Following up on the previous expansion, Echoes of the Fallen, The Rising Tide offers up a more extensive DLC that features a larger breadth of content in terms of story, quests, and abilities. Whilst it's most definitely longer however, it ultimately is still relatively short which was admittedly somewhat of a disappointment considering I had anticipated it going on for a little longer, but there's no denying that what's here is still solid, particularly when it comes to boss fights and new abilities.

First up, the main headline of the release is the introduction of the Eikon Leviathan, complete with its own boss fight that's equally as demanding, exciting, and all kinds of brilliant, just like the base game's Eikon battles. As for the gameplay implications regarding the new abilities acquired in this release, they offer a more robust and wider selection of attacks thanks to its Eikonic Feat, with some fun new cooldown-based abilities to equip too. There's also a bit of expansion beyond this when it comes to your gear and abilities in a few neat ways too.

However, whilst Echoes of the Fallen began a trend I believed suggested more buildcrafting options to come, I still feel like the game struggles to introduce truly new and varied ways to play, and rarely do the game's array of abilities present use cases that makes them enticing to equip other than their impressive visuals and baseline damage and Will damage statistics.

That means - besides the more demanding upfront combat challenge various bosses and enemies pose in The Rising Tide - you're generally fighting in quite similar ways to before, and the game doesn't suddenly get you thinking about combat in different ways beyond those core abilities you equip.

Of course, it would be a tall order to have expected an entire combat or buildcrafting-focused overhaul in such a short amount of time, however I did find myself wanting more depth to really get me theorising about what builds or styles of play I could employ. Though I did learn about NG+ having higher tiers of accessories with improved effects - as well as weapons and armour - which does make a replay more enticing to me, especially when many of the accessories in FFXVI are rather boring as far as I'm concerned. Thankfully, across both Echoes of the Fallen and The Rising Tide, some of those issues are addressed but as mentioned, it's still not completely changing the dynamic of the game.

Despite all that though, I still very much enjoy the combat of this game, and with this DLC's increase in difficulty along with the new endgame 'Kairos Gate' mode, there's a lot more dynamic and difficult gameplay that keeps you on your toes. The end result is that the gameplay of this release ends up being some of the best in the game thanks to the increased difficulty, particularly noticeable in boss fights. While I did like all of the bosses in the base game, the higher challenge presented here does yield positive results, much like those in Echoes of the Fallen.

The king of all these fights that tops the expansion off is of course the Eikon battle against Leviathan that manages to reach similar heights as those in the base game, with its own array of themed spectacle and visuals.

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As for the story, I wasn't massively enthralled by this new tale but there's still some interesting ideas and moments, and the setting and lore of the new locale were fun to see. I am a little surprised there weren't more general narrative implications considering some of the hype from the devs around 'what happens when Clive has access to all Eikons'. There is still something, just not ultimately anything that really changes or affects the narrative. Though there are some implications that could be drawn from it, just there's no real acknowledgement of it, at least as far as I've seen.

In regards to the new location of Mysidia itself, it was very nice to get away from the dreadful pink sky and colour tones of the main world that most definitely outstayed their welcome by the end of the original game. When you're in Mysidia, it's much more pleasant, with blue skies and lush jungles.

The beauty of this new region shines in large part due to the game's continuously strong graphical presentation. Even if it's a shame the game rarely ever sticks at 60fps, I never found this much of an issue and it did feel generally more consistent than the base game.

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Beyond the story, there are also various other aspects to note, such as the multiple side quests, endgame 'Kairos Gate' mode, and several items and accessories to acquire.

The side quests have some nice tidbits about Mysidia and its people, but ultimately still aren't anything to write home about - though they do include a few fun bosses to fight, with an epilogue that serves as a perfect segue back into the final part of the game's main narrative.

Beyond that, shop vendors across the game have a few new Accessories and a long list of new Orchestrion rolls to acquire for the Hideaway which now makes me want to grind out a bunch more Gil to once again fully fill out what is a essentially now-doubled collection of tracks.

The main highlight of the post-story content is the Kairos Gate, a bonus roguelike mode where you face multiple waves of enemies and bosses, earning points to be spent on a variety of boosts and bonuses to improve your stats and score, all with various rewards for both first-time clearance and repeat runs. By earning more points within each 'circle', you get more points to spend on bonuses that'll give you an easier time on future floors. Even if you don't fancy checking out this mode, the interaction with the Arete Stone that precedes this is definitely worth checking out.

At the time of writing, I've not managed to best this completely yet, getting my ass handed to me at around the halfway mark on my first run, but it proved to be a fun challenge, and the rewards are actually more exciting than I had anticipated which is cool.

On the whole, it's a solid bonus addition that rounds this DLC off nicely. I think I initially would've liked to have seen something more extensive than just 20 waves - more on the level of DMC's Bloody Palace, for example, with up to 100 or so waves - but even in its current form, it felt like a solid length of time you could spend here. It's also decent for farming Gil, so that's a bonus.

As for one last critique, it's a bit of a shame that there are no more costumes to unlock. I hadn't really expected it, but it does seem odd to have added literally just one alternate outfit for each character randomly in an update last year, and then never utilise the feature again.

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Overall then, The Rising Tide is a decent enough DLC that isn't completely mind-blowing for the game holistically, doesn't change the flawed status of the base game, and I really do wish they had pushed harder to deepen what's on offer and make the expansion feel a little more transformative for the game. However, taken for what it is though, it's more FFXVI, which is admittedly hard to complain about honestly, especially when it's delivering some of the game's best boss fights and ability sets, along with a new endgame challenge.

Flawed or not, it's a solid DLC that does take a stab at some of the criticisms from launch, and it's a release that has reinvigorated my desire to experience a more challenging playthrough via Final Fantasy Mode. This has only become even more true as I learned more about the upgraded Accessories you can acquire on that difficulty, so my hope is that it makes the gear game a little more engaging than it otherwise is.

Alongside a bunch of new items to acquire with Gil and a replayable endgame mode, no matter my critiques and even if I wish there was more overall, I still had a great time with this DLC, and it's sure to appeal to anyone who wanted more after beating the base game. For as flawed as it is, I still love FFXVI and for as much as I wish it had done better, this DLC expands a game I otherwise love and made returning to the game a joy.

Thoughts on Completion

Still processing it all, but Final Fantasy VII Rebirth is an absolutely wild ride.

A fantastic follow-up to Remake, a remarkable second part in this remake trilogy of the original FF7, and I genuinely believe it's one of the greatest video games of all time. In just a few months, across the original, Remake, Crisis Core, and now Rebirth, the whole set of games in the FF7 series have become some of my favourites of all time - with the original and Rebirth being particular standouts.

I was constantly in awe playing Rebirth at just how creative and inventive the game is, and it's truly mind-boggling how they pulled off such a well-paced, perfectly-designed game, especially one that lasted me over 100 hours. There are some issues I could note, but we're talking minor critiques that are either just preference, or others that are essentially forgivable considering the scale and quality of everything else. It's difficult not to call the game perfect even if yes, you could argue otherwise.

I also want to call out how much of an actual sequel this feels like too. Not only does it right essentially all of the wrongs of the previous game, it also does a bunch of new stuff, all of which is often high quality and relentlessly good. The game feels like a direct sequel in all the right ways, whilst throwing in a vast number of new ideas and evolutions that make it feel like a very new game at the same time. Its scale and expansiveness is one of the biggest factors in achieving this, and it nails the feeling of going from Remake's mostly corridor-like level design to a varied world that feels lived in, alive, and completely fresh, full of iconic locations and memorable characters.

Furthermore, the pacing and connectivity of the game is much improved this time around - any time there's a moment that begins to outstay its welcome, the game usually course-corrects fairly quickly to do something different. This happens at the right moment several times, and there's only really a couple of areas that feel a bit unnecessary or weirdly designed.

I have some ideas how they might be able to keep this up in part 3 (looking at you, Highwind), but even still, topping this game is going to be one hell of a challenge. Nevertheless, with such a massive jump from Remake, who even knows what they've got cooking over there!

So yeah, FF7 Rebirth is incredible. There's so much to say about the game, but I think it's gonna take some time before I fully formulate all those thoughts honestly. The short of the long is that this likely will be my 2024 game of the year.

It's also PS5's best game, and as far as I'm concerned, one of the best videogames to-date, filled with so much heart, care, and deep love that endlessly permeates throughout every aspect. It's endlessly brilliant, and one of the most enjoyable and exciting video game experiences I've ever had, sitting amongst some of my other favourite titles like Uncharted 4, the original FF7, and last year's Final Fantasy XVI (yeah, apparently I'm a big Final Fantasy fan now).

It's gonna be a long wait for part 3!

Impressions after 30 hours (Chapters 1-3 complete)

Going above and beyond to right any wrongs and evolve far beyond its predecessor, after about 30 hours and only around a quarter of the way through the story – there’s a lot to do(!) – Final Fantasy VII Rebirth is a game brimming with variety, depth and evolutions that go so far, they're actually a bit overwhelming. Despite that however, the quality of the offerings thus far is hard to ignore, and for only four-or-so years of development time, this is a title that is continuously leaving me in awe with nearly every passing hour of playtime.

There's a lot to be said about just how much this game shakes everything up. It's most definitely a sequel through and through, and probably the strongest and most evolved one I've seen in quite a long time. For as different as the game feels, it retains the core essence of Remake, now packaged in a sprawling open world setting that's nailing the map size, biome changes, and all the content contained therein. Rebirth sports a far-improved level design that suits the narrative progression of the title whilst delivering plenty to go out and do, all of which is of a high quality and variety, so far without feeling throwaway or mundane.

Some side content is light on story – in particular, the small checklist-style activities dotted around the map – however, many others are deeper and more involved than that. Whether that's introducing a fun mini-game, unique mechanic, or extra lore about the world or a set of characters, all of it feels rewarding in a multitude of ways, and very much worth completing.

Often it's also building on Remake and the current state of the world here in Rebirth. I heard somewhere that the developers said the side quests were improved upon from the previous game, and they certainly weren't wrong. They’re so good in fact, they might be some of the most inventive and fun I've seen in any game to-date. Despite the time investment thus far, the game continues to surprise and delight on the regular.

If I had one critique, it would probably be in regards to how the game has so much, it can actually feel a bit overwhelming. Throwing you into the deep end much faster than Remake, there are a lot of systems and features offloaded very fast, and that can be a bit much at first, especially when nearly every returning system is different and there's a bunch of new ones too. I'm also finding certain aspects of items not the most clear or effective – for example, an ability that says it ‘imbues’ attacks with an element that has a visual change to denote it, yet doesn’t seem to register consistently on enemies weak to said element. Maybe it is applying bonus damage, but further testing is needed to figure this one out.

These are very minor gripes however, and they're pretty easy to ignore because the rest of the game has been so good. The RPG systems are more complex, combat is deeper, more fluid and dynamic, and as far as I can tell, pretty much every issue Remake had is not present here. There's basically nothing I can really point to as a negative right now, and in many ways, this is feeling about as close as you can get to a perfect game. It’s a title that honours the legacy of the original, and video games as a whole with an extensively-diversified set of content that’s constantly surprising, executed in a way that only video games can do.

We'll see how it all shakes out as I play more, but for now, it's been a blast, and I've been very much looking forward to playing more every single day.