Kriegsfront Tactics Might Be the Front Mission Successor We Didn’t Know We Needed

I attended an Xbox closed-door virtual developer session where fellow creators, media representatives, and I witnessed five indie titles currently in development coming from the Southeast Asian region. One of them is Kriegsfront Tactics, a Front Mission-style mecha tactical strategy game from Toge Productions, the Indonesian developers of Coffee Talk.

A Tactical Turn for Toge Productions

It’s quite surprising—a developer known for its talking simulator now working on a strategy game set in an alternate 1970s where mechas exist and war is heating up in Southeast Asia. Toge Productions’ Project Manager for Kriegsfront, Ivander Emlingga, pointed out during the Q&A session that this is the studio’s dream project—something they’ve wanted to work on since the studio started. From what I heard, this is the studio’s next evolution.

Everything about it screams Front Mission, the tactical grid-based strategy series that made a mark in the '90s—and they didn’t shy away from the similarities. Kriegsfront is also a turn-based mecha game where you can customize each of your squad’s mechs and target specific enemy parts to gain an advantage in battle.

Customization, Mental State, and Tactical Depth

A pilot’s mental state also plays a key role in gameplay, where a unit’s mental state can affect their performance on the battlefield. The more the pilot is out in the field, the closer he or she gets to their breaking point. A nice addition that forces players to rotate their squad, encouraging diversity and change. They didn’t go into detail on how severe it can get. During the Q&A portion, one attendee asked if permadeath will be a feature in the game, and we got a “sort-of” answer, as there is that kind of element in the game, but they were reluctant to share more about it.

A neat addition to Toge’s presentation was having the original creator of Front Mission, Toshiro Tsuchida, share a few words about what he thinks of Kriegsfront Tactics, praising its gameplay and similarities—and in a way, giving his blessing as he ended his message by saying: “I am really looking forward to the release of Kriegsfront Tactics.”

He also pointed out the exploration section of the game, where your squad travels from one location to the next, with you directing the path they take to either search for checkpoints or avoid unnecessary battles by dodging nearby patrols roaming the map.

Kriegsfront Tactics’ biggest feature makes every bullet counts

The big highlight that makes Kriegsfront unique is how attacks work in this game: each bullet is simulated, not determined by a fixed chance. The actual shooting is physically projected in the action. This is their answer to the frustration found in games like XCOM, where a player can still see an action fail despite having a 99% chance of hitting the target. XCOM vets know this frustration very well.

For example, let’s say one unit has a rifle equipped. When firing that weapon, each bullet has its own chance of hitting, so it’s not a complete loss. Firing a single sniper shot can naturally result in a complete miss, though—but it’s good that they took multiple bullets or missile barrages into consideration when building the game’s gameplay foundation.

Toge Productions aims to deliver around 20–30 hours of playtime in the full game, with a strong incentive to replay, as Kriegsfront Tactics’ narrative shifts depending on the choices you make as you progress through the story.

Demo Hands-On: A Promising Start

The session got me curious about this title, which apparently has a free playable demo showcasing the game’s prologue. From the get-go, they are nailing the '70s aesthetic and have established a solid gameplay loop where there’s a lot of features feeding off each other—making me think about AP management, unit positioning, and more. It feels complex, as I can place a unit on Overwatch to punish enemies in the unit’s line of sight trying to get a better angle, or choose to shoot now or wait to not expose their position. All of these possible decisions are what make games like these so addicting and satisfying, and it clearly feels like Toge Productions are on the right track.

Kriegsfront Tactics currently has no release date or even a release window, but those eager to try it out can do so right now, as there’s a playable demo on Steam.

ID@Xbox - A Spotlight on Southeast Asia’s Growing Scene

This is my second time attending the Xbox Developer Sessions for Southeast Asia, and each time it has placed a spotlight on how far the region has grown in game development, highlighting very promising projects from various countries. Kriegsfront Tactics is one of five that was showcased this April, and it's looking to be a promising mecha strategy game that could satisfy XCOM and Front Mission enthusiasts.

The others—13Z: The Zodiac Trials from Singapore, Agni: Village of Calamity from Indonesia, Vapor World: Over the Mind from Korea, and Nightmare Circus from Thailand—were also presented and made a solid impression in their own little ways. It was a diverse lineup for the session, going from tactical to survival horror, to even a side-scrolling soulslike action game.

Sessions like these are fantastic—a space where a small number of games get the spotlight and are shown off to media and content creators. It’s a success in my eyes, as it greatly proves one thing: Yes, there are so many promising games in our neck of the woods. But just like all great talents and projects, all they need is the chance to shine and support to keep marching to the finish line. Thankfully, Xbox is giving them a chance to get just that. It’s a small step, but a significant step nevertheless, as we get closer to having more people realize that Southeast Asia is buried with hidden gems just waiting to be unearthed.

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