Initially released in 1987 by Nintendo, Final Fantasy was intended to be the final project of Japanese games designer Hironobu Sakaguchi. In short, it could have easily been a poor attempt to mimic the success of Dragon Quest. However, the fictional world filled captured the gaming community’s interest, and it was a surprising success! Having done the rounds of the USA and Japan, Final Fantasy has been a hit ever since, and most people will have heard of the franchise, whether they’re interested in virtual dwarves and elves or not! All sorts of subsequent games and spin-off merchandise has been produced since, which leads us to the most recent version of the game: Final Fantasy XV. So, let’s take a look at what the franchise now has to offer us!
The Story
Let’s start with the story. All versions of Final Fantasy are RPG or “role-playing games”. Players take on a character and then live vicariously through them in the virtual realm. It’s the ultimate form of escapism! Though you have ultimate control over what your character does, who they interact with and whether they stay in the same spot forever or progress, RPGs base themselves around a general storyline which you can follow to progress through different levels of the gaming experience. So, what’s the general gist of Final Fantasy XV without completely giving away what lies ahead on your adventure? Well, to put things simply, the world is on the brink of chaos, and you have the potential to become its next new ruler. But do you have what it takes? You’ll be playing Noctis (short for Noctis Lucis Caelum), heir to the Lucian throne. You must stand firm to the almighty threats that are stirring your homeland and make use of your royal training in all forms of combat. Alongside you will be Ignis Scientia, your loyal advisor. Ignis’ role in the gameplay is to provide you with reliable and resourceful information. Remember to take what his character says to heed. Next: Prompto Argentum, known for his assault and attack skills, he’s a good defender to have nearby. Finally, you will see a whole lot of Gladiolus Amicitia, your sworn protector and master of defensive strategies. Working together you could truly make a dream team. Alongside the main characters, there are others who you can interact with along the way: generally speaking, Cindy and Lunafreya bag the secondary starring roles. If this sounds good to you, download final fantasy 15 now!
The New Combat System
Okay, the new combat system isn’t perfect. The reliance on a combat camera isn’t ideal, seeing as it can lag and often loses track of what you, other characters, or enemies are doing. However, each and every battle makes up for the flaws. Why? Well, it’s fast-paced, keeping you on the edge of your seat, alert, and engaged… at the end of the day, isn’t this the kind of rush that every gamer wants from their gaming experience? This is also a game that rewards you the more you play it. While you may not get a good grip of Noctis’ strengths and weaknesses at first, you will soon come to terms with his character and work out when’s best to use his specialist royal weapons and when to use standard weapons to your character’s advantage. This necessity of managing your resources and crafting a special technique in battle makes the game all the more challenging. Who wants to master something first go? That would simply be a waste of money!
So, what’s our verdict? Well, the game has a couple of issues that need to be ironed out. Logic in terms of why Noctis can’t use his special abilities to his benefit in certain parts of the gameplay has to be overruled before you can forget about the discrepancies and have fun with the game. But that’s part and parcel of fantasy play. Not everything is going to make absolute sense, and if Noctis could use his Warp abilities in every situation, there would be no challenge or battle in the series of events. Save checkpoints in dungeons would also be beneficial, as then you wouldn’t have to redo absolutely everything each time you’re defeated by a boss. However, again, this may be a blessing in disguise… you need to improve before you can beat a boss and simply jumping back into the battle each time you lose could be counterproductive and only see you progress by chance or flukes. In short, if you’re willing to put logic on the back burner and just enjoy the gaming experience, this is the perfect investment for the upcoming year.
