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Review: Grit and Valor – 1949
Grit and Valor is venturing into an under-represented genre in virtual reality: Real Time Strategy (RTS). Despite the limited offerings in this genre within VR, the existing titles often vary significantly in their design quality. Considering this, does Grit and Valor manage to deliver another successful RTS experience in virtual reality?
Game Details
Release Date: August 21st 2025
Developer: ea Studios / nDreams
Publisher: Megabit Publishing
Price: £15.99 / US $19.99
Reviewed On: PlayStation VR2
* Access Provided For Review *
Take Back Europe
In the retro-future of 1949, in a parallel universe dominated by the eccentric and deranged scientist, Doctor Z, you find yourself joining the resistance aiming to overthrow the malevolent Doctor Z and his army. Instead of engaging in a rational debate, you opt to confront them using colossal mechs – the Axis’s formidable weapons that you have successfully seized and repurposed against them. However, reclaiming Europe from Doctor Z will prove to be a formidable challenge.
What Kills You Makes You Stronger
I believe the ideal starting point is to highlight what distinguishes Grit and Valor from typical RTS games. The team has blended RTS with the Roguelite genre, which means you must be ready to fail repeatedly. However, with each failure, you improve and become better equipped as you unlock new mechs, technologies, and upgrades for these mechs.
This means that you should have an appreciation for roguelites. If you aren’t a fan of the fail-to-improve meta-progression style, this may not be suitable for you. However, if you’re deeply invested in RTS games, it could surprise you. The gameplay is split between these two distinct components, with the RTS aspect comprising a solid eighty-percent of the experience, while the roguelite accounts for the remaining twenty-percent. During this time, you will upgrade your base, unlock new mechs, enhance your mechs, train and develop your pilots’ skills, and research new technologies to experiment with – all of which enable you to return stronger for your next attempt.
In terms of the RTS aspect, it operates on a grid system within smaller areas, instead of traversing a map in search of enemies. In VR mode, you will oversee the map from a god-like perspective, with the maps resembling lively dioramas. To manoeuvrer your mechs, you will physically grab and lift them to position them where you want them to go – from that point, they will animate and walk to their destination. Initially, it may take some time to adjust to the mechanics of grabbing them and positioning your hand correctly – especially since you can also shift the level by grabbing it. As is typical for this genre, your mechs will possess both strengths and weaknesses, and you must consider strategies such as securing the high ground.
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These missions will unfold across various campaign trails in several European nations, beginning in Britain and concluding in New Germany. Upon completing your quest to reclaim these territories, you will encounter a unique boss. Throughout the maps as you traverse the country, you will have two main objectives. These include fending off four waves of attacks from the Axis and completing an optional task for additional rewards from that run. Such tasks may involve capturing outposts, defending a particular structure, destroying an object, or transporting fuel from one part to another. To enhance your gaming experience, I highly recommend pursuing these optional objectives, as they introduce a level of dynamism to the gameplay. Since you must select a mech to sacrifice for part of the defence to secure objectives, strategise your defence differently and ensure you are still ready for the incoming waves. The team have also provided a pause feature, allowing you to halt the map and take the time to devise your optimal move – a feature that is certainly beneficial for newcomers to RTS, but also advantageous for seasoned players engaging with the roguelite aspect.
In keeping with the roguelite design, during your journey, care packages will drop onto the map. When you collect these (using your hands in virtual reality), you’ll receive a variety of temporary upgrades for that run – ranging from common to legendary. Since these upgrades are random, you might find yourself with a powerful mech or one that has only received slight enhancements.
At the conclusion of each run, you will accumulate various currencies that can be utilised for the previously mentioned roguelite elements. This system aligns with what you would anticipate from meta-progression roguelites, making it easy to grasp and straightforward. This means that if you possess the necessary currencies, your purchases will be immediately accessible. If you have the blueprints needed to unlock new mechs, you can bring them into your next run without delay. For your run, all you need to do is choose three mechs, your required command vehicle, and your pilots – then you are all set to dive back into the action.
An Interesting Blend Of Styles
I believe Milky Tea Studios enjoys blending different styles, resulting in graphics that are simple, realistic, yet also whimsical – and surprisingly, this combination works well. The simplified design allows for easy navigation of the maps, making it simple to identify everything from enemies to your mechs and secondary objective locations. The environments maintain a straightforward yet realistic appearance, while the mechs combine a serious tone with exaggerated proportions that add a playful element. However, in virtual reality, I noticed that the textures appear impressive when viewed from a distance on the map, but when you zoom in or lean too close, they can become somewhat blurry. Fortunately, I rarely needed to get too close to the map; my curiosity was mainly about examining the mechs up close during my first experience with them. Overall, the visual approach taken by the team is effective.
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In terms of audio design, it fulfils the game’s requirements but doesn’t really break new ground with its soundscape. The base and levels feature music along with some ambient sounds, including the audio of mechs and enemies in motion, as well as the sounds of weapons firing throughout the levels. The only spoken audio consists of warnings about incoming waves, notifications for care-package drops, and announcements for completing each wave. This restrained approach to audio effectively meets the game’s needs while maintaining player engagement throughout the experience.
However, I would have appreciated more spoken dialogue in the game’s audio. I believe this aspect is more prominent in virtual reality compared to flat screens. Reading text on a 2D pop-up box diminishes some of the immersion, which is a crucial element.
Comfort
Verdict
Initially, Grit and Valor – 1949 didn’t captivate me with its gameplay. As an enjoyer of RTS games, I found the addition of the roguelite aspect somewhat off-putting, as I craved a traditional RTS experience. However, I persevered for a few more hours and soon became engrossed by the daring blend of these genres. That said, I believe the roguelite feature might discourage those seeking a pure RTS experience. At first, I encountered some challenges with the VR controls, which felt a bit cumbersome. Yet, over time, I learned how to efficiently select the mechs without missing them and interact with the environment. While it may lack the complexity of a full-fledged strategy game, it excels at keeping you engaged during gameplay. The roguelite component also provides a compelling reason to keep coming back for another run. Grit and Valor is undoubtedly a game that will appeal to those looking for a more relaxed RTS experience, complete with the meta-progression typical of roguelites – just be ready to face setbacks in order to return stronger in your next quest to liberate Europe.
Copyright / Virtual Grip (formally The VR Realm) / 2016 -
