Valkyria Chronicles II

Valkyria Chronicles II for PSP is Sega’s 2010 tactical role-playing sequel to the original PlayStation 3 game. It returns to the alternate-European nation of Gallia in 1937 E.C., two years after the Second Europan War, but shifts the focus from veteran militia members to students at Lanseal Military Academy. Developed and published by Sega, the handheld game places Class G at the centre of a new civil conflict after the Gallian Revolutionary Army rises against the country’s government. The PSP format makes the campaign a portable continuation of the series while preserving its blend of military strategy, character-driven storytelling, and illustrated anime-inspired presentation.

The story follows Avan Hardins, a new Lanseal student searching for answers about his older brother Leon. Alongside fellow cadets such as Zeri and Cosette, Avan is drawn from academy life into active service as the regular army struggles to contain the uprising. Class G’s assignments carry them across Gallia while the group confronts divisions within the country, including the rebel movement’s persecution of Darcsens. School routines, friendships, rivalries, and field operations are deliberately intertwined, giving the campaign a different perspective on the setting than the first game’s Squad 7.

Battles use the BLiTZ system introduced in Valkyria Chronicles. From an overhead Command Mode, the player spends Command Points to select a unit and plan a move; control then changes to a third-person Action Mode in which that soldier runs, aims, fires, takes cover, or uses equipment until their Action Points are exhausted. Enemy interception fire makes careless movement dangerous, so success depends on reading terrain, protecting vulnerable units, and choosing the right order in which to act. Victory conditions vary by mission, with objectives such as taking enemy camps, defeating key forces, or reaching strategic positions rather than simply eliminating every opponent.

Valkyria Chronicles II PSP expands the roster and progression system around soldier classes. Scouts, Shocktroopers, Engineers, Lancers, and the shield-bearing Armored Tech form the starting roles, while the class tree lets cadets develop into more specialized branches as they gain experience. Avan has unusual flexibility between classes, whereas other students follow the paths available to their assigned roles. Weapons, protective gear, and vehicle components can be developed and fitted between sorties, and the squad’s tank can be customized for different battlefield needs. Individual characters also have traits that influence their combat performance, and optional character missions can reveal more about classmates while improving troublesome traits.

The campaign’s battlefield layout was adapted for portable play through connected maps and enemy camps. Capturing a camp can open the next area, create a reinforcement point, and change the tactical options available to the squad. Players can organize deployment groups from the academy roster and bring an armored vehicle into the field, balancing infantry specialists against the mission’s terrain and targets. Beyond the main single-player story, the PSP release includes local wireless Ad Hoc modes: players can join cooperative missions with up to three friends or face another player in head-to-head battles once multiplayer is unlocked through story progress.

Released in Japan in January 2010 and in Western territories later that year, Valkyria Chronicles II is the direct sequel to Valkyria Chronicles rather than a remake or compilation. Sega built it specifically for PlayStation Portable, retaining the series’ watercolor-like CANVAS visual approach in a version tailored to the handheld and using anime scenes to advance the story. The game was followed in Japan by Valkyria Chronicles III, another PSP entry set during the era of the first game. For players exploring the series on Sony’s handheld, Valkyria Chronicles II stands as the chapter that moves Gallia’s timeline forward and gives a new class of cadets command of the battlefield.