It's 0202, and no one will still think that turn-based is "you fight, I fight", right?

The content of this issue, I originally wanted to write the experience of "FF7 Remake", but then I thought that this kind of masterpiece Remake network has long been filled with a lot of reviews and experiences, I am too late to talk at this time, right? Since you can't write a thought, let's be a little different, so I want to go deeper into some of the issues that FF7 Remake brings up about turn-based games.

In fact, it looks like even if the action of the "FF7 Remake" is still essentially turn-based, so it is 2202 years old, and no one will think that turn-based is "you fight, I fight", right?

Then again, FF7 Remake is really great. In addition to some of the flaws in the long-range texture, the overall performance, special effects, and details are very well handled. And the plot as FF7 is impossible to be bad, after all, it is an old classic. The exaggeration is that this time it actually wants to engage in a long line, cut the old work into several copies of the listing, FF7 Remake only translated less than one-third of the old version, and it is also a rare multi-part development method.

The most noteworthy thing about this game is his unique combat system, which combines turn-based and real-time action, bringing out a semi-instant combat that is both novel and seems to be similar, intending to satisfy players who want to play action or turn-based at the same time, which is a very noteworthy game mechanism.

And this game mechanic also brings out the topic to be talked about this time, from FF7 Remake to see how turn-based games may evolve in the future. By the way, FF7 Remake I gave 9 points, worthy of doing so long, really a super hard remake product.

Let's talk about turn-based first!

Turn-based systems first came from board games' Dungeons and Dragons, and they were all systems for RPGs, and then after countless game evolutions, they gradually became today's trick operations. Its focus has also continued the concept of Dungeons & Dragons, which is "numerical" and "strategic".

Numerical values have always been at the heart of turn-based systems, growing over time and then being able to take over more powerful enemies, which is where this type of game gives players satisfaction. I didn't know how many people spent countless hours in the fantasy world in order to make their livers stronger, but seeing that they had grown significantly, it was worth it when they could kill an enemy with a punch.

Strategy is the source of challenges, and when to use what skills to maximize the benefit is a turn-based issue for players during gameplay. Because the ancient turn-based system is limited by technology on the one hand, and on the other hand, the game concept is immature, the design is the simplest. Almost every one of them is a typical one-punch-and-one-kick combat style, and the battle depends on the numerical ratio, which is particularly long and monotonous to play.

But the developer is actually not idle, and since the battle is settled, the focus is on the story. So the game plot of that era was impressive, after all, the battle really didn't have anything to do, then of course the cost was spent on the plot and world view packaging.

But later, this way of fighting began to fall behind, and one-man, one-punch combat gradually became boring and gameplaytic in the market filled with more games. So it began to evolve into so-called ATB, wargame, etc., these variants, making the turn-based system more strategic.

The turn-based system of that era can be described as a hundred flowers, and many turn-based works have become contemporary classics and are the memories that players enjoy. Such as FF7, Sakura Wars, Fantasy Simulation Battle, Key to Timeless, etc., are all very refreshing game designs.

Changes to the new game environment

By the time we reach the next generation, turn-based systems begin to hit a bottleneck. There are more and more real-time games, and the market's appetite for games is beginning to change. The pace of the game is getting faster and faster, and this kind of round-by-round game has become difficult to see and has lost its appeal.

Coupled with a large number of real-time game baptism, the typical turn-based system begins to be pressed all the way, and if you don't do anything, you can easily be kicked out of the game market. Therefore, in addition to the classic old IP, few big manufacturers dare to engage in a new turn-based IP, because they also know that the market has eaten this set.

Then the big manufacturers have only two options, one is to come up with a more interesting system to attract the attention of players. For example, XCOM is through the bunker system to let the world see the power of turn-based and a war; Persona 5 is to knock down, total attack, negotiation to increase fun; FF13 will be more evolved ATB, making the battlefield more dynamic; these are all necessary changes to make the turn-based system survive. It can be seen that in addition to being turn-based, they have gone far from the traditional turn-based system.

The other way is simpler, the mountain does not turn around, and if you can't win, join it. Since real-time systems are loved by everyone, I'll change the genre of the game. Such as: FF15, new Sakura Wars, Regulus Sword 7, etc., is to transform into a real-time system, directly into an action game to cater to the market.

As can be seen from the above, turn-based games In today's game environment, it is really difficult to live without making some changes. Even in recent years, there has been a voice of "turn-based games are a kind of game regression", which shows how weak the dominance of turn-based systems has been.

This turn-based big man Square is more deeply aware, after all, no one has done more than Square when it comes to turn-based system. But if you look at their list of releases in recent years, turn-based games are very rare, most of them are still remade, and there are few newly developed works.

However, Square is not abandoning this piece, they are still trying to think of a new turn-based system, such as: the morale of the last ruins, the BP of the Courage Apocalypse, and the Break of the Eight-Way Traveler, all of which are more interesting attempts to make turn-based. Until now, with FF7 Remake, they have given a new possibility.

A new attempt at a FF7 remake

In fact, the big deal FF7 Remake can be like FF15, a full-change action game to get, anyway, FF15 is quite successful in business. However, it seems that Square still has his own insistence and wants to retain the tradition since the FF series, so he still uses the past ATB turn-based system.

But they throw up an interesting question in the middle of it: What about wrapping turn-based in action games? To put it bluntly: I want it all!

First of all, the reason why the early turn-based games were gradually not optimistic was because the excessively long game rhythm was almost half of the time spent watching animation and waiting, which is too long for today's players. The other is to constantly have liver grades in the same place, which is also a very boring routine.

The FF7 Remake system tried to solve the above problems, but still retained the traditional turn-based strategy. To say that FF7 Remake innovation is actually fine, he just added some more operations to the FF13 ATB system.

He used the idea that when the ATB is set, the player can move, dodge, and fight monsters like an action game. Although the damage is low and can only be considered an itch compared to the skill, the player has something to do while waiting for the ATB. And the entire combat system is quite exquisite, there are dodge, defense, counterattack, sustainability, etc., which also allows players who like action to be skilled, especially when playing high difficulty, dodge, defense, counterattack have become the key to victory or defeat.

At the same time, he retains the important skill strategy of turn-based, that is, it is necessary to see the current situation to consume the character ATB to put skills or props, and to control the resources of the MP. And when choosing, the screen will enter slow motion, giving players plenty of time to think and switch roles, which is a typical turn-based flavor.

Since the skill is much more powerful than the general attack, the core of the game is still a heavy skill, and it will not be taken away by the action part. In other words, the core is still on the turn-based ATB, and the action is an auxiliary function used to speed up the ATB recovery, but because the action is still doing well, he has both action and turn-based fun.

In addition, in terms of growth arrangement, the "liver value" required by traditional RPGs has been abandoned, and the battle has been carefully arranged like an action game. As long as you play according to the battle given by the game, you can play smoothly to the end, and you don't need to encounter monsters repeatedly like before, which is also in line with the preferences of today's environment. FF7 Remake also has an action component, but also retains the strategy core of turn-based. However, at present, this system also has problems, and there are many, and the network evaluation is also mixed.

The need to keep the game out of rhythm to cast skills isn't as refreshing for some players, and in real-time combat it doesn't really emphasize high reflexes like other action games. So it may be a little disappointing or confusing to come to the action game, after all, he is still an ATB turn-based RPG, but he uses the skin of the action game to package it.

It's not an action-focused piece. Normal attack damage is super low, many moves can only defend against hard eating, AI teammates will not put skills at all, and so on. Even when the difficulty is selected, there is a Classic mode that tells the player that the game can simply play ATB instructions. As can be seen from this, it wants the player to focus on the next command and resource control, and the action battle is only auxiliary.

Perhaps FF7 Remake is not the best solution for turn-based, but it does give a new direction for turn-based. With the precedent of FF7 Remake, a new path could emerge in turn-based formats. Although the traditions of the past are no longer applicable, the turn-based system can be re-emerged from a new perspective. There will be more similar works in the future, which is worth waiting to see?