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Box artwork for Valkyrie no Bouken: Toki no Kagi Densetsu.
Box artwork for Valkyrie no Bouken: Toki no Kagi Densetsu.
Valkyrie no Bouken: Toki no Kagi Densetsu
Developer(s)Namco
Publisher(s)Namco
Year released1986
System(s)NES, Mobile, Wii
Followed byValkyrie no Densetsu
SeriesValkyrie
Japanese titleワルキューレの冒険 時の鍵伝説
Genre(s)Adventure
Players1
ModesSingle player
LinksValkyrie no Bouken ChannelSearchSearch

Valkyrie no Bouken: Toki no Kagi Densetsu, which can be translated into English as "The Adventure of Valkyrie: Legend of the Time Key", is a game developed by Namco for the Famicom in 1986. It came out a few months after The Legend of Zelda and Dragon Warrior, and many comparisons have been drawn between these games. The simplest comparison is that Valkyrie no Bouken presents a scrolling overworld like Dragon Warrior, but features a real time combat system similar to Zelda. The game is virtually unknown in the United States, but it is highly revered in Japan.

The Valkyrie is something of a minor mascot for Namco, having not achieved the worldwide fame that Pac-Man has, but being very much adored in Japan. Valkyrie no Bouken is the first game in which the Valkyrie appears. She is depicted on the box as having blond hair, yet due to the graphical limitations of the Famicom, the designers chose to give her black hair in the game. Subsequent appearances of the Valkyrie on later hardware feature her with blond hair. The Valkyrie has gone on to have cameo appearances in several other Namco games, including Namco x Capcom, in several of the Tales series, as a third costume choice for Cassandra in Soul Calibur II as well as the ability to purchase her outfit in Soul Calibur III, and references to her game have appeared in the Mr. Driller series.

Valkyrie no Bouken was followed up with Valkyrie no Densetsu in the arcades in 1989 which featured two player simultaneous play, with a console conversion released for the PC-Engine. In 1992, Namco released a prequel to Valkyrie no Bouken on the SNES entitled Xandra no Daibouken: Valkyrie to no Deai featuring the Valkyrie's green amphibian-looking friend, Kurino Sandra. (It was released in Europe as Whirlo). Valkyrie no Bouken was resurrected for the PlayStation in 1998 on Namco Anthology 2, which featured an upgraded (and more linear) version of the game side by side with an emulated version of the Famicom original. In 2007, Namco released a true upgrade of the original game with enhanced graphics (featuring blond hair on the Valkyrie) for Japanese cell phones that support the i-Apli system.

Having no text throughout the entire game, the game is fully playable by non-Japanese speakers. However, in 2001, the translation group SGST released a patch that converts the title screen into English (which provides a very phonetic translation of the word Valkyrie as Valecule) and the player select screen. However, as a result of changing the title, the translation corrupts the ending, which, ironically, is already presented in English.

To fix all the issues with the SGST translation, the translation group DvD Translations released a much more correct translation on February 23, 2009. If you wish to play the game in English, this is the version that is recommended.

Story[edit]

Valkyrie no Bouken title.png

Long ago, the people of Marvel Land were immortal. They were numerous in the land, but their days were filled with misery due to hunger and conflict. Demons took residence in the people’s hearts.

Unable to bear seeing her people suffer, the Goddess built a towering clock in the center of the land. This clock would determine when every person would be born and when they would depart this world. The Goddess made the people promise to adhere to this timing and inserted the Key of Time into the clock, banishing the demons into the gaps between time and ensuring they could never return.

Having lost their immortality, the people had to learn compassion and consideration for others to make the most of their finite lives. The land was peaceful for many years.

One night, a man, afraid of his own mortality, pulled the key from the clock, reversing the flow of time and allowing the demons to escape from their temporal prison. The Demon King Zouna took the key from him, gaining control over time itself. Demons again ravaged the land, razing villages and stealing souls as sacrifices to Zouna. Marvel Land was shrouded in darkness, fear and despair. The cries of the people reached the heavens, resonating in the heart of the divine child Valkyrie.

Descend, O Valkyrie, become as the humans are. Unite with them, bestow upon them your wisdom and courage, and vanquish the Demon King Zouna. Your adventure awaits!

(Adapted from the Instruction Booklet)

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