#19


I bet a lot of you had this feeling. A game is coming out soon. You know you want it, bah, you need it! But you just don’t have the system. Yet. I vowed to get a 3DS for this game. Ultimately, I didn’t have to do a thing. Santa was kind enough to get me both a 3DS XL and…

BRAVELY DEFAULT: WHERE THE FAIRY FLIES





For the most part, I was not disappointed. I thoroughly enjoyed the game, but I think I need to get the big bad thing out of my system first, before I proceed. This game has one huge gaping flaw. And this is it: Half of the game is a loop of the previous half. You need to beat all the bosses an absurd amount of time, with little variation to break the monotony. This seriously tarnished a lot of the love I have for this game, especially since some of those battles were insanely hard in a cruelly unfair way. Huff, huff…


*hrmphraghramfhrah*

Now that that’s out of the way, this is another one of those throwback days. Bravely Default is an SNES-era Final Fantasy in all but name. It has a vibrant world, endearing characters, an interesting storyline centering around elemental crystals, and the best version of the job system in existence, excluding the FFT sub-series. It’s very self-aware in many areas, and I like how fun all of the villains are. Seriously, I don’t think there’s a character in this game I didn’t enjoy in one way or another. The main cast gets a lot of banter, too – Party Chat reminds me of FFIX’s ATEs, where you get to view optional exchanges between your four party members, adding a lot to the relationship between them.


I do my best to stay fashionabluuuuuuh.

I also really liked was the treatment religion got in this game. Let me just tag it for the two people who haven’t beaten it yet, ‘cause it’s too good to just spoil. At the beginning, it seems like it’s pretty straightforward – the crystals are deities, so the religion following must be true and good. But then it turns out the Anti-Crystalists actually have valid reasons to hate the Crystalist Church, since it is a corrupt organization with a very bloody history. Nevertheless, neither side is presented as completely sympathetic or vile. There are good people in both, and there are corrupt officials in both. In the end most representative of both sides get to reach some understanding, and from what I’ve read about the sequel browser game, they co-exist. Lovely. Atheists and Christians can be friends. That is something I can really get behind.


The battle system itself is phenomenal. What at first seems to be not much more than a traditional turn-base system actually turns out to be something much, much more complex and fun, with the simple addition of the Brave/Default mechanic. You can stock up on turns or use up more turns in one go, playing it safe or risking it all for a quick win. What sounds simple on paper turns out to be extremely strategic, as you constantly have to adjust your approach, depending on the situation you’re in. The enemies can use and abuse this system too, so you’re always kept on your toes. The games is pretty challenging, but you can always lower the difficulty if you’re feeling overwhelmed.


Don't expect any mercy during the endgame, even on easy, though.
Finally, there’s the music. I can honestly say that this is the best video game OST that I have ever heard, and I didn’t expect it to be! I had never heard of Revo from before this game, but whoah, does this dude know what he’s doing or what. The melodies are pretty simple and memorable, actually very evocative of SNES-era FF, but it’s the arrangements that make this music special. Everything – every instrument, every little note, every break, is right in place. The music sucks you right in and doesn’t let go. It certainly doesn’t hurt that it’s all live music, without a trace of a midi sound, but I’m sure Revo would pull it all off even if he had to work with synth. Which makes the fact that he’s not reprising his role as composer for the sequel all the more depressing. Still, take a listen to this couple of tracks. Even if we don’t get Bravely Second soundtrack by him, regardless of its shortness, the Bravely Default OST can last you a loooong while.


Seriously, there's not a single bad track.


I dare say Revo makes a better Uematsu than Uematsu himself, nowadays


I mean, just listen!


I can't stop listening to it!


I've had it on my iPhone non-stop for the year since I first listened to it.


And I'm still not even close to being tired of it!

In short, this is another masterpiece with a huge, gaping hole in it. Still, I was able to forgive it, but it did put this game much lower on the list because of that. Without that, this game would easily have made top 10, if not top 5. If you have a 3DS and are a fan of SNES-era FF, you absolutely cannot miss this game.