We spend 90 minutes with Vakyrie Profile Lenneth's smartphone port

Valkyrie Profile: Lenneth‘s smartphone port arrived on iOS and Android earlier this week, so we thought we’d spend some time with this version to see how it shapes up.

Some things to note before we start: we played the Android version of the game on a Samsung Galaxy S7 (Wikipedia), and the game requires Android 4.4 or later installed. For iPhones you’ll need iOS 8 or later.

There are also new features added to this version of the game, such as the ability to select an auto-battle option in or out of combat which lends itself well to a game where you’ll have many menial encounters. You’ll also be able to quickly save anywhere, which is pretty much a staple of any portable title, and there are paid booster options that will allow you to increase experience gained and so on — ideal for those who want don’t mind dropping some cash to prioritize a story-based experience.

For a game featuring 2D sprites on 3D pre-rendered backgrounds on a much larger resolution, the game holds up without looking too blurry. Computer-generated cutscenes that were added in the PlayStation Portable version are also present, though they’re a bit worse for wear in a different resolution. 2D Character sprites look sharp, and there’s no attempt at adding smoothing filters which plagued the recent PC release of Chrono Trigger on Steam.

Navigating around Lenneth’s world will need some getting used to. With the absence of button-based inputs, trying to jump, shoot crystals, and attack enemies in the field can be a hassle. The game has many dungeons where you’ll need some precision to platform through, so you’ll need some patience if you’ve got the original game’s format in your muscle memory. In the video above, you can see some of my struggles trying to navigate up and down ladders that don’t seem to cooperate as well as I would have liked.

Combat transfers well into the smartphone version, where, instead of pressing a button associated with a character to attack, you’ll tap their corresponding UI element instead. There’s an option to toggle it to look a bit closer to the original PlayStation version, but what’s been changed does the job well.

Overall, Valkyrie Profile: Lenneth is a pretty solid port with no major gripes to be had outside the awkward way the platforming handles on a device without buttons. Combat transfers well to a smartphone interface and the presentation of the game doesn’t take a major hit outside CG scenes.

If you want to pick up the game, take note that it will be discounted from $17.99 to $15.99 through June 4th.


About the Author

Tony Garsow Tony joined Nova Crystallis in 2015, and has spent more than a decade writing in the Final Fantasy community. He also contributes to the Nova Crystallis Twitch and YouTube channels, where you can watch select gameplay highlights, previews, and streams.

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