21 hours i think and ch 8, the story missions sure feel all wonky and patched together. They should have just made everything exist in the open world and let us loose. Its fun when i am in the open world, as soon they make direcr me in missions and go down a linear parh it feels like a grind. And can't get over the feeling that there is nothing much to "learn" as noctis. Its all about magic, and techniques which if u want to juggle up you would have to keep going into menus mid battle. Why cant i choose from all techniques and not one of each character? Imaybe its a moot complaint but without that variety the linear missions dont feel worth it.
Also I still can't tell in all the choas as to when to dodge ! And why does casting libra take ages? Whats the point?
I haven't completed the game yet, so some of my criticism might be unjust, but I somehow feel Final Fantasy in this iteration has been completely "westernized". It feels, to some degree, like a bad version of Witcher 3 or Skyrim. You have the open world (which is probably not a quarter as big) and there doesn't seem to be a lot of depth to most of the things you do. The combat feels similar too - if I didn't see the HP and MP bars at the bottom right corner of the screen, I'd be quite sure this isn't a FF RPG game I'm playing.
The story and superb FMV sequences are but the only thing that is IMO reminiscent of the Final Fantasy's I used to love.
Why can't they go back to a turn-based-combat screen? I actually enjoyed the stupid "chess" kind of gameplay. Battle a foe. Am I going to go defense or offense? Protect my party with some spells to make them immune against certain attacks? Attack with fire, ice, water or wind? To some degree, this turn-based-combat doesn't really work with a seaming less openworld, but I am sure it could be done in a way that would cater to both, is quick and doesn't disturb the flow of the game when constantly switching between a combat screen and the open-world. Right now, it feels more like simple button-mashing, the main differentiator between living and dying still being the strength of your weapon and perhaps your stock of crucial items (phoenix-downs, potions etc).
I just downloaded FFVII for my phone the other day. My god those PSone games still put these new ones to shame. Yes, X was good too. Very linear, but for what it was worth, kind of epic in story telling and how the game progressed. The PSone games had a more open-world feel to them thanks to the map. How hard can it be to recapture some of that flair with modern style gameplay without it being too much a copy of western RPGs?
It pains me because as much as I like Skyrim and Witcher 3, the Final Fantasy series up to about XII had that special flair about them that far surpassed them. And now it just seems like they are bad copies of them.
I
Why can't they go back to a turn-based-combat screen? I actually enjoyed the stupid "chess" kind of gameplay. Battle a foe. Am I going to go defense or offense? Protect my party with some spells to make them immune against certain attacks? Attack with fire, ice, water or wind? To some degree, this turn-based-combat doesn't really work with a seaming less openworld, but I am sure it could be done in a way that would cater to both
They already have a solution for that: its called Final Fantasy XII gambit system. I wish they had really made it the ATB system for a new generation, just like the old was used for every game between 3 and 9. It was fast paced (not as fast as FFXV, but faster than IX for example) but still highly strategic and hard. I beat that game 2 times and will probably get the remaster as well!
I quite liked the gambit system in FFXII I have to admit. It's been a while since I've played it, so my memory is fuzzy (and I'm not going to dig out my PS2 to play it), but if I do remember correctly, I still preferred the old turn-based-system that forced the player to make a choice on how to proceed, rather than the more or less automated (and a bit complicated) gambit system where you would predefine the actions and the order they should take place in. But yeah, I guess it was alright. I just don't recall much of that game, because IMO the story was rather bland, no memorable nemesis etc.
Where did all the drama from past Final Fantasys go? I can pretty much recall most if not all of the story of FFVII, FFIX, FFX and FFX-2 (disclaimer; FFVIII = very fuzzy)...
I quite liked the gambit system in FFXII I have to admit. It's been a while since I've played it, so my memory is fuzzy (and I'm not going to dig out my PS2 to play it), but if I do remember correctly, I still preferred the old turn-based-system that forced the player to make a choice on how to proceed, rather than the more or less automated (and a bit complicated) gambit system where you would predefine the actions and the order they should take place in. But yeah, I guess it was alright. I just don't recall much of that game, because IMO the story was rather bland, no memorable nemesis etc.
Where did all the drama from past Final Fantasys go? I can pretty much recall most if not all of the story of FFVII, FFIX, FFX and FFX-2 (disclaimer; FFVIII = very fuzzy)...
Well, you could play as turn based if you wish. In fact I would in most bosses, just not in easy trash. Its not like you use a lot of strategy on trash in the other games either. It did not have a strong villain, but
I think it had a meaningful story arch with "bad guys" that were not necessarily "bad guys". They just wanted for humanity to regain control of its own history versus doing as mandated by some higher beings. In a very realistic twist though, of course the power corrupted them and they had to be stopped. But their initial motives were somewhat noble in my opinion.
Well, you could play as turn based if you wish. In fact I would in most bosses, just not in easy trash. Its not like you use a lot of strategy on trash in the other games either. It did not have a strong villain, but
I think it had a meaningful story arch with "bad guys" that were not necessarily "bad guys". They just wanted for humanity to regain control of its own history versus doing as mandated by some higher beings. In a very realistic twist though, of course the power corrupted them and they had to be stopped. But their initial motives were somewhat noble in my opinion.
21 hours i think and ch 8, the story missions sure feel all wonky and patched together. They should have just made everything exist in the open world and let us loose. Its fun when i am in the open world, as soon they make direcr me in missions and go down a linear parh it feels like a grind.
I haven't completed the game yet, so some of my criticism might be unjust, but I somehow feel Final Fantasy in this iteration has been completely "westernized". It feels, to some degree, like a bad version of Witcher 3 or Skyrim. You have the open world (which is probably not a quarter as big) and there doesn't seem to be a lot of depth to most of the things you do. The combat feels similar too - if I didn't see the HP and MP bars at the bottom right corner of the screen, I'd be quite sure this isn't a FF RPG game I'm playing.
is also very typically japanese, or far-east asian.
Sure, some of the dialog may feel globalized but that's probably just a symptom of globalization itself.
The fact that it's open-world doesn't strike me as an exclusively western thing either. JRPGs have had large maps for decades but they had to be split into zones for technical reasons. It's just that this generation of consoles has 16x more RAM than the previous ones so it's easier-ish to achieve this now.
Where did all the drama from past Final Fantasys go? I can pretty much recall most if not all of the story of FFVII, FFIX, FFX and FFX-2 (disclaimer; FFVIII = very fuzzy)...
Perhaps the lesson to be learned is that there is no such thing in the real world?
Historically speaking, teaching the children that "Bad guys are bad" was little more than a social imprint made to control the masses, behave and unify before a common foe. It was usually taught within religion, which has been used (or was used to) attain the exact same results.
There's always a reason for "becoming evil". I'm all in for the story to give me the backstory for the villain that performs atrocities.
I think the fighting system is the best thing about FFXV. I played some FFX to get in the mood before XV and it is just so boring. All the strategic options (gear, magic, weapons) are still in FFXV, it is just so much more smooth to play.
Contrary to popular opinion, FFX is the worst Final Fantasy of them all for me. I could only finish it at my third try, since I would very quickly loose concentration with how slow it was. Tidus could have been an interesting character because of his background, but was too annoying to tolerate. Yuna is not on my favorite characters either. The story was too cheesy for my tastes. You should have played FFXII. Its probably the closest FF to FFXV gameplay wise. If you never played it I really recommend the remaster. If its anything like playing it on an emulator at 1080p with better texture filtering, it does not look that outdated. The character models looked way better than I expected when I loaded it up on PCSX2!
FFXII looks amazing considering the hardware it came from and its age. I love all FF's, i dont think FFX was bad out of all FF's i found its story actually had the biggest impact on me. The first time i finished i was like no thats bullshit, fuck off, do not want. I have never had such a reaction from any other game. I also didn't find it slow have you played FFVIII? now that is slow ( but man is the card game awesome).
Perhaps the lesson to be learned is that there is no such thing in the real world?
Historically speaking, teaching the children that "Bad guys are bad" was little more than a social imprint made to control the masses, behave and unify before a common foe. It was usually taught within religion, which has been used (or was used to) attain the exact same results.
There's always a reason for "becoming evil". I'm all in for the story to give me the backstory for the villain that performs atrocities.
I think the fighting system is the best thing about FFXV. I played some FFX to get in the mood before XV and it is just so boring. All the strategic options (gear, magic, weapons) are still in FFXV, it is just so much more smooth to play.
Finished the story and yea it felt very ff in those boss fights finally ! I may sound wierd but i loved the whole chapter 13 a lot ofg uys here hated ...really liked that the game finally acknowledged the serious tone of the story ! And liked the tension it brought ....and strange as it may sound as i was complaining of the linear missions before this but I liked all the linearity of the second half of the game. The game just wasn't embracing its story before and it showed.
I really missed summoning at will. From what i could tell summoning was scripted in this one. And also it showed that the game had a very troubled development, the story had its beats but everything was haphazard. Also hardly any ff style CG cutscenes. frankly the mind blowing visuals saved the game from a lot of criticism.
If it had been done right it could have been a landmark game like the Witcher 3 ! Its a very flawed but a very fun game still !
Oh and it has that very very essential quality of a good game: the urge to instantly dive back in when it ends ! That is the hallmark of a succesful game and this one has it !
Finished the story and yea it felt very ff in those boss fights finally ! I may sound wierd but i loved the whole chapter 13 a lot ofg uys here hated ...really liked that the game finally acknowledged the serious tone of the story ! And liked the tension it brought ....and strange as it may sound as i was complaining of the linear missions before this but I liked all the linearity of the second half of the game. The game just wasn't embracing its story before and it showed.
I really missed summoning at will. From what i could tell summoning was scripted in this one. And also it showed that the game had a very troubled development, the story had its beats but everything was haphazard. Also hardly any ff style CG cutscenes. frankly the mind blowing visuals saved the game from a lot of criticism.
If it had been done right it could have been a landmark game like the Witcher 3 ! Its a very flawed but a very fun game still !
Oh and it has that very very essential quality of a good game: the urge to instantly dive back in when it ends ! That is the hallmark of a succesful game and this one has it !
I liked Chapter 13 too! I felt claustrophobic and weak, just as I think the developers expected. Compared to everything that came before, that chapter leaves you guessing at what is going to happen! Am I going to find Prompto dead??? What about the others? Please please let them be OK was all that was going through my head! Very intense.
Finished the story and yea it felt very ff in those boss fights finally ! I may sound wierd but i loved the whole chapter 13 a lot ofg uys here hated ...really liked that the game finally acknowledged the serious tone of the story ! And liked the tension it brought ....and strange as it may sound as i was complaining of the linear missions before this but I liked all the linearity of the second half of the game. The game just wasn't embracing its story before and it showed.
I really missed summoning at will. From what i could tell summoning was scripted in this one. And also it showed that the game had a very troubled development, the story had its beats but everything was haphazard. Also hardly any ff style CG cutscenes. frankly the mind blowing visuals saved the game from a lot of criticism.
If it had been done right it could have been a landmark game like the Witcher 3 ! Its a very flawed but a very fun game still !
Oh and it has that very very essential quality of a good game: the urge to instantly dive back in when it ends ! That is the hallmark of a succesful game and this one has it !
I have no idea stilll about summons. The only time I sommoned anypne was when a prompt showed up on screen which simply said "Press L2 to summon", no idea who is gonna be summoned. So bad, when in FFXIII I would be summoning gods at will when I needed them.
As for Stealth, well I had the ring of Luci, whats to care ! Drink a potion and sublimate the enemies !!! The particular one which negates all MP cost was mighty effective, I didn't have to stealth, I killed them all ! and Once I got the Sword of the Father then it was a matter of Alternating between the sword and the ring. In fact thats the chapter that taught me about most of the potions which I had ignored till then.
As for secret areas, you will have to tell me which ones, i explored all I could I think.
I have no idea stilll about summons. The only time I sommoned anypne was when a prompt showed up on screen which simply said "Press L2 to summon", no idea who is gonna be summoned. So bad, when in FFXIII I would be summoning gods at will when I needed them.
As for Stealth, well I had the ring of Luci, whats to care ! Drink a potion and sublimate the enemies !!! The particular one which negates all MP cost was mighty effective, I didn't have to stealth, I killed them all ! and Once I got the Sword of the Father then it was a matter of Alternating between the sword and the ring. In fact thats the chapter that taught me about most of the potions which I had ignored till then.
As for secret areas, you will have to tell me which ones, i explored all I could I think.
in FFXV, the gods are not particularly like to be commanded by humans
about ring luci, maybe patch 1.03 buffed it? at launch, ring of lucii take minutes (yes, real minutes) just to kill one MT zombie. Most of the time, the MT zombie also un-target-able.
about the secret areas, i mean every nook and cranny of chapter 13.
Well, If I have no idea when a God can be summoned then i canot really depend on a summon, I cannot even plan when I will use it to win a fight and if that is so, I don't see the point of Summons ! For example, i was just trying to clear the level 45 dungeon which is right near Hammerhead. That bald God guy with the spear came to help in a petty fight but I couldn't beat the Nagarani boss cos she was level 51 or something and that is when I wanted summon a god but Nope, i have no control over it ! What nonsense !
Without that the battle system is just what it was right after a few hours into the game, Press O to attack and use techniques when the bar fills. If there are no additions to a battle system over the course of the game, then I don't see that RPG aspect where I am supposed to learn newer and better ways of fighting over time. I haven't played other FFs except FF XIII but there the boss fights were nerve wrecking, what with balancing the healing, the stagger and the right time to summon. Also, the potions one could take before battle to get advantages. WIsh they had that kindof progression to battles by the end of the game or post the end. TH eNagarani just keeps turning me into a frog, for Godssake, and thats all that battle is -_-
Right now, I feel I do not have anything to gain if I keep playing it more. I mean, I will have fun but as Noctis, I won't get anything new. Even the King's weapons are pretty much lackluster and useless. I equip them in one slot only to get the boost to stats they provide but never use them in battle.
...really liked that the game finally acknowledged the serious tone of the story ! And liked the tension it brought ....and strange as it may sound as i was complaining of the linear missions before this but I liked all the linearity of the second half of the game. The game just wasn't embracing its story before and it showed.