Tactics Ogre: Reborn

Tactics Ogre: Reborn is a lovingly rebuilt remake, and one that all tactical RPG fans should experience.

With improvements in literally every single area of the game, Tactics Ogre: Reborn is the new standard for remasters.

Using the PSP version as its base, Tactics Ogre: Reborn is a remake close to perfection. While the visuals might not be of the highest quality, combat and story will satisfy both fans and newcomers alike.

With many gameplay changes that restore the original's great pacing without doing away with the deeper customization options introduced in the PSP remake, one of the best stories ever seen in tactical role-playing games and an amazing reworked soundtrack, Tactics Ogre: Reborn is, without a doubt, the definitive version of Let Us Cling Together. While some of the gameplay changes aren't exactly for the best, they are only minor issues in an experience that continues to be excellent even 27 years after its original debut.

The rebirth of a great classic to be enjoyed until the last drop thanks to an exceptional replayability, a script that is never banal and a thousand other reasons. Graphically more could have been done, but Square Enix's mission is still accomplished.

Though slightly tarnished, Tactics Ogre: Reborn is still a tactical RPG jewel.

One of the more timeless tactical role-playing games from the SNES library, Tactics Ogre: Reborn enriches its storyline with full voiceover and streamlines some of the repetitive elements. As such, only the battlefield sprites reveal Reborn’s age.

Tactics Ogre: Reborn is a thoughtfully updated port of a 2010 remake of a 1995 game. Contemporary tweaks let the strategy-RPG's story and gameplay shine.

Tactics Ogre: Reborn is largely an excellent modern version of the classic strategy RPG. There are a myriad of improvements and enhancements to make it the most user-friendly version yet without compromising its difficulty. It is sometimes a delightfully brutal experience that pushed me to think carefully about my every move, though a lot of the gameplay alterations introduced in Tactics Ogre: Reborn didn’t jive with me for the most part. The primary suspects are the universally inflated stat values across the board and the new temporary stat increase cards among other nitpicks. Everything that I love about Tactics Ogre outside of its battle system remains intact with the branching narrative system, the ways you can recruit characters, and the overall presentation of one of the most interesting narratives in video game history.

Tactics Ogre remains one of the most imaginative and engrossing tactical RPGs ever made, and this is easily the best version of the game to date. If you happened to miss any of the past iterations of Tactics Ogre, there's never been a better time to jump in, and hopefully, this means the franchise still has a future.

Tactics Ogre: Reborn is everything that it should be. While its gameplay systems may feel archaic in this new age of tactical RPGs, it somehow enhances the harshness of its narrative. This will no doubt make it daunting for those unfamiliar with this style of tactics title. It certainly won’t be for everyone, but remains a tried and true classic. And those who haven’t yet had to experience the Ogre Battle series will be in for a treat. As its themes of self-sacrifice and perseverance against all odds stand the test of time, even if its gameplay may not.

Despite its quirks, this is the best version of Tactics Ogre. Gone are frustrating class-based levels and the overabundance of secrecy. Replacing them are new frustrations that are less experience-breaking. Reborn makes the grandaddy of strategy RPGs the most accessible it's ever been, and it’s not one to miss. According to Steam, I have already played 62 hours, and I already know that number will triple at a minimum by the time I’m done with it.