In 1997, one of the greatest Final Fantasy games ever was released. It was nothing like any Final Fantasy game before it, and, decades later, it would be re-released on a new console with additional content. No, this is not in reference to Final Fantasy VII. This is actually another title altogether, one that many fan might not have even heard of.
Final Fantasy Tactics was a spin-off game released by Square Enix in the same year as the mainline game, Final Fantasy VII. Perhaps its close release to a far more popular game in the series is why Tactics has gone so overlooked and underplayed in comparison.
Final Fantasy Tactics features strategic role-playing gameplay, unlike the regular turn-based RPG of the titles before XIII. It isn't just the combat that makes it different, but also everything else right down to the story and the music. Tactics' tone is quite unlike anything the franchise has seen, with immersive and flowery early modern English dialogues -- found in the retranslated PSP remake, War of the Lions, which is easily the definitive version -- as well as a brilliant score that departs from the upbeat, heroic music of earlier games.
The plot of Tactics is more akin to the political intrigue of something like Game of Thrones than the hero-saves-the-world plots of the mainline games. Inspired by the real-life historical War of the Roses, it tells a nuanced, almost Shakespearean, tale of a kingdom plunged into political instability and civil war. The main characters, Ramza and Delita, find themselves in a murky world with no clear good or evil -- a sort of nuance missing from the usual Final Fantasy plots.
Tactics didn't only go in a separate direction story-wise, but also art-wise. While the games after FFVII began using polygonal 3D models, Tactics stuck with 2D graphics, giving itself a polished look that few games of the era could boast. Many of Final Fantasy's early 3D games now look comparatively ugly in comparison with modern graphics, while Tactics' 32-bit art still looks gorgeous.
But while Tactics may be different from other Final Fantasy game story-wise, it still possesses the whimsy and charm of previous games of the franchise. Its gameplay, while very different, takes quite a few ideas from older Final Fantasy entries and develops them further. For example, Final Fantasy V's job system, which unfortunately never reappeared in the mainline games, is present in Tactics.
Tactics takes what FFV did and develops it further, adding newer jobs and more complicated abilities. The new system in Tactics is truly brilliant, allowing players to customize their units and give them unique strategic abilities. A monk can master barehanded attacks, then switch jobs to a healer class to become a white mage that can also kick butt. This applies throughout the game, with player being able to combine abilities from various jobs to create new and unique tactics.
The job system isn't the only brilliant aspect of this game. Everything from character position, MP, HP, speed and weapons are critical in battle like in most Final Fantasy installments. However, the faith and brave system adds an additional layer, preventing the battle from becoming just smashing buttons and gaining XP. A high brave stat means a unit's attack is stronger, making them more likely to counter-attack. Simple enough. But the faith stat is where the double-edged sword lies.
A high faith means the unit can cast stronger magic, both offensive or healing, but it also means the unit is more susceptible to enemy spells and ally healing. A unit with zero faith would be under the temporary "Atheist" status, rendering magic useless on them and also losing the ability to cast spells. In comparison to that, a unit with too much faith might go as far as to leave the party to join the clergy.
All of these elements together make for one of the most clever and engaging battle systems in all of Final Fantasy. But one has to wonder, with everything it has going for it, why has this series not been revisited. Two sort-of sequels, called Tactics Advanced and Tactics A2, were released on the Gameboy Advance and DS respectively. However, these games had a simpler combat system and none of the complex sociological themes or narrative of the original Tactics, with the only connection between them being the setting of Ivalice (which has reappeared in XII).
A PSP port of Tactics, titled War of the Lions, was released in 2007, and since then the series has been dead with the exception of a tiny mobile game called Tactics S. Why Square Enix hasn't developed any new Tactics game despite its growing cult following is anybody's guess. However, if anybody was looking to get into older Final Fantasy games after revisiting FFVII, consider playing this hidden gem.