Hands On: Strategy Fan? You Need To Keep An Eye On Vanillaware's Stunning 'Unicorn Overlord'

Company president George Kamitani wasn’t kidding when he teased that the studio’s next project was “one of Vanillaware's biggest productions” last year. The game he was talking about was Unicorn Overlord, a tactical RPG that, on the surface, looks like a homage to the SRPG greats of the ‘90s. Compared to the hugely ambitious sci-fi narrative adventure, 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim, it feels like the developer is going back to its fantasy roots a bit (Odin Sphere, GrimGrimoire, Dragon’s Crown), and initially, we wondered how a game could be bigger than 2020's twisting, turning adventure.

But, as it turns out, Kamitani-san wasn't messing around. We had a chance to check out Unicorn Overlord courtesy of a remote hands-on event, and after only four hours, we wholly agree with Kamitani’s statement.

Before we begin, please note that this preview is based on the Xbox version of the game, which was played via remote stream, and so we won’t be sharing Switch-specific thoughts. But, as you'd expect from Vanillaware, the game looks incredible.

Good lord

Unicorn Overlord is huge and calling it just a tactical RPG would be doing it a disservice. But every in-game system serves to feed into the TRPG gameplay. Don’t worry, strategic battles are still the heart of Unicorn Overlord, but to grow your army and build a resistance to help main character Alain reclaim the throne, you need to build relationships with your army á la Fire Emblem, liberate towns and cities across the world, save innocent citizens, and improve your army’s reputation.

We started right at the beginning of the game, which sets the scene for exiled prince Alain and his eventual journey. And, after getting a handle on combat thanks to a few introductory battles, we were finally let loose on the world map. This isn’t your typical overworld in a strategy RPG; it’s more akin to a PS1-era JRPG world map. Towns and forts are dotted around, resource points are available for you to farm items from, and, sometimes, you’ll find enemies wandering around whom you can engage in combat.

every in-game system serves to feed into the TRPG gameplay.

As we’ve said, combat is the bulk of the game, and even in the opening few hours, it already feels incredibly in-depth and engaging. Battles in Unicorn Overlord are all about prep. A Unit can be made up of up to six different characters, and you can deploy multiple Units on a field at the cost of Valor. A Unit comprises a 2x3 grid, and where you place each character is vitally important. For instance, Alain (a Lord) works well at either the back or front as he has good all-around attack and defence. Classes like Hoplites, which are heavy armour-bearing units, and Thieves, which have an incredibly high dodge rate, work best in the front for shielding the back row from damage.

Initially, you can only have two characters in a Unit, but as you gain Honors, you can spend that to add another to your team or expand your Unit to allow another character to join that group. Every single character also has their equipment, plus you need to assign a Unit Leader, which will affect that Unit’s special ability. Alain’s skill, for example, means you’ll earn more Valor per battle, meaning you can send more Units out onto the battlefield.

Tactic feedback

The last major aspect of preparation is Tactics, which is very similar to the Gambit system in Final Fantasy XII. In the Organise menu, every character has a customisable list of tactics which tells each character how to prioritise their actions. Chloe, a Soldier class, can use Long Thrust to deal damage to both the front and back row of the enemy Unit, so setting up a Tactic for her to prioritise attacking that formation is key. But she can also heal, so it’s important to have a healing Tactic set up for her to prevent other characters in the Unit from dying.

Putting everything into practice during a combat encounter is extremely satisfying, too. Combat plays out in real time, but you can pause the action whenever you want to give yourself time to think. Once you’ve deployed a Unit on a field, you can select that Unit and tell it where to go on the map; whether that’s to attack an enemy, garrison a bridge or a town, or even pick up an item on the field, it’s your choice.

When you select an enemy to engage in battle, you can see what the outcome of the fight will be beforehand. A scramble between two units will last either until every single character on one side is dead, or until both units run out of Active Points (AP) and Passive Points (PP), points that are used up when any character uses an attack or support skill. You “win” a bout by either lowering the enemy’s HP more (which in turn will stun and weaken that unit for some time) or by wiping every character in that Unit out.

There is so much to consider in any combat scenario, but everything acts to serve you and help you.

Reclaiming towns and other structures during combat is often vital to survival. During one encounter, our foes used towers and Rangers to support their Units within a large given space and send extra damage our way. Defeating the Units on the tower gave our Units access to these structures, meaning we too could put our Ranger Units up there and get them to fire at foes. Towns and bridges give you extra Renown, but also allow your Units to rest to recover health and Turns – one Turn is one round of combat. There is so much to consider in any combat scenario, but everything acts to serve you and help you. Fights can go as fast or slow as you want them to (there’s even a fast forward or Skip Battle button), so it never feels too overwhelming.

One of the best things about Unicorn Overlord’s opening hours is that you can tackle most 'major' combat encounters in any order. Because you can explore the world map at your own pace, you could either choose to save a neighbouring village from bandits first or liberate a nearby town from a ferocious mason. Success will depend on your characters’ levels, stats, and your prep. Each quest holds its rewards and will open up more of the map, meaning you can explore even more. Sometimes, as Alain, you’ll have to make difficult decisions that might reshape parts of the story. It’s a moreish gameplay loop that had us craving to bulldoze each and every fight to open up every option.

Get town and party

Speaking of towns, as you liberate these towns, you can also start rebuilding them, which will give you access to shops, a tavern where you can eat delicious-looking food (would it really be a Vanillaware game without good food?), and the ability to eventually station a guard there to get more resources and rewards. They’re an essential part of Unicorn Overlord’s world and gameplay, and help you to understand just how important your mission is to liberate the continent of Fevrith.

To rebuild towns, you need to deliver materials and complete requests to help the townsfolk rebuild their lives. We only had the chance to liberate three towns during our time with the game, but it’s just another way Unicorn Overlord incentivises you to explore and engage with the gameplay systems. Resource points are dotted around the map, and they refill over time, but you can also fast travel between towns, forts (another structure you can liberate and use to engage in mock battles, reorganise your army, and spend Honors to hire mercenaries to bolster out your army) for quick access.

It’s an SRPG playground full of systems where you can tinker with so many different options...

Taverns are also one way you can build Rapport with your allies. Rapport is this game’s relationship system, which also builds when you use characters in the same Unit, give stationed guards gifts, or through completing quests. Eventually, these unlock conversations that yield rewards and help build that character. With over 60 unique characters, we can’t imagine how many of these interactions there are, but at the moment, the pool seems endlessly deep. You can even design your own resistance flag, for goodness sake.

Four hours honestly didn’t feel like enough time with Unicorn Overlord, and we’re already champing at the bit to get our hands on the Switch version. What remains to be seen is just how deep the gameplay systems can go, whether any secrets are lying behind the first nation that we’ve managed to explore, and just where the story goes from those opening hours.

Even with those lingering thoughts as we look ahead to the game’s release, Unicorn Overlord has the potential to be something really special. It’s an SRPG playground full of systems where you can tinker with so many different options, and we’re confident that genre fans will lose tons of hours trying out everything they can. We’re pretty sure we will, too.

Thank you to Sega of Europe for inviting us to this preview session. Unicorn Overlord launches on Nintendo Switch and other systems on 8th March 2024.

Are you excited for Vanillaware's next game? Let us know in the comments.