I don't know how Kartia compares to Final Fantasy Tactics or Shining Force because I haven't played either of those yet. But the game is all battles. You don't walk characters around towns, overworlds, or dungeons in-between the fighting. You just watch the story (and you don't have control over the outcome of the story). All of the gameplay, depth, and strategy are concentrated into the battles.

It does have the most well-written story of any game I've yet played, though.

I Crawl and 1000
My site - Flying Omelette's Kitchen
My ezboard - Flying Omelette's Kitchen
MIDI of the Moment - Arcana - Second Armageddon
"And the three men I admire most
The Father, Son, and the Holy Ghost
Caught the last train for the coast
The day the music died" - Don McLean