Valkyria Chronicles

Valkyria Chronicles is a unique game, being set in a World-War-2 era fantasy world. The story borrows some themes from this turbulent time period, but is not a one-to-one allegory for the actual conflict. However, many of the negative effects of the war, such as the killing of civilians, and even racial discrimination and genocide are depicted. That being said, the oversimplified dialogue and generally campy tone at times can detract from the serious atmosphere. Violence: During combat, soldiers use guns, tanks, and explosives to annihilate each other. bullet impacts are highlighted by small splashes of orange, which could potentially be blood, but it's unclear. Most deaths are nothing more than a character getting shot and falling over, but the game makes many attempts to humanize every soldier who is felled. If a player controlled unit is fatally wounded, the game will focus on the dying troop, giving them a few last words before they pass on. The player can no longer use characters who are killed, and while they are largely expendable from a strategic perspective, they still are people. The story portrays some of the cold realities of war, with a few scenes showing unarmed, scared civilians being gunned down by Nazi-esque invaders. A few children even die, albeit not in graphic detail. There is an entire subplot about racism/bigotry, as a fictional race of people known as "Darcsens" who are Caucasian in appearance, but all have navy blue hair, face discrimination and persecution from both sides of the war. The Darcsens seem to be a stand in for the European Jewish population, as they are made into scapegoats and oppressed by the evil "Empire" (Nazis) and are even shown being forced into concentration camps at one point. Positive messages/ Role models: The game depicts war as a tragedy, but emphasizes that good things can happen in even the most dire circumstances. Ultimately arguing that all people can do during times of hardship (the war) is try to make the best of things, and help each other. Unlike the war the game was inspired by, women are allowed to participate in the army in this world, and are generally portrayed as being equally capable to men. The cast seems to be primarily white, but the story tackles the concept of bigotry through the aforementioned fictional Darcsens. Over the course of the story, we see examples of even the "good guys" treating this minority group poorly, and making assumptions based on stereotypes. These assumptions are played up as inaccurate and baseless, and ultimately most characters do learn to be more tolerant. Sexuality: Some female characters wear short skirts. One scene depicts both men and women in revealing swim suits. Tobacco Use: One character occasionally smokes a cigar.

This game has a very mature view on war and death. The violence is bloodless and non-graphic but very frequent, and each of the player's soldiers are treated as unique people, so to lose a soldier can be truly heart-wrenching. This might upset some children. The game has several very positive role models, and throughout the course of the game your squad members overcome differences and grow both as a team and as individuals.