Strategy RPG Recommendations

[Jmustang1968]

SRPG is perhaps my favorite genre/subgenre. I would second the PSP as a good choice. But from the consoles you listed here are the games I like.

3DS/DS
-Both Fire Emblems are good, Awakening definitely the better of the 2.
-The Hoshigami remake is forgettable, not bad but not great.
-Same for the Luminous Arc games. Nothing to write home about and very cheesy, but they arent a waste of time.
-I hear Rondo of Swords is really good. I have only played the first 10 minutes or so to check it out, and it seemed promising. But it has received praise from others of whom I respect their SRPG opinion.

PS2/PS1
-Tactics Ogre. If you dont opt for a PSP, this is a great one. One of my favorites, I have said time and again.
-Arc the Lad: Twilight of the Spirits was a fun SRPG. You can get it on the cheap now.
-Stella Deus is very generic and I wouldnt necessarily recommend it.
-Suikoden Tactics is solid, but is very tied in with Suikoden IV. I wouldnt recommend playing it unless you want to also play IV.
-The Vandal Hearts games are good as well. Another good but not great series. The first is standard material. The 2nd throws a wrench in with simultaneous turns. So you and the cpu both initiate your moves at the same time. So there is often a lot of running around and hitting mid air. It is a love it or hate it kind of system, but tries something unique.
-Growlanser Generations has both 2 and 3. Great games, I recommend them. I would avoid Heritage of War, it was disappointing.
-Front Mission 4 was fun, but shallow. I enjoyed it, but it falls in that average to slightly above average territory.
-I didnt care much for Kartia on the PS1. Very generic and basic and forgettable.
- Gladius is awesome. You basically create and run a gladiator school. You travel between regions and build up your school and roster of fighters. Lots of variety and strategy with different battles requiring varied objectives. There is a storyline behind it all as well, so there is a driving force narrative.

[Valkyrie-Favor]

There was a Japan-only sequel to Shadow Dragon on DS. It also has a good fan translation. You'll need a DS flash cart or an emulator to play it. I suggest the flash cart myself.

[Jagosaurus]

Great recommendations! Let me look some of those up.

Yeah I don't have a PSP (did @ one time). They're $99 new on Amazon so I've been considering one.

I ended up with Disgaea (PS2) & Chrono Cross yesterday in a craigslist deal. I was excited bc I never get RPGs locally on the cheap. Definitely playing Disgaea now in my 2014 SRPG line up.

[Jmustang1968]

Great recommendations! Let me look some of those up.

Yeah I don't have a PSP (did @ one time). They're $99 new on Amazon so I've been considering one.

I ended up with Disgaea (PS2) & Chrono Cross yesterday in a craigslist deal. I was excited bc I never get RPGs locally on the cheap. Definitely playing Disgaea now in my 2014 SRPG line up.

I have one for sale in my threar also great as a handheld emulation machine.

I have a love/hate relationship with disgaea. It gets really repetitive. Awesome for awhile but starts to drag.

[alienjesus]

On DS and 3DS, Fire Emblem, Final Fantasy Tactics A2, Disgaea and Knights in the Nightmare are great choices.

On PS1 and PS2 you have Disgaea, Phantom Brave, La Pucelle Tactics, Final Fantasy Tactics and Tactics Ogre as fairly standard choices.


Definitely saying the PSP is the console you want if you're a SRPG buff though, its got tons of games in the genre.

[Jagosaurus]

@ BoneSnap: Had no idea there were 3 Luimous Arc games lol. Nah, no GBA via DS. I'm rocking a 3DS XL.

@ AppleQueso: Jumped on the PS2 Disgaea locally after seeing your opinion of DS port. Thanks.

@ Valkyrie: Let me/us know how La Pucelle Tactics shapes up.

@ JMustang: So out of Ogre Battle & Tactics Ogre for PSX jump on tactics first? Know you're a big fan from the podcast. Growlanser has been on my radar,forgot to mention that. Any game that comes with a wrist watch is worth a look LOL.

Does anyone have Metal Saga on PS2, does it have SRPG elements or more standard turn based? I also have the sequel to SS Iron Storm on PS2 but that looks to be more of a war sim.

I appreciate the help all! I'll slowly be picking up a few of these before 2014 & I'm looking forward to diving into the subgenre.

[Valkyrie-Favor]

A GBA would be a worthy purchase too. I spent a lot of hours on Advance Wars as a kid. Same developer as Fire Emblem, and pretty similar battles too. It's a pure strategy game though, no worrying about stat growth.

[Jmustang1968]

Story wise, Ogre Battle comes first. I have the ps1 port but haven't played it. I always played thr cart or on an emulator so as to get no load times. However, it isn't a typical grid based game but has a unique rts element to it. The individual battles play out like Disciples and even has some vague similarities to FF XIII.

[Menegrothx]

A GBA would be a worthy purchase too..

Yup


Also there's Tactics ogre knights of Lodis and the GBA FFT, but I don't know how good those are

I spent a lot of hours on Advance Wars as a kid. Same developer as Fire Emblem, and pretty similar battles too. It's a pure tactics game though, no worrying about stat growth.

FTFY

[Jmustang1968]

Tactics and Strategy are basically interchangeable.