Dungeons & Dragons: Tactics

Game Info

Publisher: Atari

Developer: Kuju Entertainment

Genre(s): Turn-Based Strategy, Role-Playing Game

Players: 4

ESRB Rating: T (Teen)

Release Date: August 14, 2007

Summary

Faithfully utilizing the Dungeons & Dragons 3.5 rule-set, Dungeons & Dragons: Tactics allows players to take a party of six adventurers into a wide variety of dangerous environments to experience deep and exciting turn-based action. All of the core races and classes are available to the player, including two Psionic classes, the Psion and the Psychic Warrior. Players can customize their characters and store as many as their memory stick can handle. Battle many different types of monsters from the Dungeons and Dragons universe. Play with your friends wirelessly in both cooperative and adversarial game modes. Extend the gameplay experience with downloadable content. [Atari]

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What The Critics Said

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What Our Users Said

Vote Now! The average user rating for this game is 8.2 (out of 10) based on 20 User Votes

Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

ALLoGISTIC gave it an8:
So, You've read all the professional reviews and here you are perusing the reader reviews. Presumably, much like myself, you really, really want to like this game and youre looking for a review that addresses your specific concerns. whats with the huge disparity in opinions? 90's and 80's next to 50's and 40's !? Thats not helping you make a decision at all. with such a disparity in review scores, you can only presume this is a title that is going to appeal to a very specific audience only, and the million dollar question(or the $39.99 question as the case may be)does that audience include you?? You may have been led to believe from the title and some of the screenshots to expect a game similar in design and play to japanese style srpg's like Tactics Ogre, FF Tactics, Disgaea and the like only with a coat of D&D paint. However, this is not the case. It is True, like those games you take turns moving characters around a map and dispatching enemies. But, its more of a literal interpretation of the movement and combat rules that comprise an actual session of D&D and the reviewing of the subsequent lists of items, numerical values, and other statistics and descriptions you collect on your character sheets than anything else. this is partially where the menu interface complaints stem from. However, if youve ever spent anytime playing D&D or even just rolling and creating characters for the fun of it, you will find that the menu system is actually pretty functional and gives you access to all the information you could want and more. quite simply if you are a fan of D&D and understand the combat mechaincs already, you will find it will indeed suck you in and provide you with a worthwile and ejoyable gaming experience. That being said, the game makes no attempt to introduce you to the mechanics of 3.5 edition D&D combat, which unfortunately may have been somewhat alleviated by including more detailed combat feedback, such as a combat log. which, would have been nice to see even for us D&D fans. Did you know if you attempt to move away from an enemy who is adjacent to you, he gets to make an attack of oppurtunity? Do you even know what an attack of oppurtunity is?? while the words "attack of oppurtunity" do pop up on screen when it happens, the game never attempts to explain this or any such unique mechanics to you, nor does it gradually introduce them to you through the course of the game as is generally an expected element of modern game design. This is just one example of many such instances in which the game just makes it very difficult for someone unacquainted with D&D to understand and appreciate what is going on. And as such the pacing of turns and elements such as enemies being invisible to you until your character becomes aware of them will baffle unacquainted users and unfortunatley be interpreted ignorantly as design flaws. Overall, the game has a pervaying sense of user-unfriendliness througout all aspects of its design. All that being said, I myself really like this game and underneath it all is a well designed and enjoyable adaptation of the dungeons and dragons game, which for a geek like me, who hasnt played the pen and paper game for well over 15 years(but, still buys and owns the core rulebooks and reads them just for fun) I can say its a game Im happy to add to my collection. It pains me to use this cliche, but its best described as... a diamond in the rough(ugh!, I know. sorry about that) Even for fans of D&D its not without some compaints, as I mentioned earlier it could use more combat feedback. the combat animations, especially for ranged attacks are sometimes difficult to decipher what is happening, thank goodness any damage done floats above a units head to let ya know if an attack hit or missed and the resulting damage. plotting the pathway you want your character to move is dependant on the orientation of the camera, which can be a little frustrating. The customization options available for the 3d models of your characters is pretty limited, but oddly once you start playing you wont notice. on the positive side, all the character artwork, such as the portraits are actually all really nice(which i have to say is a welcome change from the larger selection of ugly and worhtless portraits that appear in the excellent pc rpg neverwinter nights). Also, Its worth noting that the dialogue in the story sequences does not wait for you to press a button before advancing and moves along a tad too quickly and often disappears before you have a chance to read it. Go find that copy of the players handbook youve been keeping on your bookshelf and give yourself a quick refresher course and you will very much enjoy this purchase. I would very much like to see a sequel to this game, as it has so much potential, but unfortunately thats proably unlikely. vote with your dollars. !

Shadowcide gave it an8:
I notice that a lot of the marks against this game also apply to other tactics games, but they seem to be judged much less harshly for it. Final Fantasy Tactics, for example (while a fantastic game in its own right), suffers from similar ailments, but they are easily overlooked by the reviewers, while this game catches the 3rd degree. While I could go into greater detail, I really don't want this to turn into a comparison review. Suffice it to say, complaints about graphics and sound seem unfounded when FFT uses (albeit charming) sprites and has some of the the most horrid sound ever to assault modern man (camera rotation screeching comes to mind). Don't get me wrong, I love both games, and acknowledge FFT's superior story... but still. Moving on... Also, many of the complaints levied against this game seem to stem from the out of combat menu system. While far from intuitive, it is really not all that unwieldy. I read that one reviewer had issues when equipping items, that he couldn't compare the weapons, armor etc to see which was better. Granted, its not a final fantasy menu, where little arrows indicate whether its better or worse, but a quick press of the Square button toggles Un-equip mode (within the same screen), and you can simply view what you have equipped vs whats in your backpack. All the stats are available in the middle panel, from threat range to raw damage to any bonuses it has, so I really fail to see the problem. From this same screen you can also quick-sell the old items, which is actually kinda nice. The graphics, while not jaw-dropping, are actually not bad. The fact that you can customize your avatar's head to some extent is a bonus I really didn't expect to find, and any further customization might be a bit pointless considering the screen size and viewpoint. The fact that light and shadow play a role is again, a nice touch. Sound, admittedly, is only fair, but it suffices. I do love the menu music, I just wish it would mix it up a bit with a few more tracks, to avoid repetition. Gameplay itself is solid. The wealth of options available is actually a bit staggering. Things that were dumbed down in other D&D games are here in full force, and while not everything could make the cut, chances are if it didn't show up here it didn't show up in another game either, or just wasn't relevant to combat. A few psionic abilities appear to be missing, but the fact that you can even be one to begin with had me going crazy with anticipation. I <3 Psychic Warriors and my hat goes off to Kuji for including them. The lack of multi-classing was a huge blow to this game at first, but I don't recall Temple of Elemental Evil having it either... hell you couldn't even pick your level up feats in that game. And while Neverwinter Nights this is not, its still a damn fine accomplishment regardless, and I would love a sequel or expansion pack... but given Atari's current situation and cold-blooded track record, I sorta doubt it will happen. The story is a bit lacking, but its there... My only real problem with it really is the dialogue. A few lines had me slapping my head in embarrassment ("Somebody light a torch, I fight better in the light!"). But then again, back when I played D&D I was a kid, and the other players didn't exactly offer story-quality dialogue themselves... so its easy to overlook. All in all this game is solid at its core, and does something incredible in its own right... Portable D&D. The game may be a bit off-putting and first, especially for the uninitiated, but really it was clearly designed as a niche game... The title of "Dungeons & Dragons Tactics" really sort of emphasizes that fact. Give the game a chance and play the tutorials (they're actually kinda fun). Even I had to give the game a second chance, as at first it was really testing my nerves... but I wasn't really into tactics games either. I set it aside, played FFT and realized how much they had in common, and then went back to give this one another try. If you're into the subject matter, chances are you'll find yourself attracted to this game. I had to score it as an 8, but I really think it deserves an 8.5 for effort.

R. R. gave it a9:
An excellent game. The transition from the Pen and Paper D&D game to video game has always suffered in some form or fashion when combat was translated. However, D&D Tactics takes the essence of a true 3.5 D&D battle and presents it in close proximity. While I admit that there are problems (namely a poor multiplayer platform, a difficult camera to control, and difficult lists to sort through), the precise attention to such things as Attacks-of-Opportunity and Bullrush lead me to conclude that this is an excellent Dungeons and Dragons game. The statement by some of the critics that this isn't for everyone is pretty much implicit in the title: Dungeons and Dragons Tactics. If you are surprised by the fact that it is D&D (with such things as rules), then you probably shouldn't be playing this game. If, however, you are in need of a good D&D game with good graphics, representative sound-effects (for those magic missiles that you will be casting), and excellent D&D rules adjudication, this is definitely the game for you.

J S gave it a9:
So this game has a rating of 58 on metacritic? That actually pisses me off, since it makes it less likely that they will make a sequel. This game is simply the most fun I've ever had with a PSP game. No, it's not perfect D&D, it's missing multi-classing and a few skills and feats. But it's damn close, and you get more character customization than you're going to find in any PSP game anywhere. If you've ever played "Temple of Elemental Evil" game for the PC, this is very similar. The focus here is a little less on role-playing and more on fighting though (that's why it's called D&D Tactics). The game is LONG too. I spent about 92 hours on the campaign and finally finished it. You start at level 1. I don't know what the highest level you can hit, but my party got up to level 19. Even after you do the campaign, you can go through it again, and make some different choices about which dungeons to explore, or whether to go good or evil, so there is a fair amount of replay value. -Graphics are smooth, colorful, and fantastic -Sound is wonderful, and there's even a sound player option so you can play all the music for your own pencil & paper games if you want. -Gameplay would be hard at first if you have no knowledge of D&D, but soon you would pick it up. There are lots of ingame help avaialbe on just about everything. Highly recommended.

Flatliner gave it a9:
Firstly , it seems strange that so many reviewers are complaining about the menus and complexity of the game. This is a game based on a generally slow paced and thoughtful pastime, Not Diablo 2 or titan quest type games. I love this game, its cumbersome sure, but as you memorise the menus, and learn to use the functional camera *some games can't even manage that* you will begin to play with Elan. Graphics are again, something that seems overly critized, you have 6 sprites on screen and generallly a similar amount of Enemies, so detail was allways going to be on the chopping block. The music suits the game nicely and is not irritating after about 1 listen like many psp games. Overall if you have any soft spot at all for wandering dungeons and backstabbing till the wee hours in bed like me, then this game will not dissapoint.

Nick B. gave it an8:
This is definitely a game for fans of the Dungeons & Dragons paper and pencil game, not the video games it has spawned. The game is a good tutorial for people already familiar with the 3.5 ruleset (like my girlfeind) but who are confused by the combat rules and such. I enjoyed this game a great deal, love the tactical miniatures-style gameplay (which is a very accurate portrayal of the miniatures-based combat from the game) and liked the storyline a lot. The downsides are similar for many: the menus can be hard for some to navigate; I foundthem okay, but there are much easier menu systems in other games. Also, some of the darker dungeon settings are very, very dark and that means that if you live in a sunny state like I do, you won't be playing this game at all in the sunlight.

THUDUK gave it an8:
In my youth I was an avid D&D player and remember sitting with a bunch of friends designing and exploring crazy dungeons with little lead figures we had painstakingly painted to add character to, we used to sketch the characters image on the character sheets with such detail and really began to feel attached to each created...this is one area that does drop one point for me as it would be nice to be able to create the characters face and style more not just the limited set images and heads that this game provides, other than that practically all the character types and skills are squezed into the game. Graphics basically do the job nicely, the lighting in the dungeon is very effective, and the two zoom modes and ability to rotate view is easy and makes gameplay smooth, the chacter effects can be basic at times but as you progress the spell effects become quite varied and more impressing. Sound. Is perfect with some really nice celtic and soft magical type Gothic music, sound effects like dripping water and attack sequences, spells are all fitting to the game play well. Gameplay. Although at first you will find it clunky and slow, this is a D&D game and even playing on the board it tooks ages to even get through one room, so this is in comparison speedy, you get totally used to the turn based controls and will learn to like them after a few dungeons, I really like the way you can attack diagonally, this may sound like a small thing, but you play Jeanne Darc and you will know what I mean. this is one thing that lets JDarc down in my opinion not being able to attack diagonally. Also in D&D you can use this tumble move just after an attack to great effect. Overall. I deduct one point for lack of real character styling and design and another for the clunky controls which actually after a while will become natural, so the score would rise to 9/10 after you get some experience under your belt, and also once your character level up and become more powerful this game excels, just give it some time before condemning this game, be patient and you will find a classic game here.

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