Mastodawn

Ishambard 6d ago

So, I was thinking about comparing box arts for the various #Valis games. This might get a little messy, between the #SegaGenesis games, the PC Engine Games and that one SNES game. Though I have already showed off the fantastic SNES Super Valis Box, we'll cover that again in time.

I kind of love the early 90s aversion to anime style artwork on video games, it really leads to some great pieces of composition.

In the case of Valis 1, they dyed Yuko's hair black and doing her best He-Man power pose of raising a flaming Valis sword above her head, she is beset by the various boss enemies of the game. It's busy, but I don't dislike this image, perhaps the colour palette is a bit heavy on the reds. It's pretty representative fo the game.

Compared to the Japanese cover, which is, modest. To say the best. Yuko in her scjool uniform looking over her shoulder. Besides the text of The Legend of a Fantasm Soldier, there is very little work with here. It's nice, but gives little to work with.

Ishambard 6d ago

What I will say is, if you want to play the #Valis games. The first game on Genesis is not a bad place to start.

The first stage boss is seemingly quite unfair, in that you will totally understand what you need to do, but for some reason it doesn't quite work out and you end up eating more damage than you expect.

In fact, half the game's bosses are a bit unfair and prove more frustrating than fun to fight, as those bosses don't exhibit a pattern you can learn and exploit.
The irony of it all, most stages are straight forward and the bosses prove a challenge, except the final stage where the final boss is laughable easy, but he has a hell of a stage building up to him.

The game offers infinite continues, so it is a matter of perseverance to beat this one, but it is totally manageable.

But, something I will say about Valis for Genesis, it is at best a mid-tier Valis games. That means two things. They get better than this, they also sadly... Get worse.

#SegaGenesis #RetroGames

Ishambard 6d ago

So, something that will become a trend when i talk Valis. If you are ever going to play a #Valis game, play the #PCEngineCD version of it.

Valis 1 is a fantastic variant compared to the Genesis version in my opinion. The franchise important slide move that Yuko has can actually damage enemies! More on that in later games.

The game itself is more challenging in places, with tougher pre-boss stages and also having a number of mini-bosses.

Bosses operate more fairly, with more discernible patterns, with the exception of the first form of the final boss.

It's not all rough and challenging. Similar to the Genesis game, you will obtain spells to help you throughout the game and the spell received from the third boss fight is a shield spell that absorbs several hits of damage. Super useful when certain sections of the game enjoys kicking you down a few pegs.

If you are going to play ANY Valis game, I honestly think this is best, most balanced experience of them all.

Ishambard 5d ago

God damn, #Valis 2's international release has such a bad cover.
It is so bad it is tragic.
In its defence, I will say that the red, satanic, demon goes quite hard. But the stylisation is just weak in my opinion.

Something I have noticed with the western box arts, such as the SNES Super Valis box art. They like to depict early game bosses, as if they are a bigger bad, whilst Japan has the imposing image of the final boss looming over Yuko.

I also like how most western depictions of the Valis sword show it as a short sword, whilst the Japanese depiction is like a claymore.

The western box art being bad is just my opinion, you might really gel with it, but I just find it kind of funny.

As for the Japanese cover. Yeah, I like it. It's much better than the cover for the first game. There is something about the confident look in Yuko's face that sells her as a badass, compared to the western one where she almost looks like she is cowering behind her sword.

#PCEngineCD #TurboGrafx

Ishambard 5d ago

So, I don't hate #Valis 2 for the #PCEngineCD

After the highs of Valis 1, this feels like a massive downgrade.
Magic, naff. Slide move, gone. Platforming, bland.

The voice acting and animated cutscenes are cool, but gameplay presentation falls short.

My understanding is the game had some troubles in development, being short staffed and combined with being made at the same time as the PC-8801 and MSX2 versions. I have sympathy for the game in that regard.

The flow is different as well, with a focus on fighting multiple mid-stage mini-bosses, usually in flat arenas with no room to dodge attacks. This means haemorrhaging health and lives, and lives are super important in this game. Dying in a boss fight lets you continue the fight for as many lives as you have left.

Infinite continues allows you to keep throwing yourself at stages, but it can put you in some rather hairy situations making it hard to carry those lives to the boss fights.

Honestly, you can afford to skip on this one.

Ishambard 4d ago

Syd of #Valis is a weird game for many reasons.

Firstly, let's talk box art.
The western box art actually uses a Japanese box art, just... Not the Japanese box art for Valis SD.
It uses the box art for The Sugoroku 92 Nariagari Trendy. A party game featuring a collaborative cast from other Telenet Japan games, such as Cosmic Fantasy and Super Albatross. Besides Yuko, none of the other characters appear in Syd of Valis. It's awfully misleading!

The naming is also a choice, though calling it Super Deformed Valis would probably be just as odd.

As for the Japanese Valis SD, it is bright, colourful and shows most of the in-game characters in their super deformed cutesy look. It definitely gives the vibe of quirky off-shoot from the main series.

I mean, the challenge for the western box would be how would you portray this game? The game itself comes across cutesy, and the previous high fantasy stylings wouldn't apply here.

Boxart aside, the game is at least good, right?

Syd of Valis is 100% vision and probably about 40% execution.
It also makes the #SegaGenesis trilogy an absolute mess.

A retelling of the plot of #Valis 2 but with a cutesy chibi filter is not a terrible idea.
Where the game drops the ball is in the control. Jumps are incredibly floaty and everything is coated in a weird slippery physic usually reserved for ice levels.

Some bosses and mini-bosses feel like a damage race with questionable hit detection. In fact, the easiest boss in the PC Engine Valis 2 is the single hardest thing in Syd of Valis, and the real kicker. No continues. Lives, sure, but no continues.

The game gives me vibes of Wonderboy in Monster World. Just, if you packaged it as a standard action game and not an RPG.

There could have been something cool here, if the powering up of weapons or the outfits you didn't feel like an after thought.

Sadly, there feels like there is no good way to experience Valis 2. I really should check out the MSX version.

Ishambard 3d ago

Oh my. I wasn't expecting the non-japanese box art for #Valis 3 to drop the ball so hard. The Genesis library has some fantastic box art but I hate to be like this, but I just find this unappealing and the more i look at it the more questions come to mind. That hairline, oof.

I imagine this what her facial expression was on the Turbografx Valis 2 box art. It shows a lack of confidence in our heroine and I'm just a little sad about that.
Once again, the looming figure is, to the best of my knowledge, a depiction of the first stage boss. All whilst Yuko's sister and a sagely old man look on, judgementally.

I suppose the only saving grace is the Valis sword cleaving through the metals links of that ball and chain

Perhaps, for the time, the Japanese cover could be seen as generic, showing our three playable characters in action ready poses, with a burst behind them. But dammit, it's a nice effective shot. I swear, between box arts the Valis sword is only getting longer...

Ishambard 3d ago

So, we are out of the trenches of bad #Valis games
It's only up from here, right?

#SegaGenesis Valis 3 is the best offering on the platform and has new features and gimmicks.
Firstly, we have multiple playable characters who are unlocked through the journey and can be swapped to on the fly, like Castlevania 3. One of them also has a whip!

Magic is done with elemental rod "sub weapons" and each character has different variations on each element.
There is a new power mechanic, where you need to wait between attacks to ensure you are attacking at full power

But, this is where the series starts getting harder. The token ice based stages feature some of nefarious platforming moments.

it is also an appropriate time to talk about the sliding mechanic. Sliding off an edge continue your horizontal momentum into the slide ends, so some gaps you need to slide over than attempting a jump.

I still recommend Valis 1 as an entry point, but if you like that, definitely check this one out!

Ishambard 2d ago

Yes, yes, yes! #Valis 3's western box art is possibly the pinnacle of series

Let's start with that title. The faux metallic gradient with a sword woven between the letters. It screams metal band, and in fact, Valis might now be the name of my indie metal band.

Our protagonist on the box gives proto Xenia warrior princess vibes. Let's ignore the fact that Yuko is supposed to be 17 or 18. She is looking cool and serene against a backdrop of jagged mountains and lightning. Get a clean version of the image with the CD cinema screens and logos and I'd have that image on my wall somewhere.

The Japanese version is similar in nature to the Genesis box art. Our three playable characters all battle ready against a gradiented backdrop.
We can get a better look at Cham's design and her whip with her being in the foreground and the Sword of Valis this time is of indeterminate length.

Credit to the western cover art here, I honestly think they knocked it out of the park!

#PCEngineCD #TurboGrafx

Ishambard 2d ago

So, I had once said, if you are going to play a #Valis game, play the #PCEngineCD version.

I stand by that, but, this is because I have a penchant for suffering and video game related masochism.

Valis 3 for the PCE is fantastic but can be absolutely brutal. It features additional levels to the Genesis version, and one of them is quite sadistic that it is borderline off-putting. Some enemies are tailor made and positioned to make you angry and the final boss is a cheap-ass sonnuva gun.

Something to note in this version as well, your slide move makes you invulnerable during the animation. This is vital information that makes the game a little fairer, but only fractionally. This all comes at a cost of a high jump move that was in the Genesis version now being almost non-existent.

I do find it a little weird that to pause the game you press the select button, as the start (Or "Run") button is tied into the control scheme. After a while, you'll get used to it.

Ishambard 1d ago

So, we have finally come full circle, though we do have one more #Valis title after this I want to talk about.

The box art for Super Valis IV on the #SNES was the impetus for this entire journey and based off that western box art, I hope you can see why.

The rendition of Lena readying her sword as a fire breathing tiger, being ridden by a metallic figure, leaping at her is simultaneously over the top and an epic visual. Again, it falls into this weird trend of depicting an early game boss on the cover art. Through Dhalgren is stage 2's boss. This is a cover art I would have on my wall if I could.

(I should make a collage of the ones I would want... )

The Japanese cover gives me anime VHS vibes, like, I can imagine a "volume 1" being tacked somewhere on that box. Of all the Japanese covers, this is probably my favourite one. I can't necessarily explain why.

For all time favourites, it really is a bit of a battle between Super Valis and Valis 3's western covers.

Ishambard 1d ago

So, I was REALLY looking forward to this game, if only because I was sold on the western box art.

However, Super Valis IV for the #SNES is... It's a poor man's #Valis 1 which was heart wrenching for me.
There is next to no platforming to speak of in this game, no sliding... But you can run! That's a first I suppose.

Magic is handled through collectable power-ups that you can hold a number of in stock, but you can only equip one and any uses left over will be lost if you equip a new magic ability.

There is a curious mechanic where the longer you take on a stage, the more health the boss will have at the end. it encourages fast and precise gameplay, where you risk bosses being tougher to get additional power ups, but a lot of stages don't really present this in an interesting way.

For the most part I found myself riding one Valis Armour power-up to another, as it can absorb a decent number of hits before it wears off.

I think I'm bitter and disappointed, and it is making me grumpy.

Ishambard 10h ago

It's a shame we never got an export version of #Valis 4, there is a translation patch available, which i do need to check out.

Anyway, box art time. Just the one today. So, I do think it is odd that Lena's hair is pink here, instead of the red it is in-game or in cutscenes. It's nice that Amu is here too, as she is the superior character to play as.

I think if we compare it to the SNES box art, this one is less impressive. I daresay, that if I called the SNES box art an Anime VHS cover, I would imagine it would be for a movie or high budget series. This feels more straight to VHS video cover. Does that make sense? There is a level of detail that feels a little cheaper here.

But, to be honest, I am not here to talk too much about this box art, we have a game to talk about!

Ishambard 10h ago

Thank Yuko for the #PCEngine version of #Valis 4.

I could probably spend a good while waxing lyrically over why I love this game, and in part, it would probably be quite concerning.
It was probably one of the hardest games I have beaten this year, progress was at time glacial and frustrating, but with each act cleared, it was like a mini accomplishment. Soon to be met with dread of what is coming up next.

The game isn't entirely fair, at times enemies fly at you with reckless abandon in non-sensical patterns, knocking you back into death pits or draining your health to dangerous levels. All stages are all a bit of a dance.

The three playable characters have their own abilities and advantages, expanding on what Valis 3 had established.

As an entire package, this comes together in such an amazing fashion. It's not for everyone, but if you enjoy a challenging platformer that possibly doesn't get talked about enough, honestly, I don't think can go wrong with Valis 4 for the PCE.

Ishambard 9h ago

So, to cap all of this off.
I feel I need to make a short teir list for the #Valis games I played. It should be noted, there are other games, like the MSX games and even a version of Valis 1 for the NES.

I am going to do two lists, the first list is my own preferences and how much I enjoyed playing the games. The second will be more about how much I recommend people play the specific games, which will be slightly different, because as much as I love certain games, I know many don't have the same level of stubbornness as i do.

So, here goes:

1: Valis 4 PC Engine CD
2: Valis 3 PC Engine CD
3: Valis 3 Genesis
4: Valis 1 PC Engine
5: Valis 1 Genesis
6: Super Valis 4 SNES
7: Valis 2 PC Engine CD
8: Syd of Valis

If you have been following the thread, none of this should come as a surprise, at least I don't think it should...

1/2

Ishambard 8h ago

Right, a tier list based on how much I would recommend to people who may not have heard of this series and would be interested in playing the games.

This is more about how accessible I think the games are for newbies and how much they might enjoy the games factoring in how difficult it is as a negative, difficulty takes into account infinite continues, discernible boss patterns and also frequency of rude and unfair enemy placement.

1: #Valis 1 Genesis
2: Valis 3 Genesis
3: Valis 1 PC Engine
4: Super Valis 4 SNES
5: Valis 2 PC Engine
6: Valis 3 PC Engine
7: Valis 4 PC Engine
8: Syd of Valis

Poor Syd of Valis. Really could have been better.

Valis 3 and 4 for PC Engine are amazing games, but I think they really edge that line of being too unfair to enjoy casually. Act 4 of Valis 3 on PC Engine will make or break you. Similar to Valis 4.

With any luck I have encouraged some people to check these games out and with modern day ports available, they can be played legitimately 🤣

2/2

Judeau (EatTheRich)9h ago

@ishambard This has been an awesome series of posts. I've really enjoyed reading your thoughts on the franchise. It's been forever since I've played through the games but I can tell I'm going to be digging mine out of storage before long.

Now for the inevitable question... Tomorrow do we get a review of Valis X? 😳😂

Ishambard 8h ago

So, for #Valis X (or Valis Cross), that is a gaming line I refuse to talk about in detail.
I don't really like or want to talk about H games or Adult games, at least not when what i like to talk about and stuff I will share isn't typically aimed at that kind of audience.

I suppose my thoughts on Valis X can be summarised with disappointment. That you would create that series of great platformer games and come the 20th anniversary, you do a Hentai visual novel for that summarises the first three games.

It really sours the legacy of the franchise in my opinion.

It is also sad to think that that is the last official Valis game. Yuko and other characters have other games as cameos and what not. Sure, there is the Valis collection of Steam... But... Yuko deserves better than that.

Judeau (EatTheRich)7h ago

@ishambard My comment was completely in jest but I totally agree with everything you said.

I didn't even realize that Valis X summarized the events of the first few titles. So they couldn't even be bothered to write a new original story, huh? Wow.

I always found it funny that the art in the screenshots that I saw for the game were so generic. The PCE CD cutscenes were so cool and stylish and while X is definitely more detailed, it's just plain and generic IMO.

It is sad that that's how they chose to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the series and that it was the final official installment we ever got.

I usually hope that re-releasing an old title will garner renewed interest and lead to a new installment getting developed but with the low bar effort Edia has been putting into their releases I don't expect the popularity of the series to surge anytime soon.

Ishambard 7h ago

I could tell it was in jest, but I figured it would be good to lay down my views on covering such content as well, for clarity sake.

I did check it out some information for it for research purposes, and I agree with your view on the artwork for it.

Yeah, when i looked at the steam pages for the Valis games I was a little disappointed in how they decided to packaged it.

I think the best we can hold for is people making spiritual successors of sorts. I would definitely try my hand at writing something for it... Building anything that isn't an RPG and doesn't use a pre-built kit like RPG Maker is just outside of my knowledge and skill set.

Judeau (EatTheRich)15h ago

@ishambard Super Valis IV was somewhat disappointing but I still had fun with it. However, I don't guess I ever realized that the longer you took to complete a stage made the bosses tougher. I don't recall this at all so I must not have known about it at the time.

It's nowhere near the level of awesomeness Valis IV on the PC engine CD is though.

I miss the days when we would get multiple completely different versions of a game.

Ishambard 10h ago

I think, as an isolated game, Super Valis IV is rather mediocre at best. I mean, it plays and controls absolutely fine. It's not like Syd of Valis. But when you put it into the context of the wider series, it is just disappointing that this was the game the SNES got.

It would be unfair to compare it to the PC Engine version, but the Genesis was able to put out a good comparable game. So, I am just like, how did it end up like this?

Yeah, in terms of the boss health thing, I think it is only noticeable in the first two stages, not that those bosses are particularly challenging... So... Like, you wouldn't notice it that much.

Judeau (EatTheRich)9h ago

@ishambard You're definitely on point. While I enjoyed my time with the game on the SNES, the team definitely dropped the ball.

Considering what was done on the PCE CD, the SNES version should have been a standout title.

Panda the MEOWER 1d ago

@ishambard Japanese cover has more illustration vibe rather than perspective frames of previous titles: ie abstraction of a girl in background being bigger than the one upfront

Ishambard 1d ago

Honestly, I think that summarises it really nicely, and whilst I 100% agree with the statement I probably lacked the ability to articulate that!

Jake in the desert 2d ago

@ishambard suffering and video game related masochism 😂😂

Ishambard 2d ago

Yeah, I have honestly enjoyed some of the punishment games have dealt to me in the past couple of years.

Says a lot about me as a person, I think...

Panda Plenty 2d ago

@ishambard Japanese ones do look samey like frames from same anime, lacking a bit of personality

Ishambard 2d ago

In isolation the covers for Valis 3 are fine.
But yeah, looking at the megadrive and PC Engine CD ones side by side it is a bit samey, to the point where I am surprised they even did unique cover arts for the versions.

Judeau (EatTheRich)2d ago

@ishambard The US box art for Valis 3 on the TGFX 16 kills me.

Like... it's totally Tim Curry trying to pass himself off as Yuko!!! The artist had to have just finished watching The Rocky Horror Picture Show, or Clue, or something.

I do totally dig everything else about it though.

Ishambard 2d ago

Great, now I can't unsee that...

Bradley Schaefer 3d ago

@ishambard if they excluded the blue people, and fixed the character’s face, the box art would have been ok. I don’t think that artist could do faces or something

Bradley Schaefer 3d ago

@ishambard is the information out there about who the artists are / what other work they’ve done?

Ishambard 3d ago

That is definitely an interesting question.
Admittedly, I haven't looked too deeply into who the artists are for any of the boxes I have looked at, but it could certainly be a potentially interesting rabbit hole to go down.

@ishambard The fact that they chose airbrush as the medium is fun but, yeah... oof. That face is so off-model.