drahkon Posted December 21, 2023 Posted December 21, 2023 11 minutes ago, Hero-of-Time said: Yup, total waste of space. Its like they were put there purely because they needed some kind of open world in the game to please the market. Immediately reminded me of BotW and TotK. Empty, boring, useless. Thankfully, the combat is awesome and so much fun. I usually explore everything just to fight stuff But I would've loved some cool hidden treasures chests with better equipment and the sorts.
Hero-of-Time Posted December 21, 2023 Posted December 21, 2023 17 minutes ago, Glen-i said: Literally could be talking about any open world game, from where I'm standing. What about Lil' Gator?
Glen-i Posted December 21, 2023 Posted December 21, 2023 5 minutes ago, Hero-of-Time said: What about Lil' Gator? Hey, you did read it! You passed the test! 1
Hero-of-Time Posted December 21, 2023 Posted December 21, 2023 The quality of the game really takes a nosedive during the second half. The epic scenes are now very few and far between, filler main sections that are nothing but fetch quests have started to become very frequent and boring traversal across the empty maps is happening more and more. The first half was pretty linear, very epic, fast paced and a very intriguing, all of which I was enjoying. The game has now slammed the brakes on, probably in an effort to stretch things out and add more hours, instead of just keeping things tight.
Happenstance Posted December 21, 2023 Posted December 21, 2023 I had hit that point as well which was probably why I took a break. I think it's supposed to pick up again but I was definitely in a lull when I stopped.
Hero-of-Time Posted December 21, 2023 Posted December 21, 2023 8 minutes ago, Happenstance said: I had hit that point as well which was probably why I took a break. I think it's supposed to pick up again but I was definitely in a lull when I stopped. It's pretty awful. Had to do fetch quest after fetch quest in order to progress the main story. This kind of stuff should be optional but you are forced to do it.
Hero-of-Time Posted December 22, 2023 Posted December 22, 2023 Spoiler So, Bahamut is wrecking the place and downs Phoenix. He's just about to go for the kill when Clive unleashes a shield of fire and fights back as Ifrit. You are then forced into a boss battle to take down Bahamut. He proves too strong but Joshua is up and about again and now you play as Phoenix. This section is full on Panzer Dragoon style, which was amazing to play. After a while Ifrit is back in action and so you double team Bahamut. Again, he proves too much and just as he is about to fire the killing shot, Phoenix and Ifrit merge. The battle now goes up into space and its just full on anime at the point and I'm grinning from ear to ear. Massive Spirit Bomb style attacks are being thrown around and I'm hammering the square button in order to make sure I win. Hilarious and OTT stuff and it's what I'm here for. What a spectacle.
drahkon Posted December 22, 2023 Posted December 22, 2023 Uuuurrrghhh, I want to read that spoiler so bad 1
drahkon Posted December 22, 2023 Posted December 22, 2023 Spoiler WOW! Incredible sequence of fights. One of the best "I accept what I've done" moments ever made Awesome!
Hero-of-Time Posted December 22, 2023 Posted December 22, 2023 9 minutes ago, drahkon said: 29% completion (Hide contents) WOW! Incredible sequence of fights. One of the best "I accept what I've done" moments ever made Awesome! Yup, such a hype moment, especially when the music goes all out. 1
drahkon Posted December 22, 2023 Posted December 22, 2023 My PS5 says I'm 1/3rd done with the game. I do wonder when it "opens up". I was expecting more side-quests, maybe some hunts for optional bosses, minigames. Do these things not exist in this one, or is it one of those "ok, the final battle awaits, but here are a million other things to do now" affairs? The story also seems quite grounded. No overarching super-duper enemy hellbent on destroying the world Not complaining, just wondering what FFXVI is
Hero-of-Time Posted December 22, 2023 Posted December 22, 2023 I'm 75% of the way through and have not come across any mini games. There are side quests and monster hunts to do but that's about it. 1
drahkon Posted December 22, 2023 Posted December 22, 2023 Good lord... I just went to a small village, met a lady, talked to the lady, followed the lady, talked to her again, followed her again, talked to her again, followed her again...you get the gist. For every incredible moment there is at least one hilariously boring/tedious/stupid moment.
Hero-of-Time Posted December 22, 2023 Posted December 22, 2023 5 minutes ago, drahkon said: For every incredible moment there is at least one hilariously boring/tedious/stupid moment. Yup. It's such a mixed bag. FFXV was the same but the high points in that game never reached the highs in this. I feel the development team just added padding to this game in order to lengthen the play time. They should have kept things streamlined because there is absolutely no value in the tedious missions they added. Even the ones that crop up as main missions don't really add anything to the overall narrative. Pointless.
Happenstance Posted December 22, 2023 Posted December 22, 2023 If I remember right quite a few members of the dev team for 16 were from 14s so it kind of makes sense with parts of it feeling like MMO filler missions. 14 as well had some amazing highs. 1
Glen-i Posted December 23, 2023 Posted December 23, 2023 18 hours ago, Hero-of-Time said: One of the most epic set pieces I have ever played (Reveal hidden contents) So, Bahamut is wrecking the place and downs Phoenix. He's just about to go for the kill when Clive unleashes a shield of fire and fights back as Ifrit. You are then forced into a boss battle to take down Bahamut. He proves too strong but Joshua is up and about again and now you play as Phoenix. This section is full on Panzer Dragoon style, which was amazing to play. After a while Ifrit is back in action and so you double team Bahamut. Again, he proves too much and just as he is about to fire the killing shot, Phoenix and Ifrit merge. The battle now goes up into space and its just full on anime at the point and I'm grinning from ear to ear. Massive Spirit Bomb style attacks are being thrown around and I'm hammering the square button in order to make sure I win. Hilarious and OTT stuff and it's what I'm here for. What a spectacle. OK, so I've not played FF XVI yet, but some of the songs did get added to Theatrhythm recently. The song that I assume plays during that bit actually gave me chills, and I was playing a rhythm game, can only imagine how it must feel in game. Absolutely astonishing composition!
Julius Posted December 23, 2023 Author Posted December 23, 2023 Been great following along with your thoughts the last few days @Hero-of-Time and @drahkon, definitely share a lot of the opinions you hold when it comes to this game! The highs are insane; Soken and the OST are insane; the set pieces and some of the boss fights are genuinely insane (and push the PS5 harder than anything I can think of to date, in the sense that it's trying to do so much and push the system); the combat is fun and flashy, and just generally bonkers. Active Time Lore, I will scream from the rooftops for years to come, needs to be in any and every modern 50+ hour RPG, starting with the Yakuza games. On the other hand, the game lacks the levity and fun in the way FF games so uniquely position themselves as being, and the lack of mini-games I think really speaks to that. The combat as well just lacks any real depth, and it's shocking that weaknesses and strategy just aren't really a thing here, and that the elements of Eikons aren't leaned into? It lacks a whole lot of RPGness and yeah, the open world ain't great (or the crafting) Genuinely makes me wonder if this was done purposely with the VII Remake project also going on, though. Look no further than the change in chocobo designs between the two games and I think it speaks volumes about the approach and what is and isn't being allowed in XVI (and, generally, that's some lightheartedness) when you see what is being allowed and pushed for in VII Remake. 18 hours ago, Hero-of-Time said: One of the most epic set pieces I have ever played (Reveal hidden contents) So, Bahamut is wrecking the place and downs Phoenix. He's just about to go for the kill when Clive unleashes a shield of fire and fights back as Ifrit. You are then forced into a boss battle to take down Bahamut. He proves too strong but Joshua is up and about again and now you play as Phoenix. This section is full on Panzer Dragoon style, which was amazing to play. After a while Ifrit is back in action and so you double team Bahamut. Again, he proves too much and just as he is about to fire the killing shot, Phoenix and Ifrit merge. The battle now goes up into space and its just full on anime at the point and I'm grinning from ear to ear. Massive Spirit Bomb style attacks are being thrown around and I'm hammering the square button in order to make sure I win. Hilarious and OTT stuff and it's what I'm here for. What a spectacle. I loved Ragnarök to pieces but this setpiece and some others in XVI had me going "OHHHHHHH, so this is what people were talking about in terms of remembering scale/epic fights in the GoW games?" Just blew everything else out of the water. That music is SSS tier, too. Soken is a god. 12 hours ago, Happenstance said: If I remember right quite a few members of the dev team for 16 were from 14s so it kind of makes sense with parts of it feeling like MMO filler missions. Yeah, the overwhelming majority of XVI folks worked on/will work on XIV at some point or another – it's CBU III that handled XVI. Totally agree on the MMO filler stuff, and you can see the MMO QoL stuff blend in elsewhere too with the little symbols thrown all over the damn place What I find most exciting is the scenario writer for XVI is one of the earlier writers from XIV (after ARR), so not the person who was delivering the goods story-wise which got XIV so many accolades. Would be very curious to see how CBU III's next mainline entry would do given the staff of some of the later XIV stuff? 2
drahkon Posted December 23, 2023 Posted December 23, 2023 47 minutes ago, Julius said: The combat as well just lacks any real depth, and it's shocking that weaknesses and strategy just aren't really a thing here, and that the elements of Eikons aren't leaned into? It lacks a whole lot of RPGness Yes, I truly miss the RPGness, but I've accepted the fact that FFXVI is the Yakuza series in reverse I like the combat. Especially the fact that perfect evasion windows are relatively generous. I hate games where it's (almost) frame-perfect. Maybe I'll get tired of it, but 1/3rd through the game, I still love every encounter! I do, however, hope that Final Fantasy will go back to traditional TURN-BASED JRPG goodness for the next mainline game. But I fear this won't happen... Anyways, I feel like I'm currently at a point that's building up to something huge. Smaller fights, a small bossfight, Cid has a plan...GIVE ME THE SPECTACLE
Glen-i Posted December 23, 2023 Posted December 23, 2023 4 minutes ago, drahkon said: I do, however, hope that Final Fantasy will go back to traditional TURN-BASED JRPG goodness for the next mainline game. But I fear this won't happen... Yeah, that's not happening. The series has been weaning itself towards action game since FF 12. Team Asano's output is the closest you're getting from Square, these days. There's a reason I refer to Bravely Default as "New Final Fantasy". I wish it was just a Final Fantasy trend, but you're seeing it more and more. Even Pokémon is starting to try and make battles not the actual main focus. Mad props to Yakuza for trying to counteract this trajectory! Takes proper balls to take an actual risk like that.
drahkon Posted December 23, 2023 Posted December 23, 2023 (edited) 4 minutes ago, Glen-i said: Yeah, that's not happening. I know...makes me sad I guess I still have FFI-VI to play, as soon as the pixel remasters are on sale. So that's nice. 4 minutes ago, Glen-i said: I wish it was just a Final Fantasy trend, but you're seeing it more and more. Reeeaaaally hope the next Dragon Quest won't go that route...I think I'll go on a rampage if that happens. Edited December 23, 2023 by drahkon 1
Hero-of-Time Posted December 23, 2023 Posted December 23, 2023 17 minutes ago, drahkon said: I know...makes me sad I guess I still have FFI-VI to play, as soon as the pixel remasters are on sale. These things never go on sale. Had them.on my wishlist for ages and they've never dropped in price. 21 minutes ago, Glen-i said: Team Asano's output is the closest you're getting from Square, these days. There's a reason I refer to Bravely Default as "New Final Fantasy" Battle system wise their games are great but their narratives are really lacking. There's only Triangle Strategy which really hooked me from a story standpoint. I would love to replay that and see what the other stories offer in that game, especially after they updated the game this year. Too many other new games to play though. 34 minutes ago, drahkon said: Yes, I truly miss the RPGness, but I've accepted the fact that FFXVI is the Yakuza series in reverse I like the combat. Especially the fact that perfect evasion windows are relatively generous. I hate games where it's (almost) frame-perfect. Maybe I'll get tired of it, but 1/3rd through the game, I still love every encounter! When it comes to the battles, I dislike that enemies are damage sponges. I'm 8 levels higher than some of these things and they still take an age to bring down.
drahkon Posted December 23, 2023 Posted December 23, 2023 Man, these spectacular sequences are fucking fire Spoiler The fight against Typhon was some straight up DBZ action! Ifrit/Clive keeping Spirit Bomb Hellfire going while getting rained down by energy bombs from Typhon...AWESOME! And the music! 13 minutes ago, Hero-of-Time said: These things never go on sale. Had them.on my wishlist for ages and they've never dropped in price. Patience, my friend Waiting for a sale myself, though... Still got my PS4 copy sealed. Will keep it that way. It can only increase in value 14 minutes ago, Hero-of-Time said: When it comes to the battles, I dislike that enemies are damage sponges. I'm 8 levels higher than some of these things and they still take an age to bring down. Oh no So far, R2+▲ does the trick! 1
drahkon Posted December 23, 2023 Posted December 23, 2023 Spoiler Cid? NOOOOOOOO Also: I was right the first time...it was Joshua. I hate bait and switches like this. "Look, he's wearing the same thing as that dude from 10 years ago, so it can't be the one who "died". "Oh, but it is the one who "died". Terrible writing. Love that now there's the one true enemy. And love that he's called Ultima Oh, and a timeskip. Interesting! 1
Hero-of-Time Posted December 23, 2023 Posted December 23, 2023 6 minutes ago, drahkon said: 36% completion (Hide contents) Cid? NOOOOOOOO Also: I was right the first time...it was Joshua. I hate bait and switches like this. "Look, he's wearing the same thing as that dude from 10 years ago, so it can't be the one who "died". "Oh, but it is the one who "died". Terrible writing. Love that now there's the one true enemy. And love that he's called Ultima Oh, and a timeskip. Interesting! Spoiler Yeah, I was gutted when that happened. Told you it was Mickey Mouse. 1
drahkon Posted December 23, 2023 Posted December 23, 2023 Just now, Hero-of-Time said: Reveal hidden contents Yeah, I was gutted when that happened. Told you it was Mickey Mouse. Spoiler Yeah, I would've preferred if it was actually Mickey Mouse... God, I hate it when they kill off a very important person to the main character early and then resurrect them later on...it's so boring. JUST STAY DEAD AND LET THE MAN BE EVEN ANGRIER! 2
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