Tactics Arena Online Q&A

[draconus]

MPOGL.com (http://www.mpogl.com) got an Interview with Vito Sze, AKA Seed, creator of Tactics Arena Online.

Many of our readers may have never heard of TAO, can you explain what it is?

TAO is a turn-based strategy game played against other people online. It’s like chess, but your pieces have HP and special attacks and abilities. The best part is that every player can build their own customized starting formation, and there are many different units to choose from.
Read the full interview here (http://www.mpogl.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=781&Itemid=42)

[Klade]

Wow from the makers of Seed. Thats an extremely good reason to stay away.

[JazGalaxy]

I think it's crazy how this turn based form of gaming that Ogre Battle and Final Fantasy Tactics used has become known as "Tactics-whatever" or "something-tactics"

I'd love to see more of those type of game, though. Front Mission 3 absolutely ruled. I've never grown so close to or been as proud of my charachters as I was in that game.

[Rirath]

I'd love to see more of those type of game, though. Front Mission 3 absolutely ruled. I've never grown so close to or been as proud of my charachters as I was in that game.

FFTA is still my favorite example of that genre to date, it feels perfect to me. I want to go back and replay FM3 sometime though. Disgaea held no real appeal for me, it was just far too easy.

[outontheporch]

dude i remember this game! I spent all thanksgiving 04 playing it. Good times. It's super chess!

[Rook34]

How do you keep people from disconnecting when they start to lose, especially in a game like this?

[Suicidal ShiZuru]

Hopefully they find a way to track it and ban after a certain amount of times... I dont see why it would be hard to know whether or not it was the user or their connection. I hate when people disconnect when theyre going to lose in any game... We need the disconnect and be banned rule for all games...

[draconus]

Wow from the makers of Seed. Thats an extremely good reason to stay away.

this game has nothing to do with seed :/

[Klade]

this game has nothing to do with seed :/

I agree, but when the only game your company is known for is as poorly planned and executed as Seed it says something about your team.

[Mason]

FFTA is still my favorite example of that genre to date, it feels perfect to me. I want to go back and replay FM3 sometime though. Disgaea held no real appeal for me, it was just far too easy.
Seconded on FFT. Why oh why didn't it get more imitators? They did it right.

And Disgaea isn't actually the same genre. It's a fairly weak tactics game (only saved by the geotiles, a good mechanic), coupled to an immensely deep ProgressQuest meta-game, where it is all about figuring out the best time-investment to increase your party's power by the maximum amount. I like Disgaea a lot, but the fact that combat involves quad-based tactics gameplay is pretty incidental. Most battles are a matter of killing the enemy on your first turn, or simply being powerful enough that they can't scratch you.

I never looked into the Front Mission series, the reviews kept me away. People can vouch for it?

[mightbe]

I <3 front mission like a dope fiend loves his dope.

And I'm a sucker for turn based strategy games.

[Xerxes]

I liked Tactics Ogre myself.

[mightbe]

Tactics ogre is quality. I loved the training battles you could have.

[Rirath]

coupled to an immensely deep ProgressQuest meta-game, where it is all about figuring out the best time-investment to increase your party's power by the maximum amount. I like Disgaea a lot, but the fact that combat involves quad-based tactics gameplay is pretty incidental. Most battles are a matter of killing the enemy on your first turn, or simply being powerful enough that they can't scratch you.

I wish I had the free time some people seem to have. Playing a game just to be unbeatable by said game just seems utterly pointless and/or broken to me. I really liked the game's setup and atmosphere, I just wish there was more of an actual gameplay system in there.

[Mason]

I wish I had the free time some people seem to have. Playing a game just to be unbeatable by said game just seems utterly pointless and/or broken to me. I really liked the game's setup and atmosphere, I just wish there was more of an actual gameplay system in there.
Heh, the gameplay system is figuring out whether you should be leveling items, leveling characters in CoO3, repeatedly transmigrating people, trying to acquire better equipment, making friends in the senate, getting more item residents, or trying to unlock better classes. Like I said, the meta-game is intricate as hell, it's just any particular battle which is usually dull, fast, or skipped.

It's a quality game, particularly when you add in the charming plot and music, but it just isn't really a tactics game at all.

[snubber]

Chess with special attacks and abilities? ARCHON!

[Xerxes]

Whoa... The graphics on that game are ass.... The GBA games looks better.

[destoo]

No one mentionned the SHINING series yet.
Shining Force is THE series to play for what FF:TA tried to do. (I'm sorry, but compared to Shining Force, it failed)

There's also Bahamut Lagoon that seemed promising on the SNES, but I think we never got the translation.

And you can't forget Fire Emblem, can you?

or.. Heroes of Might and Magic?

(ok.. I'll shut up. but you can see that none of these games have the word "tactics" in their title)

[Jonathan]

I've always thought the original Final Fantasy Tactics to be the best one in that genre. FFTA complicated a bunch of stuff un-necessarily, and there just isn't enough screen real estate on the GBA to manage all the different things you need to do comfortably.

[JazGalaxy]

I never looked into the Front Mission series, the reviews kept me away. People can vouch for it?

I can't vouch for the series, because FM3 is the only version of the game that I played, but MAN can I vouch for Front Mission 3. It's enough like FFT that you can ease into it's gameplay fairly quickly, but it's different in key points that make it, in some ways, far superior. For instance, the charachters are sadly fixed. There's no creating new people to put into your squad. They just waltz into and out of your life like any standard Final Fantasy game. But, their Wanzer Mechs are completely yours to configure however you want mostly from top to bottom. Then you can paint them what you like, and call them what you like. In this way, there are no roles like "archer" which relegates someone to a specific task, it's all what you make a charachter out to be. My blue Wanzer "Eel", for example, had two shoulder mounted rockets that could, by the time I got in my groove in the game, absolutely devastating. I would find the highest point, park her on it, and cover the entire area with a potential barrage of missles. She was my distance charachter constantly monitoring and providing support. Then I had the army brown Wanzer "Rhino" who weilded dual sub machine guns. He basically ran headlong into a battle and filled the badguys full of lead. And on and on...

What a fun game. It was ultimately too wordy, though. It's plot was very mature, dealign with politics and warring nations. It was like Metal Gear Solid it metal gears plot wasn't stupid. And I say that affectionately.


Speaking of tactics games, is anyone here in love with Megaman Battle Network as much as I am? I think that game gets overlooked in strategy conversatiosn because it's called "megaman" and that makes people think "platformer". It's one of the best strategy games I've played in a very long time though. It's one of those sweet spot games where when you lose, you don't hit something or throw a controller, you immediately sit back and rethink your strategy and equipment, reassess your performance, and then try it again. That's a perfect strategy game to me.

[JazGalaxy]

Oh yeah, and... Gladius? Anybody?

Most overlooked game of the recent generatoin, I think...

[Fuzzy]

I agree, but when the only game your company is known for is as poorly planned and executed as Seed it says something about your team.

Try reading the article:

"My name is Vito Sze, most people know me online as Seed."

The guys online nickname is Seed....

[Dirty Harry]

I agree, but when the only game your company is known for is as poorly planned and executed as Seed it says something about your team.
QFT..................

[Gel214th]

I think it's crazy how this turn based form of gaming that Ogre Battle and Final Fantasy Tactics used has become known as "Tactics-whatever" or "something-tactics"

I'd love to see more of those type of game, though. Front Mission 3 absolutely ruled. I've never grown so close to or been as proud of my charachters as I was in that game.

I wish there were games like these for the PC.

Final Fantasy Tactics styled games, or games that mimic Board Game Miniatures style of play.HeroClix for example.

It should be fairly simple to make, and it can look absolutely stunning with today's graphics technologies.

A form of these tactical turn based games where you need to take into account the environment, height of units, facing of units etc. etc. and a game that allows for Multiplayer, or if there is a campaign, co-op multiplayer through the campaign etc.

Still waiting for that on PC. Etherlords II was a good example of that turn based style and it had Multiplayer. But it looks a bit dated now, plus there was that starforce issue.

Gladius was fantastic, very sad that it was never brought to PC and we never had more games in that style for Xbox. Sony and Nintendo rule that game genre at the moment.
*sigh*

[draconus]

I agree, but when the only game your company is known for is as poorly planned and executed as Seed it says something about your team.

what dont you understand about ,"THIS GAME HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH SEED."

its not the same company. Its only there CEO's user name :/

[51|RandoM]

I wish there were games like these for the PC.


Jagged Alliance series
Silent Storm series
Fallout Tactics
Commandos 1 and 2 were hybrids that extended the gameplay, imho
X-Com series

[Gel214th]

Jagged Alliance series
Silent Storm series
Fallout Tactics
Commandos 1 and 2 were hybrids that extended the gameplay, imho
X-Com series

Yes. All old games.
Nothing recent, and nothing with Co-Op or other multiplay.

I don't really count Commandos afaik that was real time.

[Tohoya]

How do you keep people from disconnecting when they start to lose, especially in a game like this?

You don't. I never quite understood why people got so ed when people d/c when they're losing. I don't know about you, but it's not particularly fun for me to play out a foregone conclusion. Once I know that I'm going to win, I'd prefer that my opponent disconnect so I can have challenge again. It's a perfect remedy to slippery slope (http://www.sirlin.net/archive/slippery-slope-and-perpetual-comeback/)

No one mentionned the SHINING series yet.
Shining Force is THE series to play for what FF:TA tried to do. (I'm sorry, but compared to Shining Force, it failed)

There's also Bahamut Lagoon that seemed promising on the SNES, but I think we never got the translation.
Google Bahamut Lagoon translation. We never got an official one, but some fans translated it. It's a great game, as good as FFT or FFTA. I love the party system, where one unit on the map represents 4 people that you have.

[JazGalaxy]

You don't. I never quite understood why people got so ed when people d/c when they're losing. I don't know about you, but it's not particularly fun for me to play out a foregone conclusion. Once I know that I'm going to win, I'd prefer that my opponent disconnect so I can have challenge again. It's a perfect remedy to slippery slope (http://www.sirlin.net/archive/slippery-slope-and-perpetual-comeback/)


Google Bahamut Lagoon translation. We never got an official one, but some fans translated it. It's a great game, as good as FFT or FFTA. I love the party system, where one unit on the map represents 4 people that you have.

It depends on the match, really. I think people get mad if the opponent disconnects for the same reason a coach would go ballistic if his players walked off the field before the last buzzer. Anything can happen up until the game is officially over. My friends friends favorite Final Fantasy Tactics moment was when his time mage, of whom no one expected great things, managed to dodge the attack of the games final boss which would have ended his life and the game. Just the one feat of heroism from the little guy managed to turn the entire fight around into a win where one seemed impossible.

Also, for a strategizer, the fun isn't in making hte strategy, it's in watching a successful strategy play itself out.

[mightbe]

Jagged Alliance series
Silent Storm series
Fallout Tactics
Commandos 1 and 2 were hybrids that extended the gameplay, imho
X-Com series
Slight addendum:
Space Rangers games
Heroes games
Just about anything from Strategy First (Massive Assault is amazing)

They might not be current gen titles but most of them will run on win9x/xp with some fiddling. Check online and you can get most of them for a song.

[draconus]

It depends on the match, really. I think people get mad if the opponent disconnects for the same reason a coach would go ballistic if his players walked off the field before the last buzzer.

I have played this game a lot and I would rather someone disconect then make me wait for them to lose if they know there going to lose as well.

its all part of the game to have people get pissed off and let you win :)