Solid game but simply not for me. I love the RPG mechanics but felt really uninterested into the story and characters. The art is amazing but not my cup of tea. Feels like I've seen this games art style in so many other games and it feels weirdly boring to me even though its objectively beautiful.

The main thing that made me know that I wouldn't be interested was the pacing and somewhat uninteresting writing style. From what I see, this is a great game with an insane amount of talent and skill poured in but not for me. If you love rpgs (mario rpg esque style combat) and the character designs you will love this.

When it comes to this series, XV should have taught me to remain... cautiously optimistic, at best. As I directed my metaphorical gaze towards Square Enix, I proudly proclaimed, "You cannot... will not, get me to buy the deluxe edition! Not again Satan!" And I didn't. Though, part of me still wishes I had. See, it's been nearly 7 years since we got XV, and I have learned. Unlike that game, XVI had all the surefire signs that it would deliver, and all these factors lead back to one, uh, thing: Yoshi P.

The lead up to this game's release had me so hyped that I actually tried getting back into XIV, and I ended up getting hooked. I already knew, but this just further cemented it: Kino was upon us. Sure, in hindsight, perhaps my expectations were still too high (I guess I didn't learn enough). But, does it really matter? CBUIII still gave us the gift of a complete and quality product. XVI is stylish, it's dark, and most importantly, it's fun.

There's a question that likes to get thrown around a lot during discussions of this game: is XVI a real Final Fantasy game? Personally, the series has always been about experimentation. Besides some usual trademark staples like chocobos and moogles, there's not really a concrete foundation for what makes a FF game. As far as I'm concerned, this series is a great sandbox for SE to play around with new ideas and bring something new and interesting to the table - hoping that of course, it lands.

Devil May Cry-lite combat mechanics? Sure, why not. Gore? Knock yourself out. Scenes that would make your parents blush? Might as well.

Yeah, XVI is for sure a very radical departure from what most have come to expect from the series, and it's a very divisive title as a result. But again, I'm usually one to embrace change, and it's something that I have come to expect in a series that's been going strong for nearly 40 years. This game may feel like a AAA western action "blockbuster" more than a "proper" JRPG, but I could care less when the game is this good.

Cons? I can list quite a few, actually:

- Low difficulty
- Combat mechanics aren't as deep as they could have been
- Lots of MMO-ish side quests
- Padding and weak pacing later on
- Terrible loot
- Dungeons? What dungeons?

All of these complaints amount to very little in the grand scheme of things. The fact of the matter is, in the 48 or so hours it took me to get through my first playthrough, there were many moments of joy, of awe, and of pain that I would gladly experience all over again for the first time if I could. I'm so glad this game exists, and I'm thankful to Yoshi P for making it happen. Mainline Final Fantasy is so back.

Oh, and the Eikon battles were pretty badass, yeah.

When it comes to story-based games - or psychological games in general - I make sure to go in as blind as possible, as I'm very sensitive to spoilers. Boy, am I glad I experienced this masterpiece blind. So, do yourself a huge favor and don't read too much beforehand: just buy and play this game already!

I've been playing video games for over 26 years, on many different platforms, in many different genres. Seldom do I come across a game that affects me on such a deep level as OMORI. A games that left me crying sobbingly for several days in a row. A soundtrack that follows me for hours everyday. A cast of characters that make me wish I could hang out with them.

I'm a content creator in both music and commentary for about 14 years, and few games/worlds have made me genuinely want to create fan content. OMORI has become one of them as I'm currently working on two music project as tribute to it.

I'm glad to have entered the world of OMORI early in its life. I definitely look forward to see this game blossom in the gaming world and to see more of its fan-made content!