From the moment that opening starts up, Valkyria Chronicles 4 makes it clear that it’s modelling itself on the original Valkyria Chronicles. There’s a slow sketch of the cast aboard a tank tearing through a lovingly illustrated countryside. A montage of photos set a nostalgic tone, showing a cheerful side to the comrades you’ll be leading into battle. It might all be set to a pop ballad instead of a Hitoshi Sakimoto score (don’t worry, he’s still there), but from the beginning Valkyria Chronicles 4 feels like 2008 all over again.

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Moving to the Playstation 4, Xbox One and Nintendo Switch, Valkyria Chronicles 4 is a return to home consoles and a return to that PS3 title that put the series on the map. After playing through this demo, it’s clear that Sega are looking to recreate that same success by putting together a similar scenario.

The story is set during the same time as the original Valkyria Chronicles, but this time the action is set on the eastern front of Europa. We see the war from a different perspective as Federation troops struggle against the Empire in a last-ditch push into anime Russia. Key to the success of this “Operation Northern Cross” is Squad E, led by the game’s protagonist, commander Claude Wallace. A new squad means a new cast of characters, of course. Claude himself feels a bit flat, with his knack for predicting the weather and unwavering loyalty to his childhood friends, but the ragtag group of soldiers in his squad bounce off this comparatively boring character. Though it does lean on recognisable anime archetypes, like the scout swooning over her superior officer, my initial impression of the characters is that they feel a lot less cartoonish than the PSP entries. I also liked that Valkyria Chronicles 4 is setting up conflicts between the characters already, as Claude has to overcome mistrust from others in the military. It’s hard to say where the story is going, aside from very cold locations, but the setup seems very close to the original. The cast are still the scrappy underdogs fighting off an invasion by faceless imperial soldiers, just with an actual dog this time. Sadly, Ragnarok the Squad E mascot doggy doesn’t appear in the demo.

At first glance, the way Valkyria Chronicles 4 plays is also identical to the original. The game’s tactical battles present players with an overhead view of the battlefield before zooming in as they control individual units. Seeing the battle from a third-person perspective, each soldier can then use up their limited stamina to maneuver the field and fire at enemies. Unlike traditional tactical RPGs, enemies won’t wait patiently and will fire on any approaching units, so taking cover and flanking with your outnumbered forces is important. Aside from some new mechanics that make it easier to withdraw and deploy new units, the systems are essentially the same as the first Valkyria Chronicles – silly speed-based rankings and all.

The soldiers of Squad E are sorted into different classes, that are, again, almost the same as the units in the original. The vast range of roles introduced in Valkyria Chronicles 2 and 3 have been cut back to just six classes. There are speedy scouts, machine-gun-wielding shocktroopers, armoured lancers, helpful engineers and long-range snipers. The only class not from the first game wields a ragnite-powered mortar that can strike targets from afar. This mortar also provides cover fire during the enemy’s turn, making them incredibly powerful.

Each class can be levelled up between missions, although this won’t allow them to branch off into different classes anymore. Instead, raising their level will unlock new orders for Claude to issue during his turn as well as new “potentials” for the characters. These potentials are passive bonuses that can either help or hinder the soldiers in battle. Each character has their own potentials that reflect their personalities; one character powers up when around female soldiers, for example. These add an interesting layer to the way you approach battles, but they also help to make every character feel unique. Since most of the recruits don’t appear to do anything outside of missions, any sort of characterisation is good!

If so much of Valkyria Chronicles 4 appears to be rehashed from the first game, what reason is there for series veterans to play it? It’s hard to say after only two chapters, but the missions themselves feel a lot more involved and varied. The first map involves crossing a bridge surrounded by armed turrets – a task that seems impossible before Claude’s mortar-wielding childhood friend steps in to clear the way. It’s a basic tutorial to using this new character, but the second chapter is where the objectives get odd. In chapter 2, Squad E find themselves in a town covered in enemy tanks, but only a handful of them are actually the real thing. Getting to the bottom of it requires creeping around the map and getting close to figure out which tanks are dummies and which will immediately open fire. It’s a tense encounter that’s followed up with a scenario where the squad’s sniper must shoot numbered panels on the town’s clock tower to send a signal. Missions like these run the risk of getting too gimmicky but so far the creative campaigns have saved the scenario from feeling like a simple retread.

The map design also benefits from bigger battlefields. After the cramped spaces of the PSP games, the greater sense of scale is welcome and the ability to quickly deploy units from different checkpoints should hopefully stop them from dragging on for too long. Of course, the overall presentation is a huge leap from the PSP entries, with the more powerful hardware perfectly showing off the series’ superbly sketchy art style. I believe Valkyria Chronicles 4 is still running on the same engine as the original, but it still looks good a decade later thanks to a cohesive look that shows off the excellent character and mechanical designs.

After their attempt to dramatically change the formula completely failed and we wound up with Valkyria Revolution, I can’t blame Sega for taking such a conservative approach with this entry. Valkyria Chronicles was one of the finest RPGs of the last generation so this sequel being so close is hardly a bad thing. That said, I suspect part of the reason why the original was so popular is that the setting, visual stylings and gameplay systems were unlike any RPG out there. Valkyria Chronicles 4 desperately needs to step out of the shadow of that first title and set itself apart. To be fair, there are new features like warships and transporting troops with vehicles that don’t appear in this demo. Valkyria Chronicles 4 also introduces a “Brave” system where fallen troops can either take one last attack or pass it to their ally, but the early missions are so easy that I was never faced with that scenario. There could end up being more depth to the mechanics than it first seems.

Utltiately how well Valkyria Chronicles 4 works will depend on the interactions between the cast and the direction the scenario takes. Already the game is working to capture a sense of camraderie between the troops in Squad E, but it needs something more. The original Valkyria Chronicles covered topics like racism and fascism in a way that I found surprisingly nuanced for an RPG, so I’m hoping that Valkyria Chronicles 4 will end up examining some heavier themes as the story goes on. I also hope the dog doesn’t die.

Valkyria Chronicles 4 releases on March 21 in Japan and later in 2018 for the rest of the world. Given the imminent English release, it’s unlikely that I’ll wind up grabbing an early copy of the Japanese version, but I’m still keen to see how it turns out. It’s worth noting that while a Nintendo Switch release is planned, it won’t be out until later in the year. Hopeful the engine ends up working well on the Switch as it would be nice to have a portable Valkyria Chronicles that doesn’t come with as many compromises or irritating laughs.