The reviews are in!

[Fynn]

As of now, with 25 reviews overall, Final Fantasy XV stands at a very solid score of 86!

http://www.metacritic.com/game/playstation-4/final-fantasy-xv/critic-reviews

I wonder how much the user reviews will differ when the embargo on those is finally lifted tomorrow. Needless to say, I'm fairly confident that XV is, at the very least, a good game, and I can;t wait to play it!

[Necronopticous]

Having played it in its entirety, I can confirm that it is, indeed, a game.

[Sephiroth]

Having played it in its entirety, I can confirm that it is, indeed, a game.

Are you really done with it or is this Ramen post 2.0?

[Necronopticous]

Yeah, Lamonda & I finished it over the weekend. It's a complete disaster. If you are on the fence, I would highly recommend waiting until you start seeing reviews from regular players rather than going completely on these large publication reviews.

[Sephiroth]

Except I have it since Friday and finished it already and I love it. And regular players are the last thing I want to read from.

By the way, this game has Yoda Tonberrys in one mission.

[Formalhaut]

I've a feeling this will have a good critical reception and a mixed player reception. Though it depends really. Technical things like bugs and crashes will probably be ironed out within the next month (you hope).

I read the Kotaku review. From what it seems? Good. Flawed, but worthwhile. I'll probably pick it up for Christmas for Mr. Carny and go from there.

[Fynn]

Of course the fan reception is going to be incredibly polarizing. Expectations have been built up to an impossible level over all those years.

Not to mention that, you have to admit - we are a terrible fanbase. No one can agree on anything, with people always divided on what they want down the middle :p I'm actually more confident that professional reviewers are better at approaching the game with any kind of chill.

That said, not sure how the story will turn out (though I believe that it'll be good), but I'm already 100% sold on the world, characters and battle system. Even if everything else goes to hell, there is no way in hell this won't be better than the XIII fiasco, as I can tell you that was the most tedious experience I've ever had, even if you don't count the garbage story and terrible characters.

Oh, and the music is phenomenal, that can't be argued, I think.

[Big D]

Of course the fan reception is going to be incredibly polarizing. Expectations have been built up to an impossible level over all those years.

Not to mention that, you have to admit - we are a terrible fanbase. No one can agree on anything, with people always divided on what they want down the middle :p I'm actually more confident that professional reviewers are better at approaching the game with any kind of chill.Exactly. 'Real FF Fans' had already decided this game "literally raped my childhood!!!" the moment it was announced that it wouldn't be a 16-bit 2D title, or when it was suggested that Cid might be a woman this time.

A lot of these initial reviews sound promising - TIME, for instance, have highlighted a number of things that sound almost like they're designed for my idiosynchratic tastes and preferences.

I'll give it another couple of days before making a firm decision though.

[Marshall Banana]

I got what I expected out of the game: some laughs. However, it turned out much worse than I imagined it would be. I expected it would just be a simplistic, boring game, but it was instead a Frankenstein game that just got worse and worse at the end.

I noticed some reviews sugar-coated some things, so here's my basic list of my impressions:

The game is buggy and unoptimized. Slow load times and glitchy, frustrating interactions (like simply trying to press x to check something can be a chore, because you're not standing in the right place or completely still). Still, makes for some amusing times.
Your party members are constantly getting themselves killed in battle, because you have no control over them. Dragon Quest IV for the Famicom had a more advanced system than this (if it's the one I'm thinking of in which you have mostly-independent party members for the first time)...
Equipment and magic feel completely inconsequential. We blasted through the game willy nilly without much consideration of those things. Maybe we had two game overs?
Simple menu and dialogue convenience features are missing (like skipping cutscenes, selling all items or instantly choosing to sell all of one item in a shop). That is unless they patched those things and I didn't notice.
Pay attention to optional actions like listening to radio or reading papers scattered on the ground, because that's how the game transmits important plot points to you. It does not show most of them to you. Also, I recommend watching the movie to have a better understanding.
There is only one character I felt like I understood and was relatable.
The amount of product placement...my God. Most hilarious thing ever.
Nothing makes the world feel smaller than the fact that there are like 3 NPC models duplicated EVERYWHERE. It's hilarious. Once, I saw a car with two of the same NPC in it.
I think the realism of the game is responsible for how ridiculous it feels at times.
It's very derivative of previous installments as well as Kingdom Hearts. There are both good and bad results from this.


Can't really get into issues with the game's weird story logic without spoilers.

[Fynn]

Pay attention to optional actions like listening to radio or reading papers scattered on the ground, because that's how the game transmits important plot points to you. It does not show most of them to you.

Honestly, this is the type of storytelling that I'm looking forward to. Sounds actually organic, nicely contrasting with XIII punching you in the oesophagus with 2-hour cutscenes of people screaming "FEELINGS!"

[Fynn]

Haha! Oh my God! The user reviews are in and they're all either a 10 or a 1!

See, this is what I mean. If you're a fan, you're either insanely hopeful or frustrated, and you have been for years. The game couldn't be anything other than completely polarizing.

[Sephiroth]

I had no problem with anything than narrative pacing and how much story is told, which is not too much. The rest I liked a lot. Even the story, even with the mentioned problems.

[Fox]

Oh, and the music is phenomenal, that can't be argued, I think.

You say that, but I did see one review that stated: "There wasn't a single piece of memorable music in the entire game".

¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Let's be honest, FF has been a pretty polarizing franchise since VIII. And I tell you what - that game more than any other set a precedent for dodgy storytelling in Final Fantasy. Who remembers that bit in Trabia Garden guys? Remember that twist? And junctioning and magic were an imbalanced mess. Even everyone's beloved VII is really stupid in a lot of its plot details. The question is, does the whole thing come together to be great despite the problems? Each game will succeed in that for different people. So I don't really care about other opinions on this one, it's a very personal thing. All my friends hate XII, but I love it. Not quite as much as VII-X, but still a lot.

On another note WHERE IS THE POSTMAN COME ON

[Fynn]

Totally. I am currently replaying VII, as I am doing a marathon, but good God, that game's plot is really stupid. Don't get me wrong - I still really like FFVII, but it has all the story trappings everyone seems to hate about JRPGs nowadays, and yet VII's story is given this reverance for some reason?

And yeah, agreed on XII. It's easily one of my favorites, but it was also the first truly polarizing entry. I know a lot of people hated XII, but I don't think we'd seen this big of a divide in the fanbase before that.

You can even see this on the forum. Aside from the fact that forums as a format are dying, I remember there being dozens of posts per day about XII when it was coming out, with lots of clashing opinions from people. Of course, that was coming in after X, a very popular entry. At this point, it seems that the combined flops of the XIII saga, XIV's first release, and XV's troubled development have really made our fanbase scatter, and that's just sad.

[charliepanayi]

I don't know, I'd argue every main FF game has been very polarising (or at least has had its fair share of people who flat out dislike it) since FFVIII. Hell, FFVIII is still probably the most Marmite of the series. Of course things can change over time, FFIX is possibly one of the most loved games now, but I think when it came out that certainly was not the case.

[FinalxxSin]

It's the curse of the FF brand in all honesty. The more entries that come about, the more divided the fan base will become. Since every game from FFVI and onward has been radically different from the previous game, this end result is even more apparent. It isn't uncommon for a person to view something being or not being "Final Fantasy" to them based on past game experiences that they deem to be their favorite.

[Del Murder]

Like I mentioned somewhere else, your impressions will be different depending on if you review FFXV as a stand alone game with standard expectations and without any of the history of its 10 year development or the legacy of the series it calls itself a part of. Many of these reviewers seem to be doing that, and the consensus is that it is a good game. Is that the fair way to look at it? I'm not sure. It's not how I plan to look at it. My time is too valuable to sink myself into 'another good open world RPG'. I want to play the next great FF game. Is FFXV it?

[Slothy]

or when it was suggested that Cid might be a woman this time.

I have no issue with a female Cid. But as someone who has been known to work on a car or two here and there, I find her choice of work attire not only unusual, but probably a little bit dangerous as well. Just shows a general lack of concern for on the job safety.

[theundeadhero]

My expectations for disliking it aren't based on it not living up to "the Final Fantasy name." I expect to not enjoy it because I dislike open-world games, am not a fan of the combat style chosen, and prefer games with heavy story elements instead of what current reviews say FFXV lacks. The only reason I'm giving it a chance is because it does have the FF name.

[FinalxxSin]

I dislike open-world games,
Then I have to ask why you even bother playing Final Fantasy mainline games at all, given that a majority of them do have a large open world. X, X-2, XIII, and XIII-2 are the only ones I can think of that have a more linear structure in terms of navigation.

[Fynn]

Except a traditional world map and an open world are two completely different things. Before XV, FF had never been open-world. Sure, you had relative freedom in roaming the world map, especially if you compare that to X or XIII, but you still really only had access to a very limited space between various points of the plot.

I'm pretty fresh on this, since I'm doing a marathon right now, but take a look at FFVII. After you leave Midgar, you find yourself on the world map, but the space you have available to you is not that large and the only place you can really go to is Kalm. Sure, you can sequence-break and go visit the chocobo stables first, but that will still get you nowhere. Not to mention that the world map is not an actual open world in the sense that it's a scaled down represenation of some parts of the world, something that is completelyu different to XV's design philosophy.

So yeah, people who enjoyed the old world maps won't necessarily enjoy XV's open world because it's a completely different thing when it comes to player experience.

[FinalxxSin]

...
They aren't as different as you make them out to be. Sure, traditional world maps were a lot more common back in the past due to technology limitations. FFXV's open-world today is the equal to world tradition maps back in the past. As you had pointed out in your post, in the past the open-world was not able to be accurately depicted. If the worlds of some of the past FF mainline games were to be realistically scaled, they would turn out like the world of FFXV. The biggest difference today is that the person doesn't have to try and insert imagination nearly as much to generate an image; technology can make it happen.

[Fynn]

But that change in scale makes a huge impact on how the game is played

[FinalxxSin]

But that change in scale makes a huge impact on how the game is played
No, it's the same situation. You can either stick to the main story mainly or explore the world and conduct in side activities of various degrees if present.

[Fynn]

Except that, in all older FFs, the world map is basically just a means of reaching specific destinations, rather than the whole point of exploring. You don't get any real quests and diversions until the very late game. It is a huge difference, and it's why many fans of previous FFs are not wild about what's being offered in XV.

[FinalxxSin]

My prior point stands then. The benefits, or lack of benefits, of exploring are irrelevant. The only thing that matters is that it was both in past and present presented as an option.

[Del Murder]

I guess an option to do nothing is still technically an option.

[Fox]

My prior point stands then. The benefits, or lack of benefits, of exploring are irrelevant. The only thing that matters is that it was both in past and present presented as an option.

Not so at all. It's not really an 'option' in XV. Every story quest has a recommended level - you don't technically have to do side stuff in order to progress through the story but you will really struggle if you don't. It starts off not too bad: recommended level 4? Well I'm level 3, no problem! So I complete the mission, and now I'm level 4! Well the next story mission is recommended level 8. Hmm... OK, I did that. Now I'm level 6. Oh the next story mission is level 12. It gets harder and harder and harder to progress with the story unless you do a bunch of side content.

Also: the open world is the be all and end all of XV. The other games always put progression through the story first, then started gradually opening up some more chances to explore if you wanted. XV chucks you into Hammerhead and says "off you go!" FFVII took you through Reactor 1, Reactor 5, Meeting Aerith, Wall Market, Corneo's Mansion, Sector 7 Plate, Shinra Building, Discovering JENOVA, Battling Rufus, Escape from Midgar... all before it even put you on the world map. Which, as was mentioned above, isn't what you would call 'open to explore' at that point.

The fact that after 25 hours you get an airship and can go off the beaten path if you choose isn't really the same thing as the open world of XV. So it is 100% valid to say "I don't like open world games" without including previous games in the series within that group.

[Formalhaut]

I think the main thing that will detract the open-world element of FFXV for me is the side-quests. It was a similar situation with my experience of Dragon Age: Inquisition. Stunning open world, lots of exploration... but the side-quests actually filling that world were very displeasing. Find a letter here, read it, go to location, the end. Sometimes they don't even require combat. And it required you to actually read the letter, as opposed to helping a traveller orally tell you his issue, which gives you a sense of humanity.

I still like Inquisition, but it can be a tad of a slog.

[theundeadhero]

They make my point for me. There's a vast middle ground between open world in FFXV and from point A to B in FFXIII. Most games, especially the older ones, fall in that middle ground. The ones that come closer to either extreme are my least favorite.

[Marshall Banana]

or when it was suggested that Cid might be a woman this time.

I have no issue with a female Cid. But as someone who has been known to work on a car or two here and there, I find her choice of work attire not only unusual, but probably a little bit dangerous as well. Just shows a general lack of concern for on the job safety.

Yeah, and aside from the fact that it makes no sense as work attire, it also just doesn't suit her personality. She's not overtly sexual or even flirty. She's a completely average girl who is your friendly mechanic, but a) she is wearing the second most sexual outfit in the game and b) even for a video game model, her boobs somehow look fake. It's gratuitous.


There are few notable female characters and none of them are relevant for very long, but nearly all of them were designed as ogling material...it's frustrating and bizarre.

[Fynn]

Honestly, playing VII now and Tifa's design bothers me so much for the very same reason - it's totally at odds with her personality. It's not exactly something new to XV.

[Marshall Banana]

It is way more gratuitous and obvious/bothersome in FFXV, mostly because of my spoiler point, which is not true in FFVII.

Tifa's design never bothered me, personally. It's definitely silly, but the cartoonish graphics of FFVII detract from it. By the time she was portrayed more realistically (Advent Children, Kingdom Hearts), she had a new outfit. She would probably look almost as ridiculous as Cindy if Tifa was wearing her original outfit in AC. Her cowgirl outfit in Crisis Core reminds me more of Cindy's, to be honest...

Also, I'm not really opposed to or offended by characters that are just there for eye candy, though, as long as that sort of thing is kept to a minimum. Otherwise, it starts to feel weird.

[sharkythesharkdogg]

I dunno guys. I work on vehicles for a living, and deep-v shirts combined with daisy dukes are all I wear.