Final Fantasy Tactics Inspired Mewgenics' Tactical Combat System
- ⚡Xe⚡
- 1 minute ago
- 2 min read
Combat in early versions of Mewgenics was closer to Pokémon before the developers shifted toward inspiration from Final Fantasy Tactics, according to an Edge magazine interview published on GamesRadar.
Mewgenics is a tactical role-playing roguelike life simulation video game developed by Edmund McMillen and Tyler Glaiel. The gameplay revolves around breeding cats that assume character classes and sending them out on adventures through tactical combat set on procedurally generated grids.
During the game's early development, McMillen was still trying to pitch the project to former Team Meat co-worker Tommy Refenes by framing it around genres he thought would interest him, even including a version inspired by Spelunky.
"I was still pitching it to Tommy before I left. I was trying to wrap it in a genre that I thought he would be excited about."
The shift toward tactical combat came after Glaiel suggested moving away from the earlier Pokémon-style approach in favor of something closer to Final Fantasy Tactics:
"Why not try Final Fantasy Tactics-style combat instead of Pokémon combat? They’re on the same tree, kind of, but you can do a lot more with the positioning stuff."
McMillen agreed with the direction and contrasted the two approaches directly.
"Yeah. One has depth, and the other has the illusion of depth."
The team ultimately adopted the Final Fantasy Tactics-inspired combat system that became the foundation for the final 2026 release of Mewgenics.
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About FINAL FANTASY TACTICS - The Ivalice Chronicles
Since its original release in 1997, the award-winning FINAL FANTASY TACTICS has sold millions of copies worldwide and is a legendary title in the tactical RPG genre. Faithfully brought to modern platforms by a team composed of both original development members who worked on the original game along with new faces, FINAL FANTASY TACTICS - The Ivalice Chronicles recreates the 1997 release for old and new fans alike, releasing on all major platforms on September 30, 2025.