Unicorn Overlord | Switch, PS4, PS5, XBS

Last edited by jawa_ on Fri Mar 08, 2024 2:41 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Title Unicorn Overlord
Platform Switch, PS4, PS5, XBS
Release 8 March 2024
Developer Atlus
Publisher Sega
Official game website Click

Atlus wrote:LIBERATE YOUR KINGDOM, RECLAIM YOUR DESTINY

From the masterminds that brought 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim and Odin Sphere, ATLUS x Vanillaware presents the rebirth of tactical fantasy RPG. Fight against fate and embark on a royal adventure to regain your reign alongside trustworthy allies.

Unicorn Overlord combines the timeless tactical RPG genre with overworld exploration and innovative battle system for a unique epic fantasy experience in the iconic Vanillaware style.

> Traverse a vibrant world, assemble units and direct them into exquisitely animated battles

> Perform heroic deeds and grow renown throughout the five nations

> Cultivate a grand army with over 60 unique characters, from humans and elves to massive beasts and heavenly angels

> Announcement Trailer (14-Sep-2023)

> Guide to Training (13-Feb-2024)

> Demo Trailer (21-Feb-2024)

Kotaku wrote:Unicorn Overlord’s Opening Hours Are Bursting With Style And Substance
Vanillaware’s new tactics RPG is shaping up to be an enthralling entry in the genre

Ahead of my hands-on preview with Unicorn Overlord, the new tactics RPG from developer Vanillaware and published by Atlus, I was told that nobody had beaten the demo yet. So I made it my mission to see if I could change that. Cut to two-and-a-half hours later, and I can see why people were having difficulty. I was in the midst of a massive battlefield, juggling multiple units of soldiers across a sprawling map and getting into fights with enemies twice my level. But after 45 minutes of strategizing (and the occasional save reload), I came out the victor.

Despite the game’s insistence that I was woefully underpowered for this conflict, all it took was some clever strategizing and careful combat to turn the tide in my favor. This was the moment Unicorn Overlord clicked. If anything is the mark of a great tactics game, it is the ability of the player to leverage strategy over raw power and win. My time with Unicorn Overlord’s opening hours left me eager to challenge even more powerful enemies when the game releases, just to see what I can get away with.

Source: Kotaku

TheGamer wrote:Combat takes strong cues from Ogre Battle, blending real-time strategy with classic roleplaying mechanics. Your units are organised into formations, which you order around maps towards enemies, bases, or other points of interest. When two opposing formations clash, a fight begins. These engagements play out automatically, with each unit’s actions determined by their skillset and a priority system you can fiddle with on the fly. While you can use items to affect your chances, success is built around creating well-made formations and strategic thinking. You can’t rely on lucky hits or brute force; careful planning and mastery of the battlefield is tantamount. Easy mode is startlingly well-named, but I found Normal to provide a fairer challenge that kept me engaged...

...Something that will please a particular type of player is how crunchy the unit building is here. Each unit has its own class, three equipment slots, and a personal growth plan that affects what stats will increase upon leveling up (seemingly Fire Emblem-style, with each stat having a percentage chance to increase). With a massive roster of unique characters and the ability to recruit a ton of generic units alongside them, customisation is excellent.

Source: TheGamer

It seems to be getting some good feedback during previews.

this very mush gives me the vibes of "what if atlus made fire emblem"

shy guy 64 wrote:this very mush gives me the vibes of "what if atlus made fire emblem"

Yes, my thinking was the same, shy guy!

Not something which I am day one going to get but something I will keep a casual eye on.

I played a good bit of the demo, it's pretty meaty. Starts off a bit simple, need to play a good hour before it gets out of the training mode.

This is the sort of thing I'll pick up, though maybe not day 1. Haven't seen too much but seem to have some Ogre Battle vibes which is pretty cool after the PSP and Switch version of Tactics Ogre.

Vanillaware games are absolutely beautiful. I won't get this day 1 but probably will grab this later.

This is gaining high praise in reviews.

> PS5 - 13 reviews - 88
> Switch - 10 reviews - 87
> Xbox - 2 reviews - 90

Push Square wrote:It's hard to say whether Unicorn Overlord is objectively Vanillaware's best game, but for us, it's right up there, competing for the crown — and that's incredibly high praise. This is an immaculate and deeply engaging strategy RPG; the best example of the genre that we've played in years.

IGN wrote:The tactical combat system is unique and complex while also being easy to understand, expertly blending mechanics from many of its peers with smart new additions of its own. The interesting terrain across the continent of Fevrith makes every fight feel unique, with some of the best map gimmicks I’ve seen in any strategy RPG.

Metro GameCentral wrote:A wonderfully weird console strategy game that’s inspired by the past but forges its own very distinct legend, with beautiful visuals and deep but accessible gameplay.

I saw one copy of it in Game for £54.99 wowsers I'm imagining it's less online from decent places.

kerr9000 wrote:I saw one copy of it in Game for £54.99 wowsers I'm imagining it's less online from decent places.

Yeah, as a relatively niche title I suspect that most places have ordered few copies and that the stock price will generally be maintained. There are some slight reductions: ShopTo have the Switch version at £48 and Hit (formerly Base) have it at £43.

This is not my sort of game at all (my brain overheats at strategy), but I've been swayed by good critical opinion and VanillaWare pedigree and - oddly! - getting on with the strategy in 13 Sentinels into giving this a shot. More as I get it.

How complex is the system? Like FE levels or AW?

shy guy 64 wrote:How complex is the system? Like FE levels or AW?

Much more complex than both of those, it’s more like Ogre Battle.

Christopher wrote:
shy guy 64 wrote:How complex is the system? Like FE levels or AW?

Much more complex than both of those, it’s more like Ogre Battle.

hmm might give it a miss

I picked this up on earlier this week and put 10 or so hours into it. Excellent balance between all the different aspects of the game such as the combat, story and overworld activities so far. I think you could probably play everything I have thus far on the demo? I've heard that it is pretty generous in terms of how much of the game you can play.

I went in at what I guess is the hard difficulty as I was scared to go for expert right off the bat, even though I've seen quite a few videos where that has been suggested. It's been a little easy so far if I'm being honest. There has been a need to switch things up a little or consider unit strengths to get through the levels, but it has been much easier compared to say, FE: Engage on hard mode. That might be why I'm enjoying the game so much though, some of the info is a little small while in handheld mode and moving units and equipment around isn't perfectly streamlined so not having to regularly get into that is nice.

I'd recommend it though, probably the best overall strategy game I've played in years.

Really annoyed how much I like the Switch demo for this. The gameplay seems absolutely perfect for what I want in a strategy game in a way that I never would have suspected, but the story is so incredibly generic and some of the character design is quite suspect...

Plus it isn’t on PC and probably never will be!

I'll likely pick this up at some point. I liked the squad building in Symphony of War and I liked the gambit system in FFXII, and apparently this is a combination of the two of those. Shame about the story, but it is what it is, I guess, as long as making the little dudes fight is fun.

Unicorn Overlord | Switch, PS4, PS5, XBS

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