| Valkyrie Profile: Covenant of the Plume | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Developer(s) | tri-Ace |
| Publisher(s) | Square Enix |
| Director(s) | Shunsuke Katsumata |
| Producer(s) | Wataru Kato |
| Designer(s) | Shutaro Yokoyama Naoko Ando |
| Programmer(s) | Shinji Hirachi |
| Artist(s) | Ko Yoshinari Yoh Yoshinari |
| Writer(s) | Miho Akabane Yasushi Ohtake Kishiko Miyagi |
| Composer(s) | Motoi Sakuraba |
| Series | Valkyrie Profile |
| Platform(s) | Nintendo DS |
| Release | |
| Genre(s) | Tactical role-playing |
| Mode(s) | Single-player |
Valkyrie Profile: Covenant of the Plume[a] is a tactical role-playing game developed by tri-Ace and published by Square Enix for the Nintendo DS handheld game console. Released in 2008 in Japan and 2009 worldwide, the game is the third entry in the Valkyrie Profile series, acting as a prequel to the original game.
Set in a world based around Norse mythology, Covenant of the Plume follows a young man named Wylfred who wants vengeance against the Valkyrie Lenneth after taking his father in battle as an einherjar, indirectly destroying his family. Becoming a mercenary and dying himself, the goddess Hel revives Wylfred, who resumes his quest for revenge. Gameplay involves a party of recruitable characters engaging in turn-based combat on a grid. Players use an item called the Destiny Plume to strengthen their character before it inflicts permanent death, impacting the story and leading to multiple endings.
The production team found development challenging but sought to push the limits of the DS hardware while staying true to the Valkyrie Profile series. The story, inspired by a commercial for the first game, focused on how a human might view the valkyrie's mission. Character designers Ko Yoshinari and Yoh Yoshinari and composer Motoi Sakuraba returned from previous entries. Selling 230,000 copies worldwide as of May 2009, Covenant of the Plume received mixed reviews from journalists; the story and gameplay were commended, while the graphics were met with mixed reactions, and the artificial intelligence and soundtrack were criticized.
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