Review
Vanguard Bandits
By Jorge Figueiredo - January 16th, 2012
While my tastes tend to bend toward RTS, I also find the occasional Tactical RPGs fun to play. In some ways, engaging in these types of games is probably a subconscious desire to replicate the amount of fun I had playing one of my all-time favourite TRPG’s: X-Com: UFO Defense. Human Entertainment’s Vanguard Bandits does not really come close to that experience for me; however, it is definitely a fun romp that Mike Jackson’s favourite team, Monkey Paw, has seen fit to bring to North America – to the PS3 (from the PSN).
The story is pretty much cliché after cliché. The game starts with the player filling the shoes of Bastion, an excitable yet still relatively inexperienced soldier against the evil Empire*. Still under the tutelage of his father, you get the feeling that he is hot under the collar – not at all like other folks in similar situations**: a young hero, stuck in a land mired in a civil war, teams up with other “outcasts” to form a rebellion to take down the evil empire. So, plot-wise, there is nothing we haven’t seen before somewhere else.
Story aside, the game is still decent, despite its age. Outside of the mostly predictable cut-scenes is a fairly deep and fun tactical game. Your characters (you start with two) each pilot their own ATAC (All-Terrain Armoured Combatant – a mech, for all intents and purposes) which they utilize in combat. The graphics are fairly simple (this game is over ten years old, after all) and battles take place on a “3D” grid (the units and landscape are all 2D, though), which takes into account terrain and obstacles. Units each have a limited amount of tasks that they can perform each turn, so you should make sure you use every move wisely. Each sequence that takes place as a result of a combat choice is rendered as a very short animated scene showing the ATACs battling it out. It’s a nice touch -very anime- because it breathes life into the fights but it doesn’t take too much away from them.
Spend those skill points wisely.
As you play through the ridiculous number of missions (there are sixty), you will earn followers and experience. Gaining experience leads to leveling up, which grants you skill points to apply to your stats. Again, this is another part of the game that requires some forethought: how are you going to spend those skill points? Throwing too many into one attribute might lead to weakness in others, so you have to make careful choices. As you gain levels and apply your skill points, you will find the battles become a bit easier to deal with. On top of this, you can also spend the money that you earn on new gear, which serves to increase your abilities and overall fighting effectiveness.
For a game that’s over ten years old, it is no surprise that Vanguard Bandits shows its age. However, it is a solid Tactical RPG that, if nothing else, will serve to bring back memories of when you first started gaming. With solid fight mechanics and a fairly long mission list, the relatively low price makes this game an easy pick for your gaming bucket list.
