Tactics Ogre: Reborn is one of the many RPGs Square Enix is wrapping up the year with. The large developer is no stranger to remakes and remasters, and their efforts to re-release his 2010 PSP version of Tactics Ogre: Let Us Cling Together have been mostly fun. Awkward pauses in progression, an overlong final chapter, and baffling mechanics make for a challenging experience in some ways.
From the start, Tactics Ogre: Reborn’s story seems to take place in the middle of a long narrative, so it gets off to a rocky start at first. As the protagonist Denem, you are involved in a civil war as a member of the Wallister, the smallest of his three factions. Through four chapters, Reborn takes you through dozens of battles, all kinds of political intrigue, and pivotal moments in the war over Valeria, the game’s setting. Throughout, it can be difficult to keep up with all the names of factions, families, places and people, but those who appreciate deeper and more complex stories will have the opportunity to get hooked on this story.
From the Overworld map, travel from location to location to start battles and watch cutscenes. Certain locations give you access to shops where you can buy, sell, and craft equipment, items, and spells. What’s frustrating about the shop is that you have to navigate a bit to figure out which pieces fit which job class, whether one weapon is more powerful or can be upgraded. is not as friendly as possible. When you’re not shopping, you’ll travel to map locations marked in red for story events and side quests, and some areas lead to multi-part battles that require plenty of preparation before entering.
Before diving into Reborn’s turn-based tactical combat, I’d like to touch on a sublime score re-recorded with a live orchestra. In short, it was incredible and contributed a lot to the game’s gravitas, as did the excellent voice work that made each character stand out. In a title with so many different faces, voice acting makes it really easy to identify with important characters in the story.
At the heart of Tactics Ogre: Reborn is a familiar yet complex combat system. This system dates back to the Super Nintendo, predating PSOne’s classic game Final Fantasy Tactics by several years. Characters take turns moving, attacking, casting spells, and using items, usually with the goal of killing a specific named enemy. Certain battles require you to eliminate all enemies, and some of these can get really long, especially late in the game. It would have been nice to have had a few more speeds to choose from. , may work to your advantage in the game.
Engaging Knights, Wizards, Clerics, and Archers in combat is just the beginning of the possibilities. Recruiting special characters, unlocking hidden job classes, and discovering powerful weapons all help you experience every corner Tactics Ogre has to offer. Completing the game unlocks World Tarot, allowing you to travel back to past events in the massive branching timeline you create while playing the game. This is a great feature for perfectionists and those who want to see how certain choices changed course.Even in combat, Chariot he activates the Tarot to rewind to a specific turn. , from which you can play another turn. These features make the lack of difficulty options and awkward progression all but negligible.
Always at the mercy of the Union level. A Union Level is the maximum level a party member can reach at a particular point in the story. What this means is that you have to be very diligent about upgrading your equipment and weapons in the shop, and the more time you spend there, the less time you have to invest in the more interesting parts of the game. There is essentially no grinding in Tactics Ogre, unless you’re looking for crafting materials, items, or money. In many of the battles you participate in, enemies are at or slightly above your union level, and seeing thousands of experience thrown away for winning these seems like a brutal system. . Xenoblade Chronicles 3 has a much more elegant and player-friendly system that lets you bank and use XP whenever you choose. Some of the final bosses have him five levels over the max level, making for a tough endgame fight.
What really impressed me about Tactics Ogre: Reborn is the enemy AI, especially the AI settings that you can apply to your own party. In general, computer-controlled allies and adversaries make smart decisions and adapt to what’s in front of them. Nowhere was this more evident than when I used the Chariot Tarot to rewind time and see my enemies act completely differently based on my new moves.
My final impression of Tactics Ogre: Reborn is positive, but it leaves a few shortcomings. The last 3-5 hours of the game are nothing but slogs. The biggest culprit is a four-part dungeon followed by one that can contain as many as ten combat encounters. No chance to shop. The purpose of the Union level is certainly understandable, but it’s an inelegant solution to a problem faced by other RPGs themselves. Still, the aesthetics stay true to the original version of the game, and the audio experience is simply fantastic. Built for veterans of the genre and players with patience and tenacity, Tactics Ogre is sure to take the leap with the right controls.
