is a 1995
tactical role-playing game
Tactical role-playing games (abbreviated TRPGs), also known as strategy role-playing games and in Japan as (both abbreviated SRPGs), are a video game genre that combines core elements of role-playing video games with those of tactical (turn-bas ...
developed and published by
Quest Corporation
was a Japanese video game company founded in 1988. Quest is best known for its critically acclaimed tactical role-playing game series ''Ogre Battle''.
In 1990 Quest was merged with the company Bothtec, the latter focusing on the development of ...
for the
Super Famicom
The Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES), commonly shortened to Super NES or Super Nintendo, is a 16-bit home video game console developed by Nintendo that was released in 1990 in Japan and South Korea, 1991 in North America, 1992 in Euro ...
. It was later ported to the
Sega Saturn
The is a home video game console developed by Sega and released on November 22, 1994, in Japan, May 11, 1995, in North America, and July 8, 1995, in Europe. Part of the fifth generation of video game consoles, it was the successor to the succ ...
(1996) and the
PlayStation
is a video gaming brand that consists of five home video game consoles, two handhelds, a media center, and a smartphone, as well as an online service and multiple magazines. The brand is produced by Sony Interactive Entertainment, a divisi ...
(1997), the latter released in North America in 1998 by
Atlus USA
Atlus West, formerly known as Atlus U.S.A., Inc., is the North American publishing branch of Japanese video game company Atlus, primarily known for localizing games for both them and other third-party developers. Its first original role-playin ...
. The second entry in the ''
Ogre Battle
, sometimes referred to as , is a series of five tactical role-playing and real-time strategy video games developed by Quest Corporation and is currently owned by Square Enix through Square's acquisition of Quest. There are five original games i ...
'' series, the story takes place in the war-torn kingdom of Valeria, where protagonist Denim Powell works in a local resistance force against occupying powers, ending up caught in the ethnic conflicts driving the war. Battles are turn-based, taking place on grid-based maps from an overhead perspective with a focus on positioning and using
character class
In tabletop games and video games, a character class is a job or profession commonly used to differentiate the abilities of different game characters.
In role-playing games (RPGs), character classes aggregate several abilities and aptitudes, ...
abilities.
Production lasted two and a half years, with ''Ogre Battle'' creator
Yasumi Matsuno
is a Japanese video game designer. Matsuno was first introduced to video games in arcades while waiting for the train, and first played ''Space Invaders'' and ''Xevious'' there. He attended Hosei University for foreign policy but dropped out, ...
acting as director, writer and lead designer. The storyline was inspired by conflicts in Europe and Asia, based heavily in personal and political drama over the fantasy-themed narrative of ''
Ogre Battle: The March of the Black Queen''. The gameplay, inspired by the video game ''
Solstice
A solstice is an event that occurs when the Sun appears to reach its most northerly or southerly excursion relative to the celestial equator on the celestial sphere. Two solstices occur annually, around June 21 and December 21. In many countr ...
'', uses a chess-inspired combat system in contrast with the real-time battles of its predecessor.
Hiroshi Minagawa
, also known by the nickname ''Nigoro'', is a Japanese Game art design, video game artist, Video game designer, designer and director.
Career
Minagawa had worked at Quest Corporation alongside his colleagues Yasumi Matsuno and Akihiko Yoshida bef ...
was art director, while the characters were designed by
Akihiko Yoshida
is a Japanese video game artist. Yoshida was born in 1967 and joined Square in 1995, before the company merged with Enix. He then left Square Enix in September 2013 and became freelance. In October 2014, he became the company director of CyDesig ...
. The music, composed by
Hitoshi Sakimoto
is a Japanese video game music composer and arranger. He is best known for scoring ''Final Fantasy Tactics'' and ''Final Fantasy XII'', though he has composed soundtracks for over 80 other games. He began playing music and video games in elementa ...
and
Masaharu Iwata
is a Japanese video game music, video game composer. After graduating from high school, where his musical projects included composing on a synthesizer and playing in a cover band, he joined Bothtec as a composer. He composed the soundtrack to se ...
, used the narrative as inspiration and remains fondly remembered by the composers.
The Super Famicom release sold 500,000 units in Japan and met with positive reviews. Later ports also met with strong sales and reviews, with many praising its gameplay and narrative. The PlayStation version was met with criticism for technical issues. It has since been remembered as one of the best in its genre. Matsuno left Quest Corporation after completing ''Tactics Ogre'', joining
Square
In Euclidean geometry, a square is a regular quadrilateral, which means that it has four equal sides and four equal angles (90-degree angles, π/2 radian angles, or right angles). It can also be defined as a rectangle with two equal-length adj ...
(later
Square Enix
is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational holding company, production enterprise and entertainment conglomerate, best known for its ''Final Fantasy'', ''Dragon Quest'', ''Star Ocean'' and ''Kingdom Hearts'' role-playing video game ...
) and developing ''
Final Fantasy Tactics
is a 1997 tactical role-playing game developed and published by Square (video game company), Square for the PlayStation (console), PlayStation video game console. Released in Japan in June 1997 and in the United States in January 1998 by Sony ...
'' (1997) and other titles set within its universe of
Ivalice
is a fictional universe setting primarily appearing in the ''Final Fantasy'' video game series. The world was created by Yasumi Matsuno and has since been expanded upon by several games as the ''Ivalice Alliance'' series. Ivalice is described as a ...
. Quest developed further titles in the series before being absorbed by Square in 2003. A
remake of the same name for the
PlayStation Portable
The PlayStation Portable (PSP) is a handheld game console developed and marketed by Sony Computer Entertainment. It was first released in Japan on December 12, 2004, in North America on March 24, 2005, and in PAL regions on September 1, 2005, ...
was released in 2010.
Gameplay
''Tactics Ogre: Let Us Cling Together'' is a
tactical role-playing game
Tactical role-playing games (abbreviated TRPGs), also known as strategy role-playing games and in Japan as (both abbreviated SRPGs), are a video game genre that combines core elements of role-playing video games with those of tactical (turn-bas ...
in which players take on the role of Denim Powell (renamable by the player), a soldier caught in the middle of a war in the nation of Valeria.
The player moves between nodes on a worldmap, triggering story events followed by either a single battle or sequences of battles.
Beginning the game, the player is asked to input the lead character's name, birthday, and answer a series of questions determining their alignment and statistics.
Each movement on the world map equates to a single in-game day, which alters weather conditions.
Prior to battles, the player can equip their preferred units with chosen weapons, armor, items and accessories.
Also included is a training mode, where the player controls both sides of a battle and can raise unit strength.
This mode allows for two-person
multiplayer
A multiplayer video game is a video game in which more than one person can play in the same game environment at the same time, either locally on the same computing system (couch co-op), on different computing systems via a local area network, or ...
in the
Super Famicom
The Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES), commonly shortened to Super NES or Super Nintendo, is a 16-bit home video game console developed by Nintendo that was released in 1990 in Japan and South Korea, 1991 in North America, 1992 in Euro ...
release.
The game uses a
turn-based
In video and other games, the passage of time must be handled in a way that players find fair and easy to understand. This is usually done in one of the two ways: real-time and turn-based.
Real-time
Real-time games have game time progress cont ...
battle system dubbed the Non-Alternate Turn System.
Battles and all actions within take place on a small map viewed from an overhead diagonal perspective, with spaces and level geography appearing as a square grid structure.
The player team has a maximum of ten units on the field, and a maximum of thirty in their army.
The enemy team and allied characters are controlled by the game's artificial intelligence. A unit has a set range of movement, and an attack range dictated by their position on the map.
Turn order is dictated by a unit's Wait Turn (WT) points, which fluctuate depending on how many and what type of action is taken, with a unit's weight and agility statistic impacting how many WT are gained each turn.
When an enemy is defeated, a
tarot card
The tarot (, first known as ''trionfi (cards), trionfi'' and later as ''tarocchi'' or ''tarocks'') is a pack of playing cards, used from at least the mid-15th century in various parts of Europe to play card games such as Tarocchini. From their ...
can randomly drop, able to bestow a temporary boost to a character.
After a stage's victory condition is met, units can raise their
experience level
An experience point (often abbreviated as exp or XP) is a unit of measurement used in some tabletop role-playing games (RPGs) and role-playing video games to quantify a player character's life experience and progression through the game. Experien ...
during battle.
If Denim is killed, the game ends and must be restarted from an earlier save point.
Units have a variety of commands including moving, attacking with either melee or ranged weapons, performing a spell if they are capable of magic once their magic has charged enough during battle, using an item, or performing a character-specific special move. An ability unique to the lead character is "Persuade", which has a chance of recruiting enemy units in battle.
The terrain and weather conditions impact how a unit can move and act in each battle.
Unit behavior is also influenced by their alignment to the story path, and their associated elemental affinity which impacts unit compatibility and can enhance attacks or other actions.
An important feature is
character class
In tabletop games and video games, a character class is a job or profession commonly used to differentiate the abilities of different game characters.
In role-playing games (RPGs), character classes aggregate several abilities and aptitudes, ...
es with dedicated abilities, which can be evolved into more powerful classes through use in battle and transferred to compatible characters.
A key element to progress is branching story paths, labelled as "Law", "Neutral" and "Chaos", built around the lead character either accepting or rejecting the commands of authority figures. Some characters will also live or die depending on these choices, represented through dialogue options during cutscenes.
The narrative's branches occur in its first three chapters, with events coming back together for the final chapter's events before playing out an ending based on earlier decisions.
Up to eight different ending variations can be unlocked.
Character biographies and events both from cutscenes and beyond the revealed storyline are detailed in a separate menu named the Warren Report after one of the game's characters.
Synopsis
''Tactics Ogre'' takes place in Valeria, an archipelago united as a single kingdom under King Dolgare and worshipping a pantheon of six elemental gods, together with the Light Goddess Ishtar and the Chaos God Asmodeus. After Dolgare's apparent death with no direct heirs, the three primary ethnic groups of Valeria end up in a brief civil war, dividing into dedicated territories of varying sizes. The factions are Bacrum-Valeria, backed by the foreign nation of Lodis and ruled by its regent, Bishop Branta Mown; the Gargastan Kingdom led by Cardinal Barbatos; and the Walsta People led by Duke Ronway. After Gargastan gains the upper hand and declares itself ruler of Valeria, the neighbouring Walsta are subjected to persecution and restricted to a small island.
The story opens with a small Walsta resistance group−Denim Powell, his sister Kachua, and his childhood friend Vice Bozek−attack a group of roaming Zenobian mercenaries falsely believing their leader Lans Hamilton is the Black Knight Lans Tartare, a Lodis soldier who imprisoned Denim and Kachua's father Plancy in their childhood. The sympathetic Hamilton joins the group, bringing the old sage Warren, and Kachua vainly attempts to dissuade Denim from fighting. Denim's loyalty to the resistance is tested when Ronway orders the massacre of a town that refuses to join them, framing Gargastan for the crime. Whether Denim agrees or refuses the order, Vice disagrees and opposes him. If he rebels, Denim can later reconcile with Ronway or continue his own path. Following this Vice either becomes a fugitive for disagreeing with Denim's return, or secretly allies with Bacrum for his own ends as he serves Ronway.
Eventually finding Plancy dying from a terminal illness, Plancy tells Denim he is of the Mown family, and Kachua is Dolgare's illegitimate daughter, giving her a direct claim to Valeria's throne. By this point, the revelations regarding their bloodline and the constant danger for Denim strain his relationship with Kachua, leading her to briefly join Tartare's forces. If Denim does not comfort her, she commits suicide. Hamilton is captured and tortured by Tartare during this period, and while rescued Hamilton is left crippled and mentally traumatized. Gargastan is conquered and Barbatos dies either by suicide or execution. In all routes, Ronway's complicity in the massacre is revealed, leading to his assassination by his own people. Tartare's forces are defeated and Denim kills Branta Mown. Survivors of Tartare's Dark Knights use the stolen Zenobian sword Brunhild to break the seal on a portal leading to the realm of Asmodeus, attempting to use its power to repel Denim's forces but are instead killed.
It is revealed that Dolgare, overcome with despair over the death of his wife, made a pact with Asmodeus in an attempt to resurrect her and became an Ogre, one of humanity's ancient enemies. Dolgare attempts to return to reclaim Valeria, but Denim's forces defeat Dolgare and Warren sacrifices himself to seal the portal. Depending on Denim's actions and Kachua's fate, either Kachua is crowned queen and unites the groups in a time of peace, or Denim is crowned king and either sees Valeria conquered by Lodis or is assassinated during his inaugural speech by a Gargastan. Vice's fate varies depending on the route, either surviving as Kachua's ally, dying after killing Ronway, or being executed by Bacrum-Valeria to protect Branta Mown. In all endings, Hamilton is left in Valeria, his surviving forces return to Zenobia with Brunhild, and Tartare escapes back to Lodis.
Development
The production of ''Tactics Ogre'' began at series developer and publisher
Quest Corporation
was a Japanese video game company founded in 1988. Quest is best known for its critically acclaimed tactical role-playing game series ''Ogre Battle''.
In 1990 Quest was merged with the company Bothtec, the latter focusing on the development of ...
following the unexpected commercial success of ''
Ogre Battle: The March of the Black Queen'' upon its 1993 release.
The concept for ''Tactics Ogre'' was in place by 1992, though Matsuno's team had begun work on an untitled 3D action title which was abandoned when Quest Corporation requested a sequel to ''Ogre Battle''.
Matsuno created a multi-page detailed proposal for the game, with it taking a few months to get the project started at Quest.
During this period, frustration with Quest's corporate structure had convinced Matsuno to eventually leave, but he decided to complete ''Tactics Ogre''.
Matsuno acted as the game's director, designer and writer.
Production, including later delays, lasted two and a half years, involving a team of fifteen to sixteen people.
Hiroshi Minagawa
, also known by the nickname ''Nigoro'', is a Japanese Game art design, video game artist, Video game designer, designer and director.
Career
Minagawa had worked at Quest Corporation alongside his colleagues Yasumi Matsuno and Akihiko Yoshida bef ...
acted as art director, creating the sprites, effects and user interface, while
Akihiko Yoshida
is a Japanese video game artist. Yoshida was born in 1967 and joined Square in 1995, before the company merged with Enix. He then left Square Enix in September 2013 and became freelance. In October 2014, he became the company director of CyDesig ...
created the new character designs and level backgrounds along with character portraits. The latter job was very difficult due to color limitations on the console.
Minagawa used the character sprites from ''Ogre Battle'' as a base for the character animations. Yoshida's more realistic character designs following the "
Disney
The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...
-like" designs of ''Ogre Battle'' were Matsuno's choice and emerged naturally during production.
Matsuno wanted Yoshida to base the character faces on notable actors of the time, such as requesting Hamilton be based on
Kevin Costner
Kevin Michael Costner (born January 18, 1955) is an American actor, producer, film director and musician. He has received various accolades, including two Academy Awards, two Golden Globe Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, and two Screen Actor ...
from ''
The Untouchables
Untouchables or The Untouchables may refer to:
American history
* Untouchables (law enforcement), a 1930s American law enforcement unit led by Eliot Ness
* ''The Untouchables'' (book), an autobiography by Eliot Ness and Oscar Fraley
* ''The Un ...
''. Yoshida ignored the instructions and created original designs, which Matsuno eventually accepted.
Memory limitations were a constant issue, with walking and running animations being the only ones that could be on-screen at all times.
The switch from real-time to turn-based tactics was born from Matsuno's boredom with the first game's systems, a situation he compared to the differing paces and audiences for ''
Alien
Alien primarily refers to:
* Alien (law), a person in a country who is not a national of that country
** Enemy alien, the above in times of war
* Extraterrestrial life, life which does not originate from Earth
** Specifically, intelligent extrater ...
'' and ''
Aliens
Alien primarily refers to:
* Alien (law), a person in a country who is not a national of that country
** Enemy alien, the above in times of war
* Extraterrestrial life, life which does not originate from Earth
** Specifically, intelligent extrate ...
''. He also wanted to fill a gap in the gaming landscape, creating a more approachable alternative to the notoriously difficult ''
Fire Emblem
is a fantasy tactical role-playing game franchise developed by Intelligent Systems and published by Nintendo. First produced and published for the Famicom in 1990, the series currently consists of sixteen core entries and five spinoffs. Game ...
'' series.
The quarter-view perspective was directly inspired by ''
Solstice
A solstice is an event that occurs when the Sun appears to reach its most northerly or southerly excursion relative to the celestial equator on the celestial sphere. Two solstices occur annually, around June 21 and December 21. In many countr ...
'', a game Minagawa enjoyed. Minagawa created a prototype design which he showed Matsuno, which formed the technical foundation for ''Tactics Ogre''.
The 3D-style levels were created using the custom-built Hermit technology, which could create large-scale levels based on positional data using a small amount of system memory. This allowed for more detailed graphic elements and for the time complex character animations.
The battle system was inspired by
chess
Chess is a board game for two players, called White and Black, each controlling an army of chess pieces in their color, with the objective to checkmate the opponent's king. It is sometimes called international chess or Western chess to disti ...
.
The magic system, which started with an empty magic meter that charged over time, was chosen to represent the great power of magic in the game's world.
Scenario
While ''Ogre Battle'' is a broad tale focused on a
high fantasy
High fantasy, or epic fantasy, is a subgenre of fantasy defined by the epic nature of its setting or by the epic stature of its characters, themes, or plot.Brian Stableford, ''The A to Z of Fantasy Literature'', (p. 198), Scarecrow Press, Pl ...
battle between good and evil, Matsuno disliked the result. He wrote ''Tactics Ogre'' as a complex
dark fantasy
Dark fantasy is a subgenre of fantasy literary, artistic, and cinematic works that incorporate disturbing and frightening themes of fantasy. It often combines fantasy with elements of horror or has a gloomy dark tone or a sense of horror and dr ...
political tale focusing less on supernatural elements. He wanted people to be immersed in a foreign setting, basing the world's history on the
Middle Ages
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...
and its population and society on the
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τῶν Ῥωμαίων, Basileía tôn Rhōmaíōn) was the post-Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity, it included large territorial holdings around the Mediterr ...
.
To help with creating the background, Matsuno bought a book on world mythology.
Inspired by the acceptance of involved storylines with the ''
Final Fantasy
is a Japanese video game, Japanese science fantasy anthology media franchise created by Hironobu Sakaguchi and developed and owned by Square Enix (formerly Square (video game company), Square). The franchise centers on a series of fantasy and ...
'' series, Matsuno decided to create a "thoroughly written scenario".
The initial pitch included the first chapter's narrative split, a conversation scene between Hamilton and Tartare, and Hamilton's fate.
The scene between Hamilton and Tartare was written to convey the game's narrative themes of asking the meaning of justice and the reason people fight.
Story, system and tutorial text totalled 300,000 characters, the memory for which had been set aside at the start of production with a large scenario in mind.
The limitations of the Super Famicom led Matsuno to stage the narrative scenes like a
theatrical play
A play is a work of drama, usually consisting mostly of dialogue between characters and intended for theatrical performance rather than just reading. The writer of a play is called a playwright.
Plays are performed at a variety of levels, fr ...
.
''Tactics Ogre'' was designed as the seventh chapter of a larger narrative dubbed the "Ogre Battle Saga".
While ''March of the Black Queen'' was the fifth chapter, Matsuno felt the gameplay of ''Tactics Ogre'' was a poor fit for the sixth chapter which would have directly continued the first game's narrative. ''Tactics Ogre'' runs parallel to the planned events of the sixth chapter. When it was decided to use the same world, characters from ''Ogre Battle'' such as Hamilton were incorporated into the narrative.
The narrative was influenced by a number of real-life conflicts and war crimes, including territorial clashes in
Syria
Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجمهورية العربية السورية, al-Jumhūrīyah al-ʻArabīyah as-Sūrīyah), is a Western Asian country loc ...
,
Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan (, ; az, Azərbaycan ), officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, , also sometimes officially called the Azerbaijan Republic is a transcontinental country located at the boundary of Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is a part of th ...
and
Armenia
Armenia (), , group=pron officially the Republic of Armenia,, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of Western Asia.The UNbr>classification of world regions places Armenia in Western Asia; the CIA World Factbook , , and ''Ox ...
, the
Yugoslav Wars
The Yugoslav Wars were a series of separate but related#Naimark, Naimark (2003), p. xvii. ethnic conflicts, wars of independence, and Insurgency, insurgencies that took place in the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, SFR Yugoslavia from ...
, and the
Rwandan genocide
The Rwandan genocide occurred between 7 April and 15 July 1994 during the Rwandan Civil War. During this period of around 100 days, members of the Tutsi minority ethnic group, as well as some moderate Hutu and Twa, were killed by armed Hutu ...
.
The portrayal of ethnic conflict was fairly rare in Japanese games of the time.
He was also inspired by major events of his life in Europe including the fall of the
Berlin Wall
The Berlin Wall (german: Berliner Mauer, ) was a guarded concrete barrier that encircled West Berlin from 1961 to 1989, separating it from East Berlin and East Germany (GDR). Construction of the Berlin Wall was commenced by the government ...
, which were beginning to see regular broadcast on Japanese television.
Rather than focusing only on ethnicity, Matsuno wrote the scenario to show how a conflict based on any differences between groups could be resolved.
The implementation of multiple story routes was inspired by
sound novel
A , often abbreviated as VN, is a form of digital semi-interactive fiction. Visual novels are often associated with and used in the medium of video games, but are not always labeled as such themselves. They combine a textual narrative with sta ...
s and
gamebook
A gamebook is a work of printed fiction that allows the reader to participate in the story by making choices. The narrative branches along various paths, typically through the use of numbered paragraphs or pages. Each narrative typically does not ...
s of the time.
The originally-planned protagonist was Hamilton, but after Matsuno created the character of Denim he focused the story around him. Denim's and Vice's names were respectively inspired by the material
denim
Denim is a sturdy cotton warp-faced textile in which the weft passes under two or more warp threads. This twill weaving produces a diagonal ribbing that distinguishes it from cotton duck. While a denim predecessor known as dungaree has been pr ...
and the clothing brand
Levi's
Levi Strauss & Co. () is an American clothing company known worldwide for its Levi's () brand of denim jeans. It was founded in May 1853 when German-Jewish immigrant Levi Strauss moved from Buttenheim, Bavaria, to San Francisco, California, to o ...
, connecting to their origin in the world's lower social ranks. Following this logic, Kachua was not given a similar name, denoting her higher social status.
Kachua's emotional instability and obsession with Denim was designed to contrast starkly against many fantasy heroines of the time, being compared to the later-common "
tsundere
is a Japanese term for a character development process that depicts a character with a personality who is initially very harsh before gradually showing a warmer, friendlier side over time.
The word is derived from the terms ('to turn away in d ...
" and "
yandere
The following is a glossary of terms that are specific to anime and manga. Anime includes animated series, films and videos, while manga includes graphic novels, drawings and related artwork.
''Note: Japanese words that are used in general (e. ...
" anime archetypes. Matsuno found idealized heroines boring due to overuse in media, wanting a more complex female lead.
The Zenobian mercenaries were featured as they were early characters in ''Ogre Battle'' and players would empathise with them. During their inclusion, Matsuno made character adjustments, particularly to the character Canopus so he would appear as a big brother figure.
While originally considering the Chaos route to be the canon series of events,
he later summarized the endings as alternate coexisting timelines with no "correct" choice.
Matsuno originally planned for more divergence in the story paths, but memory limitations meant these and other systems relating to unit loyalty were trimmed down.
The variations in Denim's endings as Valeria's king were dictated by a hidden algorithm of how the different factions viewed Denim, a version of ''Ogre Battle''s Chaos Frame. A cheat was included in the final game to show it through the Warren Report screen, but Matsuno lost the memo describing it and it was only found by fans in 2014 through
data mining.
Music
The music was composed by
Hitoshi Sakimoto
is a Japanese video game music composer and arranger. He is best known for scoring ''Final Fantasy Tactics'' and ''Final Fantasy XII'', though he has composed soundtracks for over 80 other games. He began playing music and video games in elementa ...
and
Masaharu Iwata
is a Japanese video game music, video game composer. After graduating from high school, where his musical projects included composing on a synthesizer and playing in a cover band, he joined Bothtec as a composer. He composed the soundtrack to se ...
, who had previously worked on the first ''Ogre Battle''. While the music of ''Ogre Battle'' had been lighter to match its narrative tone, the music for ''Tactics Ogre'' adopted a darker and more dramatic style.
It was Sakimoto's first time creating orchestra-style music, learning to create equivalent sounds to a live orchestra using synthesizers.
''Tactics Ogre'' required a lot more work from Sakimoto than ''Ogre Battle'', and he remembered putting all his heart into the compositions.
Iwata described his work on the ''Ogre Battle'' series overall as a chance to change his musical style, citing ''Tactics Ogre'' as his favorite from the period.
A soundtrack album, featuring the original sound tracks on the first disc and in-game midi versions on the other two discs, was published by
Datam Polystar
was a Japanese media company headquartered in Chiyoda, Tokyo.[About Us]
." ''Datam Polystar''. Retrieved on December 28, 2008. ...
on October 25, 1995.
Tracks from ''Tactics Ogre'' were featured in the compilation album ''Ogre: Grand Repeat'', published by Datam Polystar on October 25, 1996.
Release
''Tactics Ogre'' was released in Japan on October 6, 1995, eighteen months after its initial announcement due to Matsuno wanting further polish in the character animations.
The game's subtitle was inspired by the
song of the same name by British rock band
Queen
Queen or QUEEN may refer to:
Monarchy
* Queen regnant, a female monarch of a Kingdom
** List of queens regnant
* Queen consort, the wife of a reigning king
* Queen dowager, the widow of a king
* Queen mother, a queen dowager who is the mother ...
. Minagawa later said that Matsuno's love of Queen and sadness at the death of
Freddie Mercury
Freddie Mercury (born Farrokh Bulsara; 5 September 1946 – 24 November 1991) was a British singer and songwriter, who achieved worldwide fame as the lead vocalist of the rock band Queen. Regarded as one of the greatest singers in the ...
led to numerous Queen references in the game.
A demo was broadcast shortly before release on the Super Famicom's
Satellaview
The is a satellite modem peripheral produced by Nintendo for the Super Famicom in 1995. Containing 1 megabyte of ROM space and an additional 512 kB of RAM, Satellaview allowed players to download games, magazines, and other media through satell ...
peripheral.
The game was also distributed through the
Nintendo Power flash cartridge.
It was compatible with
ASCII Corporation
was a Japanese publishing company based in Chiyoda, Tokyo. It became a subsidiary of Kadokawa Group Holdings in 2004, and merged with another Kadokawa subsidiary MediaWorks (publisher), MediaWorks on April 1, 2008, becoming ASCII Media Works. T ...
's
Turbo File, allowing save data transfer between systems.
This version was re-released in Japan for
Virtual Console
A virtual console (VC) – also known as a virtual terminal (VT) – is a conceptual combination of the keyboard and display for a computer user interface. It is a feature of some Unix-like operating systems such as Linux, BSD, illumos, Unix ...
on the
Wii U
The Wii U ( ) is a home video game console developed by Nintendo as the successor to the Wii. Released in late 2012, it is the first eighth-generation video game console and competed with Microsoft's Xbox One and Sony's PlayStation 4.
The W ...
on January 30, 2009.
A Virtual Console version for
New Nintendo 3DS
The is a handheld game console produced by Nintendo. It is the fourth system in the Nintendo 3DS family of handheld consoles, following the original Nintendo 3DS, Nintendo 3DS XL, and Nintendo 2DS. The system was released in Japan on October 1 ...
was released on November 21, 2016.
It was ported to and published on the
Sega Saturn
The is a home video game console developed by Sega and released on November 22, 1994, in Japan, May 11, 1995, in North America, and July 8, 1995, in Europe. Part of the fifth generation of video game consoles, it was the successor to the succ ...
by
Riverhillsoft
was a Japanese video game manufacturer in operation from 1982 to 2004. The studio focused in the 1980s developing games for Japanese home computers, in the 1990s shifted to console game development, and in the 2000s to mobile games. They also pub ...
on December 13, 1996.
The port was produced by Junji Shigematsu, who also supervised the porting of the original ''Ogre Battle'' to the platform. A priority was ensuring the game ran with minimal lag, which was a potential issue caused by the new CD storage.
The Saturn release included voices for selected story sequences from a cast of seventeen actors. Among them were
Nozomu Sasaki
is a Japanese voice actor and singer. He is represented by the voice actor management firm, 81 Produce, and was previously represented by Arts Vision. In 1988, he voiced the character Tetsuo Shima in the movie '' Akira'', which was adapted fro ...
(Denim),
Yumi Tōma
, known professionally as , is a Japanese voice actress, narrator, author and singer from Chiba. She has been part of the singing group Goddess Family Club. Tōma once worked for Aoni Production before she founded her own agency ALLURE&Y. Because ...
(Kachua) and
Toshihiko Seki
is a Japanese actor, voice actor, singer and narrator. In June 2004, Seki was honored by the readers of Animage Magazine in the 26th Annual Reader's Poll, where he was ranked the 9th favorite voice actor, largely in recognition of his performanc ...
(Vice).
The voice work was managed by
Kazuhiko Inoue
is a Japanese actor, voice actor and narrator. His notable works include Kakashi Hatake in ''Naruto'' , Kars in ''JoJo's Bizarre Adventure'', Toichirou Suzuki in ''Mob Psycho 100'' and Gildarts Clive in ''Fairy Tail''.
Biography
Since his deb ...
.
Further unique music was also created for the different endings.
Promotional items were made available on the game's release, such as metal figures of some key characters, as well as stickers for the Sega Saturn Backup Memory cartridge.
A
PlayStation
is a video gaming brand that consists of five home video game consoles, two handhelds, a media center, and a smartphone, as well as an online service and multiple magazines. The brand is produced by Sony Interactive Entertainment, a divisi ...
port was developed by Kuusou Kagaku and published by
Artdink
is a Japanese developer of video games, based in Tsukishima, Tokyo.
By far Artdink's biggest international success was the award-winning ''A-Train'' (known in Japan as ''A Ressha de Ikou'', or "Take the A-Train") strategy game released for the ...
on September 25, 1997.
Artdink reissued this version in Japan on December 2, 2000.
Atlus USA
Atlus West, formerly known as Atlus U.S.A., Inc., is the North American publishing branch of Japanese video game company Atlus, primarily known for localizing games for both them and other third-party developers. Its first original role-playin ...
announced its agreement to publish the PlayStation version in North America in August 1997, riding on the commercial success of the PlayStation version of the original ''Ogre Battle''.
It eventually was released in North America in the first week of May 1998, dropping the original subtitle.
The localization had been completed earlier than this, but Atlus chose to delay the release both to minimize competition with ''
Final Fantasy Tactics
is a 1997 tactical role-playing game developed and published by Square (video game company), Square for the PlayStation (console), PlayStation video game console. Released in Japan in June 1997 and in the United States in January 1998 by Sony ...
'', and to target players which ''Final Fantasy Tactics'' would introduce to the genre.
The localization was impacted due to strict word limitations on the old hardware.
This version was never released in Europe.
Multiple guidebooks were published in Japan for the various versions of ''Tactics Ogre''. The Super Famicom guides were published by
Aspect Co.
was a Japanese based video game company which was founded in March 1991.
Company history
Aspect has developed for the Master System, Game Gear, Pico, Genesis, Saturn, Super NES, Game Boy Advance, Nintendo DS, and WonderSwan Color. Aspect ...
and
Shueisha
(lit. "Gathering of Intellect Publishing Co., Ltd.") is a Japanese company headquartered in Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan. The company was established in 1925 as the entertainment-related publishing division of Japanese publisher Shogakukan. The foll ...
, the Saturn guide by Shufunotomo, and the PlayStation guides were published by Zest.
A downloadable art collection was published for
Microsoft Windows
Windows is a group of several proprietary graphical operating system families developed and marketed by Microsoft. Each family caters to a certain sector of the computing industry. For example, Windows NT for consumers, Windows Server for serv ...
and
Macintosh
The Mac (known as Macintosh until 1999) is a family of personal computers designed and marketed by Apple Inc., Apple Inc. Macs are known for their ease of use and minimalist designs, and are popular among students, creative professionals, and ...
by Quest parent company Bothtec.
It was also adapted into a manga series published by
Enix
was a Japanese video game publisher that produced video games, anime and manga. Enix is known for publishing the ''Dragon Quest'' series of role-playing video games.
The company was founded by Yasuhiro Fukushima on September 22, 1975, as . Th ...
, a gag comic anthology published by Studio DNA, and a further anthology published by Enix with a cover illustration by
Akihiro Yamada
(born February 10, 1957) is a Japanese illustrator and manga artist. He was born in Kōchi, Kōchi Prefecture on the island of Shikoku in Japan, and now resides in Kyoto. Yamada is known for delicate images reminiscent of suiboku and depictio ...
.
The Super Famicom original was never released outside Japan, a fact attributed to the console's waning lifespan, its complexity in narrative and mechanics, and a lack of interest from Western players.
A fan translation of the Super Famicom version, which transcribed the PlayStation script using a
patch
Patch or Patches may refer to:
Arts, entertainment and media
* Patch Johnson, a fictional character from ''Days of Our Lives''
* Patch (''My Little Pony''), a toy
* "Patches" (Dickey Lee song), 1962
* "Patches" (Chairmen of the Board song) ...
, was released by translation group Aeon Genesis on April 25, 2010.
Reception
The Super Famicom release has sold over 500,000 copies in Japan.
The Saturn version had sold over 70,000 units by February 1997, making it one of the console's best sellers at the time.
During its release month, Western PlayStation release ranked ninth in
EB Games
EB Games (formerly known as Electronics Boutique and EB World) is an American computer and video games retailer. First established as an American company in 1977 by James Kim with a single electronics-focused location in the King of Prussia mall ...
PlayStation sales charts.
Japanese gaming magazine ''
Famitsu
formerly ''Famicom Tsūshin'', is a line of Japanese video game magazines published by Kadokawa Game Linkage (previously known as Gzbrain), a subsidiary of Kadokawa. ''Famitsu'' is published in both weekly and monthly formats as well as in the fo ...
'' gave the game a Gold Award as part of its review.
Review aggregate website ''
GameRankings
GameRankings was a video gaming review aggregator that was founded in 1999 and owned by CBS Interactive. It indexed over 315,000 articles relating to more than 14,500 video games. GameRankings was discontinued in December 2019, with its staff bei ...
'' gave the PlayStation release a score of just over 81%, based on six reviews.
''Famitsu'' praised the implementation of the narrative into the gameplay.
''
Electronic Gaming Monthly
''Electronic Gaming Monthly'' (often abbreviated to ''EGM'') is a monthly American video game magazine. It offers video game news, coverage of industry events, interviews with gaming figures, editorial content and product reviews.
History
The m ...
'' praised the narrative as easy to follow compared to ''Final Fantasy Tactics'' and noted its multiple endings,
while a retrospective review from ''Nintendo Life''s Gonçalo Lopes praised the story as "anything but
liche
Liche, also spelled Liché and Litché, was a settlement in Ethiopia in the late 19th and early 20th century. It was a major market town in Shoa and briefly served as that kingdom's capital. The future emperor Menelek was forced to move his cour ...
.
Bryan Boulette of ''RPGamer'' gave extensive praise to the narrative, citing it as one of the best stories within the medium.
Jeremy Tan of ''RPGFan'' was also fairly positive about the narrative due to its tone and variation,
and magazine ''PlayStation Extreme'' lauded it as better than that of ''Tactics''.
The ''Famitsu'' reviewers praised the gameplay in general, but some faulted its high difficulty causing the training area to become almost mandatory.
''Electronic Gaming Monthly'' praised it as a solid and enjoyable gameplay experience.
''
GamePro
Gamepro.com is an international multiplatform video game magazine media company that covers the video game industry, video game hardware and video game software in countries such as Germany and France. The publication, GamePro, was originally la ...
'' praised its gameplay as more diverse, comparing it to the more complex but narrower gameplay approach of ''Final Fantasy Tactics''.
Peter Bartholow of ''
GameSpot
''GameSpot'' is an American video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information on video games. The site was launched on May 1, 1996, created by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady and Jon Epstein. In addition ...
'' lauded the gameplay as enjoyable, noting its long playtime for each of its story routes.
''
Game Informer
''Game Informer'' (''GI'', most often stylized ''gameinformer'' from the 2010s onward) is an American monthly video game magazine featuring articles, news, strategy, and reviews of video games and associated consoles. It debuted in August 1991 w ...
'' praised the amount of randomness in gameplay created by its narrative branches and questions during the opening section, in addition to the amount of options for unit customization.
Lopes gave praise to the gameplay despite its age on the original hardware,
Tan noted and enjoyed the simplicity of its unit customization compared to other titles including ''Tactics'',
while ''PlayStation Extreme'' enjoyed the gameplay's approach to combat despite noting a lack of pacing and some repetition later in the game.
French magazine ''Joypad'' noted that the game would give players hours of enjoyment due its complexity and length.
The graphics were praised in general by both ''Famitsu'' and ''GamePro'', though the latter faulted the sound effects for their minimal use.
Lopes also noted the small usage of sound effects, but praised the graphics and art direction.
These sentiments were echoed by ''Electronic Gaming Monthly'' and Tan, who additionally praised its musical score.
''Game Informer'' also noted a lack of graphical power compared to ''Tactics''.
Bartholow was fairly negative about the graphics, finding them dated compared to other titles on the platform.
''PlayStation Extreme'' was fairly mixed on the audio and graphics due to their age and origins on the Super Famicom.
''Joypad'' negatively noted the lack of extras and language options.
Both ''Nintendo Life'' and ''RPGamer'' gave different versions of the Super Famicom original perfect scores.
Both ''Famitsu'' and Japanese publication ''Sega Saturn Magazine'' praised the Saturn version, noting the inclusion of voice acting.
''Famitsu''s review of the PlayStation port praised it as a faithful adaptation of the Super Famicom original.
The PlayStation version was faulted by Western reviewers for technical issues including frame rate drops, loading times and bugs.
The Super Famicom version was awarded Best Import Strategy Game of 1995 by gaming magazine ''
GameFan
''GameFan'' (originally known as ''Diehard GameFan'') was a publication started by Tim Lindquist, Greg Off, George Weising. and Dave Halverson in September 1992 that provided coverage of domestic and import video games. It was notable for its ex ...
''.
In March 2006, the Japanese ''Famitsu'' magazine readers voted on their 100 all-time favorite games, and ''Tactics Ogre'' was named number seven.
In 2017, ''
IGN
''IGN'' (formerly ''Imagine Games Network'') is an American video game and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa distri ...
'' placed ''Tactics Ogre'' as the 20th best RPG of all time, citing the mature themes, and multiple story paths and endings.
In 2019, ''Famitsu'' conducted a poll of over 7000 readers to determine the best games of the
Heisei
The is the period of Japanese history corresponding to the reign of Emperor Emeritus Akihito from 8 January 1989 until his abdication on 30 April 2019. The Heisei era started on 8 January 1989, the day after the death of the Emperor Hirohito, ...
era (1989-2019), with ''Tactics Ogre'' placing 15th.
In a retrospective of tactical RPGs for the PlayStation, ''
1Up.com
''1Up.com'' was an American entertainment website that focused on video games. Launched in 2003, ''1Up.com'' provided its own original features, news stories, game reviews, and video interviews, and also featured comprehensive PC-focused conten ...
'' ranked ''Tactics Ogre'' as one of the best available at the time.
A later retrospective of the game from the same website praised it as an innovator in the genre for its narrative and gameplay, but let down by a lack of accessibility outside Japan aside from the PlayStation port.
Kat Bailey of ''
USgamer
Gamer Network Limited (formerly Eurogamer Network Limited) is a British mass media company based in Brighton. Founded in 1999 by Rupert and Nick Loman, it owns brands—primarily editorial websites—relating to video game journalism and other ...
'' praised its innovations for the time and mature storytelling compared to many other titles both in the genre and in general gaming.
Kimberley Wallace of ''
Game Informer
''Game Informer'' (''GI'', most often stylized ''gameinformer'' from the 2010s onward) is an American monthly video game magazine featuring articles, news, strategy, and reviews of video games and associated consoles. It debuted in August 1991 w ...
'' ranked it among the top ten best tactical RPGs, referencing its PlayStation Portable remake as an accessible means of enjoying the game.
Legacy
Matsuno left Quest in 1995 once ''Tactics Ogre'' was completed, eventually joining
Square
In Euclidean geometry, a square is a regular quadrilateral, which means that it has four equal sides and four equal angles (90-degree angles, π/2 radian angles, or right angles). It can also be defined as a rectangle with two equal-length adj ...
(later
Square Enix
is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational holding company, production enterprise and entertainment conglomerate, best known for its ''Final Fantasy'', ''Dragon Quest'', ''Star Ocean'' and ''Kingdom Hearts'' role-playing video game ...
).
Together with a number of ''Tactics Ogre'' staff members who followed him, he developed ''Final Fantasy Tactics'' (1997) for the PlayStation. ''Final Fantasy Tactics'' proved a success, and Matsuno went on to create multiple titles set within its fictional universe of
Ivalice
is a fictional universe setting primarily appearing in the ''Final Fantasy'' video game series. The world was created by Yasumi Matsuno and has since been expanded upon by several games as the ''Ivalice Alliance'' series. Ivalice is described as a ...
including ''
Vagrant Story
is an action role-playing game developed and published by Square (video game company), Square (now Square Enix) for the PlayStation (console), PlayStation video game console. The game was released in 2000, and has been re-released through the P ...
'' (2000) and ''
Final Fantasy XII
is a role-playing video game developed and published by Square Enix. The twelfth main installment of the ''Final Fantasy'' series, it was first released for the PlayStation 2 in 2006. It introduced several innovations to the series: an open wo ...
'' (2007).
The latter would be his final project for Square Enix, as he departed the company in 2005 citing ill health, though he would return in later years to collaborate with Square Enix on a freelance basis.
Banri Oda, a lead scenario writer for ''
Final Fantasy XIV
''Final Fantasy XIV'' is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) developed and published by Square Enix. Directed and produced by Naoki Yoshida, it was released worldwide for Windows and PlayStation 3 in August 2013, as a rep ...
'', cited ''Tactics Ogre'' as a direct influence on his storytelling for the expansion ''
Shadowbringers
''Final Fantasy XIV: Shadowbringers'' is the third expansion pack to ''Final Fantasy XIV'', a massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) developed and published by Square Enix for macOS, PlayStation 4, and Windows. It was released on ...
''.
While he left Quest after completing ''Tactics Ogre'', Matsuno had been planning a third ''Ogre Battle'' title which would blend gameplay elements from the first ''Ogre Battle'' and ''Tactics Ogre'' into a mainstream experience.
Quest continued production of the ''Ogre Battle'' series until 2003, when they were absorbed by Square following the completion and release of ''
Tactics Ogre: The Knight of Lodis'', a spin-off prequel to ''Tactics Ogre'', going on to develop titles in the ''Final Fantasy Tactics'' subseries.
Minagawa would reassemble most of the original staff, including Matsuno, for a
PlayStation Portable
The PlayStation Portable (PSP) is a handheld game console developed and marketed by Sony Computer Entertainment. It was first released in Japan on December 12, 2004, in North America on March 24, 2005, and in PAL regions on September 1, 2005, ...
remake of ''Tactics Ogre'', released in 2010 in Japan and 2011 in the West. Released under its original title in the West and with the subtitle ''Wheel of Fortune'' in Japan, it received an expanded narrative, redesigned gameplay, artistic changes, graphical upgrades, and a new localization.
''Tactics Ogre'' came to PC, Playstation 4 & 5 as well as Nintendo Switch on November 11, 2022 when an updated version of the remake was released as ''Tactics Ogre Reborn''.
Notes
References
External links
* (Archived 1998)
*
{{Authority control
1995 video games
Artdink games
Atlus games
Multiplayer and single-player video games
Ogre Battle
PlayStation (console) games
PlayStation Portable games
Sega Saturn games
Super Nintendo Entertainment System games
Tactical role-playing video games
Video games about revenge
Video games developed in Japan
Video games scored by Hitoshi Sakimoto
Video games scored by Masaharu Iwata
Video games with alternate endings
Video games with isometric graphics
Virtual Console games for Nintendo 3DS
Virtual Console games for Wii U
Virtual Console games for Wii
Riverhillsoft games