Best Tactical RPGs That Get Better As You Play

Summary

Tactical RPGs require strategic thinking for success in battles. Leveling up helps, but a solid plan is crucial.
Some tactical RPGs start hard but become easier with player experience. Stick with favorites to find interesting options.
Different tactical RPGs offer unique challenges and mechanics, from children units in Fire Emblem to permadeath in Valkyrie Profile.

Tactical RPGs are one of the toughest sub-genres of RPGs to get into. It’s part of the name, as they almost always demand players to have a sense of strategy when engaging with enemy units. Leveling up can help, but without a solid plan, most battles will end up in a loss.

But while some tactical RPGs may start hard, they can get easier as they progress, thanks to player experience and more options opening up. Not every entry will resonate with every player, but if the hardcore fans stick with these titles, then they are bound to find something interesting across a wide range of platforms.

XCOM 2, Final Fantasy Tactics, and Fire Emblem Radiant Dawn

8 Hardest Tactics Games

For fans looking for a challenging turn-base RPG where decision-making is crucial, check out these great, yet unrelenting tactics games.

8

Final Fantasy Tactics Advance

Building A World

Final Fantasy Tactics took the world by storm in 1998, but its sequel, Final Fantasy Tactics Advance, had a more divisive response. First, it was an isekai featuring a bunch of young kids getting whisked away to the magical world of Ivalice, without the darker story of the original. Also, there’s a lot of hand-holding early on, plus restrictions through Judge-based rules. The flow does get better once players get past the tutorial stages, build up the map and their party, and start to understand how to subtly sidestep the rules of Judges.

7

Fire Emblem: Awakening

Time To Make Some Babies

Promo art featuring characters in Fire Emblem-Awakening

Fire Emblem Awakening, like many entries in the franchise, is almost fun from the start. It has the advantage of being the first North American entry with difficulty modes, opening up the gameplay for more tactical RPG fans. That’s all great, but things really start to get interesting about halfway through, when the ability to make playable children appears. Players can have units become romantically attached, and once they reach a certain limit, their child will appear from a future portal. Explaining more would spoil too much, but for now, let’s just say this opens up an interesting gameplay mechanic.

6

The Last Spell

A Tactical Roguelike

The Last Spell is a relatively small game from an indie studio that flew under the radar in 2023. It combined grid-based tactical gameplay with randomized roguelike loops. The story follows the defenders of the last wizard who is trying to remove magic from the world, which will in turn save it.

Bahamut in The Diofield Chronicle and Peach Rabbid in Mario + Rabbids Sparks Of Hope

6 Best Tactical RPGs That Do Not Use A Grid System, Ranked

Grid systems can sometimes feel stifling in the tactical RPG genre, so why not give these games that break the tradition a try?

Zombies and other mythical creatures will descend upon players, and it’s up to them to defend the town and this wizard. Like most roguelikes, it’s incredibly challenging until the right upgrades are produced. Once players put in a good ten hours, things will start to get easier.

Get The Cards, Snake

Metal Gear Acid was unlike anything the series had seen before: a tactical card-based RPG. Solid Snake could move through bases and take down enemies, but only if he had the right cards. Later, he gets a partner, Teliko, who makes some encounters less grueling. What really helps is getting more cards though, as the initial offerings are limiting. It takes a while to get used to the gameplay compared to the real-time stealth of the mainline entries, but Metal Gear Acid is still a good PSP entry worthy of the name.

4

Project X Zone

All Your Favorite Characters

Promo art featuring characters in Project X Zone

Project X Zone is a crossover RPG for fans of Capcom, Sega, and Bandai Namco games. The story is nothing to write home about, as it’s there just to help guide players to the next level of fan service. The trouble is that it can take a while to reach a player’s favorite characters from franchises like Mega Man, Sakura Wars, and .hack. Maps take a long time to complete, and the game dishes out new characters sparingly. The more they play, the more iconic heroes will unlock, which is the main reason to play this 3DS tactical RPG and its sequel.

3

Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Survivor

The Power Of Apps

Promo art featuring characters in Shin Megami Tensei Devil Survivor

The Megami Tensei games are known to be brutal, but Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Survivor is more intense than most. Movement takes place on grids similar to most tactical RPGs, but once players engage with an enemy, it will turn into a traditional turn-based setup.

Fighting a battle in Advance Wars Dual Strike and Super Robot Wars L

8 Best Tactical JRPGs On The Nintendo DS, Ranked

The DS may have lacked in graphics for its RPGs, but it still has a huge selection of tactical experiences that could stand toe to toe with.

It’s an interesting combat system, but the trouble is that the party is limited, along with the number of demons players can summon early on. What’s more, enemies will always far outnumber hero characters, but it does thankfully get more manageable if players keep at it.

2

Valkyrie Profile: Covenant Of The Plume

A Spin On Permadeath

Valkyrie Profile: Covenant of the Plume

Systems

Released: March 17, 2009
ESRB: t
Developer(s): Tri-Ace

Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Survivor is challenging for a bit, but Valkyrie Profile: Covenant of the Plume might be one of the hardest tactical RPGs on the DS or of all time. The story centers on Wylfred, who has a magical item called a Destiny Plume. With it, he can enhance his party members in battle for a limited time. If players do this, the boosted character will die forever once that boost wears off.

It’s a cruel mechanic, because the game is so hard that players will inevitably use it time and time again. Valkyrie Profile: Covenant of the Plume never gets easier, but the experience will get better once players embrace permadeath.

1

Wild Arms XF

Not Your Average Objectives

Wild Arms XF is a PSP spinoff and the first tactical RPG entry in the series. Instead of square-based grids, the battlefield is divided into hexes, similar to the combat system in Wild Arms 4. There are traditional gameplay hooks like equipment and classes, but what makes the game special is also what may turn some away.

Instead of battles focusing on taking out every enemy like most tactical RPGs, almost every mission has a distinct objective, from protecting an ally to guarding a line. If these objectives are broken, then it is Game Over, which will inevitably be triggered a lot, since some of these conditions are very specific. Cheap losses can turn anyone away from a game, but players should keep at it in Wild Arms XF to discover one of the franchise’s best experiences.