A friend of mine said I should reserve Final Fantasy Type-0. Now while I'm not always big on the side titles of Final Fantasy, I trusted him with his opinion and reserved it. I'm not sure if I'll play it as a blog entry, but we shall see when that time comes. Until then... There's a nice little bonus in the Final Fantasy Type-0 HD [Day One Edition]. You get a fancy voucher code that allows you to download the demo for Final Fantasy XV. It's a special demo titled "Episode Duscae."
Now, while I'm not following Final Fantasy XV like a crazed fanatic, I am still interested to see where the game is going. Thus... You're going to get a glimpse of my playthrough of the demo!
Final Fantasy XV Episode Duscae - Final Thoughts
Now... This is quite exciting. We're finally getting a glimpse into the next (main lineup) title of the Final Fantasy series. This could be a pretty big day seeing as the blog is... a bit lax in updates. For now though, let's see what the demo holds for us.
The demo begins with a party of four guys. (I don't remember their names at the moment...) Our car has run into some problems, so we need to make 25,000 gil in order to pay for repairs. Not too far along, we spot a bulletin board with a bounty poster. There's a local monster (the classic BEHEMOTH!) that is causing trouble. They're offering 24,000 gil for whoever brings it down. The group figures this is the best way to earn money for repairs... and then the demo truly begins!
A fellow party member offers to show me the ropes on fighting, and I take him up on the offer. So let's get into how the game plays! Since I brought it up, let's begin with the combat system.
The combat of Final Fantasy XV reminds me of Final Fantasy XII, but it brings in some different elements to play. It's not the MMO-style of attacks where you "set it and forget it", but it isn't quite a hack n' slash action RPG either. It melds the two together to form a style of combat that feels unique.
To try and keep this simple and concise (the game does so as well), you have two states of character. You are either Attacking or Defending. However, your character is always "attacking" if you aren't defending. Defending consumes MP, but you will dodge almost anything thrown at you. The drawback is that every successful dodge drains your MP. This keeps you from simply spamming it forever. You automatically regenerate MP and HP as you move around, and you can increase the regeneration rate by taking cover during battle. (Basically you defend next to something you can stand behind.) On top of this, you can even use the Defend to Parry some attacks. I never quite got the hang of Parry, but if you manage to, it comes with fantastic results! You knock the enemy back and smack them for some major damage.
Attacking is also pretty straight forward but has some interesting complexities. You have a selection of weapons that your character uses based on how it is equipped. You have several slots of varied "attack actions" or however you want to put it. You assign a weapon to one of these slots, and your character auto-magically swaps to them based on what form of attack is being launched. Examples include a weapon for Countering, one for Final Strikes, a Multi-Strike weapon, and several more. I didn't write down or memorize the slots here. On top of this, each weapon grants a special attack, and you can switch between the special attacks during combat. The demo gave a lance with Jump, a sword with a spinning attack, a small blade with a Drain attack to replenish HP, a spear with a lunge-style of strike, and a few more I can't remember because I didn't use them.
Beyond things described above, you do have a few other additional actions. Of course, you do have an items command for usage of item things. Demo only really offered potions and phoenix downs though. The most interesting action you can do is the Warp. It is used to jump to an enemy during combat or leap to a tall ledge to get a breather (boosts regeneration like cover does). It's a really nice opening attack ability and can help reach a far off enemy. That being said, It also got me into trouble here and there. I warped a few times when I didn't mean to, and it wasn't always a super success like I'd hoped. That and very few spots in the demo let you use it as a brief escape.
Now to rate the combat overall... It's fun and challenging, but it could definitely use some work. The only thing I can complain about is the lack of a true lock-on system. If we're going to have live combat, we need a better way to lock-on. It lets you lock onto an enemy in the demo, but it doesn't FOLLOW him. Meaning you have to turn the camera around whenever an enemy goes off screen. This was made even worse when facing one of the few enemies in the demo. (A fast wolf-style enemy who keeps running around.) Pinpointing the enemy tended to require using the Warp attack to get up close, and sometimes even then, you'd only get a hit or two before they ran off again while you try to clumsily follow them with your camera.
I do see hope for the combat and would love some improvements. Your AI characters generally work well, but I do hope you will be able to command them a little. The little guy with guns tends to do his own thing and run up close rather than shoot from a distance. The other two seem to be capable though, and you can revive downed characters by running up and slapping them as they are bleeding out. (You have time to revive/be revived before being completely out of the running.)
Beyond fighting, the demo has a fairly large area to explore. It's a huge, beautiful massive field full of deliciously pretty environment. There's a lot of field to cover, and plenty of monsters to fight. The demo only had a few different kinds of enemies outside of the big boss monster, a Behemoth called Deadeye. The monsters simply walk about the field. You can battle them (or run away) at your leisure really, much like Final Fantasy XII. There are also random items littered around the map... Items that you can pick up and sell for the monies. (Seeing a lot of FFXII in this game for sure.)
The game definitely won't lose in either the graphics or exploration department. There's a lot to see and do in just the small field you are given during the demo. They even have a cave you can explore. (And doing so nets you the awesome summon that is Ramuh.) The cave exploration was probably my favorite part of the entire ordeal. Running through the tunnels and having to deal with hordes of goblins. Of course, the little bastards could steal and kept taking all my potions... It was pretty challenging too, and I actually got my first Game Over here.
It's nice to see a Final Fantasy really bring up the difficulty aspect as well. It's hard to bring a difficulty factor into a JRPG without making the solution "overlevel" or "abuse the system". I feel they got a good mixture of challenge without making it feel ridiculous.
Of course, your real question might be "What about the story and characters Daniel!?!" Well... in all honesty, I didn't really get attached to those. In the demo's defense though, you don't get a lot from them. The demo seems to be more about showing off the gameplay rather than the characters or their story. You do get the character's name in-game, and their dialogue gives them a bit of depth. The story is fairly non-existent though outside of the whole "collect money to repair car" bit.
I don't absolutely love the characters in there, but I didn't really get a chance to know them either. I figure I'll get to know more about them later. Hopefully they all develop into something worth caring about! Now, I could keep going on and on here, but I think you've gotten a good idea of what there is offered so far. Let's see if I can sum up my experience...
Final Fantasy XV - Episode Duscae is a great insight into what we're going to get when Final Fantasy VX delivers. There's a huge amount of promise here. There are a few bugs and issues here and there, but they are offering a survey to all those who try out the demo. I figure when the game finally comes around to us, we'll have something much better! I do look forward to the new Final Fantasy title... And when that day comes, my blog will fervently reopen with more posts as I cover my journey through... whatever that world is called. UNTIL THEN! Look forward to another update coming.
I've finally got a game planned. Stay tuned to find out more. Thanks for reading and hoped you enjoy this insight.
~May the Crystals Guide Me~
