When you first start playing the game, it's all a little confusing... the main goal is to strenghten all of your character's into hero's before Ragnarok (the end of the world) but the clock ticks down, and every area/town/dungeon you enter takes up a certain amount of periods (their measure of time)

First starting out you might be a little unsure of what you are doing, since the game gives you an enormous amount of freedom, plus huge and intricate dungeons.

If you want to get the most enjoyment and understanding out of the game you might as well go ahead and buy the guide.

I'm among the many who feel like strategy guides can ruin the gaming experience, but with Valkyrie it's really just going to enhance the experience. The game is so beautiful, beautiful 2D graphics and a side-scrolling format, complex but with tons of freedom, wonderful music, and an interesting storyline with ties into Norse mythology.

The music is excellent, the game is excellent, and it's also pretty complex. Do yourself a favor!

12 of 13 found the following review helpful:


Get help on Enix's original beautiful RPG  Nov 23, 2000
Almost all RPG games that come out these days are bound to have a guide published. Valkyrie Profile is a game where the strategy guide helps a lot because of overwhelming dungeons that take hours to get by. The book saves tons and tons of backtracking in the game and shows the best recommendations for developing your party of characters. This is a semi-difficult game and the guide explains all the places you can only get through replays, and all the time periods. All in all, it's an engaging game, and the guide will really help you get a grip on how to manuever this captivating RPG game.


ESSENTIAL, BUT NOT 100% ACCURATE  Nov 13, 2010 By EMAN NEP
While it may be a no-brainer to use a strategy guide for an RPG, VALKYRIE PROFILE (VP) is one of those games where the use of one is practically mandatory in order to complete the game.

I tried playing VP two or three times on my own--no strategy guide--before realizing that the game just had too much depth and was too overwhelming--especially if you're going for the best ending.

As the shiny gold box on the cover implies, this guide will help you find all three endings--although, arguably, only one of them is really worth attaining.

However, some of the information in this guide is a little misleading and could prevent you from ever reaching the "A" ending.

For example, on the chapter entitled, THE ENDINGS GAME, there is a chart that tells you what events you have to view and what chapter they appear in. More specifically, it says that you can view "A Fateful Event" in Gerabellum in Chapter 2 and "Lord of the Immortals" in Brahms Castle in Chapter 3 and 4. These scenes are critical to reducing Valkyrie's Seal Rating. However, what if you are already past those chapters and you haven't viewed those events yet? What the Guide DOES NOT tell you, is that YOU CAN VIEW THOSE EVENTS AT ANY TIME AFTER THOSE CHAPTERS! If I had kept playing, not having seen those events and assuming I could never view them again, then I would have essentially played to the very end, only to be presented with the generic "Normal" ending.

Another flaw I found regards the Lost City of Dipan. One of the first paragraphs introducing this dungeon tells you that you have fight Barbarossa before you can explore around. This is not true. There were times where I entered the dungeon and was able to explore a few hallways and fight all the monsters within. This may not be true for the very first time you enter this dungeon, but I found it held true after re-entering the dungeon after losing to Barbarossa.

As for the positives, all of it is essential and well organized. Although the game features a map system, this guide was most invaluable in figuring out which doors led to where and what enemies and treasures you can expect to find in each room. Another huge help was the lists of enemies encountered in each dungeon, as well as all of their weaknesses.

If this game has been sitting in its jewel case collecting dust, I suggest you dust it off, get this guide and give it a spin--it's a very deep game and often very fun.

2 of 10 found the following review helpful:


Pricing  Jul 01, 2006 By T. Bagnell
I agree with the assertions posed by the other two reviews, however my jaw nearly hit the floor when I saw the price... $99.99, ARE YOU INSANE! Its a good game, great even, but its not a collectible on that sort of scale. I didn't even pay that much for the game itself! Good luck selling them.