VIDEO GAME REVIEW: FINAL FANTASY TYPE 0

Final Fantasy Type 0 was a game from the very early days of the PS4/X-Box One. In fact, it came in a package with the excellent Bloodborne with the PS4 console. Set in the Final Fantasy world, it follows a class of magic users (class 0) as they defend their nation from a mechanical nation that invades them.

This is the very definition of an early game in the consoles life, being more a tech demo. Many of the ideas presented here were refined and done better in Final Fantasy 15. From the real-time map-based combat to the overworld movement that lacks details or a map to tell you locations, all these elements have been refined down the line.

Add to this is the long wait times between areas. Rather than seamlessly moving between areas or minimising your transitions, there is an annoying number of loading screens as you move room to room or area to area. This makes the gameplay feel exceptionally slow and ponderous, which isn't helped by the random encounters and repetitive combat encounters.

When you also consider that the story is over-convoluted and not very engaging, this game unfortunately should be a pass. If you want a game done similar, Final Fantasy 15 is the obvious candidate for a replacement. It feels a little harsh as it is a bit of a product of the time, but that didn't stop Bloodborne being excellent.

1.5 out of 5 final stars. 

VIDEO GAME REVIEW: DRAGONQUEST HEROES WORLD TREES WOE AND THE BLIGHT BELOW

Dragonquest Heroes: World Trees Woe and the Blight Below has a long title, so I am just going to take the liberty of calling it Dragonquest Heroes for the remainder of this review. Dragonquest Heroes is a hero-brawler that is very much in the vain of Dynasty Warriors.

Dragonquest Heroes plot is a fairly generic and cheesy. An evil force awakens, making monsters start attacking humans. The heroes have to band together, using the power of friendship to overcome the raw power of evil. Most the twists and turns are fairly generic and easily predictable. The dialogue is also cringeworthy, even if the voice acting is passable.

Combat is a pretty standard Dynasty-Warriors-esque affair. You go around in a team of 4, slicing through hordes of thousands of monsters that are mostly cannon-fodder with the occasional boss. However, you don't have too many combos. Instead, each character gets 4 spells or abilities that they can use amongst their other attacks. This is where the main variety in the combat comes from, together with having a diverse range of characters to form your team from.

The game is certainly put together well. There is a large variety of enemies (even if some are color-swapped) but it does start to repeat itself towards the end. You know when the big enemies are coming and the tactics for getting through the big enemies don't change much. This does lead to the game starting to overstay its welcome, especially as it offers very little new to the genre as you work through the below-average story.

3.5 out of 5 questing waffles. 


Played on PS4 but available on multiple platforms.

VIDEO GAME REVIEW: WORLD OF FINAL FANTASY (2016)

World of Final Fantasy is a PS4 game where you go around fighting and collecting recognizable monsters, which you then use to help you in combat. It is no secret that the game is a Final Fantasy version of Pokemon and a bit of a love-letter to prior Final Fantasy games, and it stands up surprisingly well on its own.

In World of Final Fantasy, you are tasked with saving the world (of course), or more accurately worlds, by a mysterious figure. Your characters (Lann and Reynn) have amnesia but were once powerful keepers (or people who control captured mirages, or monsters). Now you have to regain your power to save the world from an invading army. Past Final Fantasy characters will also show up  to help you along the way.

The biggest weak-point of the game is definitely the main characters. Slap-stick goofy seems to be the order of the day, with neither character showing much growth. This is particularly jarring when the game tries to be serious, and leads to quite a sudden and unpleasant tonal shift during the end cut scenes when Mr Slapstick gets somber.

Apart from this, the combat system works suprisingly well. You can capture monsters if you weaken them or fulfill some other conditions. Monsters are never overly difficult to capture, and you can always evolve and change monster types. Choosing there abilities using AP to unlock buffs and abilities is also interesting as you customise your monsters (well, until you max them out). You also stack monsters in 2 stacks of 3 (2 monsters and your main characters), which can unlock new abilities.

There is allot more to cover. However, most of this is positive. There are some unfortunate negatives (random battles, having mana so you  can't use your abilities to get rid of weak monsters quickly, etc.), but overall this game is a success. There are plenty of options and exciting things to do in the game, and it is quite fun to play.

4 out of 5 world-spanning waffles.

PLAYSTATION 4 GAME REVIEW: NEVER ALONE

Never Alone is a small title from Upper One Games that is based on Native American culture and stories. It has an interesting premise wrapped around a puzzle-platformer where two characters (which can be played co-operatively) are trying to reach there goals, with each bringing unique skills to the problems.

The story is a relatively simple but conversely quite confusing. The main story is that a bad man comes into the main characters village looking for something. She then runs from him until she is forced to confront him. There are also blizzards which started happening. The story may have been based on Alaskan culture, but the storyline doesn't really provide much cohesion. It feels like a bunch of random tasks and puzzles thrown together, especially at the end of the game.

This may have been saved if the gameplay was good. Unfortunately, the platforming is mediocre. The movement and environmental effects is very loose and quite buggy. You can do the same jump twice and have it come with two different outcomes for unknown reasons. Not only that, but the Bola shooting mechanic is frustrating and unnecessary (considering the wealth of buttons that have no bindings assigned to them). 

So while the game is an interesting premise, the mediocre platforming and non-sensical story leaves allot to be desired. The game is short, which is its only blessing as it doesn't overstay its welcome too much. However, this would be a recommended pass.

1.5 out of 5 lonely waffles.