La Pucelle: Tactics (2002) [PS2] critique

“Most conflicts and wars have nothing to do with religion whatsoever. They are about power, territory and glory, things that are secular, even profane. But if religion can be enlisted, it will be.” – Jonathan Sacks, Baron Sacks

My last review was of Ogre Battle: March of the Black Queen. It was a good little tactical RPG that was a direct influence on Unicorn Overlord. Today we’re going to look at something a little bit different, but still in that tactical RPG vein, La Pucelle: Tactics. 

I started La Pucelle: Tactics with a fairly open mind. I have just come off of playing Final Fantasy Tactics: The Lion War Remixed mod. It’s a mod that has brought the PSP version of the game to PS1 emulation, and includes many quality of life changes that don’t make the game easier, but more enjoyable. So I was hoping that a dive into one of the tactical RPGs on PS2 would have some more modern amenities with the gameplay to make it a bit smoother. In Final Fantasy Tactics, you have one, maybe two, levels that would be considered your tutorial. However, La Pucelle, while it does have some great improvements, still struggles with many basics that Final Fantasy Tactics simply does better.

Gameplay: 7/10

I generally like to start with visuals, but there is too much of this game that happens in the details that I feel as though I need to talk about it. When Fire Emblem: Three Houses came out, one of the things that people really enjoyed was that the player character could get to know and use the relationship system to grow closer to your forces. While this doesn’t happen in La Pucelle, in between each main quest you return to a screen where you are able to talk to and interact with others 

This does give a nice little break in between each area and give you, the player, more immersion into the world. There are a number of different interactions that you can have here with different NPCs as well as upgrading any equipment/spells/etc. 

Combat is broken into two different sections: a movement plane and a battle screen. Each of these would look very familiar to the player if they have played either Final Fantasy Tactics or Fire Emblem. Players will start off on the map plane. Here players will move and interact with switches and the different monster portals that will continuously spawn additional monsters unless they are purified. Purification is the unique system that allows the player to remove these portals, and if used on monsters on the map plane, can eventually allow you to recruit them to your party. Actual combat after you have selected your skills to use or whom to attack switches to a battle screen similar to that of Fire Emblem. Characters engage in scripted combat that includes attack and counter attack. Once the scripted attacks or special skills have been completed, you are returned to the map plane. 

While I can appreciate what they did in this game, and by taking unique missions and stretching them into multi-section dungeons for the player to explore, this particular approach just arbitrarily stretches out the game. The tutorial section took me over two hours to finish. Characters do not heal themselves in between sections and while this can make things challenging, its more annoying than it is anything else, which is the opposite of what your introductory bouts and quests are supposed to do. The game does open up and there doesn’t seem to be an upper limit on the number of units you can bring in, or at least, I haven’t found what that limit is yet. 

Visuals: 8/10

For a Playstation 2 game, this game looks fantastic. The simple sprites that exist in the game move and fit perfectly well in this universe. Animations are very smooth and the transitions between the battle screen, tactical movement screen. Player sprites have animated reactions to events playing out on screen, giving the player a more immersive experience and feels more like you’re watching an interactive anime. With all that said, it has a charm to it that I haven’t found in many games that have this story and art style. I’d say that for a game that was released in Japan in 2002, it holds up extremely well, especially considering the resurgence of the retro style indie games that have been coming out for the last 6-7 years. 

There are a few drawbacks that may be because the game is a product of its time.  While there is a walking animation when players are moving around the map plane, the walk is more like a float. It’s not a huge deal, but it does look weird, especially considering that Final Fantasy Tactics was able to do this back in 1998. Maybe it’s because of the anime aesthetic, because Disgaea does the same thing, as well as Agreast and Phantom Brave Story. If the Devs simply slowed the movement by a tenth of a second, I think it would look better. This doesn’t knock the score down for me though, it just looks a little weird and after playing this game in particular and finally playing Agreast last year, it’s just something that I’ve noticed.

What does knock it down a peg or two for me are some of the color palettes–though this is more a product of its time rather than say a flaw in the game itself. While I do appreciate the ‘whimsicalness’ that the game portrays, the brightness of the colors chosen does wear on me after a while. I’m not wanting a washed out Zac Snyder thing, but everywhere you go, even in the grim spots, looks like a unicorn could also be there, though it might not be a pink one. Maybe an emo/punk one instead. 

Audio: 6/10

Let’s start with the good. Sound effects are good. Voice acting for a PS2 game was very good. I don’t recall during my playthrough a Final Fantasy X voice acting moment. Honestly, that’s the bar for me. Sorry Final Fantasy XII, you’re just as bad. 

La Pucelle: Tactics, in this regard, is probably better than its contemporaries, such as Disgaea. Whimsical, inflections in the from the voice actors that matches what’s happening on screen, and the voice actors match the tropes that their characters are portraying. I was very pleased to hear all of that. Sound effects for battles have the impact that I feel like they are supposed to have. All have a very positive impact on the player experience.

Now for the bad. I really did not like battle and dungeon music. It was too whimsical. Annoyingly so, especially considering how much time you spend in them. Again, I don’t need to have something that reaches a Tactics type of musical score, but I don’t want to feel like I’m in the Golden Saucer for the whole game. 

Uniqueness: 7/10

While the concept of the tactical RPG isn’t exactly something new, La Pucelle did come out in a unique time, where console power was significantly stronger than previous generations of consoles, i.e. the jump from PS1 to PS2 was definitely higher than, say, a SNES to a PS1. With that comes more animation capabilities, voice acting, larger games, color depth, larger levels, and a whole host of other capabilities. The PS2 was the perfect catalyst for the host of anime-based tactical RPGs that came out during this time, games like Disgaea, Phantom Brave, and others published under the NIS banner. This does work against it though in this regard. NIS went on a tear developing and publishing tactical RPGs during the PS2 era, using typical anime tropes for its protagonist and antagonist characters. 

However I think the voice acting, while a pretty superficial aspect of the game, has such a nice charm to it that it gets a nice bump from me. On top of that, in this day and age, seeing this type of animation style in a game is so refreshing. This mix of old school late 80’s/early 90’s Anime. As an old soul born in the 1980’s, it’s a nice throwback for me. 

Accessibility: 7/10

La Pucelle: Tactics does a really good job of explaining its mechanics in the first dungeon. While it doesn’t hold your hand, the first dungeon pushes you to use some of the recruitment mechanics. As the game progresses, acquiring new skills becomes fairly easy to understand.

The user interface for the game along all of its main sections is pretty self explanatory, but the game takes the time to inform the player of the basics. It also still gives space for more complex actions to be taken, especially in the battle screen. The movement grid is straightforward that is super easy to grasp and quickly teaches the player the importance of movement within the game. There are some mechanics within the game that could do a bit better job, such as the Dark Portals. While recruitment like I mentioned previously is in the introductory tutorial, it can be more difficult as the game progresses.

For the most part the game does a decent job for people that are experienced in a tactical RPG game, but there are some issues for some new players that may find it difficult. Nothing though that is so difficult to understand that would become an actual barrier for them to play. 

Challenge: 6/10

One of the standout features that contribute to the game’s challenge is the Dark Portals and the purification system. Players must manage these portals, which spawn enemies, by strategically positioning characters to purify them. The purification process adds a layer of tactical depth, as players need to consider not only the position of their units in battle but also how to effectively close these portals to prevent being overwhelmed. The game does not shy away from penalizing players who ignore these mechanics, thus pushing them to engage with every facet of the battle system.

As players progress, they encounter enemies that are increasingly strategic, with AI that exploits the game’s mechanics effectively. These intelligent foes force players to constantly adapt their strategies and to make the most of their characters’ diverse abilities. The challenge is not merely in the strength of the adversaries but in the need to approach each battle with a fresh perspective, which greatly enhances the game’s replay value.

Even so, I’d say that the challenge aspect of the game is one of the major drawbacks for the game. It’s not that it’s too hard, but the portals adds perhaps one thing too much to the game that can make the experience not quite as fun as it could be. When this is added to the recruitment mechanic, everything can be overwhelming.

Replayability: 7/10

Replay for me was fairly low, though I would absolutely recommend players to do it. For me, once was like a trip to a good restaurant. I’m full and content. I very much enjoyed my experience in this game. Long enough for me to feel accomplished and didn’t waste my time through mundane story for story sake, but I did miss a lot of the side quests. I would absolutely advocate for other players to do it. 

The game has multiple branching storylines, and multiple endings so folks have plenty of reasons to go back again to finish and find new things to experience within the game. The characters are very likable, and experiencing new things for them would be something that I would absolutely tell players to go do. 

Personal: 7/10

Despite the flaws in the game and sheer size, this was a great game. It doesn’t do anything groundbreaking. It doesn’t exactly blaze any trails. But it does what I wanted it to do. It was entertaining. It gave me something to look forward to play, and when I was finished, it felt great to put it down and write down my thoughts on it. As someone who really enjoys the tactical RPG genre, this game does the genre justice and absolutely is a solid addition to anyone’s library. 

Aggregated Score: 6.9

Jason Schad. First time writer. Gamer since 1988. You can follow me on Twitter at www.twitter.com/BaBibbz