Help me find a GOOD tactical rpg please.

[Outmind]

Like the title suggests, i need advice on any good tactical rpg you can mention. Problem is, i've played a lot of them, and have found most to be lacking. Maybe the problem is that i measure every single one against final fantasy tactis a2, which imho is the best game in the genre. I adore it, and would like to find something as close in quallity to it as possible. Please restrict your suggestions to psx and newer, as i don't really want to go as old as tactics ogre.

Here are some of the games i've already played, in order of me liking them:

Eternal poison - if you don't count the original ff tactics, the 2nd best game in the genre i've come accross - interesting and challenging system, good atmosphere, all in alll nice.

Fire emblem (sega) - good tactical side, but poor in the ammount of character customization

Disgaea, and pretty much every other atlus trpg - good but too tiresome due to the grind.

Vandal hearts - the weakest of the lot, combat takes getting used to, and all it all it wasn't satisfying for me.

 

[Horus]

Disgaea........ tactical rpg......?

 

[asper]

Jagged Alliance 2.

You can thank me later. I see you're into jRPG's, but give this game a chance, it has the best squad combat and a well-implemented setting.

edit: WTF, I'm posting in some JRPG subsecion!? This is what one gets when you use the links on the front page. Damn, Codex, why?!

 

[SuicideBunny]

Disgaea, and pretty much every other atlus trpg - good but too tiresome due to the grind.

no disgaea requires grind for finishing it, getting most of the alternative endings or ng+ shiznit.

and i second ja2.

 

[felipepepe]

Try Jagged Alliance 2, Devil Survivor or Valkyria Chronicles.

as i don't really want to go as old as tactics ogre

You're probably talking about Ogre Battle, because there's Tactics Ogre games for the PSX and for the GBA, both are fantastic, still look good and you really should try them...

Also, is Eternal Poison really that good? I only heard bad thing about it...

 

[mondblut]

Jagged Alliance 2.

edit: WTF, I'm posting in some JRPG subsecion!? This is what one gets when you use the links on the front page. Damn, Codex, why?!

Both lines deserve a separate brofist on their own. I now feel tainted from clicking that link.

 

[Gregz]

JA2 1.13 mod

 

[laclongquan]

IF you are into jRPG, try Front Mission 3. Tactical Mecha squadbased turnbased RPG. I dont know why Codexers dont go all into orgasmic spasm with that.

 

[SuicideBunny]

mainly because all the front missions are easy as fuck.

 

[laclongquan]

Fuck is easy? In your mind only, shirley?

 

[betamin]

I get tired of mentioning it but final fantasy tactics with the 1.3 mod.

 

[Damned Registrations]

Vanguard Bandits. Difficulty will vary a lot depending on how you play and which route you take. Derpy setting (magical giant robots) but pretty cool otherwise.

Brigandine is fun too. I find the difficulty laughable but I've played it a ton and remember having some trouble when I played it the first time. Play ironman if it's too easy for you.

 

[deuxhero]

Fire emblem (sega)

???

 

[Outmind]

I did play a demo of ja2 when it first came out, and never bothered to pick it up again. I heard there was some kind of revival / mod which makes it even more interesting. Any ideas on that?

As for putting this thread in the jrpg subsection, i did it because the tactical rpg sub-genre is most prevalent in Japanese games. Apart from ja and xcom, i don't even know that any other western rpg-s of this type exist.

I played front mission 3, it was decent i guess, but nothing special. I might pick up 4 or 5 though. Which is the better one?

Deuxhero - yeah, my bad, it was for the gamecube. I played it on an emulator and didn't remember which system it was on.

 

[Cosmo]

Fuck is easy? In your mind only, shirley?

FM 3 is just a little bit too easy, and lacks a difficulty slider to begin with. But other than that, awesome game. Just try to obtain every platinum reward if you want some challenge.

 

[markec]

Jagged Alliance 2 is a must, also Silent Storm its like JA only with ability to destroy pretty much everything and set in WW2.

You could also try Fallout Tactics, and maybe Spellforce but that is more of a RTS/RPG hybrid and not too tactical.

 

[Rpgsaurus Rex]

Outmind

If you liked FFT a2, try the original FFT (for PSX). It's pretty good, and is considered by many as one of the best games for that platform. Also Tactics Ogre: LUCT can be easily simulated on PSX as well. Both games look gorgeous as they are.

JA2 with 1.13 patch is probably the closest you'll get in an RPG to a tactical challenge. It has flaws like somewhat shitty AI, but is an excellent game nonetheless.

 

[lightbane]

I played front mission 3, it was decent i guess, but nothing special. I might pick up 4 or 5 though. Which is the better one?

IF you can, both. But if you only wish to obtain one, 5 is the one to go with. Consider Front Mission First (DS) if you desire more giant robot action.

 

[Ermm]

Vanguard Bandits. Difficulty will vary a lot depending on how you play and which route you take. Derpy setting (magical giant robots) but pretty cool otherwise.

Oh yeah, that's a good one. Story was not that bad, and I completed it like 10 times on PSOne. It was piss easy after I mastered it.

 

[Rpgsaurus Rex]

Maybe the problem is that i measure every single one against final fantasy tactis a2, which imho is the best game in the genre.

I get tired of mentioning it but final fantasy tactics with the 1.3 mod.

the 1.3 mod

 

[Outmind]

I finished ffta. It was a brilliant game, but ffta2 kept all the good bits and expanded on them, so it has become my benchmark since.

As for the original tactics, idk, i didn't enjoy it as much, primarily because of the way skills were gained, and because of a smaller selection of jobs to choose from. I know it was the one responsible for ffta in the first place, i just didn't like it as much.

 

[J1M]

I finished ffta. It was a brilliant game, but ffta2 kept all the good bits and expanded on them, so it has become my benchmark since.

As for the original tactics, idk, i didn't enjoy it as much, primarily because of the way skills were gained, and because of a smaller selection of jobs to choose from. I know it was the one responsible for ffta in the first place, i just didn't like it as much.

Tactics Ogre: GBA Edition is essentially another FFTA game.

If you are looking for more of the same, that is your best bet.

 

[damicore]

This guy is really asspie about japtactical games: http://www.tbstactics.com/2010/11/recommended-turn-based-tactics-games.html

Anybody tried the daisenryaku game in there? It looks at least promising.

 

[felipepepe]

This guy is really asspie about japtactical games: http://www.tbstactics.com/2010/11/recommended-turn-based-tactics-games.html

Good list, but very incomplete....no classic stuff like JA2, FF Tactics, Tactics Ogre or any Atlus game like Disgaea, Phantom Brave, Makai Kingdom, World Eaters, etc... is like he only did the B-Side...

 

[damicore]

This guy is really asspie about japtactical games: http://www.tbstactics.com/2010/11/recommended-turn-based-tactics-games.html

Good list, but very incomplete....no classic stuff like JA2, FF Tactics, Tactics Ogre or any Atlus game like Disgaea, Phantom Brave, Makai Kingdom, World Eaters, etc... is like he only did the B-Side...

He's got an explanation for not including most of those games, he doesn't like fft, tactics ogre or the NIS games AFAIK and he's got his reasons in the comments I think.
From what i read from him he seems to have his own definition of what's tactical and what's not.
Still worth checking as most of those games are b-sides, as you said, and not really well known. He even has a subsection with japanese only games there.
As for JA not being included I have no clues about it, but he's mostly into japanese games it seems.

Also, he updates his blog fairly often, he just posted about FM2 and a fire emblem like game for the psx getting a fan translation like one week ago? I don't really know, never really tried FM games and I played my last fire emblem game when I was like 12 or 13 but the post is quite recent.