Sometimes I get on a big tactics kick, and this game really scratched that itch. No frills, not really much of a plot all told, but that's all okay as it lets the tactics gameplay take front and center.
The progression system for your units works pretty elegantly, by having experience unlock new classes, which you can then earn experience on these new classes to unlock more classes. As a plus, the experience on classes you don't plan on using long-term still has value as it lets you earn points to upgrade base stats such as HP, MP, and weapon/magic proficiency, and the abilities you unlock can still be used thanks to subclassing. It lets you get a good idea of what options are available to you pretty early on, and shows how how vast the possibilities are when it comes to team composition.
Also this is a small thing but I do like some of the environmental interactions this game has. There's some stuff that can affect combat like tiles with water on them can arc lighting-based attacks to other adjacent wet tiles, but I also really enjoy the (mostly) out-of-combat interactions. You can cut down most plants with a standard attack as long as you're using a bladed weapon, or chop wood with an axe, which can then be used to replace the steps on a rope bridge. Just little things like that are just kinda cool and not the kind of thing you see in a lot of turn-based games.
There are also naval battles in this game, which can be a fun thing to do from time to time but they definitely lack the depth of the standard battle system. Thankfully one thing you can due in naval battles is board enemy ships and take out the crew in said standard battle system. Granted, you can only stay boarded for a limited time before your ship's turn ends, so it's not something you want to do without first softening up the enemy ships (and their crews by extension).
That leads into another slight downside, which is that sailing from place to place can get tedious due to how large the map is and how wind can affect your ship's speed on the map. If you're just exploring the map and going into whatever caves or groves you find to break things up, then it's not too bad. It does become a bigger drag once you're in the late-game and you're just trying to play the trade economy and you have most of the map already explored.
While I do wish that part of the game would go a bit faster, it's not the end of the world. What the game does well, it does really well. While I do enjoy a good Fire Emblem or XCOM, I appreciate that this game exists for when I want to play One Of Those without being concerned about the involved story of the former and the stressful consequences of failure in the latter. Funnily enough, Horizon's Gate's straightforwardness what sets it apart.
The progression system for your units works pretty elegantly, by having experience unlock new classes, which you can then earn experience on these new classes to unlock more classes. As a plus, the experience on classes you don't plan on using long-term still has value as it lets you earn points to upgrade base stats such as HP, MP, and weapon/magic proficiency, and the abilities you unlock can still be used thanks to subclassing. It lets you get a good idea of what options are available to you pretty early on, and shows how how vast the possibilities are when it comes to team composition.
Also this is a small thing but I do like some of the environmental interactions this game has. There's some stuff that can affect combat like tiles with water on them can arc lighting-based attacks to other adjacent wet tiles, but I also really enjoy the (mostly) out-of-combat interactions. You can cut down most plants with a standard attack as long as you're using a bladed weapon, or chop wood with an axe, which can then be used to replace the steps on a rope bridge. Just little things like that are just kinda cool and not the kind of thing you see in a lot of turn-based games.
There are also naval battles in this game, which can be a fun thing to do from time to time but they definitely lack the depth of the standard battle system. Thankfully one thing you can due in naval battles is board enemy ships and take out the crew in said standard battle system. Granted, you can only stay boarded for a limited time before your ship's turn ends, so it's not something you want to do without first softening up the enemy ships (and their crews by extension).
That leads into another slight downside, which is that sailing from place to place can get tedious due to how large the map is and how wind can affect your ship's speed on the map. If you're just exploring the map and going into whatever caves or groves you find to break things up, then it's not too bad. It does become a bigger drag once you're in the late-game and you're just trying to play the trade economy and you have most of the map already explored.
While I do wish that part of the game would go a bit faster, it's not the end of the world. What the game does well, it does really well. While I do enjoy a good Fire Emblem or XCOM, I appreciate that this game exists for when I want to play One Of Those without being concerned about the involved story of the former and the stressful consequences of failure in the latter. Funnily enough, Horizon's Gate's straightforwardness what sets it apart.