Valkyrie Elysium

Valkyrie Elysium is quite a fun action title. The complexity and elements of its combat make it very entertaining to rid Midgard of fearsome beasts. Unfortunately, it has some technical problems that affect the experience.

For many, Valkyrie Elysium may be average at best. However, what ticks it up a notch for me are the themes, elements, and pieces of the Valkyrie franchise that I know and love. Many games have tried to copy the series, only to fall short and become little more than superficial knock-offs that take the combat and little else. Developer SoleiL has managed to take the soul of the Valkyrie games and put it into a new vessel. It may look and play differently, but it certainly has the heart of the series in it. Though Valkyrie Elysium is much better than I’d expected, I’m hopeful the next entry in the series will be less restrained and “safe,” opting for crazier and flashier instead. In the meantime, I’ll continue trying to will Valkyrie Profile 3: Hrist into existence. Maybe this time, it’ll work.

Despite not having the budget of an AAA, Valkyrie Elysium has a solid combat system that breathes new life into this series. There are aspects that need improvement, but this is still a great experience.

This entry to the Valkyrie series makes a graceful shift into the action RPG genre while only stumbling in a few small ways.

Valkyrie Elysium has an incredibly fun combat system at its base along with some light platforming and RPG elements, however it doesn’t go too far beyond that. The rote story is held up by good twists and likable characters, but I can’t help but see massive potential just beyond what the game presents. Still, if you’re an action game junkie like me, this is well worth your time and more.

Valkyrie Elysium is an enjoyable action JRPG suffering from clear problems regarding its camera system and more granular details. Yet its core combat is undeniably stellar, with transparently depicted customization and upgrading. Additionally, its cast and narrative are light but effective, paving the way for a satisfying adventure if you don’t embrace critical presumptions. Despite my initial disappointments with this entry’s lack of clear connective tissue to the franchise’s origins, I genuinely love my time with this title. I hope its gameplay elements are used as a basis and improved upon for future installments.

It’s a solid experience that feels like an extension of its ancestor, and both newcomers and old fans should check it out. However, I also fear there’s not quite enough to latch on to, and it may be lost in the shuffle of all the other games out this fall. Much like another Square Enix action-RPG this year, I do wish it had pushed itself just a little further.

Overall, Valkyrie Elysium is a great, although rough around-the-edges, action RPG, whose biggest strength lies in its dynamic combat system and in the charisma of some of its characters.

Although the story is pretty boring there is much fun to be found thanks to the combat systems and plenty of secrets to uncover in this bleak world. That's why Valkyrie Elysium is a fantastic time if you're keen on some fighting action.

Valkyrie Eysium lives and dies by its fast paced combat system, and it's worth trying for that one alone. It's a distinctly low budget effort from Square Enix, but still a game with a soul, even if with a lot of room for improvements. If you like fast paced hack''n'slash games in the vein of the ones from Platinum Games, give this a try.

Valkyrie Elysium is a competent action game with a solid battle system and some interesting RPG tweaks but the shallow narrative and the feeble reference to the original games might turn fans of the franchise off.

Valkyrie Elysium was supposed to be a major comeback for the franchise and it really tries. However, we have a game with good deep and fun gameplay but the story is largely wasted. The new players will feel good but we could have had something better.

While some elements of Valkyrie Elysium are disappointingly lackluster, in the end, the combat is excellent. That alone was enough to keep me engaged through the game’s dozen or so hours. I have a pretty long wish list for future games, like more impressive visual design and more interesting missions. But the real-time action? It’s a keeper.

Valkyrie Elysium is rather fun. Divorced from its heritage, it's a solid, if unexceptional, action-RPG. The combat system could use more polish, but what it does, it does quite well, and I enjoyed the combat until the end of the game. I'd love the team to have a chance to revisit the gameplay with some more confidence under its belt, as it's easy to see how it could go from good to great. This isn't the Valkyrie Profile 3 I was hoping for, but Elysium should satisfy someone looking for a solid action-RPG.

Despite its limits due to a restricted budget, Valkyrie Elysium shines for an entertaining and well-crafted combat system.

Valkyrie Elysium's combat system is sufficiently complex and entertaining, which is good, considering that what remains of the game is quite forgettable. A decent game for fans of the tri-Ace saga, but certainly not essential. Also because, if you're hungry for Norse adventures, there's a certain god of war waiting for you at the end of November.

It's a shame there are so many underutilized elements, because Valkyrie Elysium has all the tools to reach Valhalla. Even then, if you like action RPGs and nordic mythology, you're going to love the gameplay thanks to a really great combat system.

Valkyrie Elysium’s world and characters based on Norse mythology are fascinating, and its speedy combat is exhilarating. It’s too bad that the title feels like it could have used a little more polish, and the button mapping doesn’t match the game’s systems. The game lacks a bit in volume as well, and its world and characters could have been fleshed out even more.

Valkyrie Elysium is an enjoyable action RPG packed full of combos and upgrades, but the boring levels and story detract from the fun.

Despite the action trappings, Valkyrie Elysium shows deference to its spiritual ancestors in terms of aesthetic, tone, and emphasis on strategic use of allies in combat. Those looking for an expansive narrative will be disappointed as there is polish missing in the presentation and story, but that does not detract from an exhilarating combat system and enjoyable interactions between the Valkyrie and the Einherjar. Valkyrie Elysium may not be the game long-suffering fans have been asking for, but it represents an organic shift for the series that can appeal to fans and newcomers alike.

Valkyrie Elysium is a fun and entertaining action game that feels like it should have been a full blown RPG.

In the process of renovation, Valkyrie Elysium changed genre and sacrificed its RPG essence to become an action RPG that takes us back to the golden age of hack and slash. Unfortunately, its simple story and limited exploration can make you lose interest in continuing to play until the end.

In spite of those who since the announcement have criticized Square Enix's choice to set aside the Valkyrie Profile turn-based combat system, the spin-off packaged by Soleil has entertained us with a solid and varied playful mixture, a level of challenge satisfying and a lot of strategy. What is not convincing, however, are the renounced narrative component and the dated technical sector, which suggest obvious problems related to the budget. Ultimately, Valkyrie Elysium may not have fully hit the target, yet we are convinced that, with the right investments, the playful formula synthesized by the Soleil studio could prove to be a winner. In this sense, the hope is that a possible sequel will then be able to express the full potential of the spin-off.

It's cool that Valkyrie Elysium exists given the series' sporadic history although I wish it offered a lot more to sink your teeth into. Sure, the combat is fun, especially when you exploit enemies' weaknesses but it definitely overstays its welcome after a handful of hours.

Valkyrie Elysium is a lot of fun, and maybe that's good enough. It's a shame that a new Valkyrie Profile game isn't more than simply adequate, especially after all this time, but anyone looking for a quick and engaging action RPG will leave satisfied. It may not be a masterpiece, but Valkyrie Elysium is still entertaining and enjoyable.

Valkyrie Elysium has a very good combat system and a great soundtrack. However, its story is shallow, its campaign is short, and the graphics are bad.

Unfortunately as enjoyable as the combat is everything else about this title comes up short. It’s not that the ideas presented in the story are bad, it’s that they are so minimal they make the game almost feel incomplete. The potential was there to make Valkyrie Elysium one of the greats, but instead there’s an uneven experience of great combat with uninspired storytelling and level design.

A colorful combo bang in the style of Genshin Impact, Bayonetta and Dynasty Warriors cannot hide the weak visuals of the surroundings and a repetitive gameplay.

Elysium might not be has good as the main entries, but as an action, lower-budget game, it’s a great choice.

Essentially a character action game, Valkyrie Elysium does little to worry the heavy hitters in the genre such as Devil May Cry or Bayonetta. But while many of its components are simply adequate, its frenetic combat elevates it from mediocrity. There’s great fun to be had here, summoning Einherjar, using your Soul Chain to zip around the battlefield and making use of more advanced skills to decimate your opponents. Ultimately, it’s not going to set anyone’s world on fire, but it’s definitely worth spending some time with.

Valkyrie Elysium is an okay game with a fun battle system. Its biggest strength is that it’s fun to play when there are enemies on-screen. Everything else about it is relatively lackluster. This new take on the Valkyrie series is a solid gameplay foundation while leaving a lot of room for improvement in many other areas. Still, I think the developers at Soleil have done a decent job as newcomers taking their own interpretation of the series. I don’t think I’d want Valkyrie Elysium to completely overtake the Valkyrie Profile series moving forward, though I’d be happy with a peaceful co-existence as each strives to improve themselves - given that Square Enix greenlights more Valkyrie titles, of course.

Valkyrie Elysium brings the series into the modern era, even though the story is rough, and the levels are a bit bland. I want to see more of this, but hopefully with some of the more major faults fixed.

A Valkyrie series transformed from a turn-based game into an action. While this changed system itself is not bad, terrible camera work is ruining the overall experience. More to that, repetitive gameplay structure and mediocre story are also disappointing. Don't have much choice but to look forward to a better Valkyrie title in the future.

Valkyrie Elysium is a very fun game with a mildly-intricate combat system that allows for plenty of satisfying moments of pulling off long combos to create a visual feast. Its narrative is lacking but the core characters are charming enough that by the end you can't help but almost feel attached to them all, as you've fought your way through to whichever ending you've chosen. If it weren't for the fact that you're constantly having to make everything work in spite of a camera and lock-on system that feels against you specifically, it would be a much easier game to recommend.

It's not NieR Automata who wants it and that's what Valkyrie Elysium reminds us. Inspired by Platinum Games, the Soleil studio delivers solid gameplay that offers a wide variety of combat approaches and sequences, even if they are sometimes messy. But beyond that, this new episode of the Valkyrie saga suffers from basic and repetitive levels, a technique that is far from flawless, as well as a scenario that is far too conventional to make the experience essential. Now it's up to you to see if you are able to turn a blind eye to these flaws to take advantage of a solid combat system.

A fast-paced combat system and operatic soundtrack from Motoi Sakuraba aren't enough to save Valkyrie Elysium from a fate worse than Ragnarok: mediocrity.

Valkyrie Elysium's strong combat can't fully overshadow an otherwise lifeless and mundane experience.

I was excited going into Valkyrie Elysium because of what I had heard about the series. While after my time with it that excitement certainly has dulled, not because of the combat but just because everything around it just kind of felt ‘meh’. If the world was more populated or at the very least more interesting there would be much more here to really sink one’s teeth into, as it stands once players are done doing Odin’s bidding they will find little reason to return in my opinion.

While it doesn't do enough to earn a place in the halls of Valhalla, there is still pleasure to be had in sprinting and fighting through these Elysian fields. [Issue#378, p.112]

Valkyrie Elysium brings the 20-year-old franchise to the PlayStation 4 and 5, switching out turn-based combat for hack 'n slash battles, and while the experience is fun, you just can't shake the feeling that we've seen this before.

Odd design choices lead to a not so stellar action game with an unfortunately generic, asset-y world design. Valkyrie Elysium has great moments but is stuck in a mediocre shell that is missing the unique draws of the previous entries in the series. Once the story gets moving it's a good Valkyrie story, but a lack of polish leaves this game floundering instead of standing tall.

Quotation forthcoming.

With a solid but simple combat system but all other aspects of the game in trouble, the new Valkyrie only barely manages to rise above the mediocre.

Respectable combat carries Valkyrie Elysium through a bland-looking action-JRPG with predictable story and straightforward level design.

Valkyrie Elysium is an honest game, but victim of very evident production limits, which combined with the general result cannot justify the payment at full price. Despite being able to offer an interesting combat system, the game is characterized by a very mild progression and a structure that is all too simple, although solid.

An occasionally inspired attempt to reinvent the Valkyrie Profile series, but a weak narrative and a dispiritingly empty game world drain the enjoyment from what could’ve been a fun action role-player.

Valkyrie Elysium shows its best side in combat, offering a frenetic, dynamic and demanding experience that does not have the right company in the other facets of the game. Its story does not accompany, the narration does not contribute much and neither does the level design. Fortunately, when you dive into its frenetic combat, everything gets better.

Valkyrie Elysium is a game of two halves. The level design and objectives feel at least two generations old and the characters and storyline are more like placeholders than the finished article. There's no capital F feelings here or much in the way of narrative justification, but if you're okay with that and you just want fifteen to twenty hours of fast, frantic, fluid combat then we can just about recommend this one.

It's hard not to think that the Valkyrie series deserved better for its big comeback. Of course, beat them up fans will be able to enjoy the game thanks to an evolving and efficient fighting system, but everything else shows a lack of budget. With strange scenario, limited bestiary and old gen technique, we can only advise you to go through the demo if you plan to pay for it.

Fans of the series were excited when Valkyrie Elysium was revealed, and a modern take on the loved franchise could have done it wonders. Unfortunately, the archaic level design and grubby visuals make the adventure feel like it would be more at home back on the PS3. Combat is its saving grace, dancing between combos and activating magic abilities on elemental foes in satisfying fashion. The Einherjar who fight alongside you add a nice touch, enhancing combat and adding some much-needed levity to the boring narrative. Mindless, enjoyable combat is here in spades, but it’s not enough to make Valkyrie Elysium a reboot that I’d strongly recommend to anybody.

There are lots of other puzzling decisions. Why no minimap? Why have a tether skill for field movement and puzzles that require summoning Einherjar when they're so rare and arbitrarily placed? Why do I have to replay a whole ungodly long chapter if I missed a Verdant blossom I want to collect? But ultimately, they're minor annoyances compared to the main problem: Valkyrie Elysium is a mostly technically competent game weighed down by the dullness of its story, setting, and strategy. There are glimmers of fun in the combat and some of the dialogue--the rare mid-level Einherjar banter is always welcome--but it's not enough to overcome stifling mediocrity. Valkyrie Elysium is a mere pretender to the glory of this series' past endeavors.

Valkyrie Elysium is a disappointing, befuddled, and mistimed return for the Valkyrie series.

Valkyrie Elysium is an action-oriented spin-off of the famous J-RPG saga, sadly nothing gives full satisfaction. The exploration is very linear despite the gigantic levels. The RPG aspect is reduced to a minimum.

An episode without ambition or soul, carried at arm's length by a pleasant gameplay and a sublime ost.

Soulless yet almost serviceable as a light hack ‘n slash Valkyrie Profile spinoff, Elysium is a 15-hour chore of ugly visuals, repetitive combat, and a mundane plot.

Despite the cliche of the angry video game reviewer who “doesn’t even like video games,” it’s not that fun tearing down the work of people who haven’t done anything catastrophically wrong. Because there is nothing about Valkyrie Elysium that is outright bad or broken. It’s just the experience as a whole is so dreadfully dull.

Valkyrie Elysium delivers an average action experience that fails to revive a classic RPG series.