Tactics Ogre: Reborn Due out on November 11
Square Enix has officially announced Tactics Ogre: Reborn for PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Switch, and PC (Steam). It will launch on November 11.
The game will be available as a physical and digital standard edition on PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, and Switch, and as a digital-only standard edition on PC. A Digital Premium Edition including the game’s original soundtrack will also be available for PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, and PC.
Pre-orders for the digital standard edition include a selection of three songs from the Tactics Ogre: Reborn original soundtrack. Pre-orders for the Digital Deluxe Edition include the Tactics Ogre (1995) digital mini soundtrack.
In Japan, Tactics Ogre: Reborn will be priced at 5,480 yen for the physical and digital standard edition, 8,780 yen for the Digital Premium Edition, and 22,000 yen for the Square Enix e-STORE-exclusive Collector’s Edition. The latter includes a 15-song mini soundtrack CD featuring the in-game music re-recorded with a live orchestra; three-volume script book of the every chapter’s scenario; official art book featuring artwork from Akihiko Yoshida, Tsubasa Masao, and more; three-piece set of tarot cards with storage pouch and mat, all in a special box.
Here is an overview of the game, via Square Enix:
About
Tactics Ogre, crown jewel of the tactical role-playing genre, is reborn!
Based on the 2010 release, the game features improved graphics and sound, as well as updated game design, bringing to life a new Tactics Ogre that remains true to its roots.
Key Features
- A tactical role-playing game depicting the struggle for control of the Valerian Isles.
- Your choices affect how the story unfolds, and even how it ends, with a game system that allows for multiple paths through the game and multiple endings. The story takes place through the eyes of a young man named Denam. The decisions he makes will alter the fate of those around him, and shift the course of Valeria’s history.
- Fight pitched tactical battles on three-dimensional battlefields. The completely revamped AI enables enemies to adapt their tactics to the situation, providing a battle system that always keeps you thinking and never grows old.
- The class-wide level management system used in Tactics Ogre: Let Us Cling Together (2010) has changed to a unit-by-unit level system. Theorycraft your way through endless combinations of classes, equipment, skills, and magic.
- Enjoy numerous playability improvements, such as a quicker pace of battle, auto save, and a complete overhaul to the controls and UI to make it easier to get into the game than ever.
- The unparalleled details of the characters and backgrounds from the original Tactics Ogre: Let Us Cling Together (1995) have been painstakingly recreated in high definition.
- The cutscenes are fully voiced in English and Japanese, and all of the music has been rerecorded with live performances! The voices bring new life to the complex motivations of the characters that make up the factions and shifting political alliances of this epic story.
- When you advance far enough in the game you’ll unlock the World Tarot, enabling you to travel back in the story with the power of your forces intact; an incredibly useful feature in a game where your choices have such a huge impact on how the story unfolds. If you wonder what a different choice would have led to, now you can find out!
- Traveling back isn’t limited to the story; the Chariot Tarot lets you rewind up to a certain number of moves during battle. In a game of tactical battles where a single mistake can mean the difference between victory and defeat, you can play without worrying that you’ll back yourself into a corner.
- Enjoy a wealth of endgame content such as the 100-level Palace of the Dead.
And here are some more details:
■ A Brief History of Tactics Ogre
The Ogre Battle series, to which Tactics Ogre belongs, started way back in 1993.
The first game in the series to be released, Ogre Battle: The March of the Black Queen, launched that year in Japan for the Super Famicon, and arrived in 1995 for players in North America. A unique combination of real time tactics and RPG, it was a real breath of fresh air for gamers, and it became a hit.
In 1995, Tactics Ogre: Let Us Cling Together was released in Japan for the Super Famicon. It would later be ported to PlayStation and release in North America in 1998. The game took a different approach to The March of the Black QueenTactics Ogre created a remake for PlayStation Portable. It released in Japan as Tactics Ogre: Wheel of Fortune, and a year later in the United States and Europe under its original name: Tactics Ogre: Let Us Cling Together.
This successor featured a substantially improved story, a world filled with even more colorful characters, an updated game with new systems and a wealth of content to satisfy even the most hardcore players. The game was a critical smash, winning positive reviews from media and players alike.
Which brings us to 2022 and Tactics Ogre: Reborn! This new version of the game is based on the 2010 remake but features significant changes that make an already great game even greater!
■ What’s new in Tactics Ogre: Reborn?
Tactics Ogre: Reborn features a host of enhancements to visuals, sound, game design and more. Here’s a brief rundown of some of these improvements:
High-Definition Characters and Backgrounds
The beautifully detailed characters and backgrounds of the original Tactics Ogre have been recreated in high definition.
The detailed pixel art that gives the game its unique feel has also been preserved and enhanced to look great on modern HD displays.
Fully Updated User Interface
Not only is the user interface now in high definition, it’s also been redesigned to make information easier to understand, with streamlined controls.
Sound Improvements
All dialogue in Tactics Ogre: Reborn is fully voiced, bringing new life to the complex motivations of the characters that make up the factions and shifting political alliances of this epic story. You can choose between English and Japanese voices, with the ability to switch between them in the config menu at any time.
The sound effects have also been remastered, immersing you in battle like never before.
Tactics Ogre composer Hitoshi Sakimoto rerecorded the entire soundtrack with a live orchestra. At times the melodies are ominous and filled with tension, while at other times they offer a gentle reprieve. The lingering notes and haunting echoes only found in a live performance raise the immersion in the gameplay to another level.
The soundtrack even includes entirely new pieces composed just for Tactics Ogre: Reborn!
■ A Redesigned Battle System
Building on what worked in previous versions of Tactics Ogre, this new game incorporates new elements as part of an overall redesign of the battle system. Here’s a brief introduction to some of the new features that await.
Unit-by-Unit Level System
The class-wide level management system found in Tactics Ogre: Wheel of Fortune has been replaced by a unit-by-unit level system.
Each unit advances differently depending on its class, making for an elegant system that lets players plot their way through endless combinations of equipment, skills, and magic for each unit.
This means that the player is able to consider the bigger picture, and decide on the overall composition of units to bring into each battle.
Battle AI Overhaul
The team has made significant changes to the artificial intelligence (AI) of your opponents in combat.
The enemy’s tactics change depending on the layout of the battlefield and the state of the battle.
Thinking about how to adapt your plans as the situation changes keeps battles engaging and fresh.
Playability Improvements
Tactics Ogre: Reborn has seen numerous playability improvements, such as a quicker pace of battle, auto save, and a complete overhaul to the controls.
All this makes it easier to get into the game than ever before.
■ Story
We’ve talked a lot about what’s new, but those unfamiliar with the game may be wondering: what’s it all about? Here’s the basic setup for the story:
The game is set on the Valerian Isles, jewels of the Obero Sea. Long a center of naval commerce, the people of the isles struggled throughout history for dominion over her shores.
Finally there rose a man to put an end to this conflict: Dorgalua Oberyth – but history would know him as the “Dynast-King”. King Dorgalua strove to stamp out the hatred among the people of the isles, and for half a century, Valeria knew prosperity.
Yet upon the king’s death, civil war erupted once more, as three factions vied for control: the Bakram, who comprised much of Valeria’s nobility; the Galgastani, whose people made up the majority of the isles’ population; and the Walister, who numbered but few.
The isles were soon divided between the Bakram and Galgastani, and an uneasy peace settled across the land. Yet none believe the calm will last…
What follows is an epic tale of war, as many memorable characters get swept up into an escalating conflict. Let’s meet a few:
■ Characters
Denam Pavel (voiced by Max Mittelman in English, Tomoaki Maeno in Japanese)
Walister, 18 years old.
Denam is the main hero of this tale.
His father, Abuna Prancet, was taken by the Dark Knights when they raided his hometown of Golyat. Later, as a member of the Walister Resistance, Denam fights against the Bakram and the Galgastani with the help of his sister, Catiua, and his childhood friend, Vyce.
Denam has a strong sense of justice, and the iron will be needed to bring about the change he envisions. A thoughtful young man, he harbors doubts about the meaning of their struggle.
Catiua Pavel (voiced by Victoria Atkin in English, Lynn in Japanese)
Walister, 19 years old.
Catiua is Denam’s sister and a fellow Walister. Having lost their mother at a young age, she and Denam were raised by their father, Abuna Prancet, and now Catiua has an overbearing sense of affection for her brother.
Thanks to the teachings of her father, she is well along her way to becoming an oracle, and she puts her skills to use fighting alongside Denam and their childhood friend Vyce. Yet it is less her principles that drive her to join their struggle, and more her fear of losing her brother.
Vyce Bozeck (voiced by Jason Spisak in English, Noriaki Sugiyama in Japanese)
Walister, 18 years old.
The Dark Knights slew Vyce’s father, the only family he had left, leaving him an orphan. He cannot abide the oppression of the Walister, so he eagerly joins the struggle against their tormentors.
A capable man of action, he and Denam complement each other well.
Dorgalua Oberyth Valeria
Bakram, 65 years old at the time of his death.
Dorgalua used his peerless intellect and charm to forge the bickering realms of Valeria into a single kingdom.
With the isles united, he set about implementing his policy of racial reconciliation, and the people hailed him for his wisdom. Yet after his death, there was no clear successor to the throne, and Valeria was once again plunged into civil war.
In honor of his great achievements, he is often referred to as the Dynast-King.
Juda Ronwey
Juda is the former lord of Almorica Castle. When civil war overtook Valeria, fewer than one person in ten were Walister, and it was Duke Ronwey who led them in resistance against the Galgastani.
He fought bravely for half a year, before finally meeting defeat. Now he is held prisoner.
Brantyn Morne
Bakram, 49 years old.
Brantyn is the ruler of the Bakram-Valerian Kingdom.
When King Dorgalua died, Brantyn swiftly rose from his position in the clergy to become regent of the Kingdom of Valeria – such was his thirst for the reigns of power. Dorgalua’s trust in him had been absolute, so the motives behind this sudden slight against the royal house are unclear.
Lanselot Tartaros
The Captain of the Dark Knights Loslorien, which hail from the mighty Holy Lodissian Empire on the continent north of the Valerian Isles. As the Dark Knights answer directly to High Priest Sardian, ruler of the Holy Lodissian Empire, Lanselot is widely rumored to be the right hand of the high priest.
The Dark Knights have come to Valeria under a secret agreement with Regent Brantyn, leader of the Bakram.
Leundar Balbatos
Galgastani, 43 years old.
Leundar is Leader of the Kingdom of Galgastan. To secure the southern half of Valeria, he waged a blood war to eradicate the Walister.
Many of his own people attempted to revolt in the face of such barbarism, but Balbatos turned his forces against them as well, making it clear that he would rule Galgastan with an icy, iron fist.
Watch the announcement trailer below. Visit the official website here: English, Japanese.
