Dark Rose Valkyrie is certainly ambitious in its own way, I’ll give it that. It features a nice cast of characters, charming VN elements, and a unique interrogation method, the likes of which I’ve never seen in a JRPG before. Unfortunately, good dialogue just isn’t enough to skirt the issues present within the game under the rug. The dungeons are repetitive, and the combat is incredibly frustrating. And, in a JRPG, those are both pretty big no-nos. Dark Rose Valkyrie isn’t a bad game. If you like Compile Heart, this is worth checking out. But for those looking for something which can stand on its own… maybe this one’s not for you.
Dark Rose Valkyrie
Compile Heart · Jun 6, 2017
About
Defend humanity from the Chimera Virus as the new leader of Japan's covert military agency (ACID) in Dark Rose Valkyrie! Battle enemies in this real-time combat, action-packed RPG, and investigate your party members to find and expose the traitor within before it’s too late!
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Critic reviews
- 4.0Dark Rose Valkyrie offers opportunity for excitement, but ultimately fails to deliver. Weak concepts and a suite of poorly crafted gameplay systems sink an otherwise semi-interesting premise. This is a frustrating and slow slog all the way to the end.
- Dark Rose Valkyrie is a bit of a mixed bag. The hybrid of the visual novel inspired interview system mixed with a traditional JRPG is an interesting idea, and that the traitor is never set does give reason to play through the story more than once. The downside to it is like most JRPGs this is not a short game, and there are enough issues with the gameplay where tackling it once would be enough for most people.
- 7.5Dark Rose Valkyrie is an unexpected experience and could be the best game from Compile Hearts yet. An undeniable mixed bag, the game provides deep and complex combat and character progression systems as well as a unique narrative and objective that’s somewhat held down by its repetitive and tedious missions as well as its dated 3D graphics.
- 4.0The year isn't over yet, but it has been wonderful for JRPGs thus far. There are giant Game of the Year contenders like Persona 5 and Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, as well as smaller but well-received releases like The Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky the 3rd and Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia. With a variety of great new releases in the genre, you're better off spending all the hours this game takes to be completed by playing something better.
- If you’re a fan of old-school RPGs and/or Visual Novels but are itching for something a bit different, this is the game for you. If you’re a completionist or a choose-your-own-adventure type who loves seeing things to the end, then this game is definitely for you. Dark Rose Valkyrie attempts to do a lot in one game and accomplishes it gracefully, meeting all expectations (and exceeding them when it comes to the battle system). And while it’s not GOTY material by any stretch of the imagination, it’s a retro RPG grindingly good time.
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