INTRO:
Although Raita Honjou already has a portfolio prior to the debut of the Valkyria Chronicles series – this portfolio also includes not-safe-for-work (NSFW) stuff – the series is his clearest mark in the video games industry. He has a knack for coming up with visual designs that make almost any character immediately recognizable – even if they are subjected to anime/manga tropes such as different characters having similar facial shapes.
Raita Honjou also has a knack for designing scanty clothing – many of his NSFW stuff would of course have these. Therefore, not wanting to waste its contract with Raita Honjou, Sega has him designing swimwear for the major characters in the fourth entry of the series.
Then, it is up to Sega’s developer to cobble together some narrative excuse to justify the (presumably) canonical introduction of Squad E’s acquisition of swimwear.
PREMISE:
The missions in this DLC appear to take place before the onset of the early winter in the Empire, but just after Operation Northern Cross has managed to conquer the Siegval Line. Squad E has been ordered to investigate a suspected enemy supply depot, based on the movements of Imperial forces that appear to have not followed the general retreat from the Siegval Line.
The supply depot turns out to be an Imperial beach resort that is being occupied by Imperial army elements. These army elements are elites that appear to have been given the onerous task of holding the resort, which have no strategic value other than the supplies that have been stashed just outside the resort. In addition, specific Imperial officers have been tasked with holding sacks of clothes – which turn out to be swimwear.
Ludicrously convenient but otherwise somewhat believable circumstances aside, Squad E’s commanders get to test out the swimwear – and then a counter-attack happens and they have to fight in their swimwear.
This is the narrative set-up for this DLC. It is understandably silly and perhaps all too familiar to followers of anime.
MISSIONS:
There are two missions in this DLC. Both can be easily won in under two turns; the first one can be beaten in one turn alone. This is because the player’s main objective – presumably the Imperials’ supplies – are well within reach.
However, there are other targets of opportunity strewn throughout the rest of the map. These are the aforementioned officers who are holding the sacks of swimwear. Incidentally, some of them are located at the resort building, which have narrow paths of approach that are particularly well-defended. Getting past the tanks, turrets and shocktroopers that saturate these approaches in as few turns as possible can be quite challenging.
The second mission has all of the officers and NCOs of Squad E fighting in their swimwear; they have no issues doing so. This is despite some of them barely having anything in between the enemy’s bullets and their skin. The player does not even get to field the Hafen at all, because Claude has to be fielded as a scout in his beach outfit.
Incidentally, there are even more tanks in the player’s way now, and somehow the Imperials managed to re-occupy the grounds of the resort mansion. Incidentally, one of their officers is holding the final sack of swimwear, which happen to be a skimpy bikini.
Completing both missions lets Squad E have a brief vacation, and the player is rewarded with some fan-service scenes.
ALTERNATE OUTFITS NOT SHOWING IN CUTSCENES:
Unfortunately, the swimwear only ever appears in regular gameplay and the cutscenes for this DLC story. They never appear in other cutscenes – not even mission briefings. If the player is expecting the kind of hilarity to be had from the Dead Rising series (in which the protagonist can be clad in outrageous costumes that no other character would acknowledge), the player would be mistaken.
SECONDARY CHARACTERS NOT FEATURED:
The beach frolicking only ever involves the main player characters. The secondary characters – namely the other units – are not represented in this story at all, even if they did participate in the mission. This puts the canonicity of the story in question, and also represent a lost opportunity to have the others express more of their personality.
On the other hand, asking Raita Honjou to make more swimwear for the secondary characters would have been too much.
SUMMARY:
Overall, this DLC package has challenges that are better designed than most of the other DLC packages. The swimwear outfits are of course goofy near non-canonical fan-service, though there is some amusement to be had from watching the leaders traipse through snow and ice in their beachwear.