Before release I was very skeptical of this game. All the marketing wasn't really grabbing me and I didn't think I'd enjoy the vibes of this one. And then I played it, and it became one of my favorite games from Square Enix.
This game really feels like Square looked at what went wrong with Final Fantasy XV and decided they wouldn't let it happen again. While that game feels like a mess (albeit, one that I do love), this one feels so finely crafted in every regard.
In terms of gameplay this might have my favorite in the ones I've played. I'm a massive fan of Devil May Cry, so the fact that one of the combat designers from that series came to work on this game was always something I was excited for. This game's combat does not disappoint. It is insanely satisfying chaining together your basic four hit combo with magic, abilities, dodging, parrying, and even a Devil Trigger-equivalent. It's not quite as deep as DMC, but it definitely has that series' incentive to experiment and never feels boring.
Besides some pacing issues in between major story missions, I enjoyed this game's story a lot. All the characters felt so well-written and had just enough screentime. Even the side characters got a good bit of depth within sidequests.
Also, the music??? Oh my god??? So many bangers were spread throughout this soundtrack. I definitely enjoyed some songs more than others, most notably some of the boss themes, but so many area themes were incredibly chill and nice to vibe out to. I need this OST on Spotify.
I am thoroughly impressed with this game across the board and can see myself loving it even more on new game+ replays and with the DLC which I have not played yet. If you have the ability to play this game, you absolutely should. It's honestly up there with FFX for me.
This game really feels like Square looked at what went wrong with Final Fantasy XV and decided they wouldn't let it happen again. While that game feels like a mess (albeit, one that I do love), this one feels so finely crafted in every regard.
In terms of gameplay this might have my favorite in the ones I've played. I'm a massive fan of Devil May Cry, so the fact that one of the combat designers from that series came to work on this game was always something I was excited for. This game's combat does not disappoint. It is insanely satisfying chaining together your basic four hit combo with magic, abilities, dodging, parrying, and even a Devil Trigger-equivalent. It's not quite as deep as DMC, but it definitely has that series' incentive to experiment and never feels boring.
Besides some pacing issues in between major story missions, I enjoyed this game's story a lot. All the characters felt so well-written and had just enough screentime. Even the side characters got a good bit of depth within sidequests.
Also, the music??? Oh my god??? So many bangers were spread throughout this soundtrack. I definitely enjoyed some songs more than others, most notably some of the boss themes, but so many area themes were incredibly chill and nice to vibe out to. I need this OST on Spotify.
I am thoroughly impressed with this game across the board and can see myself loving it even more on new game+ replays and with the DLC which I have not played yet. If you have the ability to play this game, you absolutely should. It's honestly up there with FFX for me.