Ogre Battle 64

You will not win the throne with one hero's sword, but with clever command of an entire army and moral decisions that change a nation's fate. Ogre Battle 64: Person of Lordly Caliber ranks among the deepest strategy RPGs ever released on the Nintendo 64, and to this day fans of the genre mention it as a hidden treasure of a console famed more for action and platformers.

Behind the Ogre Battle series stands the studio Quest, and the main character of this chapter, released in North America in 2000, is a young officer drawn into a civil war. The game combines strategic unit management on a map with automatically unfolding battles, where the make-up of the party, their classes and their mutual positioning decide victory. It is not a classic turn-based tile-by-tile affair but rather a fluid commander's ballet.

At the core of the experience is a system of reputation and morale. Your deeds, the way you liberate towns and treat the populace influence how the public perceives you, and thereby where the story turns and which ending you see. Characters develop, change classes and gain new abilities, so building the ideal army is an addictive game in itself.

Culturally, Ogre Battle 64 belongs to the lineage that also produced other prized tactical titles from creators tied to Yasumi Matsuno and his school of intricate stories about power and betrayal. For Western players it was hard to come by, and collectors and lovers of the genre prize it all the more today.

The combination of strategic depth, strong storytelling and branching consequences makes it a title that rewards patience and thought. This is not a game for a single afternoon but for long evenings full of planning.

Why play: For strategic depth and a story where every one of your decisions matters, not just the strength of your army.