Fae Tactics

Underneath its colorful, bubblegum exterior is one of the most inventive and challenging strategy RPGs I've played in a long time.

Fae Tactics has only a few bumps in its lengthy and magical road, but these are mere speedbumps along the vast and enjoyable journey full of deep technical strategy, colorful fae and characters, and winding stories. It’s easy to compare Fae Tactics to the best parts of Final Fantasy Tactics or Disgaea, but it also doesn’t take long to see just how much of its own unique flavor it brings to the tur...

Fae Tactics revives and simplifies the 60-hour tactics JRPG.

Fae Tactics is a game filled with one step forward and two steps back. While its art style and music are charming, they are very limited. Likewise, the gameplay is solid but holds itself back with a few odd design decisions. While not a bad game, it may not be enough to excite fans of the genre.

Fae Tactics is a charming, ambitious homage to classic tactical RPG’s with plenty of its own ideas, but it never quite add up to greatness. It fails to explain so much of what’s going on under-the-hood that victories often feel unearned and defeats often feel arbitrary. The great presentation and some solid core systems means it stays entertaining in small doses, however. I’d still tentatively rec...

In sum, it’s fun if you like extremely streamlined tactics RPGs or if you need to introduce someone to the genre. It’s pretty impressive for a GameMaker game, even. But if you enjoy futzing with your builds and loadout or agonizing over which skill to use, there’s not a lot there for you. Maybe play it on a night off from endless XCOM: The Long War sessions?