Preview code used, with many thanks to Press Engine.
Live by the Sword: Tactics, developed by Labrador Games, is an RPG with basic and classical mechanics and characters and lore. Since this game is one of many in this genre, it needs a special factor to separate it from other similar titles.
When playing a pixilated Tactical Role-Playing Game (TRPG) like this one, it is hard not to think of Final Fantasy Tactics or other games that were inspired by it. Live by the Sword: Tactics feels like a game with much potential. Yet it has some flaws and elements to improve, overall I felt satisfied with most of my experience playing it.
Fatherly Advice
For almost every RPG and TRPG, a clear tutorial is a must, being a genre with more complexity and things to have in mind and remember. For people who already are used to these games, it is very easy to get bored and impatient with a slow and basic tutorial. Creating a clear tutorial that is easy to swallow for newcomers while keeping it spicy or interesting enough for more experienced players is a challenge that every game faces. In Live by the Sword: Tactics, its tutorial explains in detail the most basic concept of TRPGs to even quiz the player about all the mechanics.
The scene is set in the forest where a father brings his two sons to teach them the necessary combat skills to survive. Once finalising the tutorial, the real fight and story begin. It feels very welcoming for new players, especially those who never had experience with any strategy type of game. For veterans of the genre, though, the tutorial can quickly become dull and slow.
Standard Story
Unsurprisingly enough, the story was no different from other classic stories told in these types of games. The two boys you controlled in the tutorial became knights of the kingdom as the years went by and made allies with other characters that became members of their party to keep the peace and calm. By the time the player begins Act one, the kingdom is in a post-war situation, where the old king transferred his responsibility to a young boy, causing a lack of control and care for the kingdom. Then the story becomes a little predictable from then on forward.
The Characters
The characters that you meet on the way and have as possible choices in your combats are the standard roles that any RPG has. You have the warrior, a medic, an archer, an alchemist, a brawler, a wizard, and an assassin. It is as simple as it gets, which usually is not something bad, but in this case, it lacked personality. Every character felt generic, which hopefully in the future will gain some more to each one of them since their designs could have the potential for more.
The Combat
The combat was good enough, and the animations with the camera rotation focus its deserving of praise. Sadly, there are also a few downsides here too. The pace can become slow and tedious, especially with many enemies. In addition, it takes a long time to take a move, and most of the time the enemies’ turns are one after the other. Lastly, the balancing of certain skills and values seemed a bit off. Skills or spells that had four turns cooldown and weren’t as strong or attacks with lower accuracy that rarely hit are a couple of examples. But its nothing that cannot be eventually fixed or taken to a whole different level with an update.
Potential for Retention
Until now, it seems that I mainly mentioned the downsides and flaws of the game, but having a sea of games like this one sets the bar higher than before. Aspects like a more intuitive and polished UI would be expected from projects like this one. But what caught my attention ultimately in Live by the Sword: Tactics are its other play modes.
Adventure Mode
The Adventure mode brings about an interesting concept. That’s where you place your starting point and build your map for each play-through. With some rogue-like mechanics like the permanent death, making you start over from the beginning once your whole party dies. This mode was curiously entertaining, even more than the story mode. Tactician was another mode that offered a tougher challenge than others. It has plenty of special stages with specific quests to achieve in each, some can be more complicated than expected.
There is another mode that is not available yet called Board Creator. The classical versus AI mode is called Skirmish. However, it is quite unexciting as it is just that: playing against generic AI enemies. But the overall experience of the full game brings much to work with.
However, it does not matter the amount of the content, but rather the quality of it. The pieces are all there to make this a reasonable game. If there are new characters, new modes, and new mechanics introduced in the future, it will be a game with great potential. Just as it is now, it doesn’t yet feel good enough to be highlighted over others, but entertaining for a while.
Keep an Eye Open
Live by the Sword: Tactics feels like a game made with a lot of inspiration behind it, and much thought on its different modes to keep the player entertained after completing the story mode. It does have flaws and areas where it could improve. But seeing it has been in early access, for a while, if anything, makes me look forward to the potential it shows. I do feel it would be a good experience for new players of the genre or even for gaming in general.
It does teach the most basic terminologies and mechanics that are needed to understand how these types of games work. Nevertheless, its UI and lack of intuition when playing your turns, and selecting your actions are aspects that hopefully will be more polished. It is a game to keep an eye open to see what it becomes after its full release. You can find the Live by the Sword: Tactics Steam page here.
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