Vandal Hearts II

About Vandal Hearts II

Vandal Hearts II (1999) is Konami's tactical RPG following Joshua from childhood through a civil war in Natra, with simultaneous Dual-Turn battles and multiple endings.

Vandal Hearts II in Depth

Ten years ago King Zekras left Natra to his son Julius, but younger brother Lagore raised an army and took the throne. Lagore proved a fair king but was slowly poisoned by the Queen Mother Agatha and her lover Cardinal Ladorak, who made her young son Franz heir and now oppresses the peasantry with his secret police, the Blood Knights. In the northern village of Polata, Joshua and Rosaly, adopted children of the mayor, grow up with Clive, Yuri and the noble Adele. The childhood chapters introduce the hero and his friends before the story jumps to an adult Natra torn by a civil war between foreign-backed factions, where Joshua's band of outlaws is drawn into a plot to create a third faction and restore peace.

The game uses an overworld map of points of interest, town maps with taverns and shops, and battle maps, most revisitable. Over 120 weapon and armour combinations replace fixed classes, so a warrior can become a healer without penalty: skills are learned by equipping weapons and earning points to master them, while armour sets hit points, magic points, movement and defence. Combat uses a new Dual-Turn System, described as an Active Time Battle system for tactical RPGs, in which player and computer each move one unit at the same time. Three key choices determine the ending, with four distinctly different and three similar endings.

Making Vandal Hearts II

Konami Computer Entertainment Nagoya developed it and Konami published it for the PlayStation in 1999. It received favourable reviews: NextGen's Francesca Reyes wrote that "with its steep learning curve, VH2 may not be ideal for novices, but because it has a strong story and clever battle features, it proves to be a great challenge for veterans". The story drew criticism elsewhere, with IGN finding it forgettable and GameSpot saying most players "won't care to follow" it, while Gaming Intelligence Agency missed the first game's variety of missions.