Hey #gamedev! I wanted to get some input on something... For a #tactical #RPG, what's your ideal length of a single scenario battle? Gameplay is similar to Tactics Ogre, Final Fantasy Tactics, Fire Emblem and to a lesser extent Advance Wars. Give a min/max range i.e. 15 - 30 minutes Thanks!!🥰 - ThreadSky

dusktactics.bsky.social • 27 days ago

Hey #gamedev!

I wanted to get some input on something...

For a #tactical #RPG, what's your ideal length of a single scenario battle?

Gameplay is similar to Tactics Ogre, Final Fantasy Tactics, Fire Emblem and to a lesser extent Advance Wars.

Give a min/max range i.e. 15 - 30 minutes

Thanks!!🥰

Comments

danjohnston.uk•26 days ago

I prefer 30 mins max for sure, because if you lose and have to go again from the start that's right at the edge of a "reasonable loss of progress" I think.

dusktactics.bsky.social•26 days ago

This is one of the major concerns with length of battle.

I like that phrase, "reasonable loss of progress", haha. Yeah, there's a sweet spot and it's definitely at/under 30 min.

slimekinggames.bsky.social•27 days ago

I think 15-20 min is great. I think one reason I never finished Tactics Ogre is that some battles are just a bit too long.

dusktactics.bsky.social•26 days ago

Haha, it's true. You could get into a serious 1+ hour battle and then wind up losing someone (i.e. they fall into a pit and die) and need to restart.

zwei2x.bsky.social•27 days ago

10-20 is ideal. Enough to make each battle feel like a battle, but also not a drag to restart, and doesn't overstay its welcome.

A good example for length like the Mercenaries Saga/Blaze time: 10-15, 20 minutes tops!

dusktactics.bsky.social•26 days ago

Very interesting example!

I've played the entire series so I'm very familiar and I think something they do very well is battle length.

thcrock.bsky.social•26 days ago

10-20

dusktactics.bsky.social•25 days ago

Looks like this is the sweet spot, 10/15-20/25 min.

Appreciate the feedback!!

indiebotyt.bsky.social•26 days ago

I’d say 10-15 minutes for a regular scenario, maybe 20-30 for a bigger one like a boss battle or major story beat

duchess-van-hoof.bsky.social•26 days ago

Depends on how bullshit it is.

Referring a certain Fire Emblem on the GBA here. with offmap units spawning, moving in, critting & perma-killing your characters.

• FF Tactics Adv: 20-40 min
• TO Knight of Lodis: 30-90 min
• Adv Wars: 15-60 min

dusktactics.bsky.social•26 days ago

Hah, don't even get me started on that whole thing.

I despise unit spawns that get a turn right after they spawn.

I appreciate the in-depth response, this is great stuff!!

duchess-van-hoof.bsky.social•26 days ago

Tactics Ogre Knight of Lodis is a special case. The large maps, the slow movement, the healing, the counters.

It requires a slow and methodic playstyle where you knock out enemies one by one.

Advance Wars likwise, the ability to replace units change up the gameplay immensely.

dusktactics.bsky.social•25 days ago

There's so much I love about KoL, but yeah the later battles took especially longer if you wanted everyone to live.

I really liked how movement in that game would scale with agility. One of the rare games where the move stat goes to the tenths place, i.e. 4.6

duchess-van-hoof.bsky.social•25 days ago

I for one am still amazed by the ambience of that game.

The artstyle, the map, the music, the player UI, the slow pace, the weather effects, the writing.

Fighting in a coastal region, only for it to begin to rain, reshaping the map as naga & mermaids attack you.

The island felt wondrously real.

duchess-van-hoof.bsky.social•26 days ago

For Advance Wars it is a question of micro maps vs macro maps.

Micro maps such as in the first game, maybe 20-30 min.

Macro maps such as in AW2, 30-45 minutes perhaps?

Macro boss maps, ca 45-60 minutes?

breadbeard.xyz•27 days ago

I like the 10-15 minute range. If it's something like a boss battle or significant story encounter I would cap out at 25-30 before I get antsy to move on.

dusktactics.bsky.social•26 days ago

That's a solid timeframe.

I've got most battles at around 15 minutes, with some longer. Obviously if you play very defensively it will take more time.

For boss-type levels, or large encounters, yeah we want it to last a bit longer.

breadbeard.xyz•26 days ago

Looking forward to giving it a try when it's available in any form!

avalonlee.bsky.social•27 days ago

I'd say a min of 10 minutes, and a max of 45 minutes for something like the final boss. For a typical battle, 10 to 20 minutes should be the average imo.

Having loved games like FF Tactics, Langrisser series, Symphony of War, and Tactics Ogre, I think my usual battle time was about that range.

dusktactics.bsky.social•26 days ago

This seems to be the consensus, which I'm happy about because the ten levels I have finished are around 15-25m minutes, with the longest being the larger 'final' battle from the demo which is around 30-45m.

I really appreciate the feedback!

Comments

Posting Rules

Reply