my opinion on this game would be a lot better if this was my first experience with bravely default. for some reason this game removes a lot of quality of life features, the random battles aren't hard but they do feel unnecessarily time consuming in comparison to bravely default and bravely second. not being able to turn the encounter rate up (or down) felt very strange.
the boss fights were fun, but they made me feel like there was a specific winning strategy the developers had in mind while making it, which doesnt have to be a bad thing but it left me feeling like i couldnt play the job or pick the abilities purely based on what i thought was fun and interesting like i could in the last games. the emphasis on how every team comp was theoretically viable in every fight was a big reason of why bravely default and bravely second are some of my favourite games, so just that was enough for bravely default ii to lose a lot of points with me.
continuing the topic of boss battles, the countering system was something i was a bit excited about at first but i felt that as it went on, the game relied on it too much to make the boss more challenging. the further into the game i got, the more it felt like artificial difficulty inflation, which was especially disappointing because bravely default ii easily had the most thematic and engaging bosses of the series. their fights, both visually and mechanically, were very creative and unique as they drew upon the characters story.
as always, the art, character design, and music were all gorgeous. the aesthetic of the towns you visit made them all have such a great feeling to them, and there was great use of camera angles and zooming in and out which made them feel bigger than they were. the design of each area was pretty, though the bigger feeling they had did make them feel more empty despite the visible enemy encounters.
as for the characters and storyline, i didnt finish this game (for context, i stopped halfway through chapter 4) so i don't feel like i can really speak on them, but from what i played:
the main characters didn't feel as interesting to me as the cast from either bravely default or bravely second, in general their personalities felt much less passionate and it felt like the plot was happening to them rather than the main characters driving the plot. because of this the characters felt more realistic, while they didnt have much depth they also didnt feel as trope-y as the previous main characters. there was a feeling of the whole group having their own relationships with each other that were missing for me in the other casts too, but i also felt less engaged in their personal stories and motivations. there wasnt a single main party member i didnt like, they all brought something to the table and had very friendly chemistry as a group.
for antagonists, despite having an early introduction the main villain felt very distant and removed from the game. in general each chapter feels self-contained, which they individually benefit from since the story of each chapter was very well written and interesting (apart from the first two or so), but did make the overarching story feel less important and the main villain less threatening.
the antagonists of each chapter were usually interesting in some way but none of them seemed to have the depth that was present in boss characters from the earlier games.
most of the problems i have with the story and characters could also be said about bravely default or bravely second, which have always had characters that are pretty basic or one note and a hammy story, but the presentation of this game made it feel very different. bravely default was a game that wasn't afraid to take itself seriously, no matter how ridiculous it was, or poke fun of itself. bravely second took poking fun at itself to the next level and let itself be all over the place. bravely default ii feels more grounded and realistic, which to me just doesnt work with the story and character writing being so unadventurous. it makes you realize how bland it all is without that extra flair.
it felt like there were a lot more side quests in this game and that so many of them were completely pointless, but the few that triggered character interactions were, while simple, very charming.
overall, if you like the previous bravely games or just bravely default then you will probably like this one, but you might be disappointed.
the boss fights were fun, but they made me feel like there was a specific winning strategy the developers had in mind while making it, which doesnt have to be a bad thing but it left me feeling like i couldnt play the job or pick the abilities purely based on what i thought was fun and interesting like i could in the last games. the emphasis on how every team comp was theoretically viable in every fight was a big reason of why bravely default and bravely second are some of my favourite games, so just that was enough for bravely default ii to lose a lot of points with me.
continuing the topic of boss battles, the countering system was something i was a bit excited about at first but i felt that as it went on, the game relied on it too much to make the boss more challenging. the further into the game i got, the more it felt like artificial difficulty inflation, which was especially disappointing because bravely default ii easily had the most thematic and engaging bosses of the series. their fights, both visually and mechanically, were very creative and unique as they drew upon the characters story.
as always, the art, character design, and music were all gorgeous. the aesthetic of the towns you visit made them all have such a great feeling to them, and there was great use of camera angles and zooming in and out which made them feel bigger than they were. the design of each area was pretty, though the bigger feeling they had did make them feel more empty despite the visible enemy encounters.
as for the characters and storyline, i didnt finish this game (for context, i stopped halfway through chapter 4) so i don't feel like i can really speak on them, but from what i played:
the main characters didn't feel as interesting to me as the cast from either bravely default or bravely second, in general their personalities felt much less passionate and it felt like the plot was happening to them rather than the main characters driving the plot. because of this the characters felt more realistic, while they didnt have much depth they also didnt feel as trope-y as the previous main characters. there was a feeling of the whole group having their own relationships with each other that were missing for me in the other casts too, but i also felt less engaged in their personal stories and motivations. there wasnt a single main party member i didnt like, they all brought something to the table and had very friendly chemistry as a group.
for antagonists, despite having an early introduction the main villain felt very distant and removed from the game. in general each chapter feels self-contained, which they individually benefit from since the story of each chapter was very well written and interesting (apart from the first two or so), but did make the overarching story feel less important and the main villain less threatening.
the antagonists of each chapter were usually interesting in some way but none of them seemed to have the depth that was present in boss characters from the earlier games.
most of the problems i have with the story and characters could also be said about bravely default or bravely second, which have always had characters that are pretty basic or one note and a hammy story, but the presentation of this game made it feel very different. bravely default was a game that wasn't afraid to take itself seriously, no matter how ridiculous it was, or poke fun of itself. bravely second took poking fun at itself to the next level and let itself be all over the place. bravely default ii feels more grounded and realistic, which to me just doesnt work with the story and character writing being so unadventurous. it makes you realize how bland it all is without that extra flair.
it felt like there were a lot more side quests in this game and that so many of them were completely pointless, but the few that triggered character interactions were, while simple, very charming.
overall, if you like the previous bravely games or just bravely default then you will probably like this one, but you might be disappointed.