7mo ago

So I just tried the demo for Tactical Breach Wizards, and that's... actually really really genius

store.steampowered.com Tactical Breach Wizards on Steam

In Tactical Breach Wizards, you lead a team of renegade wizards in kevlar through turn-based battles to unravel a modern conspiracy plot. Combine their unique spells in clever ways, or rewind time to try every crazy plan you can think of to punch a Traffic Warlock through a 4th story window.

I like this. A lot. I mean as far as I can judge it just from the demo.

It looks like it'd be a quirky XCOM-like. Chimera Squad, but even more magic than the special ability in that. And in a lot of ways it is that, but it has this thing where you can see what the enemy will do on their turn, which in turn makes your turn a tight puzzle as you got near-perfect information.

And it's super well done. You can pull off these perfect turns constantly where no enemy can ever do anything and you control the entire momentum, and it feels cool. I hope they can keep that up as the team gets bigger, but so far it feels nice.

Plus, the writing is quirky as fuck and very fourth-wall-breaking, but also cool. The whole game gives off that vibe, what with one guy using an Assault Staff (basically an AR-15 but also a wizard's staff) and your witch having a tactical vest on and tac goggles on her witch hat.

Did anyone of you try it? Did you also like it? Definitely waiting for them to announce when it'll come out now.

16 comments

but it has this thing where you can see what the enemy will do on their turn, which in turn makes your turn a tight puzzle as you got near-perfect information.
This sounds a lot like Into the Breach which is a fantastic game. Also the same people who made FTL.
- Oh thank you! I was thinking of that but absolutely could not recall the name when making the OP.
  
  No problem! And thanks for posting this game. Looks really neat.
- Or Invisible Inc.

Tom Francis (the dev behind TBW and many other great games) posted videos throughout the dev cycle of the game on his YouTube channel. They're definitely worth a watch for anyone interested in game design/development.

I’ve had this on my wishlist for so many years now!

I did try it, it's far more like breach and clear and other simulators around the building clearing experience. That said I know why they're marketing it to be like XCOM. It's the magic, but the truth is it's a great little puzzle game in a way that XCOM isn't, i.e. you know what the outcome is going to be. There's no missing 100 percent shots here! (RIP Sir Lancelot) It has a story attached with great writing and possibly a divergent story line where you have to figure out the mystery yourself. Either that or the red string board you interact with is just extra interaction to help sell the story. We'll have to see!

Whoa... I've had this on my wishlist for years. I was half afraid that it was just in development limbo. Didn't realize the dev finally put out a demo.
This is the same guy that did Gunpoint and Heat Signature. Heat Signature especially was super inventive in its core gameplay loop. I'd expect no less from a tactical game like this one.
The animated screenshots remind me of some of the mechanics of Fights in Tight Places.

Really liked the trailer, added to my wish list. Looks very amusing, I love that type of writing humor.
- Go download the demo!

I knew I was going to like this when it was announced, and the demo did not disappoint. There's a fine line between being too easy and getting too puzzly for me with these games, but seeing the Confidence system is a really good sign that the full game won't get to the latter. The default setting was too easy for sure, though; the boss fight was almost trivial.
Love the writing, love the absurd concepts at play. This one's an insta-buy when it comes out.

I'm purposely avoiding seeing content about this game, but Gunpoint and Heat Signature are made by the same guy and are two of my most favorite single player games ever, so I'm very excited to hear people are loving the demo!

Is this more campaign driven than door kickers?
- Definitely, each room and mission seems to be dedicated purpose-built puzzle rooms.
- It's entirely campaign driven. There narrative around every mission. In the demo there's even narrative about the narrative.

I hate it, yet I still want to try it for some reason.

16 comments