Popular Battle Systems

[kyonides]

About Popular or Preferred Battle Systems

Hey, guys! I'm back to ask you one of those strange questions of mine. What are your favorite battle systems? Or which battle systems do you end up using more often while game making?

Of course, all of those visual novel oriented games are automatically discarded.

This is an attempt to let us scripters focus on your favorite battle systems or as an indirect way to improve our own.

[DerVVulfman]

I would like to add that there are three basic styles of battle systems; the strategy battle system, the action battle system, and the tactical battle system.

Strategy battle Systems are those often found in the RPGMaker line, usually a turn based front-view system like Dragon Warrior series or side-view system like the Final Fantasy series. Almost a staple, the strategy system is the first of the computer battlesystems, going as far back as Telengard, Wizardry and Might and Magic.  It is also, by far, the easiest to work with due to it being a standard in the RPGMaker line, all others having to be custom.

Action Battle Systems are those where all action takes place in real time with the player controlling a single character. This would be akin to games as far back as The Legend of Zelda, or more recent ventures like RWBY: Grimm Eclipse. Even Tomb Raider could be considered such, though it focuses more on adventure aspect than the combat.

Tactical Battle Systems are those where the player controls and maneuvers individual teammates on a map while facing off the enemy.  Almost like chess, one may consider the system to be a hybrid between a Strategy System for its turn-based play and an Action Battle System for its map-based environment.  In it, both the heroes and enemies attempt to out maneuver each other and such games may include Baldur's Gate, Shining Force, Tenchi Muyo RPG and Final Fantasy Tactics.


So now you have actual categories for the three basic battle system styles.  And alongside, you have a small selection of popular games which have used each, these being examples. While there are only three basic styles, each can be and has been altered to suit the mood or aesthetic of the game iwhere it is used.

So now that this has been covered,  as my esteemed colleague so asked:  "What are your favorite battle systems? Or which battle systems do you end up using more often while game making?"

[Bounty Hunter Lani]

I'm a big fan of Tactical and Strategy-based battle systems!
If I had a choice, I'd have a fully-functioning Tactical system. There aren't many good Tactical games, and it's hard to implement in RPG Maker. Tactics Ogre, Final Fantasy Tactics, and Vandal Hearts are only a few good ones that I can think of. And then there's Charlie's game, Hartacon Tactics, which is pretty darn good as well.   

When it comes to side-view, it can depend on how much work actually seems to have went into it. If it's standard "Stands in front of enemy and they take damage with no animations except the battle animation", it seems to be too little of work put in. Swing a sword, do SOMETHING with it.   
Final Fantasy seems to have popularized and mastered that style, with swinging swords since their first one. 

When it comes to action-based battle systems, they can be hit-or-miss for me. Mobile games where you move around punching things with an imbalanced character ripping through everything isn't my kind of game. Gamevil seems to churn those out like a candy machine with little to no change between games and no focus on balancing whatsoever. One game, you can hit like level 150 by fighting stronger monsters as soon as you get "online" mode and use other peoples' characters to join your team for high level "online" missions that aren't actually online. Why can I use your level 200 character to level up my weak characters when enemies in the story are like level 7?!   
Games like Kingdom Hearts seem to do that kind of system well. In fact, it's probably my favorite series of action battles. And games like Final Fantasy Type-0 did a good job of being a mixture of having certain timings between attacks, but still making it a challenging experience. (Until you get infinite MP and spam spells all day with the strongest equipment) 
A game like Final Fantasy XII did a good job of  hybridizing an action battle system and a turn-based strategy system. You gotta wait your turn for your attack, but you're moving around the battlefield strategically. 

Sooooo yeah. If I had the opportunity and the luxury of a fully-working Tactical system, I think DoE would be a Tactical game. I love Tactical games so much when they're done well! The next best thing for me is a turn-based side-view system as long as it has something to it, and then action systems are sweet in their own right.  

[kyonides]

Sadly this is only half convenient for scripters since you do mention known battle systems available out there, but ignore any existing ones in the RPG Maker scene. I wonder if that means that published scripts don't meet people's expectations.

Is that really the case here!?
Or it'd be better to start working on just systems that emulate those found in AAA games you can find on the net?

[DerVVulfman]

Ahh... you didn't include that the battle systems had to be those existing within the RPGMaker platform. As such, it would be good to mention that such battle systems must be those for use in an RPGMaker Engine. Also recommended, that links to the battle system(s) be provided.

[kyonides]

Well, it's not like they should be that exclusive. I just thought some RM battle systems would immediately show up but they didn't...
In case they mention commercial games with custom battle systems, a concise description of how they seem to work would be greatly appreciated by scripters, in my humble opinion.

[kyonides]

Curiously, right after I had mentioned that we could then focus on RM battle systems, people kind of left the thread.

 So are there no favorite RM specific battle systems out there?