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.
Showing posts with label video game review. Show all posts
Showing posts with label video game review. Show all posts
Thursday, 20 June 2019
Tuesday, 26 February 2019
VIDEO GAME REVIEW: LEGEND OF ZELDA- A LINK BETWEEN WORLDS
The Legend of Zelda series have a firm place in my heart. From my childish nostalgia for A Link To The Past to the 3D wonder of Ocarina of Time (my equal 2 favourites), I have always relied on them to provide some great action games. And then along comes A Legend of Zelda- A Link Between Worlds. To me, this was the most disappointing Zelda game that I have played. It may not have been the worst, but it definitely did not live up to the high pedigree that I have come to expect from these games.
And how did it achieve this dubious honour? Because for the whole game I didn't encounter one decent new element. This whole game felt like it was ripped from A Link To The Past. The first Zelda game to be a direct sequel, I avoided most the hype for this game. But I started to get concerned when I noticed the same map from A Link To The Past. And then I noticed the same enemies. And then the same dungeon locations. Even allot of the bosses are repeated (oh, the turtle boss with the helmet, the boss thief in the dark world village, the big snake that has a tail for you to keep hitting, the final dungeon repeating the three light world bosses). Allot of the cool items are then taken out, replaced with one-use only items (oh cool sandrod that makes pillars of sand, shame there is no sand outside of the sand dungeon). Even the big new gimmick of merging into a wall painting is just like shimmying a wall in a stealth game.
I kept expecting this game to open up to something new. Maybe along the lines of extending the map world so that there are actual NEW AREAS (kind of like the old map is part of a bigger map), or the reveal of a third world. But no. A Link Between Worlds, for me, is the most disappointing Zelda game and I would prefer to play Link To The Past via emulator any day of the week (a game I have beaten 6 separate times, a game with infinitely more heart and thoughtfulness than this game).
1.5 out of 5 Linked Waffles
And how did it achieve this dubious honour? Because for the whole game I didn't encounter one decent new element. This whole game felt like it was ripped from A Link To The Past. The first Zelda game to be a direct sequel, I avoided most the hype for this game. But I started to get concerned when I noticed the same map from A Link To The Past. And then I noticed the same enemies. And then the same dungeon locations. Even allot of the bosses are repeated (oh, the turtle boss with the helmet, the boss thief in the dark world village, the big snake that has a tail for you to keep hitting, the final dungeon repeating the three light world bosses). Allot of the cool items are then taken out, replaced with one-use only items (oh cool sandrod that makes pillars of sand, shame there is no sand outside of the sand dungeon). Even the big new gimmick of merging into a wall painting is just like shimmying a wall in a stealth game.
I kept expecting this game to open up to something new. Maybe along the lines of extending the map world so that there are actual NEW AREAS (kind of like the old map is part of a bigger map), or the reveal of a third world. But no. A Link Between Worlds, for me, is the most disappointing Zelda game and I would prefer to play Link To The Past via emulator any day of the week (a game I have beaten 6 separate times, a game with infinitely more heart and thoughtfulness than this game).
1.5 out of 5 Linked Waffles
Saturday, 3 November 2018
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.
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.
Monday, 12 February 2018
PS4 GAME REVIEW: NIER AUTOMATA (2016)
Nier Automata follows the story of some android soldiers. These androids have been tasked by the human race to take back the earth following an alien invasion (where humanity was forced to retreat). Here, you follow the story of a couple of these androids as they traverse the world and take the fight to the alien machines.
Nier is not a game you can talk much about the story. However, it is important to note that the story is very good. You are running around the world in a 3D action-hack n' slash gameplay. During this time, you meet an assortment of characters and interact with them in a variety of ways. The only downside is that some of the story-beats seem predictable at different stages throughout the game.
The combat is also very good. There is the standard combo-based combat, which shares more with bullet-hell type gameplay than Dark Souls and the like. There are also flying missions (old-school top-down style shooter) and a hacking mini-game (similar to the flying missions). However, if you just want the story, they have also included an auto-combat mode.
The world you are exploring is also very good. There are some weird invisible-wall style areas, however, where suddenly getting through or jumping over a small fence is impossible. Some of these areas would have done to have slightly more organic boundaries. The missions you do in the world are slightly fetch-quest like, but then you can just ignore them and go through the main missions.
All up, this game is very good. It definitely deserves to stand as one of the better games of 2017. My one desire for the sequel is if they could include local multiplayer somehow.
5 out of 5 glorious waffles.
Nier is not a game you can talk much about the story. However, it is important to note that the story is very good. You are running around the world in a 3D action-hack n' slash gameplay. During this time, you meet an assortment of characters and interact with them in a variety of ways. The only downside is that some of the story-beats seem predictable at different stages throughout the game.
The combat is also very good. There is the standard combo-based combat, which shares more with bullet-hell type gameplay than Dark Souls and the like. There are also flying missions (old-school top-down style shooter) and a hacking mini-game (similar to the flying missions). However, if you just want the story, they have also included an auto-combat mode.
The world you are exploring is also very good. There are some weird invisible-wall style areas, however, where suddenly getting through or jumping over a small fence is impossible. Some of these areas would have done to have slightly more organic boundaries. The missions you do in the world are slightly fetch-quest like, but then you can just ignore them and go through the main missions.
All up, this game is very good. It definitely deserves to stand as one of the better games of 2017. My one desire for the sequel is if they could include local multiplayer somehow.
5 out of 5 glorious waffles.
Wednesday, 3 January 2018
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.
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.
Saturday, 21 October 2017
PS4 GAME REVIEW: DOOM (2016)
Doom is a reboot/relaunch of the popular first-person shooter series by Bethesda. It is a game where you are a death-machine, running and gunning your way through hordes of demons, collecting weapons and power-ups in your quest to, well, kill allot of things.
Doom eschews many of the more modern trappings of first-person shooters. Gone are things such as regenerating health and taking cover for reloading, replaced by health pick-ups and highly mobile enemies. It is not a mistake that the player character is faster than most demons, with the speed being intended to be used both for defense and offense.
The Doom story is also there, but it is definitely not at the front. Much like other games (such as Dark Souls) the story is just in the background. There are item descriptions and environmental clues about the backstory, but you can just as easily ignore it and blast your way through hordes of Demons.
All this comes together in a very good package. The single-player experience is a nice rush of circle strafing and shotgun-blasting people. There is also a glory kill system where you can finish off staggered demons for more ammo. The iconic chainsaw is also used to help replenish your stocks and the BFG is great for boss fights or in a tight spot.
The only criticisms are that the level design occasionally calls for some precision platforming. Although not too unforgiving, trying to judge your jumping or position in first-person is never easy. Similarly, although the levels are well designed for the most part, a couple of the levels can get quite confusing. And finally, some of the glory kills are a bit slow (considering they are mini-cutscenes) and stop the pace of a high-paced gunfight.
At the end of the day, these are quite small critiques as the platforming is mostly quite forgiving, the levels are mostly well designed and clear, and the glory kills are an overall positive mechanism. This is definitely a game worth checking out.
5 out of 5 gore-stained waffles.
Doom eschews many of the more modern trappings of first-person shooters. Gone are things such as regenerating health and taking cover for reloading, replaced by health pick-ups and highly mobile enemies. It is not a mistake that the player character is faster than most demons, with the speed being intended to be used both for defense and offense.
The Doom story is also there, but it is definitely not at the front. Much like other games (such as Dark Souls) the story is just in the background. There are item descriptions and environmental clues about the backstory, but you can just as easily ignore it and blast your way through hordes of Demons.
All this comes together in a very good package. The single-player experience is a nice rush of circle strafing and shotgun-blasting people. There is also a glory kill system where you can finish off staggered demons for more ammo. The iconic chainsaw is also used to help replenish your stocks and the BFG is great for boss fights or in a tight spot.
The only criticisms are that the level design occasionally calls for some precision platforming. Although not too unforgiving, trying to judge your jumping or position in first-person is never easy. Similarly, although the levels are well designed for the most part, a couple of the levels can get quite confusing. And finally, some of the glory kills are a bit slow (considering they are mini-cutscenes) and stop the pace of a high-paced gunfight.
At the end of the day, these are quite small critiques as the platforming is mostly quite forgiving, the levels are mostly well designed and clear, and the glory kills are an overall positive mechanism. This is definitely a game worth checking out.
5 out of 5 gore-stained waffles.
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