Ogre Battle: The March of the Black Queen

"The other reviewer was correct. This game isn't for everyone. However, works for me!"

Ogre Battle, possibly the rarest game for the SNES, is quite a gem. There is said to be only 25,000 American copies in existence! I'm still suprised I was able to find this at a local Funcoland recently, and for $35 too! Anyhow, you are chosen by the gods to lead the good people into liberating towns and castles, as well as destroying the evil Empire.

Graphics: 8/10

The overhead map isn't really anything special, but it gets the job done. Think of the view while you're riding Flammie on Secret of Mana and you'll get the idea of what it looks like. The battles are the eye catchers. The backgrounds are beautiful, and the characters have great animations. The magic and Tarot Card attacks ain't too shabby either!

Sound: 9/10

Like Square, Enix is known for great music, and Ogre Battle isn't a letdown. The music for the overhead view makes it a lot less irritating waiting for your characters to move. In fact, the music for the overhead view on Act 1 is my favorite video game song of all time! The battle music is fierce and appropriate, and is equally well done. The tunes for when you win or lose a battle are short, but are beautifully done. The sound effects in the game are equally appropriate, and are better than the sound effects in other RPGs of the time. There is also use of voice, which is quite audible.

Gameplay: 9/10

The game is separated into acts, each act takes place on a different part of the land. Each act contains a boss who is waiting for you at a certain castle. However, there are many enemies who try to stop you from doing so, except for in the first act. If you meet an enemy, you go into battle with them. You don't control the battles, the game controls each side. You still recieve experince points if you win, like in any turned based battle games. There are also many towns and temples, which you can liberate. Once liberated, you can gain profit from them, and they can be used for either reviving characters, buying items, or recruting new troops. However, the other wandering troops on the boss's side can take towns away from you. Overall, it's a great game.

The challenge increases in each Act. The enemies get tougher, and the number of them increase as well.

Replay value is pretty good, and the game should give you a lot of playing time.

Overall: 9/10

A great game if you can find it. If you can't, get the PlayStation version at least. This game is a classic.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 06/26/00, Updated 06/26/00