Tactical RPGs

[Mochan]

I was reading some Stella Deus reviews and it struck me (actually I noticed like a year back) that most people only really got into SRPGs when Disgaea came out. I find that most people compare SRPGs now to Disgaea, as if that were the standard to which every other SRPG should be compared to. Hardly anyone ever mentions the older stuff.

I find this a bit sad, because as good a game Disgaea was, it's still nowhere near as good as FFTactics. Sure, it was a lot funnier but FFT was the better game, easily, due to the gameplay and character system.

Another thing I find weird is that a lot of people seem to think it was Atlus who developed and created games like Disgaea, La Pucelle, Tactics Ogre, etc. Like how they call these "Atlus games" rather than N1 games or Quest games. They don't realize that Atlus usually is just the publisher for these games.

Anyway just a weird observation, and I think making observations like this makes me feel old sometims. :( Still, I love SRPGs and I'm eagerly awaiting the day when Namco x Capcom is released in English. And here's to hoping the 1% chance of Super Robot Wars being released in English finally becomes 100%.

[Gadfly2317]

I'm not an old timer on tactical RPG's (I consider Advanced Wars a tactical RPG, and I loved FF Tactics Advanced.)

But I've really liked the genre. I thought I hated turn based battles, but I hated the way in JRPG's I'm constantly getting interrupted while exploring beautiful worlds into being forced into a short, irritating battle. But with Tactical RPG's, its's ALL turn-based battling, and so the game is entirely differnt, more like chess or other great strategy board games.

I really liked Phantom Brave in the time I spent with it (it was non-grid based, and very cool) but I haven't had time. This is the genre I most want to start playing when I have time to get back into console gaming. I have Disgaea, but have never even put it in. The Nippon Ichi games. . .they all appeal to me from what I've seen of them.

Also, since I've become a DS fanatic, I'm praying for a flood of Tactical RPG's on the system, because everything about these games basic structure, complex menus and items and character management could easily be streamlined with touch interface and dual screens, and anyone that enjoys these games should be jumping with joy at the prospect of a touch interface dual-screen tactical strategy game with voice recognition and online support. The DS has this potential, if its wasted, it will be the biggest hardware waste in the history of gaming as far as I'm concerned.

[Mochan]

I haven't finished Phantom Brave myself, I didn't like it too much. The story was just as bad as La Pucelle's, minus all the wackniess that I expect from NipponIchi. Worse, the gameplay wasn't too hot. It was novel but the Confine thing just wasn't to my tastes. In general I find Nipponichi SRPGs to be less involved in terms of gameplay, anyway.

I admit I was a bit disappointed with FFTAdvance, I guess I was comparing it too much to FF Tactics, which IMO was loads better.

Tactical RPGs are definitely some of my fave games, I love the genre a lot. You should try Disgaea, this genre was all but dead a few years back but Disgaea just jump-started it back to life, and with good reason. Although the actual gameplay wasn't as good as some of the other SRPG classics, the hilarity of the characters and story were what put this game above the competition.

I agree that the DS seems to have the potential for great SRPG games. But I find that the gamepad works just fine, you'd think a mouse would be great for SRPGs but I actually find that the gamepad does a better job for them. It's easier. I don't know if I'll be of like mind with the DS, but frankly I hope no tactical RPGs come out on DS. Why? Because I don't want to get a DS and I don't want to miss out on any good SRPGs. :)