Review for Final Fantasy XV. Game for PC, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, the video game was released on 29/11/2016 The version for PC came out on 06/03/2018
Even before its release Final Fantasy XV has hit the target of being one of the most anticipated video games of all time, for better or for worse. After ten years from the official announcement with the name of Final Fantasy Versus XIII of water under the bridges, a lot has passed and the game has changed shape over and over again, especially since Hajime Tabata he moved on to the direction of the title, managing not only to direct the development towards the coveted conclusion, but to overcome that line of press silence and to create a better with the fans. Whether it's with its large presence of comments at every major fair and Active Time Report or with the release of various demos created specifically to ease the wait and receive feedback from players, the commitment of Tabata and her team to create a title that pleased fans was undoubtedly noticed.
Now that the game is upon us and the enormous work of the developers is under our eyes, the question everyone is asking is: "Is the game worth all these years of waiting?" Surely no game can meet the expectations matured in such an extended time, but nevertheless we can now finally say to all fans: yes, Final Fantasy XV is a great game!
From Lucis with rancor
The adventure takes place in the world of Eos and the setting is the one already anticipated in Kingsglaive. The ambitious Empire of Niflheim he is annexing kingdom after kingdom to his domain with his army powered by Magitek technology. Only the Kingdom of Lucis he has so far managed to resist him thanks to the Divine Crystal and the ruler Regis Lucis Caelum who uses its power to create a protective magical barrier, at the expense of their own vital energy. However, the advance of Niflheim is exhausting and the ruler of Lucis is no longer young, and is therefore forced to accept the conditions of peace advanced by the imperial chancellor Ardyn Izunia: all the territories of Lucis must be ceded to the Empire, except for the Insomnia capital that will be spared; to seal the deal, the prince Noctis of Lucis and the princess Lunafreya of the kingdom of Tenebrae will have to marry.
The game then begins with Noctis being sent to the city of Altissia for the wedding, accompanied by his friends and personal guards Ignis, Gladio and Prompto, as King Regis prepares to welcome the Emperor of Niflheim and his delegation. Shortly after the group's departure, however, it turns out that the peace treaty was nothing more than a ruse to overcome Insomnia's defenses and invade the city. Lucis' capital is destroyed, Regis is killed and the Divine Crystal stolen. Hunted by the Empire, Noctis and his companions then begin their journey to defeat Niflheim and recover the Crystal.
In framing this synopsis, as well as the general plot, the most attentive will be able to recognize a fundamental factor: under the guise of a more "modern" setting, beyond that very particular union between fantasy and realism, in Final Fantasy XV a classic heart beats. The writers Kazushige Nojima e Saori Itamuro not only do they use elements fully captured from the legacy of the series, such as the canonical invading empire and the coveted power of the crystal, but they make us discover and touch a mythology in which the protagonist of the game is personally involved as he is chosen to continue the Lucis dynasty and save the world from the dark plans of the empire. The role of Noctis, however, is not taken for granted, the prince is young and has yet to prove that he is worthy of the power of the Divine Crystal. For this he will have to obtain the weapons of the ancient kings of Lucis and submit to the judgment of the Astrals, the recurring summons of the series, here in the role of authentic Gods on earth.
Above these classic roots Final Fantasy XV is also a story of great friendship, of those that go beyond the social ranks, made up of support and sacrifice, but also of goliardic jokes and travel memories that accumulate. It is in the between the members of the group that the classic fantasy element gives way to a more modern and recognizable register in which you can identify yourself more closely, a bit like the events of a TV series. The only real pity is that Ignis, Gladio and Prompto always remain Noctis' companions, and the story never turns to deepen their background, nor does it dedicate them in short collateral events as seen in other chapters of the series; apart from a few moments of personal openness, their contribution remains fundamentally a function of Noctis. We hope that this aspect will be successfully alleviated in future DLCs that Square Enix has announced for the future focusing on the development of their respective personal stories. Even for interesting secondary characters like Cid and Cor Leonis we would have expected a better study, while unfortunately they go in and out of the plot leaving us with too many questions pending about them; the same thing can be said of some of the central antagonists, who unfortunately leave the scene too hastily without the right amount of attention.
On balance that of Final Fantasy XV is an epic narrative, capable of thrilling on more than one occasion, but which rarely goes to dig into the details. Its charm arouses many curiosities about different details of the story that unfortunately are never explained, leaving the player with a sense of wonder accompanied by unsolved doubts. In general we can say that the story as a whole has convinced us and that it will satisfy fans of the series, especially those who feared excessive pollution of the fantasy mold.
Royal warriors
As has long been revealed, Final Fantasy XV is the first in the series to adopt a formula open world action-RPG. The player can only control the protagonist Noctis, while the other characters follow him managed by the AI. The kingdom of Lucis can be freely explored on foot and it will be possible to travel aboard the Regalia (the royal car) to cover great distances more quickly; to explore the territories more freely we can instead count on chocobo credit.
The fights are managed by the so-called Active Cross Battle system, which replaces the classic menu interface with a direct command structure via keys. In addition to normal physical attacks, it is possible to engage a single enemy with a lock-on and make a projection towards him with a kind of teleportation that allows you to cover great distances in an instant. This ability is also useful for retreating from battle and placing Noctis on special strategic points, where you can temporarily remain safe and recover HP. It will also be possible to dodge or even parry and counter certain enemy attacks. Dodges and throws, however, should be used sparingly as they will consume our MP bar, which once exhausted will make Noctis "exhausted", slower in movement and therefore more vulnerable.
During the battles it will be important to manage the spaces always taking into consideration your position in relation to the enemy: attacking from behind will not only cause more damage, but if another companion is close to us it will automatically perform a combined attack. By filling a special bar by force of attacks, we can then activate direct techniques of our companions that will have different modalities and effects. Spells are probably the element that least adapts to the flow of the battle-system: it will be possible to absorb elemental magic from special sources and enclose it in ampoules to be thrown into combat like bombs. In these ampoules it will be possible to combine multiple types of elements for a multiple magic, or even healing objects to create a magic that attacks the enemy and heals the character at the same time.
In addition to the canonical experience points for level advancement, the development of the characters is entrusted to the Skill Points, obtainable through various activities during the game with which to unlock skills and upgrades in the appropriate skill-tree. Unlike the Spherography seen in FFX, the Ascension pattern is not customized for each character, but is divided into skill categories.
As you may have guessed we are not faced with a simplistic system in which to go forward by tapping the attack button at random. Observing the enemy's movements well and knowing how to act with timing is essential to effectively deal with the opponents that will appear in front of us. If in the first few hours it is possible to find yourself a bit overwhelmed by the system, with practice you become more capable and precise in facing enemies, giving great satisfaction especially in seeing Noctis darting from one point to another and not giving respite to the enemies. opponents, but also in facing and killing the mammoth creatures hidden in the world. The fights are fast-paced, fast-paced, and will demand your attention and skill.
Unfortunately, it is in this excitement that one of the less optimized aspects of the game lies. In battles with numerous enemies, too much confusion is created, and finding yourself surrounded by 3-4 enemies who, hitting in turn, do not give any chance to react can be frustrating. To make the situation worse, there is also the camera that too often gets stuck in uncomfortable positions, precluding a clear view, especially when you are among the vegetation.
The game offers a good number of secondary missions that will delight lovers of exploration, but as for many other exponents of the open world genre there is a certain repetition: there are very few quests that do not involve bringing objects to the 'NPCs on duty or take down particular creatures. In this respect, the travel system with the Regalia does not help much, which can be driven manually or entrusted to Ignis for an automatic journey to an indicated destination. Through a menu option it is possible to quickly return to the car or recall it to our position, but this means running into several uploads that break the pace of the game a lot. Although the theme of travel is a central part of the game's concept, it must be said that to reach a new area you can see the Regalia continue for several minutes, which is not exactly the maximum of fun. Too bad the developers haven't found a better travel management system, because in general the pleasure of exploration is certainly palpable. A bit like FFXII did in its time, with its open world structure Final Fantasy XV takes to a new level that sense of crossing and discovering a fantastic world that has always characterized the series, but which for too long has been limited by limits. technicians of the various generations of consoles. Temporarily deviating from the main story and finding yourself hours and hours grappling with a chain of subquests will be perfectly natural.
A Fantasy based on reality
One of the aspects that most surprised us about Final Fantasy XV is the impressive work done for the game world. The difficult coexistence in a fantasy world works of real modern elements such as cars, roads and buildings that are very similar to those we might see looking out the window works surprisingly well. The art direction did an amazing job of creating a huge, detailed, pulsating and compelling world: the wild environments show exceptional beauty, to which the excellent use of lights contributes. The realistic element is also noticeable in the fauna that populates the various explorable territories, in which alongside the classic Final Fantasy creatures such as behemoths and goblins we find creatures with a more plausible appearance and behavior and similar to animal relics rather than imaginative monsters . We could say that on a strictly technical level the game reveals some uncertainty when observing the vegetation closely, noting a gradual appearance of shadows and texture effects on the elements towards which you are approaching, but in the face of the general splendor it is something that definitely passes. in the background.
The polygonal models of the main characters and creatures also show good
The sound sector is also of the highest quality. The soundtrack by Yoko Shimomura is certainly one of his most successful works and it does not look bad at all alongside the works of Nobuo Uematsu. To the wise and lively use of the piano already appreciated in the various Kingdom Hearts we find an extraordinary and massive use of strings, and then exalt ourselves with the choruses in the songs that accompany the most important moments of the plot. The performances of the American singer are also extraordinary Andrea Hopkins for the lyric theme Somnus Nemoris e dei Florence and the Machine, in particular for the perfect cover of Stand by Me.
Also for dubbing Square Enix did not spare itself, not only qualitatively involving professionals who gave an excellent voice to the characters, but also enriching the game with numerous comments depending on the actions or places visited that further enhance their consistency in the game and the exploratory experience.
Beyond some undeniable shortcomings, as a fan of the series it was with genuine satisfaction to cross that huge realm of Lucis so long imagined. Embarking on the huge undertaking of defeating an empire and claiming not the simple Crystal, but the adventure of a young prince called to the path of a king, flanked by true friends for life, has paid off the ten long years of waiting. The perplexities about the action-RPG structure and the unusual male quartet soon dissolved in front of a story of great atmosphere, a mythology in direct contact with the protagonists, a vibrant world that invites you to be discovered. Final Fantasy XV is an epic and thrilling work, which demonstrates the great care and commitment that the development team has instilled in you over these years of work, palpable in every final blow inflicted on the boss on duty or in front of the spectacle of the sunsets of Eos.
► Final Fantasy XV is an Action-JRPG game developed and published by Square Enix for PC, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, the video game was released on 29/11/2016 The version for PC came out on 06/03/2018
