DavidH
As said before, my full review may be a bit late so I will be doing daily impressions. With that said, let’s get to it.
My first day playing the game was spectacular. Right from the beginning I was swiftly reminded as to why I fell in love with the series to begin with . Little things like selecting my language and difficulty with the familiar gloved hand pointer made me smile before I even began.
The game starts itself off with a flash forward of what I gather will be the inevitable end game. Not much of the story is divulged here but it was enough to bring me into full interest. From this point on the game begins with a brief intro to explain the purpose of the journey ahead; an arranged marriage for Prince Noctis to finalize a treaty. Straight and to the point.
The real beginning of actual gameplay was truly what floored me after waiting all these years, when you and your trio of companions are pushing a lavish car down a desolate road after it broke down. The scene is elevated by Florence + The Machine’s cover of Stand by me which blends the classic Final Fantasy harp intro into it. Did I cry? Yes. Did I have goosebumps? Hell yes. Maybe it was the fan boy in me or maybe it was simply the analogy of the car representing the troubled development of the game and the protagonists pushing the car representing the support of fan boys like me. Either way it worked.
When the gameplay kicked in I only sent an hour or so following quest lines and side quests but from what I saw, this game is incredible. The detail in the environments is polished, the open world is vast and the amount of activities is remarkable. Combat is fluid and awards you for trying new strategies and the ability tree is reminiscent of that from X.
Fast travel relies on the car at this point and you can have a party member drive or you can manually drive it as well, which is a nice touch.
So far so good, really good.
Look forward for more updates and my picture journal !
*all photos uploaded from my PlayStation
