Final Fantasy XV - General News Thread

[Ikkin]

I think it's great.


I already know that I'll enjoy the game. The question is how much. I'd rather know as much of the criticism upfront, rather than hear the same or more praise over and over again. I'd rather experience all the positive things myself. However, knowing about (potential) negatives helps me set realistic expectations.


I appreciate outlets that dare to be critical, as long as they're being fair. The Edge preview is fair. Also, for a major part it sounds like subjective issues. I'm fine with that. That information is more useful to me than the 56th preview that repeats the same positive things. My enjoyment, hype and opinion isn't influenced by what others feel. I loved XIII for example, even though I consider it very flawed and agree with most of its criticism.

I didn't mean to imply it was a bad thing for us. xD Transparency is almost always a good thing for the consumer.

It's just kind of weird that Squenix isn't acting like the mega-publisher they are even though it'd probably be in their best interests to do so. I'm guessing that Tabata has a lot to do with it, but even so, it's surprising that he'd be given that amount of control over the PR side of things.

Why do people keep making comparsions to MGSV all of a sudden?. What the fuck?. Not sure I understand that.

MGSV is infamous for providing basically no story other than what was shown in trailers. The gameplay itself was top-notch, but fans of the series who expected a meaningful conclusion to the series' story were left disappointed.

The Edge preview doesn't really support that speculation, though. From the sounds of things, the parts of the game we haven't seen are actually more story-heavy than what we've been shown, with the "trick" being that the level design changes later (to the point of genre shift) in service of the plot.

...which is something I find pretty compelling, actually! It seems like a logical evolution of FFVII and FFVIII's attempts at game-as-experience in a time when the game engine can support extensive real-time shifts instead of just limited mini-games and Ueda's games stand as pillars of game design. Open-world expectations might make people wonder why they can't do all the things all the time, but there's value in using the things people can and can't do to influence how they feel. Heck, there's even value in negative emotions like frustration, boredom, and unrequited longing if used in service of the work as a whole (which is almost certainly the point of stuff like ten minute car rides and major mini-games like chocobo raising being limited to certain areas).

In other words, FFXV actually sort of sounds like the bizarrely-ambitious AAA art game that I was hoping for from Nomura-the-auteur back in the Versus days, which is something I'd given up on years ago. o_0 And even if that means the game won't be to everyone's taste, it'd be worth it if the end result was something that could influence the medium going forward.

 

[Guitar (pseudo)God]

You know what I DIDN'T read about in this article? Frame rate drops, graphical performance, crashes, etc. But I read about the lack of available costumes.

 

[Tornak]

The review/prereview/whatever the fuck it is is perfectly alright. I usually like Edge, so yeah.

Although I'm not gonna deny that I'm a bit worried about certain character things the writer said and, especially, how that second half is handled. I expected that linear nature anyways and all that matters is how they're able to deal with it (I can see the writer not knowing beforehand that that second part would be like that, so that might have also make him a tiny bit more negative that he could come off as).

At the end of the day, I think this game will be nothing less than good or even great. I don't really like numbered grades, but I can't see this being less than an 8 and that's me feeling quite conservative. The linear thing is a decision that I think might have been made for logistic reasons (you'd like to release a game announced in 2006 in a timely matter, right?), but I don't see as necessarily bad. Actually, I really like the concept: just ramp up the story when the game is reaching its climax and I've gotten bored of sidequests and huge masses of land. It also helps create a sense of urgency, which I guess is not needed but is always handy. Let's see how they handled it!

Also, I'd love for the cut-off to be precisely that, the timeskip. I would have liked roaming the world with the older crew, but I guess that that might have been way too tasking, as you'd expect the world would experience changes after a decade (especially when there's an impending plague that literally fucks sunlight and, in consequence, makes Daemons more likely to wreck shit around). Also something as simple as character designs (Cidney, Cid, Iris... but also simple vendors and side-quest givers that aren't important enough). It's feasible, no doubt, but I understand why it might not be done.

You know what I DIDN'T read about in this article? Frame rate drops, graphical performance, crashes, etc. But I read about the lack of available costumes.

Haven't been able to read it beyond what has been posted here. Is that true? :/

I wasn't expecting much, honestly, but still... I'm ashamed to say that this is the one game where I could think about getting DLC, even cosmetic ones (I have never paid for a single piece of DLC in my life).

 

[Guitar (pseudo)God]

The review/prereview/whatever the fuck it is is perfectly alright. I usually like Edge, so yeah.

Agreed, even if it's nitpicky and overwrought at times.

Haven't been able to read it beyond what has been posted here. Is that true? :/

I wasn't expecting much, honestly, but still... I'm ashamed to say that this is the one game where I could think about getting DLC, even cosmetic ones (I have never paid for a single piece of DLC in my life).

In a series where snowy areas are traversed by party members in tank tops, open vests, miniskirts, and belt dresses - this seems like a very silly thing to complain about.

 

[Storm]

http://www.dualshockers.com/2016/09...ified-you-can-still-go-back-through-the-menu/

"To go back on the more linear part of the game… It actually transfers into that linear part of gameplay when the story ramps up and gets into its final stages. Rather than the latter half of the game, it’s very close to the end of the game so to speak.

After the train segment, the whole structure of the game completely changes. You cannot go back and forth on the world map between the two parts. That said, there is a gonna be a menu function that allows you to access the earlier areas that you roamed around in the earlier parts of the game.

Once you’re done with the train segment, it’s not yet the end of the game. There is still another set of events that awaits you. I can’t tell you what it’s going to be, but it drastically changes up [the game]"

 

[LeonBlade]

I'm not going to read the Edge impressions but it's nice to see people discussing it here. I understand how some people will get defensive over people with negative impressions out the gate. Just try not to beat each other up over it.

 

[Tornak]

Agreed, even if it's nitpicky and overwrought at times.



In a series where snowy areas are traversed by party members in tank tops, open vests, miniskirts, and belt dresses - this seems like a very silly thing to complain about.

I never said I wanted DLC because I think the current clothes don't fit the environment (especially as we've seen Noctis complaining about how cold it was one time and talking about getting his jacket -the player was using the jacketless main outfit-).

It's about wanting to have a significant variety of costumes. Simply that. I guess I'm way too visual design-oriented (it's one of my favourite aspects of the series, from character design to the look of cities) and would want new costumes. Also, the fact that I don't really appreciate most of the ones shown so far, except for the a few casual ones (Gladio and Ignis') and the ones in Chapter 0.

But I mean, you can see it as a silly complaint (because it actually is), I just like these silly things that make playing a game this big a little more fun and diverse.

 

[Paperchampion23]

http://www.dualshockers.com/2016/09...ified-you-can-still-go-back-through-the-menu/

"To go back on the more linear part of the game… It actually transfers into that linear part of gameplay when the story ramps up and gets into its final stages. Rather than the latter half of the game, it’s very close to the end of the game so to speak.

After the train segment, the whole structure of the game completely changes. You cannot go back and forth on the world map between the two parts. That said, there is a gonna be a menu function that allows you to access the earlier areas that you roamed around in the earlier parts of the game.

Once you’re done with the train segment, it’s not yet the end of the game. There is still another set of events that awaits you. I can’t tell you what it’s going to be, but it drastically changes up [the game]"

Okay, now I'm completely SOLD on the fact that we definitely misjudged where the linear portion is. Its definitely not the train section knowing this article and reading the edge one. the train section will most certainly let you get out and explore, it hits like 5-6 different types of biomes, I highly doubt we are stuck on a train that whole portion while we watch all of that go by. Plus I'm sure if that bothered the edge writer, they would have completely brought that into the fold. The linear portion definitely happens towards the end, and I am all for that man. A serious conclusion to something I've been playing for hours, I want it to be cinematic and beautiful and scary and weird and not make any fucking sense until it does

 

[Guitar (pseudo)God]

I never said I wanted DLC because I think the current clothes don't fit the environment (especially as we've seen Noctis complaining about how cold it was one time and talking about getting his jacket -the player was using the jacketless main outfit-).

It's about wanting to have a significant variety of costumes. I guess I'm too visual design-oriented (it's one of my favourite aspects of the series) and would want new costumes (also the fact that I don't really appreciate most of the ones shown so far, except for the a few casual ones and the Chapter 0 ones).

But I mean, you can see it as a silly complaint (because it actually is), I just like these silly things that make playing a game this big a little more fun.

I was using "silly" to describe the previewer's criticism about costumes and not your desire for greater variety - apologies for not making that clear.

 

[llazy77]

Pre order cancelled

 

[Tornak]

We've seen that the place where Malboro is is located in the second continent (if that picture of the map that was here some weeks ago is anything to go by). When they showed that place, it looked like a place you could find in the Lucil continent, so I doubt that the only open-world area we find in the game is the one in the first continent.

Also, as some poster here said (can't rembember, sorry), the fact that there are hunts in Altissia (Weskham is the quest-giver) could mean that there are relatively close places that are big enough (I think it was a hunt related to a water-based place, which make sense considering how Accordo is like).

Who knows!

I was using "silly" to describe the previewer's criticism about costumes and not your desire for greater variety - apologies for not making that clear.

Ah, fugg, I should have guessed, sorry!

Yeah, it's a bit weird thing to put out in a review where you barely (if at all, haven't checked the actual article) talk about how it performs or stuff like that. At the end of the day, it'll most likely be the ones you get at the beginning (main and casual outfits), the couple of DLC ones we've seen (Regis' suit, Behemot jacket) and the ones you get in Chapter 0. It's not entirely a bad number now that I think about it, and I can't see why there shouldn't be a couple more (whether in-game or through DLC).

 

[DrBretto]

I'm not going to read the Edge impressions but it's nice to see people discussing it here. I understand how some people will get defensive over people with negative impressions out the gate. Just try not to beat each other up over it.

I honestly don't think anyone's beating anyone up over anything. Theonewhoistornappart just didn't catch the sarcasm when a couple of posters joked about it and reacted, and that wasn't about the article, it was about how the internet is crazy reactionary about stuff. It's all good, though.

Again, though, like the GI clip from a couple of days ago, both appear to be bringing up long old and irrelevant complaints like no female party members and whatnot, so it will still cause some eye rolling. And I am mildly concerned about feeling annoyed by people overreacting to the second half bit, but this IS the internet, so it is what it is. Like I mentioned earlier, though, I'd rather see people overreacting to this stuff now, setting their expectations into the ground, because it'll just leave more room for people to be impressed later. I was actually wondering if all those positive previews would actually hype people up a little TOO much, if that makes any sense.

 

[DrBretto]

Pre order cancelled

See, now, this is what I just can't stand about today's society. That right there is a bullet point (the quote in the pic, not your reply), and that's the stuff people see. Not the content. It's so, so easy to interpret that in so many meaningless ways. That's the kind of thing that drives me nuts.

Like the 4-part absolutely glowing preview that came out last week or so. 4 separate articles of absolute GLOWING praise, but one sentence that sounds bad when taken out of context and that's the part that has a week-long run of people talking over each other about things that there just isn't enough data on to have a real, intelligent conversation about.

 

[Lulcielid]

Did EDGE "previewed" any previous game in the franchise before? How did they fare?

 

[Slaintimez]

Did EDGE "previewed" any previous game in the franchise before? How did they fare?

X\X-2 remaster got 6\10

 

[Argento]

Hey guys, i just preordered the Digital premium edition (i just cancelled the physical from Gamestop) and i can't find the theme anywhere... Anyone had the same issue and can help me through this? Thanks :3
P.S. I live in Italy so i don't know, might be a problem related to my region? *shrugs*

 

[Edda]

It was somewhat negative about the game. This is a fact. What matters next is whether the opinion is relevant to you. I'm frankly disgusted by some of the excuses levied here. Some of you are getting obnoxiously defensive, as if you can't trust yourself to like the game despite what anyone else thinks.

 

[Guitar (pseudo)God]

It was somewhat negative about the game. This is a fact. What matters next is whether you care about it or don't. I'm frankly disgusted by some of the excuses levied here. Some of you are getting obnoxiously defensive, as if you can't trust yourself to like the game despite what anyone else thinks.

"Disgusted" is not a word I'd use to describe talking about a video game - a frivolous, inconsequential 1st-world leisure activity. I'd save that for things in life that matter.

 

[DrBretto]

It was somewhat negative about the game. This is a fact. What matters next is whether the opinion is relevant to you. I'm frankly disgusted by some of the excuses levied here. Some of you are getting obnoxiously defensive, as if you can't trust yourself to like the game despite what anyone else thinks.

... who? I'm really not seeing this.

 

[SonOfEtro]

Pre order cancelled

If that was serious, I wouldn't worry about that. IX doesn't exactly have the best central plot in the world. It's the drama of the cast that elevates it to one of the better titles. I'd be more worried if they sacrificed character for a strong core narrative.

EDIT: I like to judge things on individual merit without too much comparison. My personal feelings on each of the mainline game's narratives.
* FFI/III: Meh, alright, serves the gameplay.
* II: Alright, a bit derivative.
* IV: Nice, dramatic, can fall flat.
* V: An entertaining romp.
* VI: Wow.
* VII: Whoa... and becomes meh with age.
* VIII: Oh, that's a nice change... and doesn't become meh with age.
* IX: Thank Gaia for the characters.
* X: Very entertaining, but presentation hasn't aged well.
* XI/XIV: Alright, and in the latter case gets better with age and updates.
* XII: One of the best, such drama and depth.
* XIII: Impressive, but definitely has its faults. Would work better outside the interactive medium.
* XV:.... well, I'll have to see, won't I.