Tactics Ogre: Reborn Reviews
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.
Tactics Ogre: Reborn is a pilgrimage for strategy RPG enthusiasts, an outstanding update for a watershed moment in the genre.
Tactics Ogre: Reborn has some great updates over its predecessor, but some changes work to the game's detriment, and concepts like the level cap would have been better served as the basis for a higher difficulty mode. Tactics Ogre: Reborn can be a punishing and sometimes unfair experience, but those who rise to the challenge will find a lot of content to explore, an engaging story to experience, and a fantastic battle system to master.
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.
Despite some very occasional problems in audiovisual and gameplay, most of the technical choices were well made for Tactics Ogre Reborn, keeping it without a doubt as one of the best, if not the best, tactical RPG. Considering the complexity of the gameplay, as well as the narrative sophistication, the coherence of the design and the polish of the game as a whole, this is obviously a must-have title for fans of the genre, and also highly recommended for those who appreciate serious and well-written stories in the context of war. However, in relation to newcomers to TRPG, although there is the Chariot Tarot, which makes the game a little less hostile, it clearly is not and does not intend to be very inviting for this audience.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
Tactics Ogre Reborn brings back a classic strategic RPG in style. It is an essential game for any player, although some specific choices of the new edition make it difficult for newcomers to enter the genre. Even so, Tactics Ogre continues to show not only the competence of its creators, but the great possibility of games in general as art and reflection.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
For all its murky mechanics and slow pace, Tactics Ogre: Reborn still blends satisfying combat with a top-tier story in a way that few games can match. If you’re a fan of the tactical RPG genre and want a serious challenge, there’s simply no reason not to play this game. But newcomers may want to start with something more approachable, or at least keep waiting for that Final Fantasy Tactics remake we’re all hoping for.
It's amazing how complex Tactics Ogre was when it was first released in 1995. The first remake for PSP introduced some additional mechanics that will be of great help to today's generation of video gamers. With the new edition "Reborn" they are presented with a tough strategy role-playing game. Fortunately, this convinces with a lot of depth, a complex but exciting story and a huge playtime. A true masterpiece awaits veterans of the genre, while newcomers should play demo or resort to easier representatives.
Review in German | Read full review
Tactics Ogre: Reborn is an insanely high-quality remaster. There are so many improvements, including gameplay additions, menu expansion, display clarity, improved graphics, orchestrated music, and fully-voiced dialogue. This remaster isn’t a cheap cash-in. It’s the quality level of remaster that all others should aspire to. The only complaints I can make about the game is that the story and gameplay are dense, and won’t be for everyone. Every tactical RPG fan needs to play Tactics Ogre: Reborn. And for strategy JRPG fans, Tactics Ogre: Reborn is good enough that it might be the exception when saying you’re not a fan of the genre.
Tactics Ogre Reborn is not perfect but it is a very wise re-release. It's not uncommon to see re-releases that disappoint by being simplistic or disrespecting the original creative vision by changing too much, but in this case we're talking about a release that avoids falling into either of these holes. Instead we have a title that succeeds by delivering the definitive version of a tactical RPG that deserves to be played by more people.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
Tactics Ogre: Reborn is a remaster of a remake. It’s a game that persists through the wheel of time as it is ported from generation to generation, breathing life into the Ogre Battle series.
Tactics Ogre’s story is a spectacle of chaos in all the best ways possible. It’s a story of the horrors of war, what happens to displaced people, and the power of rebellion.
Tactics Ogre: Reborn pays an excellent tribute to a game that is seen as a reference of the genre. Square Enix found ways to make its title more approachable which is great for newcomers. Although the fights can be very long, the game remains to this day one of the best TRPG. Yes, they could've done a lot more, but it's already a big step in the right direction.
Review in French | Read full review
Tactics Ogre is timeless and Reborn proves that this game is still the king of Tactic RPG genre, even if the changes are minor it still managed to win against the battle with time.
Review in Arabic | Read full review
Tactics Ogre is back again, and it's in a better shape than ever. This new edition brings back all the deep gameplay of the original title, adding brand new mechanics which make the overall experience smoother and more contemporary.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Tactics Ogre: Reborn is a treasure of both classic tactical RPG design and modern sensibilities. I really like the quality-of-life features that make it so much easier to play and stay on the path of the story without much padding. I can also appreciate that this game also contains some tough-as-nails challenges that take an incredible amount of dedication to overcome. In between all that, it’s also just a great story and I really appreciate the Chariot Tarot system allowing you to see the paths untaken at any point you desire. If you want a great tactical RPG, this is not only the forerunner to many favorites, it’s also well-polished for a new generation.
Tactics Ogre: Reborn is an incredibly well put together remaster of one of the cult classics from the SNES era. It's an improvement over the well-done PSP remaster and improves upon it in almost every way. The story and translation remain excellent, and the core gameplay is more fun than ever. The only downside is that it didn't get any visual touch-ups, so you'll need to be willing to accept cute, pudgy little sprites acting out the serious tense political drama. If you're a fan of strategy RPGs and haven't played Tactics Ogre yet, then Reborn is well worth a shot.
There’s genius and sincerity at work here. Get deep enough into Tactics Ogre and the entreaty of its subtitle, Let Us Cling Together, starts to sound a lot less goofy and a lot more urgent and sad. How deep you will get into the game depends on your appetite for micromanagement and your patience with gameplay systems that, 27 years later, are starting to creak, despite all the judicious tinkering that’s been done to them. Tactics Ogre: Reborn is a welcome, polished, and thoughtful update to a game that defined a genre — a genre that has now left it behind.
The Tactics Ogre series has been dormant for a long time, but if this remaster is anything to go by, Square Enix still has total confidence in their IP. I cannot hesitate to recommend this game to fans of SRPGs, and it's accessible enough for newcomers to dive right in.
An exhaustive reworking of a foundational dark fantasy epic, with some quietly radical new ideas.