Grand Kingdom (PS4) Preview

Swords? Storyline? Online Crossplay? That’s Grand Kingdom for you.

Grand Kingdom is a Tactical Role-Playing Game,  not unlike Final Fantasy Tactics or maybe even Fire Emblem in terms of themes. But, though there may be similarities to those games with developer NIS’ newest, Grand Kingdom can certainly stand on its own. Oddly enough, it stands head and shoulders apart from other Tactical RPGs because of its similarities with a JRPG, Valkyria Chronicles.

While Grand Kingdom isn’t due out in the West for a month, I did get a chance to play the “lite” version of the game, and boy did I spend some time on it. I’m not going to spoil the story so much here, especially since this is the lite version (or demo)… it’s not like there was all that much that I could spoil. Nevertheless, this short introduction does set the premise of what people can expect from the upcoming game.

And on that, here’s the long and this short of what you’ll be seeing in Grand Kingdom:

1. 2D Fights – Grand Kingdom has its own style and features, and 2D is definitely one of its strengths. I really loved how the characters look and I love how they move and fight. If there’s anything that stands out about this TRPG, it’s the visuals.
2. Mercenaries – Unlike other RPGs, you’re not playing the prince of a kingdom or a legendary hero, you’re simply a mercenary. You’re paid in gold and you fight for causes you don’t necessarily believe in. At least that’s how the demo begins. This abbreviated look sets up an interesting narrative and provides a unique perspective on how wars are fought in this fantasy land.
3. Long Grind – This isn’t a bad thing. One of the great things about TRPGs is personally training each and every one of your mercenary units to your preference. It’s definitely going to be a long grind and one that is worth it… provided that you have the time.
4. Music – I love the music of the game. Seriously. Music is one of the most important aspects of a game for me and Grand Kingdom delivered.
5. Bad VA – I’m not sure I should judge Grand Kingdom on its sub-par voice acting at this point since I played the lite version. So I’ll leave it at this: I’m somewhat hopeful that they would take the time to tweak the voice acting a little for the full product.

All in all, Grand Kingdom is definitely a game to look forward to. It has a promising storyline and awesome production values (overall). Just a little improvement with the VA, and this game should be golden.