Just got this on Steam!

[Fynn]

Still in side quest he’ll but I just wanted to drop in and say that the soundtrack slaps and I won’t let anyone tell me otherwise. We do not deserve Shimomura

[Fynn]

I’ve made it to Altissia. After clearing Costlemark Tower I jumped another ten levels and now I’m level 65 lol. I can’t wait to see the story move forward though so I’m excited!

[Fynn]

Well I’ve beaten chapter 9 and was left completely broken. Then I played Episode Ignis and was broken further. Now I’m on the Pain Train and nothing is the same

Episode Ignis was thankfully excellent. Mitsuda’s music definitely helped elevate it but it also just made the efents in Altissia all the more meaningful and epic, not to mention just showing us how deeply Ignis really loves Noct. I did have to hold back tears near the end. Ignis is also very fun to play as. One gripe I have with the DLC is that I can’t say when the best moment to play it is. On the one hand, it really enhances the game when you play it right after it’s canonically happened and gives Ravus some much needed character development. On the other hand, it shows you some incredibly spoilery things from the ending. If you’re like me and have already been spoiled on the stuff from the ending, that’s not a problem, but I know my wife wants to play this later too and she’s super spoiled-sensitive. So I could just tell her to leave this episode for after the main game, but then she’d also be missing some of the scenes that were - let’s be blunt - cut from the original game. There is no optimal experience because of that now, sadly.

[Fynn]

So I’ve reached the legendary chapter 13 now. We’ll see if it manages to break me. But I have to say, I have not been bothered by the linearity at all so far. It’s almost as if when I care about the characters and you build up an incredible atmosphere through how the game progresses, whether or not it’s linear doesn’t matter at all. I also had Episode Prompto to play with along the way, so that could’ve helped with the variety (it’s also my favorite of the episodes I think, though Ignis’ was also amazing), but yeah, so far I’m still immensely hooked. I’m leaving on vacation on Saturday so I may not be able to finish this now and will have to wait two weeks to finish, but that’s fine. So far it looks like ring magic is immensely broken.

[Jessweeee♪]

I heard the ring magic was buffed but I remember it was pretty broken to start with. Does it just insta kill everything without a cast time now?

[Fynn]

Everything basically dies on the count of three. And while death happens they’re just writhing in place. And then there’s this other spell that activates when I press Y that just nukes everything in sight

[Scotty_ffgamer]

Chapter 13 didn’t really bother me before, but I think maybe it did feel like it dragged on for some people maybe? The changes they made did speed it up a bit. I kind of liked the change to the gameplay in that moment and kind of wished you had the option to play without the buffs to the ring to see what you think of the original gameplay.

[Raistlin]

I really didn't like the end part of the game. The linearity was definitely jarring after the rest of the game, but I also just wasn't a huge fan of the story at that point. Now I didn't have the character DLC chapters that you did, but I'm not convinced that would make a huge difference to me.

[Aulayna]

Honestly the Royal/Windows Edition is a very different and much better game than what the original experience was.

They fleshed out the story more, and inserted more clips from Kingsglaive in appropriate locations. You have the option of doing the DLCs where they take place in the story (rather than just having confusing gaps where the holes had been left for the DLC). Some of the combat gimmicks from the DLCs were worked into the base game, along with the ability to swap characters rather than just playing as Noctis with the occasional link strike.

Chapter 13 now is a lot better in terms of flow etc. than it was the original with the buffs to the ring and the change in pacing.

(SPOILER)And Insomnia was significantly adjusted too.

Comparing the Windows/Royal Edition to the original release is like comparing apples and oranges really.

I think if the game had released with the story enhancements of the Windows/Royal Edition (even sans-DLC), and the latter chapter adjustments and combat system overhauls, it would've got a much more positive reception in the eyes of long-term fans rather than the "half-baked" feeling it left many with.