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Tactics Ogre: Reborn Reveals More Gameplay, Classes, Characters

by Alex Fuller · Published October 23, 2022 · Updated October 23, 2022

Square Enix posted more screenshots and details for tactical RPG Tactics Ogre: Reborn ahead of its launch next month. The new information covers skills, battlefield elements, tarot-inspired systems, and additional classes and characters in the remaster of tactical RPG Tactics Ogre: Let Us Cling Together.

Following from previously-released details, each unit has skills that are unlocked as they gain levels. Each character can have four skills equipped at once, with skills divided into four categories: Action, Support, Auto, and Special. Action skills can be activated on a unit’s turn in place of attacks or magic and require MP to use, with examples including ensuring a weapon does a critical hit or recruiting an enemy unit. Support skills provide passive benefits such as increased HP or automatic counterattacks. Auto skills have a chance of triggering at the start of a unit’s turn, such as increased MP recovery. Finally, Special skills are unique to certain races and can be used as turn actions, such as dragon breath attacks.

Skills acquired are dependent on the unit’s class and race, with Square Enix providing an assortment of examples. Wizards are geared towards offensive magic and debuffing, so get skills that boost MP recovery or extending spell range. Meanwhile, Rune Fencers and Valkyries are versatile with different weapons or magic and learn a similar variety of attacking, defensive, and supportive skills. Knights act as tanks, holding off enemy attacks on the front line, learning abilities that let them stop enemies within a certain range or reduce damage dealt to allies. Ninja and Kunoichi specialise in movement, able to travel long distances and scale elevation changes, with their skills including reductions to enemy strength and the ability to do double attacks.

Players will need to take note of multiple elements of the battlefield during combat. One is the terrain, as players fight on multiple locales include around buildings, plains, snowfields, and even volcanoes. Different types of terrain can have different effects on units, such as affecting their hit rate. Weather can also impact outdoor battlefields. Poor weather will reduce attack accuracy and affect movement. In addition, units can find buried treasure by ending their turn on particular tiles, some of which can be found by destroying obstacles or exposing them by burning grass or melting snow.

Battlefields will also play host to special events and conversations where players can make decisions that affect the story. These can include units under attack who can be rescued, while some conversations can be activated if specific units are deployed. In addition, players can recruit enemy units on the battlefield as well as in shops. Recruiting an enemy requires that players have a recruiting skill corresponding to the recruitable unit. The names of units hired from shops or recruited by skills can be changed.

During combat, players will see Battle Cards and Bags of Loot, which can be picked up by ending a unit’s turn on the same tile. Battle Cards provided effects to the unit and come in three types: Buff Cards, Reset Cards, and Stat Cards. Buff Cards grant temporary boosts to the unit, with each unit have up to four cards applied at once and able to stack boosts of the same type. Reset Cards will reset any buffs applied to the unit and can be taken advantage of if players manage to push enemy units into them. Finally, Stat Cards and Bags of Loot can drop from defeated enemies. Stat Cards provide permanent stat upgrades to the unit that picks them, while Bags of Loot provide equipment or consumable items.

Tactics Ogre Reborn uses the “Wheel of Fortune” system originally introduced in Tactics Ogre: Let Us Cling Together release and inspired by Ogre Battle’s tarot cards. It allows players to revisit choices and parts of the story they might not see in a single playthrough. The Chariot Tarot allows players to go back through their previous actions in combat and re-play turns in case they make any mistakes. The number of turns players can go back is initially limited to ten, but this number increases as the game progress. Meanwhile, the World Tarot is unlocked after meeting certain conditions and lets players go back to certain points in the story and potentially go down a different story route.

Finally, the media introduces additional classes and characters. The classes shown are Beast Tamer, Dragoon, Swordmaster, Warlock / Witch, and Fusilier. The new characters shown are Leonar Reci Rimon, Ravness Loxaerion, Arycelle Dania, Hobyrim Vandam, Cerya Phoraena, Cistina Phoraena, Olivya Phoraena, Sherri Phoraena, Diego Galet Azelstan, Xaebos Rosenbach, Hektor Didarro, Dukas Windelband Gatialo, Nybeth Obdilord, and Cressida Lauya Zurbaran.

Tactics Ogre: Reborn is based on the PlayStation Portable remake of the original Super Famicom title. The Reborn version of the game features high-definition graphics, gameplay adjustments, fully voiced cutscenes in English and Japanese, and a full orchestral re-recording of the game’s soundtrack. Tactics Ogre: Reborn is planned to release worldwide for PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, and Nintendo Switch on November 11, 2022.