player receives a Book of Riddles. Once the first nine books are obtained, the tenth time Iseria is defeated (and each time thereafter) the player receives the 'Angel Slayer', the most powerful weapon in the game, though its damage can vary greatly from turn to turn.

Story

Characters

There are 25 playable characters in Valkyrie Profile: Valkyrie (Lenneth), Brahms, Lezard Valeth, Freya, and 20 einherjar. However, all 20 einherjar can only be recruited with the difficulty set to Hard. Two einherjar, Arngrim and Mystina, cannot be sent to Valhalla as they are central to the plot and Freya and Odin find them undesirable regardless of their skills or hero value.

Lenneth Valkyrie is the primary protagonist of Valkyrie Profile, a recently awakened warrior-maiden and servant of Odin, who has been tasked with recruiting einherjar, the souls of deceased warriors, to fight with the Æsir in their war against the Vanir and prevent the destruction of Asgard in Ragnarok. Lenneth is the most powerful of the three goddesses of fate (the other two being her sisters, Hrist and Silmeria) and they all share the same body, though only one is awake at any given time and can be distinguished by their hair color and armor (Lenneth has silver hair/blue armor, Hrist has black hair/dark violet armor, and Silmeria has blond hair/light purple armor). Hrist is the most fanatically loyal to Odin and, like him, believes humans are slaves to the gods. Lenneth and Silmeria tend to be more compassionate and take the side of humans more often.

Loki is revealed to be the final antagonist of Valkyrie Profile. Although half-Æsir and half-Vanir, Loki is accepted in Valhalla among the Æsir, though he is also secretly collaborating with Queen Hel of Nifleheim and Surt, leader of the Vanir, and has gained the service of the wolf Fenrir and the dragon Bloodbane. Destructive at heart, Loki desires to usurp Odin's power and become all powerful himself. To do so, he needs one of the four treasures, which will give him the power to challenge Odin.

Plot

In the village of Coriander, a 14-year old girl named Platina lives with her cruel parents. When the village falls upon hard times, her friend Lucian finds out that her parents are going to sell her into slavery so they run away together. The two accidentally wander into the Weeping Lily Meadow and Platina dies in Lucian's arms from the toxic pollen.

Lenneth Valkyrie awakens in Asgard, where the god Odin and the goddess Freya give her the task of recruiting einherjar for their war with the Vanir and the coming of Ragnarok. Her first recruits are the princess Jelanda and the mercenary Arngrim. After the arrogant Arngrim inadvertently embarrasses her father, Jelanda hatches an scheme for revenge but is kidnapped and transformed into a monster by a traitorous court minister. Lenneth appears and helps Arngrim kill the monster, claiming Jelanda as an einherjar. Arngrim, having unknowingly aided Jelanda's captors, later kills the man responsible for her death, but commits suicide when he is to be arrested. Lenneth makes Arngrim an einherjar at Jelanda's request but Odin and Freya find him lacking the personal qualities of an einherjar and refuse to accept him into Valhalla so Arngrim remains at Lenneth's side.

During Lenneth's travels, she meets but does not fight Brahms, lord of the undead and enemy of Odin who is in possession of her sister Silmeria (due to circumstances explained in Valkyrie Profile 2: Silmeria) and the necromancer Lezard Valeth, who lures her to his tower. Lenneth discovers that he has been experimenting with half-elven homunculi for use as vessels to attain godhood. Lezard also wishes to possess Lenneth for himself, though she refuses to cooperate and destroys his experiments. The sorceress Mystina, one of Lezard's rivals, later discovers what he has been doing and takes his last remaining homunculus. When he discovers her theft, Lezard freezes her body while she is spirit walking, separating Mystina's soul from her body permanently. Lenneth recruits her, though Odin and Freya refuse to accept Mystina into Valhalla and she, like Arngrim, remains with Lenneth.

Lenneth eventually meets Lucian, who has grown up and become a poor thief in Gerabellum. He notices that Lenneth resembles Platina, due their silver hair, though she does not know who he is. Lucian is later killed by soldiers cleaning up the slums and becomes an einherjar. Before she sends him to Valhalla, Lucian takes Lenneth to Coriander and the Weeping Lily Meadow, telling her about Platina and how he still loves her. Lenneth tells him to forget about her, though she hopes they will meet again. Lucian then goes to Valhalla, continuing to brood upon Lenneth and Platina.

Lenneth's travels bring her to the Lost City of Dipan, where she finds the ghost of King Barbarossa. Discovering a time machine within the city, she accidentally travels into the past, witnessing her sister Hrist execute the king and destroy the city for defying the gods and building the time machine (Valkyrie Profile 2: Silmeria). Returning to her own time, Lenneth helps Barbarossa's soul find peace by defeating the three Magi haunting Dipan.

Meanwhile, in Valhalla, Lucian learns that Valkyries "sleep" in Midgard, reincarnating in Asgard upon their human deaths. However, Odin and Freya seal their memories, as they might interfere with their duty as Valkyries. The Æsir Loki tells Lucian that the Water Mirror can be used to contact the Valkyrie, though it is forbidden for anyone besides Odin to use. Lucian does so anyway and gives Lenneth an earring, telling her she will know where to find its match, but Lenneth is angry at him for his disobedience. Loki, who secretly seeks to usurp Odin's power, uses the distraction to steal the Dragon Orb. Afterwards, Loki kills Lucian, using him as a scapegoat to cover his theft. When Lenneth returns to Asgard, Freya tells her the Dragon Orb has been stolen, ostensibly by Lucian.

Lenneth finds the other earring at Platina's grave in the Weeping Lily Meadow and her memories as Platina return. Sensing that the seal is broken, Odin performs the Sovereign's Rite, transmigrating Lenneth's soul and summoning Hrist in her place. Hrist takes control of the Valkyrie's body and tries to destroy Arngrim and Mystina, who refuse to serve her, but Lenneth intervenes to save them. The blast shatters Lenneth's soul and Mystina must crystallize the fragments to prevent them from dissipating. Lezard Valeth appears, telling them of a way to save her. Temporarily transferring Lenneth's soul into Lezard's homunculus, Arngrim, Mystina, and Lezard then confront Hrist in Brahms' castle, where she has gone to retrieve Silmeria. With Brahms' help, they defeat her and reclaim the Valkyrie's body. Back in Mystina's workshop, the elven homunculus is fused with the Valkyrie's body and Lenneth is reborn. Her memories of Lucian and Platina intact, Lenneth is disgusted with how the gods manipulate humans and the suffering they cause and wants it to stop.

Eventually Ragnarok occurs and Loki, with the power of the Dragon Orb, betrays and kills both Odin and Surt, leaders of the Æsir and Vanir. Returning to Asgard, Lenneth slays Fenrir and Bloodbane before confronting Loki, who destroys the world in a demonstration of his power. The fusion of the Valkyrie's body and half-elven homunculus allows Lenneth's divine powers to grow so she is able to shield herself from Loki's destructive display. Her compassion for mankind and love for Lucian allows her to draw upon all of humanity, gaining the power of creation. Lenneth undoes Loki's destruction, kills him, and becomes the new Lord of Creation. She then turns to see Lucian, who has been reborn, and the two are reunited.

Mythology

Valkyrie Profile is based on various events and characters from Norse Mythology, and while some depictions remain accurate to their mythic counterparts, tri-Ace took artistic liberty with others, deviating mildly or substantially from the original myths. Some such differences are as follow:

• During the game, the chief opponents of the Æsir during Ragnarok are the Vanir, Loki, and Surt. In traditional Nordic myth, the chief opponents are the Æsir and the Jotun (a race of giants), Loki, and Surt. The Vanir and Æsir were at war at one time, however, though it was not for the battle of Ragnarok.
• In Nordic myth, the Vanir are another race of gods with little differences to the Æsir actually expressed, whereas in Valkyrie Profile, the Vanir are depicted themselves as giants, and appear to take on the general role of the Jotun.
• In Nordic myth, Loki is originally half-Æsir and half-Jotun. In the game, he is half-Æsir and half-Vanir, further demonstrating Tri-Ace's substitution of the Jotun for the Vanir.
• In Nordic myth, Surt is a fire Jotun and ruler of Muspellheim who burns down the world during Ragnarok, while in the game, he is leader of the Vanir, and appears to be an ice giant who still rules over Muspellheim, though it should be noted that many of his attacks are fire based. In the "A Ending" game, it is Loki who destroys the world during Ragnarok after slaying Surt.
• In Nordic myth, Loki dies from his wounds after battle with Heimdall, the watchman of the Gods. In the game, Loki is slain by Lenneth.
• In Nordic myth, Odin is slain during Ragnarok by Fenrir, a giant wolf who eats him alive. Fenrir is then slain by Vidar, Odin's son. In the game, it is implied that Odin is slain by Loki, who has Fenrir at his side. Odin is not consumed alive in the game as in the myth, and it is Lenneth, not Vidar, who slays Fenrir in the game.
• In Nordic myth, both Freya and Frei are of the Vanir; Freya later married into the Æsir to end the war between the Æsir and the Vanir. In the game, both are aligned with the Æsir, though it is never stated whether or not they were originally of the Vanir.
• In Nordic myth, Frei is Freya's brother, one of the more powerful Norse gods, and among the first to die at Ragnarok. In the game, Frei is portrayed as a young girl, and her death during Ragnarok is not depicted, though her fate is ultimately uncertain. However, in the official manga adaptation, Frei is one of Loki's first victims as he wages war on Valhalla.
• After Ragnarok in Nordic Myth, the world is reborn and two humans, Lif and Lifthrasir, emerge as the sole survivors. Baldur, a God who was tricked and slain (indirectly) by Loki, is miraculously resurrected to rule over the new world. In the game, the world is similarly reborn after Ragnarok, but Lenneth and Lucian are shown together in the end, rather than Lif and Lifthrasir. Rather than Baldur, it is Lucian who is tricked and slain by Loki, only to be miraculously resurrected after Ragnarok.
• In Nordic myth, as in the game, Valkyries are responsible for choosing Einherjar (the souls of brave fallen warriors) to escort to Valhalla to fight at Odin's side during Ragnarok. However, Valkyries originally did not train Einherjar, and while they are indeed warriors, never engaged in combat on Earth, as they do in the game.
• In Nordic Myth, Arngrim is a mighty warrior who battles many foes in the employ of a king to win the hand of his daughter, the princess. In the game, Arngrim is a mighty warrior who fights in the employ of a king, but as a mercenary. The king's daughter, Princess Jelanda, plays a crucial role in Arngrim's portion of the game, however, and he eventually fights and dies avenging her rather than trying to marry her.
• Lenneth Valkyrie herself is possibly featured after Brynhild in the Icelandic The Saga of the Volsungs (or Brünhild in the German Nibelungenlied). Brynhild is a valkyrie who was punished by Odin for disobedience and love for Siegfried, a human. Many of the events during the game resemble the events surrounding Brynhild. For instance, Lenneth has her memories of Lucian, a human she was in love with, magically erased. In the myth, Siegfried has his memories of Brynhild magically erased. In the myth, Brynhild is trapped by a ring of fire from which Siegfried frees her and helps her awaken, and in the game, Lenneth's memories are sealed by the Nibelungen Ring; memories that Lucian eventually helps her remembers so that her true personality may awaken. Furthermore, in the myth, Siegfried is renounced by Brynhild shortly before his murder as a precursor to Valhalla's fall during Ragnarok. In the game, Lucian is renounced by Lenneth shortly before he is murdered as a precursor to Ragnarok.

Localization

Several improvements were made to the English release of Valkyrie Profile, including more cinematics and the ability to to adjust all characters' armor instead of just the active party as well as being informed when changing Lenneth's weapon from sword to bow. Some editing occurred during translation, but visible blood, drinking, and sexual comments remain. Badrach's smoking was cut out but the animation of him smoking after a successful battle remains, sans the cigarette. Lezard Valeth's teleportation circle was changed from a pink pentagram to a purple circle though this was left unchanged in the Playstation Portable version. The names of Frei, the elder sister, and Freya, the younger, were reversed from Norse mythology and from the Japanese version (though in the former, Frei is the elder brother).

Cast

Crew

• Game producer: Yoshinori Yamagishi
• Game director: Yoshiharu Gotanda
• Original work/Scenario writer: Masaki Norimoto
• Main programmer: Shigeru Ueki
• Battle programmer: Yoshiharu Miyake
• Character designers: Ko Yoshinari, Yo Yoshinari
• Music composer: Motoi Sakuraba

PSP Port

Valkyrie Profile: Lenneth is the PlayStation Portable (PSP) port of the original 'Valkyrie Profile'. According to Electronic Gaming Monthly, the port of Valkyrie Profile: Lenneth was developed by the Japanese developer TOSE and published by Square Enix. The port is of the Japanese version and does not have any of the gameplay improvements of the original English version, though the additional cinematics included in the English version are intact. Full motion video has been added to story events in the game and replaces all original anime scenes.

The English version of Valkyrie Profile: Lenneth uses an enhanced version of the original game's localization and reuses the original English voiceover track. Square Enix cleaned up the original game's English script and additional voice over dialogue for the CG movies was recorded by New Generation Pictures, rather than the original company, TAJ Productions.

Reception

The original Playstation version of Valkyrie Profile was well received by critics, with an 84% rating at Game Rankings and 81/100 rating at Metacritic. GameSpot gave the game a 7.0 (out of 10), citing that it was "a complex, ambitious, and gorgeous title" with "beautiful aesthetics, an entertaining battle system, engaging characters, and a creatively balanced 'dual' scenario" but criticized the game for its "Draconian pacing," which made it a "nonlinear RPG that discourages exploration or even freedom of choice" and that "you'll rarely have time to enjoy the surrounding splendor." In a 2006 reader's poll conducted by Famitsu magazine, Valkyrie Profile was voted the 27th best video game of all-time. Due to the positive review scores and relative rarity of the game used copies of Valkyrie Profile sell for $90, which is more than its initial retail price.

The PSP re-release, Valkyrie Profile: Lenneth, was also well received by critics, with a 81% rating at Game Rankings and 80/100 rating at Metacritic. GameSpot gave it a 7.5 (out of 10), saying that the graphics were "just about as good as it did on the original Playstation" with the "fantastic music" being "one of the highlights of the game" but criticized the game for its "very noticeable" load times and a manual that "doesn't provide much information" into its non-standard game mechanics. They also acknowledged that it "isn't exactly a great on-the-go game" due to its "lengthy story sequences, few save points, and steep learning curve" and the pre-rendered FMVs "look nice but don't bring much to the game." Valkyrie Profile: Lenneth received IGN's award for Best PSP RPG of 2006.

Valkyrie Profile: Lenneth sold 60,000 copies in Europe as of November 2007.

References

External links

• Square-Enix's official North American Valkyrie Profile site (PSX)
• Square-Enix's official North American Valkyrie Profile: Lenneth site (PSP)
• Square Enix's official European website for Valkyrie Profile: Lenneth (English)(French)(Italian)(German)(Spanish)
• Square Enix's official Japanese Valkyrie Profile: Lenneth website(Japanese)