Final Fantasy XV

Release: 2016
Platform: PS4
Developer/Publisher: Square Enix
Genre: Action, RPG
Gameplay Stats: 76 hours, level 73, 31/36 achievements

I'm really not sure what to say for the opening of this one. Either "Despite some very strange choices, FFXV is a truly great game" or "FFXV is mostly really great!" I'll just jump into my normal dissection and leave my random thoughts for the end.

Visuals: FFXV is beautiful! I wouldn't say that it is the most beautiful game that I've played, but the visuals are definitely a strong point in my mind. The characters hold themselves and move mostly like real people. The character models even move their lips like they're actually saying the lines. Each of the main characters holds themselves differently and their gestures and motions drip with personality. The cities seem to keep with their theme, as do each of the different locales. The different areas of the map are visually distinct which helps you to know where you are at any given time. The enemy design is largely quite good even though there are pretty noticeable re-skins towards the latter half of the game. Something that I quite appreciate is that some of the hunts are ACTUALLY for unique monsters. Like, that model is only used in that particular fight. That kind of understated effort is pretty meaningful to me. There's a whole lot of content and the developers don't feel the need to make sure you see all of it.

Audio: So, this is kind of an odd spot for FFXV. The music that is unique to the game is quite appropriate and was definitely pleasant to listen to. I don't think there's much outside of the main theme that I will revisit once I put the game down for good. I already liked Florence and the Machine though, so I don't think that's really a feat either. The game relies pretty heavily on you purchasing soundtracks to other FF games and listening to those in the car and while running around on foot. There are themes for the chocobo and each of the towns, but they aren't spectacular. The fight music seems to be the only track in the game with any agency. I get that this goes with the tone for the majority of the game, being a relaxing road trip, but I still wish that they had some better music for the game.

Gameplay: This game plays like a mix of Kingdom Hearts and Zelda. It's a crap load of fun for the most part. Unfortunately, this game doesn't see itself quite like an action game, so a lot of the controls are tied to animations instead of your inputs. This means that it is sometimes hard to dodge incoming attacks and that can definitely impact you negatively depending on your weapon type. I guess that insentivizes you to use quick weapons over slow ones, but it still seems like it gets in the way. This also produces some problems when trying to pick up items or open doors. A lot of the actions in the game are slightly frustrating to input which is strange in a AAA game in 2016. I don't get the impression that the actions outside of combat were tested very much. So many things depend on the angle of the camera instead of the angle of Noctis which is weird. It just feels finicky.

Story: Despite what the game tries to tell you, this is a story about hanging out with your bros on a road trip. There's a whole lot of other stuff giving your road trip meaning, but the key part of this game is friendship and the power therein. It actually makes the first half of the game, the open world portion, the more important part in a lot of respects which is interesting considering a lot more actually happens in the second half of the game. I wonder if I missed the intended point in all honesty. The final campfire scene after the credits was the hardest hitting for me. Like, I get why the main plot was included, but it didn't feel as meaningful to me after spending 60 hours running around with the main 4 characters.

So, I mentioned at the beginning that FFXV made a lot of odd choices. The biggest and arguably most strange is the inclusion of sponsorship within the game. There's a whole quest around Cup of Noodles, and the American Express logo is in most cities. Coleman is prominently featured in all of the camping photos. It just feels strange. Another one is that you have the option of using in-game currency to fast travel. This isn't super unique, but it just seems weird to me that you can alternatively gain XP and AP by "slow traveling". It's just such an odd proposition. I spent a lot of the game letting a character drive and looking at my phone. I guess is matched with the road trip motif, but it still seems a little weird. Despite all of my complaints, I really enjoyed the game. I will definitely return when they change the way that chapter 13 plays out, and probably do the post game content at that point too. This game was a great time overall and I'd recommend it highly [9/10]