As a longtime fan of the series who has finished every mainline title and a majority of spinoffs, I’m so glad I can finally say this is a Final Fantasy I’ve been waiting for since I pretty much started following the series. I have been enamored with the classic turn-based games seemingly forever, but nary a good one has been released in my lifetime. I had a lot of fun with FF7 Remake despite some direction issues, but it didn’t feel like the groundbreaking scope and genre defining game that THIS one is. While following many trends paved in the industry recently by character action games and western RPGs, it marries these influences with outside influential works of fantasy and anime and of course the heart of what makes Final Fantasy truly special.

I could go on to gush about the characters, the music, the plot, the DMC style combat with God Hand special moves, the hideaway, and everything else I loved about this entry in the series but I’ll just leave it at this is the best mainline entry I’ve played since 10 and also the only one since Sakaguchi left that doesn’t feel half-baked or misguided in some way. I really recommend this one to everybody because y’all deserve to experience it, and I’m glad it’s receiving the acclaim it has. Creative Business Unit 3 really set forth and stuck to values that just felt absent from 12, 13, and 15. They did high fantasy with high stakes better than 12, the people rebelling against fate story better than 13, and a protagonist-centric destiny discovery journey tighter than 15. It really feels like a Final Fantasy they’ve been trying to nail for a LONG time that’s finally arrived.

Some complaints I see but don’t totally get:

Not enough rpg mechanics - the series has been action-slanted since Lightning Returns almost a decade ago. It certainly has more rpg mechanics than FFXV which was also completely an action game. I loved the battle system of ff7r, but this gameplay makes way more sense for the game’s content and is extremely polished and fun in it’s own right.

Too many fetchquest sidequests- not any more boring than the ones in ff15 or other recent entries. It’s almost like people forget that other ff games had pacing slogs too ahem ff10 cloister puzzles cough. They got on my nerves once about halfway through the game where it sends you to a second desert town that looks unremarkable where you have to talk to a bunch of people, but that was the only point where I REALLY wanted a break from them. Most sidequests in this game are story-rich or pretty interesting, some pretty essential to the development of these characters, and they feel worth doing even if the tasks are the same.

Jill being underwritten - I totally agree with this one actually. She has moments they just could have been stronger or more consistent throughout. But props to this game for really fleshing out so many other characters who would have been forgettable in the hands of lesser writers.

One thing I noticed that bumped for me a little was just that something that this game did that was REALLY awesome with the music direction didnt continue throughout the duration of the game. The first few hours there are battle themes that are SEAMLESS renditions of the field music that transitions in/out of combat. It was really noticeable and a really nice touch so I was confused when it came to a halt after the first few areas of the game. Soken’s soundtrack is glorious regardless but I wonder why that was only in the beginning when it made a huge impact on experience.

Final Fantasy is finally back at last. No DLC, expansions, or sequels needed. Tho I’d still shell out for a Leviathan fight fast.

As someone who wasn’t anticipating this release since 2012, and as a massive fan of everything they pulled from in the genre from Strange Days to Akira, I actually quite enjoyed my time cruising around Night City with this memorable cast of characters. That’s not to say twists in this weren’t predictable most of the time or that aspects of this game aren’t still janky as fuck. What sticks out like a sore thumb really foes BECAUSE the rest of this world breathes with such life and vibrancy and seediness.

An aesthetic masterclass on top of an ok shooter. I much preferred playing with quick hacks most of the time, and as someone who sucks at most FPS games I was happy sticking to the shotguns and light machine guns that tore through enemies like butter. You get exponentially stronger very early on if you just explore and do any of the side content, that I found most of the main game to be pretty easy breezy. The opening missions however I did find heavier enemies pretty threatening, but as you unlock skill trees that vulnerable feeling vanishes entirely. When I can double-jump over enemies to chop their limbs off from behind or dismantle their team with all the hacking skills I wanted out of a Watch Dogs game, I’m not particularly challenged but it feels cool as hell.

Still, the story managed to get me invested enough to really care when it came to the climax and I really felt the relationships I had built up between the characters, while somewhat shallow, paid off in a way I found really satisfying. Loved how you can’t really get an ending that’s not bittersweet in some way. V’s male voice actor kinda sounds like an east coast caricature and that never really changes, but the rest of the voice cast is pretty great. I didn’t max out any build completely because I felt more than equipped to beat the game, and I’m not sure if I’ll return to night city because, much like the V I ended the game with, it’s like I already got all the city had to offer me. Maybe I’ll return there someday down the road…

Gripe all you want about the gameplay, but this is the first time in a Rockstar game where the dialogue genuinely impressed me. This has to be the best they've written since San Andreas, in a wholly different way.

At times I was frustrated by the mission structure like everyone else, but that price was well worth it to me for the greatest western sandbox ever programmed. The detail that occurs in the random events that never got old after 60-70 hours of playtime is the stuff I used to dream about. After a few drinks I'd always talk with friends about wanting a GTA where if you kill a random pedestrian, you can track down the relatives and coworkers to find them grieving. Red Dead 2 doesn't quite get that far, but more than any of these open worlds it gets close to drilling in the actual consequences of your actions. Of course, you can always save-scum and do some psycho shit of which I partook plenty, but man do you almost cringe at the violence that would normally be a joy in any other over-the-top rockstar game.

I played through the whole story and the epilogue. Loved how much this one fits the themes of "redemption" in a way that tops the original. I can see one driving themselves mad trying to get all the collectables, but I'd rather adventure the wild west for another 10 hours while dressing Arthur like he's straight out of Trigun and not worrying about any of that.

The combat system is perfection.

Even on my 3rd playthrough I still felt bursts of dopamine after beating almost every boss because of the always increasing difficulty and opt-in "hard mode" mechanics such as the Kuro's Charm, which encourage you to keep pushing your skills further and further.

Few games will provide an experience as rewarding as deflecting dozens of attacks in a row as you completely dominate a boss and you remember how this game used to kick your ass so hard, back when fighting them for the first time.