Play Robot Tactics and create your own powerful and personalized robot using numerous parts and components.

Be part of an elite mercenary group and find other people to join your company in your quest for peace.

Take part in large scale tactical turn-based battles and devise tactics to help you achieve victory.

Tactics RPGs aren’t dead, nor will they be in the near future. Games similar to titles like Final Fantasy Tactics, Fire Emblem, and Ogre Tactics still appeal to a large audience. If you’re part of this fanbase, then Robot Tactics might be compatible with your tastes. Its gameplay mechanics and progression heavily rely on assembling the right team and unit positioning on the battlefield. Like most games today, it also has a gacha system which lets you summon new pilots to ride “warlocks” - the game’s mechs - into battle. With that said, is it a game you would want to try out? Let’s find out what it has to offer:

Robot Tactics is a game with numerous intricacies, given that it is a tactics RPG. It starts off with a tutorial orienting you about its battle system, along with essentials like assembling a team, placing parts to upgrade your robots, and assembling a team of pilots and warlocks. Most of the mechanics are standard cookie-cutters systems that you might be familiar with if you’ve played your share of mobile RPGs before. If you’re a total newbie, there is nothing to worry about since the game does a great job in guiding you throughout the learning process, something that a few other tactics games fail to do.

Robot Tactics is a game that is inherently Japanese-inspired. The developers, Proficient City, are Chinese, and they have chosen a Japanese anime aesthetic and art style. Yes, there is a fair amount of fanservice, with lady pilots gearing up for battle wearing outfits that aren’t exactly suited for sitting inside a cockpit of a mech. There are characters who wear military-style uniforms with exposed midriffs. If you’re put off by the developers’ taste, it will take a lot of getting used to. Nevertheless, it’s not a major issue is and it’s definitely PG 13.

The battle mechanics are fairly similar to most tactics RPGs. You will move your units around the battlefield in diamond-shaped grids, enabling you to attack from eight directions. Opposing sides usually have their turns set and shown on top of the screen. The controls are fairly simple: tap on a mech to move, tap on the grid you wish to move on or the enemy unit you wish to attack. Weapons are varied, ranging from close range swords to gigantic pistols. Positioning also plays a crucial role since it will determine the accuracy of your shots. Entering battlefields and progressing through the story is done through tapping on stages on the campaign map.

Customization and team management is a crucial aspect of Robot Tactics. Mechs and character each have their own respective skills and advantages in battle. For example, a pilot might have a skill that boosts its repair capabilities, while another one might have boosted melee capabilities. Management is done by adding and replacing robot parts, as well as “merging” pilots to further strengthen your combat capabilities. Moreover, you can have other players’ mechs join the fray to help you in combat.

Although fun and the micromanagement part of the game will certainly appeal to RPG fans, the presentation aspects are lacking. The art style and feel of the visuals are ok, but the attack animations are lacking and arguably subpar with robots just dashing and leaning forward to strike. The sound effects are rather dull, and characters aren’t voiced, making it hard for players to immerse themselves in the story.

Overall, Robot Tactics is a pretty decent and entertaining game. It could have been better if it had polished presentation elements and dished out something new, however, since most of the game’s elements are standard in the genre, including the battle, gacha, and microtransaction aspects. But hey, it provides an experience that will definitely last for hours, so if you enjoy this type of game, you'll definitely want to give it a shot!