Final Fantasy XV

Final Fantasy XV has taken a long time to hit the shelves, with fans of the series waiting almost 10 years for the game. Set in the open world of Lucis, gamers follow Prince Noctis and his three friends Ignis, Promp to and Gladiolus on their quest to reunite the prince with his bride-to-be Lunafreya, and to seek out the Royal Arms and defeat the technologically-advanced Empire of Niflheim.

Plot

The main story is full of plot twists and turns, vital for any game that offers a story that takes over 40 hours to complete. There are 15 chapters, and once you’ve completed the main quest there’s an additional 140 hours of in-game content in the form of side quests, hunts and more to keep you occupied.

While the game is open world, there are times when the story takes a more linear approach. You’ll be told beforehand that you’re about to leave the open world for a while – a last warning to stock up on the various weapons, medicines and equipment available to you. While this only happens for brief periods in the beginning, the game becomes more linear as you progress, with much of the second half feeling more like a traditional Final Fantasy game. We love the open world and although more linear chapters of the game offer more intense drama and gameplay, we’re not a fan of the restrictions put into place during those periods in the game.

Environment and transport

The open world of Lucis is vast and varied, featuring elements similar to the real world, with cars and motorways alongside more medieval and archaic elements such as castles and armoured soldiers. There’s even a huge meteor that’s said to be held up by a god, a spectacular sight to come across during Noctis’s travels. Everything you can see in-game can be reached by the player, adding an extra level of depth. See a weird, twisted mountain in the background? You can go there. Huge glaciers of ice protruding from the ground? Yes, you can go there, too.

There’s also a weather system and a full day-and-night cycle, which bring out a varying number of beasts. If you’re wandering through a forest on a rainy day, for example, your chances of running into a high-level giant toad are pretty high, although the scariest and most powerful monsters (or daemons, as they’re known) only come out at night. It’s recommended that low-level gamers avoid travelling at this time as daemons can range from level 20 to 54, and it’s also worth noticing that Ignis will refuse to drive at night, forcing Noctis to take the wheel. The dark environment brings its own challenges, such as visibility and being more prone to ambushes.

The main method of traversal in-game is to use the Regalia, the customisable vehicle of choice for Noctis and his friends. This is one of very few to integrate an automatic driving mode where fellow adventurer Ignis takes the wheel and drives you to any destination in real time, allowing you to sit back and take in the variety of vistas that the game provides. We’ve stumbled across many an impressive view while exploring the game, enhanced only by the stunning visual effects employed by the game. The environment is vibrant, gorgeous and most importantly, alive, featuring many a creature – some friendly, some not so much.

While it’s fun to sit back and have somebody drive around for you, it can become slightly boring at times – especially if you’re travelling from one side of the map to the other, which can take up to 10 (real) minutes. The good news is that if you’ve been there before, you’ll be offered the option to fast travel there for 10 Gil (the game’s unit of currency), an option we found ourselves taking increasingly often as we progressed through the game.

Apart from the Regalia you also have access to Chocobos, large chicken-like creatures that you ride to traverse areas that the car

can’t handle, such as forests and mountains. It’s faster and easier than travelling on foot, and your Chocobo will also give you a hand in battle once its levelled up enough.

Battle system

This isn’t your standard button bash setup – gamers need only hold the attack button to unleash a chain of attacks on the enemy, allowing them to use the left analogue stick to select various moves. Pointing the stick upward may prompt an aerial attack, while moving it down will trigger a charging move, although the moves available depends on the type of weapon used.

The slightly automated attack system also lets you keep an eye on not only your attacker but those around you too. You must watch for small cues that suggest the enemy may attack, and defend against, parry and counter the attacks. We must admit that this took a lot of getting used to, but once it ‘clicked’ it was an extremely effective way of battling, from taking out groups of weaker enemies to timing dodges and parries right to weaken even the biggest and strongest opponent.

Prince Noctis also has access to abilities that let him ‘warp’, providing an extra in-battle advantage. He can warp to wherever his sword is thrown and although the distance travelled isn’t much, it comes as a great help when cornered. The Warp Strike warps Noctis towards an opponent sword-first, causing huge damage when he hits, and can become more powerful if performed over great distances. You can also warp to locations to recover health points (HP) and magic points (MP), while also providing a bird’s-eye view of the battle below.

There are a variety of weapons available too, each with unique characteristics that make it moreor less effective against certain enemies. Weaponry is available throughout the open world, with Noctis responsible for not only upgrading his own weapons but those of his comrades, too.

Another powerful string to Noctis’s bow of weapons is magic. There are three spell elements – thunder, ice and fire – and these can be crafted in the Elemency menu and combined with items for extra effects. While these spells are powerful when used in the right situations, there aren’t many areas from which you can collect each element, so you’ll need to be selective when you use magic.

Ignis, Prompto and Gladiolus each have unique qualities, and while you can only control Noctis, your AI-controlled friends can be called upon to unleash huge attacks, although these require the Tech Bar to be filled. Joint links allow teammates to gang up on enemies, and are usually triggered after a successful block and counter, or if you blind side an enemy. These attacks can be devastating, and show off some of the more complex moves available in the game.

However, they’re nowhere near as devastating as the Astrals that you can summon once unlocked. In essence these are gods that Noctis can call upon for a favour to deliver a crushing blow to the enemy. The environment will determine which Astral will appear, along with the type of attack used. We, for example, were scooped up by one gigantic Astral before he unleashed a flurry of thunderbolts on the battlefield, which destroyed all the enemies within it. While these moves are uncommon, the fact you can summon a god mid-match adds a level of excitement unmatched by similar open world games.

There’s a lot to think about in battles, so the game features a Wait Mode akin to earlier turn-based Final Fantasy games, applied to real-time gameplay. With this enabled, you’re able to pause the game and look at the battle going on around you. You’re able to scan enemies for strengths and weaknesses, as well as plan who to attack next, without the need to move quickly. There is, of course, a Wait Mode timer and once it runs out, you can’t use it again during that battle, but this makes the system a lot fairer.

Havens and camping

The experience points (EXP) you earn from battling and completing quests aren’t automatically added to each character. Instead, the game requires you to camp in order to tally up all your EXP since the last time you slept. This makes it an essential part of the game, as the only way you’ll be able to level up is by camping out or staying in a hotel. The benefit to staying in a hotel is that your EXP will be multiplied by up to two, depending on the quality of the establishment, although you’ll have to pay to stay in them.

As a Chef, Ignis will take the ingredients available to him and cook meals that provide the team with ‘buffs’ that, for example, increase damage or provide immunity to poison.

Verdict

Final Fantasy XV is phenomenal, in terms of the open world environment and the engaging storyline it provides. There’s so much to do that it will take around 200 hours to complete, with 40to 50 hours being spent on the main storyline alone. The Battle Mechanics are different to similar games and although it takes some getting used to, it’s extremely effective. The world of Eos feels alive, and is a place we can’t see ourselves leaving for quite some time.