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It's the eve of the prince's
wedding and, rather than slosh drunkenly around some coastal town, he
and his buddies have taken to the open road in their preposterously
sleek and muscular car, the Regalia. It’s a curious choice of vehicle
for a series defined by its fable-like airships and fantastical giant
chicken mounts, but in time it makes sense. This is a contemporary-set Final Fantasy,
complete with sat-navs, mobile phones and motels. What better way to
conjure the sojourner spirit of the series in the modern day than via
the conceit of a road trip?
Not that you have much freedom to drive anywhere you please. The Regalia must stick to the roads in Final Fantasy XV—the
latest in a very long line of role-playing games that stretches back to
the NES—and while it's possible to take the wheel yourself, the
simplistic controls mean that you're more likely to hand over driver
duties to Ignis, the most mature member of the group, and sit back to
enjoy the views instead.
The open road
If the setting is plainly exquisite then the
company is more of an acquired taste. There's sensible Ignis, who cooks
meals for the group each time you set up camp for the night, and whose
bother and worry soon starts to grate. There’s hothead Gladio, whose
tantrums can weary (even if, at times, they provide him with an
advantage in battle). And there’s Prompto, who yelps and tugs like an
excitable puppy. As the four bond not only via freelance
monster-battling missions, picked up, rather confusingly, from the
owners of the various cafes dotted around Lucis, but also in their often
affecting moments of vulnerability (quiet moments of male bonding
snatched on a motel roof, and so on) a sense of pleasing and enriching
camaraderie develops.
-
Final Fantasy XV takes the idea of questing with a group of friends to its logical modern-day conclusion. -
In the early hours of the game, expect to get very familiar with this car. -
The battle system is vastly different to other
games in the series, but surprisingly enjoyable. -
Magic, however, takes a back seat, and must be
crafted using elements absorbed from rocks. -
Character customisation has been simplified. -
Final Fantasy XV is a beautiful game.
These scenes are given space to breathe as, in
the first portion of the game, the four men tour rather aimlessly. The
first few hours of the journey are spent discovering new sights and
earning small change (which you need: despite Noctis’ royal blood, he is
an impoverished prince and you need to scrimp if you're to afford the
latest weapons, armour, and in-car CDs) from clearing areas of
bothersome monsters, or undertaking various other kinds of often
stultifying fetch quests for the locals. En route you must keep your
pockets stuffed with life-giving potions and your car filled with
petrol—although if you ever do breakdown a charming local mechanic will
always come and give you a tow back to her garage. In this way the game
establishes an enjoyable if curious rhythm, one that, with its four
black-leather clad protagonists sweltering their way through the desert,
feels quite unlike any other open-world game.
Final Fantasy XV works
to a regular day and night cycle, a system that has a much greater
effect than merely changing the quality of the light. Once night falls,
Lucis' roads are stalked by towering high-level monsters who, until
you've finished the game, will obliterate your party if you try to take
them on. For this reason, you're constantly urged to seek refuge at the
end of each day, rather than wander perilously. There are a multitude of
different kinds of places to rest, from dingy trailer parks in the
countryside, through spas by the waterfront, to plush hotels in downtown
Lestallum, the first city you visit. Your choice of stop is important.
Experience earned in battle, or by completing missions, is held in a pot
and only banked by your squad once you sleep. The quality of the
establishment at which you stay will dictate the size of the multiplier
that’s applied to your experience. It may be cheaper to rest in a
caravan park, but skimp and you'll be losing out on thousands of bonus
points available from a more well-to-do establishment.
If you haven't got time to drive to the
nearest hotel there are also numerous camping spots dotted around the
world. What you lose in an experience multiplier, you gain in a full
stomach. Each time you camp in the wild, Ignis, the group’s cook, will
offer to make a meal for the gang. You need to requisite ingredients,
but if these are in your inventory, there are a wide range of possible
repasts. These imbue each team member with temporary status effects that
last for varying amounts of time the following day, and can provide a
crucial advantage when you're about to face a tougher foe. Each team
member has his own favourite recipes too and, when they eat them, their
techniques can randomly develop more quickly, or deliver bonus critical
hits while the effects of the meal last.
Ignis isn't the only team member with a
burgeoning hobby. Prompto is a photographer who incessantly takes
snapshots of the group’s exploits, as well as routinely asking you all
to pose next to landmarks. Just as Ignis' recipe book grows over the
course of the adventure, so Prompto's ability as a photographer levels
up each time you rest. Once you reach Lestrallum you’re even be able to
take on a line of on-the-side work as a freelance magazine photographer,
a pursuit that offers one of the most enjoyable side mission trails in
the game. At the end of each day Prompto shows you his camera reel and
you can save your favourites. The snapshots may seem like a bit of a
gimmick in the game's early stages, but by the end of the adventure they
present a wonderful record of the journey.
Fighting the good fight
The novelty extends from the game's structure
to its action-heavy battles. Noctis is a quick-footed, acrobatic
fighter, able to "phase" though enemy attacks while the defensive button
is held down. His standout manoeuvre, however, is the ability to hurl
one of his four equipped weapons and instantly warp to wherever it
lands. When locked onto an enemy, a blade-warp is turned into an
offensive move, known as a warp-strike. The damage caused by a warp
strike increases with distance, encouraging you to flit between charges
into and retreats from battle. He can also use the trick to hang from
the scenery and survey the battlefield from a higher vantage point.
While suspended from a point-warp spot, Noctis slowly recovers health,
while his MP (magic points) gauge, which is used to pay for warping and
phasing, is instantly replenished.
The first hour of Final Fantasy XV.
In some ways it's a more straightforward system than in previous Final Fantasy
games. Noctis will automatically attack enemies for as long as the
attack button is held down or he is interrupted by an enemy strike. You
can trigger attacks so long as he has MP in the tank—although the moment
this gauge is depleted you're unable to move until one of your three
comrades taps you on the shoulder. Parries allow better players to
dispense with foes more quickly, while the huge range of weapon types
available to you right from the off allow you to tailor your approach in
each battle to match the weaknesses of your foe. If the damage value
appears in orange when you strike an enemy, it indicates a weakness to
that weapon class, while purple indicates it is resistant to the
attacks.
Ignis has the ability to identify enemies'
affinities and weaknesses, giving you the chance to equip Noctis with
appropriate weapons before blows are traded. But despite these tools to
help improve legibility, when facing larger groups and bosses, the chaos
of the battlefield becomes disorientating, particularly as the camera
struggles to keep the pertinent action in frame.
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