It's a really good time to be a Final Fantasy fan. I'm a bit torn between giving this a 4 and a 4.5, but I think it stands out enough to warrant the higher marks. While it does stumble a bit with pacing and lack of characterization for side characters, it still delivers a powerful story from start to finish. This game also pulls a lot of inspiration from my favorite FF, FFIV, in its tone and setting so it really felt like playing a modern take on that aesthetic. I was a bit disappointed that none of the Bahamut skills involved Dragoon type attacks, and I just found myself wishing I could play a FF action game as a Dragoon with similar combat.
This game is a spectacle, the soundtrack, graphics, and combat all come together to make some truly unforgettable moments. There were so many times during boss fights where the music would sync absolutely perfectly with what was happening on screen. It aligned so perfectly during the Bahamut fight that my jaw genuinely dropped in shock. I don't usually physically react to games like that, so it was pretty noteworthy.
The game does have a few pacing issues though, notably during the Dhalmekia arc. I also feel like it didn't help that many of the side quests just felt lackluster in comparison to the main scenario. Seriously, these side quests never stood a chance. You'll go from these epic, cinematic fights with demigods one minute, to collecting soil samples the next. Thankfully the game marks side quests that are worth doing with a plus mark, I really appreciated that.
The combat was at it's best when stumbling across new powerful enemies in the early game. I definitely feel like you get a little too powerful in the second half of the game, but those fights when you only have Phoenix and Garuda were so thrilling.
Crafting also feels oddly... pointless? By the end of the game I had thousands of materials, but the most powerful gear. It feels like maybe they planned for you to be able to kit out party members or have more options for Eikon specific gear, but cut it leaving hundreds of chests with useless crafting materials in the world.
Not sure what else to say. I feel like this game unfortunately got overshadowed by a lot of the other insane releases last year. I grabbed it on sale for $35 only about 5 months after release, felt a bit wrong to me as I thought it was well worth full price. Remarkable game though, despite its shortcomings. The ending also absolutely WRECKED me and I WAS NOT expecting it to. Something about the flashback scenes and the music, maybe it's because I also have a brother about the same age gap as Clive and Joshua.
This game is a spectacle, the soundtrack, graphics, and combat all come together to make some truly unforgettable moments. There were so many times during boss fights where the music would sync absolutely perfectly with what was happening on screen. It aligned so perfectly during the Bahamut fight that my jaw genuinely dropped in shock. I don't usually physically react to games like that, so it was pretty noteworthy.
The game does have a few pacing issues though, notably during the Dhalmekia arc. I also feel like it didn't help that many of the side quests just felt lackluster in comparison to the main scenario. Seriously, these side quests never stood a chance. You'll go from these epic, cinematic fights with demigods one minute, to collecting soil samples the next. Thankfully the game marks side quests that are worth doing with a plus mark, I really appreciated that.
The combat was at it's best when stumbling across new powerful enemies in the early game. I definitely feel like you get a little too powerful in the second half of the game, but those fights when you only have Phoenix and Garuda were so thrilling.
Crafting also feels oddly... pointless? By the end of the game I had thousands of materials, but the most powerful gear. It feels like maybe they planned for you to be able to kit out party members or have more options for Eikon specific gear, but cut it leaving hundreds of chests with useless crafting materials in the world.
Not sure what else to say. I feel like this game unfortunately got overshadowed by a lot of the other insane releases last year. I grabbed it on sale for $35 only about 5 months after release, felt a bit wrong to me as I thought it was well worth full price. Remarkable game though, despite its shortcomings. The ending also absolutely WRECKED me and I WAS NOT expecting it to. Something about the flashback scenes and the music, maybe it's because I also have a brother about the same age gap as Clive and Joshua.