Ragnarok Tactics Out Today on PSP, Playable on PS Vita

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Ragnarok Tactics Out Today on PSP, Playable on PS Vita

Greetings, and welcome to my first tentative steps into the world of PSN blogging! My name is Mike Engler and I will be your guide into the weird and wondrous world of Aksys Games‘ upcoming PSP title, Ragnarok Tactics. The game is out on PSP today at retail for $29.99, and on PlayStation Network for $24.99. As one of the text magicians responsible for the game’s translation (along with translator Asuka Yamataki and copy editor Karen McOscar), it was decided via a flurry of pointed fingers that I be the one to give you an overview of what the game is all about.

So, what is Ragnarok Tactics? The quick and dirty description is that it is a fairly involved strategy role-playing game that takes place within the Ragnarok Online universe, complete with its familiar monsters and job classes. Add to that already appealing formula a story with no less than five unique endings and a hero(ine) who is a doer of deeds rather than a speaker of words, and you have the recipe for an incredible portable gaming experience!

Ragnarok Tactics on PSPRagnarok Tactics on PSP

…Okay, now that I got the required hyperbole out of the way, let’s dive a bit more into the game. The story revolves around the aftermath of the Holy War, where gods, demons, and humans fought it out for control of the world. Humanity came out on top, but without an outside enemy to ally against, mankind naturally turned on each other. Eventually, two dominant nations emerged; the Aura Republic and the Branshaldo Empire. Each of these countries firmly believes that they alone saved humanity and therefore have the right to rule. However, after literally decades of fighting each other, neither side has overcome the other, and a truce borne out of exhaustion and attrition sort of came to be.

The player is a member of the third main faction of the game, a small band of do-gooders known as the Toren Militia. Initially out on a mission to exterminate the monsters that have been plaguing the area around where they lived, the player’s character becomes involved in the turmoil and political intrigue that eventually throws the world back into chaos. Depending on whom you ally with or the conversation choices you make, you will achieve one of five different endings. When it comes time to respond to others, I’d think twice about being a jerk…

Ragnarok Tactics on PSP

For the game play, you start by creating your character, including job class, gender, name, basic appearance, and voice type. As you progress through the game you can change jobs or master your first pick, allowing you to access more powerful versions of it. And like all strategy RPG’s, you will have to build a party of complimentary allies with which to decimate all who foolishly stand in your way. You can do this by hiring mercenaries from the taverns located throughout the world.

You can swap your characters’ jobs and gain access to more advanced jobs by mastering their entry-level counterparts. Story-specific characters cannot change jobs, but they make up for that by just being so darned cool.

One thing about battles; combo attacks are your friend! Different combinations of classes have different Über-powerful attacks, so be sure to experiment! The most innocuous job may have the biggest potential for carnage and destruction…

Ragnarok Tactics on PSPRagnarok Tactics on PSP

There is a lot more to the game such as significant optional quests, the ability to go back and take different story branches without losing your progress in the one you first chose, and the ability to swap characters and weapons with friends via the PSP ad hoc functionality, but if I spill the beans about everything, there’d be nothing left for you, the dear reader, to ask questions about. So please feel free to ask anything about the game in the comments section and I’ll try to answer as best I can, or side-step the issue entirely if need be.

Oh yes, Ragnarok Tactics is playable on PS Vita. I knew you’d be pleased.

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72 Comments

9 Author Replies

  • i’m kinda interested in this, but i won’t spend more than $14.99 on a psp game sorry. I’ll wait a couple months till a price drop occurs. I have Ragnorak Odyessy to keep me busy anyway.

  • Looks Interesting. Was not on my radar, but hope to see more gameplay.

  • BOUGHT!!! —12

  • Can I just ask why this didnt make it to Vita? Im playing Ragnarok Odyssey and I’m enjoying it, but the Vita could use a few SRPGs :)

  • i so want this game maybe ill get it with the 20 dollar voucher whenever we get it

  • AKSYS, thank you for bringing this game over! I have it on pre-order so I should have my copy soon. Between this and Virtue’s Last Reward you will keep me busy for a while! It’s really wonderful to have companies still supporting these “dead” handhelds. Japan really does have a lot still to offer the PSP. Keep doing it and I will keep supporting you!

    Have you guys looked into localizing Ore no Shikabane wo Koete Yuke/Over My Dead Body btw? There are many PSP fans dying to play that game and apparently SCEA won’t do it. I think that’s a game that has AKSYS’ name written all over it so I’d be interested to know if you guys are interested in that game too?

  • Well Aksys in an email you told me it wouldn’t be compatible day one. But now it is. I love mistakes when end up being in my favor. Love you guys!!

  • Another PSP game?………..

  • Very off topic but is PS+ coming to Vita today or not. Im waiting for an update on that and still no answer from Sony. Can you guys do a blog post to clarify whats going on with that please and thank you.

  • PSP lives on as the home of SRPGs. I know nothing about Ragnarok but will definitely check this out.

  • I posted this and the last comment with my PS Vita, so awesome.

  • Avatar photo

    Your words, they please me.

    I quite like the art and enjoy decimating foes, but I WILL be a jerk in all my dialogue options. So there.

    And serious question: Can we expect you to cosplay as one of the main female characters again? My purchase depends on your answer.

    • But of course. My trans-gendered Saber (from FATE/Extra) was the hit of Anime Expo, so I might just go with the Dancer cosplay for 2013! That or Alice from VLR… (how’s that for cross-promotion for ya?!)

  • Looks fun and fantastic. I still love our PSP overlords may they rein for hopefully a few more years before they retire.

  • “I still love our PSP overlords may they rein for hopefully a few more years before they retire.”

    Glad I came back ha ha that was good! As long as they are Vita compatible yeah let the PSP titles come!!

  • maybe i’m alone in this, but i need a 64 GB card for my Vita, asap. i don’t even buy full Vita games digitally if i don’t have to, but my 32 is down to the last 4 GB from PSP and PS1 games.

  • This looks great, and the discount for the downloadable version makes it that much better.

  • Wow, what a surprise. It wasn’t mentioned in The Drop. Possibly an insta-buy.

  • I will happily support Askys Games (check the trailer) :D

  • I’ll buy this as soon as I’m done with ragnarok odyssesy ^_^

  • that trailer barely show any gameplay :(

  • I can’t find this on PSN on my Vita D=
    I’ve been checking periodically since midnight, even though I knew it wouldn’t actually be there at midnight….

  • HOLY CRAP. A PSP DIGITAL GAME PLAYABLE ON THE VITA ON DAY ONE!!!

    Someone finally gets it.

    I love Aksys, so I will be getting this immediately!

  • Thanks for supporting retail, and pricing your games perfectly at retail and on PSN. Proud to support Aksys. Keep up the good work guys!

  • I don’t see it on the psn store from my ps3

  • The game looks awesome and i plan to buy it for my PSP then vita so i can build up my game collection of great games like these’s. Thanks for being/creating awesome Tactical role-playing game, their are my most favorite games to play ever. :)

  • …wait a minute. Why do they always take my favorite class out of RO games? What’s wrong with the stalker…

  • ASKYS? Seriously? Nobody noticed the gaping error at the beginning of the trailer before rendering it out? C’mon…

  • Who would give this a low rating?
    An rpg added to the PSP library is
    always exciting news to me and many
    other gamers in NA. I thank you! Keep
    the rpg coming!!

    • Not everyone is an RPG aficionado, unfortunately. We do appreciate your kind words and support, which gives us the strength to fight the good fight and bring more RPGs over, screaming our defiance at the stygian bleakness that threatens to overwhelm the world, knowing that there are those such as yourself who will hear our cries.

      tl;dr: Thanks for the support and righteous indignation. It is much appreciated.

  • LOL ASKYS

  • my order on amazon went from shipping today to shipping in decemeber =/ also i dont see it available on PSN yet

    • Don’t panic, that’s just Amazon’s system being paranoid. The game left our little slice of heaven today so it should be out in the wild this week, definitely next.

      As for it being on PSN, that will happen in GCT.

  • Just curious as to why developers so in your instance your company are still supporting the PSP? I mean yes you have a fan base still and probably more people own a PSP. But by releasing it to the PSP you are hurting the potential of grabbing new Vita owners and in the future slowing down your own business. So why do you continue to support something that should be phasing out

  • Thanks for the reply, btw, will there be a new blazblue?

  • I don’t think they’re hurting anything but putting out psp titles. I have a vita and can’t wait for the psn to update so I can buy/download this.

    I’m thinking you just don’t like DD titles. D:

  • @lillyhime

    I don’t care about which title comes out but Sony and other developers need to switch from developing for the PSP and switch to Vita if the Vita wants to be strong. Sales have been going down. Congrats on you wanting to buy this, they could have made it Vita only and been a reason for people to switch to Vita from their PSP. Instead companies decide to keep pushing for PSP and it’s not helping the Vita’s name

  • @32 japanese developers aren’t just lazy. Thats why we don’t have as many quality jrpgs on consoles like we used to. Its cheaper to put it on a handheld. That way they can make their money back just in japan.

    I think the numerous crappy jrpgs that Nisa/Gust/Compile Hearts keeps churning out has soured the entire genre in some people’s eyes.

  • @32 japanese developers are just lazy. Thats why we don’t have as many quality jrpgs on consoles like we used to. Its cheaper to put it on a handheld. That way they can make their money back just in japan.

    I think the numerous crappy jrpgs that Nisa/Gust/Compile Hearts keeps churning out has soured the entire genre in some people’s eyes.

  • whoops sorry for double post. >_<

  • @Ryumoau

    I don’t think it has to do with laziness, it may just be greed or too risky for them.

  • does it have voice acting? how is the gameplay,by this i mean does this plays like disgaea for example or like growlancer wot? can you save anywhere in game or do you have to do that in certain spots? also, is that jessica chavez from xseed?? if so, do i have to cosplay like saber in order to call her attention? i must say that i’m shocked that she has that fetish XD

    jokes aside, i’m tempted to buy this game on the psn store.oh and last serious question? are there any difference between umd loading times and the digital version?? keep those psp games coming! :)

    • Ah, questions that need answering. Luckily, I am here to do such a thing. So, without further ado, let’s get at it.
      1) Alas, there is no voice acting in the game. On the plus side, that will make it much easier to imagine Christopher Walken acting out all of the parts! Yay? Yes, yay.
      2) The game play falls in-between the two. Its movement structure is more traditional than Disgaea, but it does share some of the combo strategies and character synergies.
      3) Regular saves are done on the world map. You can also create temporary saves right before battle, but these disappear once you load them.
      4) Yes, that is the legendary Mistress Bearhead from Games. She takes a child-like delight in suggesting that I dress up in the most inappropriate costumes possible. I am tempted to show up at the Games office dressed up just to traumatize her for life.
      5) The digital version will probably load faster, but you can overcome that weakness in the UMD version by installing game data on the storage media used with the PSP®. Shameless plug: no matter which version you get, expect a lengthy and challenging SRPG to take over weeks of your life.

  • sry for the double post but how long in terms of memory is the digital version of this game?thanx

  • @35: You are simply ignorant of the development process. It was announced April 2011. Before Vita came out. It was probably in development at least a year before tnat. The game came out in Japan in October 2011. Before Vita came out.

    Why would Japanese developers move their current projects to Vita over PSP? Especially when the Vita will get them too via PSN. That is a SMART way to transition and establish yourself on Vita.

    It’s Sony’s job to sell Vita as a platform to developers.

  • i went to vote and still no ps store update? sigh………

  • Where is the store update? its 7:30pm!!! What the crap

    • It seems that the game is there, just not…there. Word around the campfire is that if you search for the game, it will appear in all of its purchaseable glory!

  • this game looks great, is there voices or just text? how many different classes and monsters?. my PSPs are broke maybe time for a vita.

    where the store update :( likely late due to voting?..

    • No voiceovers; the story is conveyed via the magic of the written word. As for classes there are 15 to choose from. As for the number of monsters…the correct scientific term is “a whole heck of a lot.”

      As for the store, see above. But it should be any time now…maybe…possibly…

  • The new ps store is a mess. There are some new games on there already, but its a pain trying to find everything that is suppose to come out.

  • I can spect the same jobs/classes from Ragnarok Online Word? You can tell us all of then? I need to evolve the class (mage to wizzard) like Ragna Online or this part is a little bit different?

    • Not all of the classes make an appearance, but most of the main ones as well as the Jonda and the Kafra. And the jobs evolve like in Ragnarok Online, though the process is a bit more streamlined.

  • why does the store NOW show re5 gold as free for plus members but is still charging $29.99???????

  • Looks pretty fun. I’ll give this a download. You have earned my monies.

    Also gives me hope that more RPGs will start appearing for digital download ( been crossing my fingers for Star Ocean 1 & 2 and Valkyrie Profile: Lenneth for a while now). Hopefully there’s enough interest in the genre to see back-releases like that.

    And welcome to the PSN blog. It’s cool that you’re taking the time to respond to comments. Keep it up!

  • I absolutely love that title pic, is it available somewhere in higher resolution (preferably wallpaper-sized)?

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