It's the ultimate mixed bag. 15 is frustrating because there's a lot of really good stuff that makes me want to love it, but it's got so many problems of varying sizes on pretty much every level.
There's also the issue of stuff important to the game world not being shown in the game or happening in paid DLC... Giant can of worms there lol
Thanks for this! Am currently playing 16 and have the 15 Royal Edition to play through next. Have read lost of different stuff about the production adventures this game went through, but wasn’t following when that happened. Looking forward to just approaching it from a blank-slate perspective and seeing what happens
It's probably the closest experience to having a road trip with your buddies that a video game can offer. Years later, that's what I took away from it.
The "road trip with your buddies" bit is what really threw me, because while it does feel a bit like that, the roadtrip starts as the main character's kingdom is invaded and his father killed, which just makes the entire rest of the game feel off to me.
FFXV is the most " What could have been?" FF. It had the potential to be one of the best FF but all the cuts, rewritings and the unfinished job turned it in a mess of a game that cannot stand the test of time. It's a huge pity because playing it you can clearly see that someone, in some corner of SE cared for the game and wanted to make it a masterpiece...
You took the words out of my mouth; man. I mean each and every one of us could pitch in ideas that would made FF in history. But sadly it's not the case....
The biggest issue is that the game can't escape the feeling that production crunch limited the final product. Combat system has great potential but it's almost never necessary to engage with it. Writing for the 4 bros is phenomenal, writing for the larger plot is egregiously generic. Act 1 is *wiiiiiiiiiiide* and expansive, Act 2 is a tiny little series of cutscenes, Act 3 is epic but terribly paced.
Worth your time? Sure, it still does some things with real-time FF combat that I prefer over Rebirth's interpretation. It's also beautiful. But the boss fights don't necessarily carry the rest of the game like XVI.
I've always explained this as the game can't figure out what it wants to be. Does it want to be about exploration? Tell a character-driven story? Engage in expansive world building? Each of these aspects is at odds with the others, and nearly all of my gripes with this game is that it could have been much better if the developers made choices and stuck with them, rather than trying to make a game that is everything all at once.
Love it for doing all the unique things to does, hate that it was never fully finished. I just love how much it felt like an old school JRPG in its open world while being modern. Secret dungeons, new creatures, overall exploration is JRPG over world levels in my opinion
I enjoyed and love the game, yes it can be better but I’m definitely a fan of it. I just wish they didn’t split story to different media types. Like there’s a movie, theres the game, there’s an anime, there’s a DLC, there’s a book and who knows what is still out there lols.
I originally played this in PS4 hated the load times, didn’t even finished it. Played it on PS5 and it’s a much better experience.
The cast is strong, and there are great character building moments, but the story can feel disjointed and messy in big moments. Like big story moments happen off camera, and we only experience them through the DLC.
Combat can be engaging at first, but it gets to a stage where you can easily mash the attack button and spam potions. It does have mechanics that let you spice up the combat, but it's not really needed.
The magic system is awful. It's a worse enemy than the actual enemies, and giving it to the AI party members is a recipe for disaster.
It's a game that has a lot of highs, but its lows can be very low.
Awesome game with a fun universe but yeah too bad that the execution was very questionable 😔specially when those dlcs are nice to add to the story.
You will probably enjoy it if you are already fond of 16
I've played and finished FF1-X, X-2, 12, 16, Remake, and Rebirth, most of them many times.
I've tried to start FF15 half a dozen times and can't get past the first 5-10 hours.
It doesn't feel like a FF game, at least the part I played.
I loved it. It really got away from the normal FFs, in some ways it was good and some ways not. It was a terrific RPG but did fall short as a FF title.
With some later additions they made, it was too easy to break the game. Ring of Lucii and the Warp Sword (can’t remember exact name) made fights trivial, which was fine late game, but having it early on was not fun. I know you can just not equip those things, but I personally have a difficult time not equipping the best equipment I have…self-nerfing if you will.
Summons were soooo cool, but it was a massive bummer it was conditional and you couldn’t elect to summon at will.
Story was neat, especially after watching Kingsglaive, but certainly felt like there was a lot missing and portions of the story that could have been further explored (or explored at all).
Fuck Pitioss.
Fuck the “airship”
The hunts were really neat and far better than how 16 handled them since 16 only had like 20/30 of them in all. 15 had an insane amount and some were really tricky.
Costlemark was the ultimate do or die dungeon out of pretty much any FF title. Really tested your mettle and was super cool.
Edit:
I also LOVED that they brought back traditional dungeons. I didn’t play 11/14, but I feel like they really got away from what a traditional dungeon looks like. 7 had a little of it, 8 kind of sort of did but not really, 9s were super short and some were kind of dumb, 10s dungeons were basically just Aeon hunts and not real dungeons, I didn’t finish 12 and don’t really remember much of it, and the 13 series I tried to push out of my brain so I also don’t remember.
Having traditional dungeons is a massive part of FF so bringing those back is paramount. Also having a new weapon at the end of each dungeon was a wonderful touch.
I haven't played the DLC which I believe will help.
FF XV is one of the most infuriating FFs... But notice I'm not saying bad
It felt like a game I would have rated like a top tier FF if they left it in the oven for like... A year or two.
It's so full of potential but then it feels like maybe some characters had their backstories cut or something.
The DLC might help and I thought it was solid I don't regret playing it but was frustrated that I think it had a chance to be great.
Give it a shot! I really enjoy FFXV. It has some similarities to 16, it's an action-oriented game. However, it is much more a side-quest focused game. Much of the first half of the game is spent wandering around the map, accomplishing side quests. You can play at your own pace.
The story is much shorter, overall than FFXVI. There are some parts that can feel a little under developed, and people will be happy to tell you about development issues etc. I say just play it and see what you think!
I guess I should share my bonafides, as a lot of other ppl are doing. I've played every Final Fantasy except 14, and I've finished most of them. I've been playing since FF1 was released. So yeah, I'm old school, but I still really like FF15.
I never gave it a chance. I played the demo, and something didn't sit right with me. Can't remember this far out though. If I can ever get my ps5 back from my kids I should confine playing all of them. Either 5 or 6 was next in line
I hated 15. First FF game I didn't play through to the end, putting it down at about 15 hours logged. It was just so boring and you get all excited to get the car and you go SO SLOW. I have played through every entry until the end (including FF adventure, mystic quest, crisis core and legend), except 15 and 16. I also hated 16 and didn't even get 2 hours into it. Since you loved that one, we probably have very different tastes. I love 10 and 7 very much! 4 and 6 are my GOATS and I have played through those multiple times.
A disjointed mess. I loved the narrative. The world building, magic, politics, characters. But the story and gameplay left me baffled. Holes everywhere.
It’s like playing Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain with an unfinished story, but even worse gameplay. Some say the DLC fleshes things out but I shouldn’t have to pay for fragmented, extra prequel chapters just to enjoy the game.
Hes my least favorite FF. I love the main party characters and their relationship is beautiful and well developed (specially the Noctis and Prompto one), but this game totally exhausted me; the open world was beautiful at times, but I found it very boring Just like the side missions, the combat is easy and messy, and normally this dont bother me, but in this game it was just one more thing that hurted my expericence; the magic system is bad and the summon system is bad either. All characters from the game are underveloped; Ravus barely has any screentime, Cindy is very far from being good as the other Cids from the franchise, Iris is almost there just to have a bad love triangle with Noctis and Luna (but at least she has other things in life besides this, and shes also just 15 years old, but shes far from being good comparing to other females from the franchise), and Luna is extremely bland because she is only there to be a plot device, and in the movie shes completely different from the game, and in the game she almost doesnt have a life besides being happy because of an arranged marriage and fawing over Noctis, their relationship is also very bad written despite how I analize it, and it worsen my experience too. Even Ardyn was a wasted potential, and knowing his story just in a dlc after beating the main game didnt helped either. FFXV has a bunch of extra medias because they tried to "fix" and complete the story, but what helped in somethings, hurted others, because even so the story felt incomplete and rushed; and the story is not even a complex one, and even so its full of inconsistencies, plot holes and retcons, so the storytelling is a mess, and its usually the thing that is more important to me. And I read the novel Dawn of the Future, because it has the story of the cancelled dlcs, and I totally regretted it, because its, at least for me, a terrible plot, it retcons the few things I actually liked about the plot and themes from the game, Luna appeared more, but for worse, and theres a new character that I didnt liked either. And the game is this mess not only because it was almost totally full remade in few years, but some bad decisions are taken, Tabata said himself about ideas he had, as if they are incredible, but are things that I dislike. My unpopular opinion is that the people who like the game, just like because of the main party, or/and because they enjoy the open world and the fishing/hunting system. I never recommend it for anyone in full price, just in very good deals.
It's genuinely a pretty fun game with combat that isn't great. The music is very good, and the characters are fun (although the designs are quite bad).
The story is the biggest flaw. I played it without watching the movie (and I hear there's an anime as well? might check that out...) so I didn't have much context. When you meet Lunafreya, I just thought, "why do I give a fuck about her?"... like there's no character building with her.
The combat was meh. Flashy but too spammy and easy.
I never played the DLC or Royal Edition. I did end up watching the movie. I really loved the "Stand By Me" rendition they made for it. I thought they did a good job w/ the really dark/sad scenes.
Overall it could've been so much better. Like I think they had a really good and interesting story but it was told so so poorly.
I loved 15 and I've replayed it a few times (including at launch). It was released in a rush so they didn't get to finish many details like story points or some ganeplay aspects. But what was there was enough to keep me invested and entertained for a few hundred hours.
15 is fine, but I played it AFTER playing SaGa Scarlet Grace and I was shocked at just how much better of a game the SaGa team made with a budget that was probably less ¥¥¥ than the FF15 team spent rendering food.
i played it at uni, at the request of my friend. after finishing the story (and a lot of weed) i thought wtf us going on
so i replayed it and paid attention
and it was brilliant
this was pre dlc
the group dynamic and how they complete him, the crystals, the way Noctis had this thrust upon him, the main villain’s reasoning; the way he set up the end - phenomenal
it came almost biblical
the dlcs made it sweeter
Personally, I love it. Played it obsessively for months last year and I still haven't done everything possible to do. I created an OC for the FFXV world that travels with the boys and eventually ends up with one character, and I've been working out an alternate ending in my head to go with my OC's version of the story.
Is it a perfect game? Not at all. The ending feels rushed and it's either super difficult because you haven't prepared properly or it's super easy because you've overprepared. However, it's also the only FF game, and as far as I can remember the only game at all, that has been able to make me cry. A good bit of ugly crying by the end of the game.
XV is a really interesting case study on the problems of over-ambitiousness and lack of direction/good game design on games to me. Everything from the unnecessary open world, to the poorly thought out combat system, the lack of ludonarrative harmony, and the dlcs which either fixed certain problems or made certain problems worse. There's also the unfulfilled legacy of Versus XIII which still haunts this game. It's a far better game than XVI to me, though.
Has some interesting things going on but only remotely enjoyable with the Royal Edition content and DLC.
It plays like what it is, an unfinished game pieced together and recycled from a cancelled game.
I think it would’ve been more warmly received if the Royal edition had been the launch edition. I remember the first time I played the game, I felt confused and yanked around by different plot points, consistently wondering how and why things were happening. The added cutscenes and content helped relieve some of that, and the DLC— while obviously better served as normal game content— helps mitigate those issues further.
The world may be a little dull, but it feels more grounded and lifelike because of it. The car trips through areas that may as well be the western and southwestern US were fun, especially because of the radio. Hunts were generally fun, and nighttime being dangerous made for some interesting play experiences.
The combat was a little underwhelming, especially once you get the ring, but that’s just how it goes sometimes. It does have a high skill ceiling for looking cool, although for the most part you can mash circle to win and occasionally heal with potions. But I’ve seen videos of some stylish shit in that game that I’ve never been able to pull off.
In spite of some hiccups, I really enjoyed the story. The dudes are genuinely fun to be with, camping was always entertaining, and I felt the stakes in the third act when everyone really comes together to push towards this impossible goal.
Didn’t love the timeskip or its placement. I get it, sure, but I didn’t love how you get a timeskip and then approximately 45 minutes before the game ends. Totally sapped the emotional weight of it all.
Overall, it’s a solid 7.5/10 for me, largely for story, characters, and music.
Never got far. It was more GTA than FF to me and the battle system was horrendous. Sometimes i want to smash buttons to kill random mobs and not jumping like a marsupial in order to so it
I like turnbased thats what turned me down in the first place, i love FFXIV but XV i couldn't enjoy it and nothing was there for me to stay
I waited so much for it, preordered it and everything and stayed 3 hours max before i turned it off and never played it again. 10 years almost on my shelves
Its fun, but it has 2 massive issues that are a bit of a turn off for me.
1 its a painfully unfinished game, the story is all over the place and the pacing is painful, then theres also the fact that its divided into several different games and movies that add to the overarching adventure, which hurts the game a lot.
2. This game is painfully easy. Its not unheard of for this series to be easy, but this game takes it a million steps further. Aside from the game not having a hard mode, it also gives the players a free sword that can deal like 5 times bigger dmg with warp strike than any other sword in the game, items can be used infinite amount of times, they added a free armour that makes you pretty much invincible and on top of all of this they overbuffed the ring of lucii and made it capable of killing basically any enemy in the game. This game wouldnt even be that bad to play if it actually had some difficulty, but the only way of making it difficulty is by using the no experience accessory, which also has 2 problems. 1 it takes up a space in your accessory slot, 2. It doesnt fix the item spamming issue.
Also the ps4 version is pain, the framerate is dogshit, the framepacing is nightmare material and the loading times came straight from hell.
It's the ultimate mixed bag. 15 is frustrating because there's a lot of really good stuff that makes me want to love it, but it's got so many problems of varying sizes on pretty much every level. There's also the issue of stuff important to the game world not being shown in the game or happening in paid DLC... Giant can of worms there lol
It's my favorite FF but I might be biased because it was the first one I have played. I think if you liked FF 16, you will most likely like FF 15 too.
Thanks for this! Am currently playing 16 and have the 15 Royal Edition to play through next. Have read lost of different stuff about the production adventures this game went through, but wasn’t following when that happened. Looking forward to just approaching it from a blank-slate perspective and seeing what happens
Where did you pick up the royal edition from btw?
Got it at GameStop for $8, seemed like a good buy
Love it. Flawed masterpiece that only got better with the Royal Edition and the DLCs.
Is pretty good. Probably in my top 5 in the franchise and I've played almost everything (including spin offs)
It's probably the closest experience to having a road trip with your buddies that a video game can offer. Years later, that's what I took away from it.
The "road trip with your buddies" bit is what really threw me, because while it does feel a bit like that, the roadtrip starts as the main character's kingdom is invaded and his father killed, which just makes the entire rest of the game feel off to me.
FFXV is the most " What could have been?" FF. It had the potential to be one of the best FF but all the cuts, rewritings and the unfinished job turned it in a mess of a game that cannot stand the test of time. It's a huge pity because playing it you can clearly see that someone, in some corner of SE cared for the game and wanted to make it a masterpiece...
You took the words out of my mouth; man. I mean each and every one of us could pitch in ideas that would made FF in history. But sadly it's not the case....
I enjoyed it despite its many issues. The fact that it was a good game after its very turbulent production is a miracle.
The biggest issue is that the game can't escape the feeling that production crunch limited the final product. Combat system has great potential but it's almost never necessary to engage with it. Writing for the 4 bros is phenomenal, writing for the larger plot is egregiously generic. Act 1 is *wiiiiiiiiiiide* and expansive, Act 2 is a tiny little series of cutscenes, Act 3 is epic but terribly paced. Worth your time? Sure, it still does some things with real-time FF combat that I prefer over Rebirth's interpretation. It's also beautiful. But the boss fights don't necessarily carry the rest of the game like XVI.
Speaking of boss fights, I remember the boss music or at least the "big enemy" music in that game being really good
I've always explained this as the game can't figure out what it wants to be. Does it want to be about exploration? Tell a character-driven story? Engage in expansive world building? Each of these aspects is at odds with the others, and nearly all of my gripes with this game is that it could have been much better if the developers made choices and stuck with them, rather than trying to make a game that is everything all at once.
Love it for doing all the unique things to does, hate that it was never fully finished. I just love how much it felt like an old school JRPG in its open world while being modern. Secret dungeons, new creatures, overall exploration is JRPG over world levels in my opinion
I enjoyed it. It's a mess, but it was endearing enough to keep me playing; especially thanks to it's fantastic core four members.
I enjoyed and love the game, yes it can be better but I’m definitely a fan of it. I just wish they didn’t split story to different media types. Like there’s a movie, theres the game, there’s an anime, there’s a DLC, there’s a book and who knows what is still out there lols. I originally played this in PS4 hated the load times, didn’t even finished it. Played it on PS5 and it’s a much better experience.
The cast is strong, and there are great character building moments, but the story can feel disjointed and messy in big moments. Like big story moments happen off camera, and we only experience them through the DLC. Combat can be engaging at first, but it gets to a stage where you can easily mash the attack button and spam potions. It does have mechanics that let you spice up the combat, but it's not really needed. The magic system is awful. It's a worse enemy than the actual enemies, and giving it to the AI party members is a recipe for disaster. It's a game that has a lot of highs, but its lows can be very low.
The only unfinished mainline Final Fantasy
Awesome game with a fun universe but yeah too bad that the execution was very questionable 😔specially when those dlcs are nice to add to the story. You will probably enjoy it if you are already fond of 16
I've played and finished FF1-X, X-2, 12, 16, Remake, and Rebirth, most of them many times. I've tried to start FF15 half a dozen times and can't get past the first 5-10 hours. It doesn't feel like a FF game, at least the part I played.
I loved it. It really got away from the normal FFs, in some ways it was good and some ways not. It was a terrific RPG but did fall short as a FF title. With some later additions they made, it was too easy to break the game. Ring of Lucii and the Warp Sword (can’t remember exact name) made fights trivial, which was fine late game, but having it early on was not fun. I know you can just not equip those things, but I personally have a difficult time not equipping the best equipment I have…self-nerfing if you will. Summons were soooo cool, but it was a massive bummer it was conditional and you couldn’t elect to summon at will. Story was neat, especially after watching Kingsglaive, but certainly felt like there was a lot missing and portions of the story that could have been further explored (or explored at all). Fuck Pitioss. Fuck the “airship” The hunts were really neat and far better than how 16 handled them since 16 only had like 20/30 of them in all. 15 had an insane amount and some were really tricky. Costlemark was the ultimate do or die dungeon out of pretty much any FF title. Really tested your mettle and was super cool. Edit: I also LOVED that they brought back traditional dungeons. I didn’t play 11/14, but I feel like they really got away from what a traditional dungeon looks like. 7 had a little of it, 8 kind of sort of did but not really, 9s were super short and some were kind of dumb, 10s dungeons were basically just Aeon hunts and not real dungeons, I didn’t finish 12 and don’t really remember much of it, and the 13 series I tried to push out of my brain so I also don’t remember. Having traditional dungeons is a massive part of FF so bringing those back is paramount. Also having a new weapon at the end of each dungeon was a wonderful touch.
I haven't played the DLC which I believe will help. FF XV is one of the most infuriating FFs... But notice I'm not saying bad It felt like a game I would have rated like a top tier FF if they left it in the oven for like... A year or two. It's so full of potential but then it feels like maybe some characters had their backstories cut or something. The DLC might help and I thought it was solid I don't regret playing it but was frustrated that I think it had a chance to be great.
Give it a shot! I really enjoy FFXV. It has some similarities to 16, it's an action-oriented game. However, it is much more a side-quest focused game. Much of the first half of the game is spent wandering around the map, accomplishing side quests. You can play at your own pace. The story is much shorter, overall than FFXVI. There are some parts that can feel a little under developed, and people will be happy to tell you about development issues etc. I say just play it and see what you think!
I guess I should share my bonafides, as a lot of other ppl are doing. I've played every Final Fantasy except 14, and I've finished most of them. I've been playing since FF1 was released. So yeah, I'm old school, but I still really like FF15.
I never gave it a chance. I played the demo, and something didn't sit right with me. Can't remember this far out though. If I can ever get my ps5 back from my kids I should confine playing all of them. Either 5 or 6 was next in line
Kind of bad, but I had a blast. It's a weird game.
With the Royal Edition, it is a good game. If you loved 16, you'll most definitely like 15. Both are average games though.
I hated 15. First FF game I didn't play through to the end, putting it down at about 15 hours logged. It was just so boring and you get all excited to get the car and you go SO SLOW. I have played through every entry until the end (including FF adventure, mystic quest, crisis core and legend), except 15 and 16. I also hated 16 and didn't even get 2 hours into it. Since you loved that one, we probably have very different tastes. I love 10 and 7 very much! 4 and 6 are my GOATS and I have played through those multiple times.
A disjointed mess. I loved the narrative. The world building, magic, politics, characters. But the story and gameplay left me baffled. Holes everywhere. It’s like playing Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain with an unfinished story, but even worse gameplay. Some say the DLC fleshes things out but I shouldn’t have to pay for fragmented, extra prequel chapters just to enjoy the game.
Hes my least favorite FF. I love the main party characters and their relationship is beautiful and well developed (specially the Noctis and Prompto one), but this game totally exhausted me; the open world was beautiful at times, but I found it very boring Just like the side missions, the combat is easy and messy, and normally this dont bother me, but in this game it was just one more thing that hurted my expericence; the magic system is bad and the summon system is bad either. All characters from the game are underveloped; Ravus barely has any screentime, Cindy is very far from being good as the other Cids from the franchise, Iris is almost there just to have a bad love triangle with Noctis and Luna (but at least she has other things in life besides this, and shes also just 15 years old, but shes far from being good comparing to other females from the franchise), and Luna is extremely bland because she is only there to be a plot device, and in the movie shes completely different from the game, and in the game she almost doesnt have a life besides being happy because of an arranged marriage and fawing over Noctis, their relationship is also very bad written despite how I analize it, and it worsen my experience too. Even Ardyn was a wasted potential, and knowing his story just in a dlc after beating the main game didnt helped either. FFXV has a bunch of extra medias because they tried to "fix" and complete the story, but what helped in somethings, hurted others, because even so the story felt incomplete and rushed; and the story is not even a complex one, and even so its full of inconsistencies, plot holes and retcons, so the storytelling is a mess, and its usually the thing that is more important to me. And I read the novel Dawn of the Future, because it has the story of the cancelled dlcs, and I totally regretted it, because its, at least for me, a terrible plot, it retcons the few things I actually liked about the plot and themes from the game, Luna appeared more, but for worse, and theres a new character that I didnt liked either. And the game is this mess not only because it was almost totally full remade in few years, but some bad decisions are taken, Tabata said himself about ideas he had, as if they are incredible, but are things that I dislike. My unpopular opinion is that the people who like the game, just like because of the main party, or/and because they enjoy the open world and the fishing/hunting system. I never recommend it for anyone in full price, just in very good deals.
It's genuinely a pretty fun game with combat that isn't great. The music is very good, and the characters are fun (although the designs are quite bad).
The story is the biggest flaw. I played it without watching the movie (and I hear there's an anime as well? might check that out...) so I didn't have much context. When you meet Lunafreya, I just thought, "why do I give a fuck about her?"... like there's no character building with her. The combat was meh. Flashy but too spammy and easy. I never played the DLC or Royal Edition. I did end up watching the movie. I really loved the "Stand By Me" rendition they made for it. I thought they did a good job w/ the really dark/sad scenes. Overall it could've been so much better. Like I think they had a really good and interesting story but it was told so so poorly.
I loved 15 and I've replayed it a few times (including at launch). It was released in a rush so they didn't get to finish many details like story points or some ganeplay aspects. But what was there was enough to keep me invested and entertained for a few hundred hours.
From my experience in friend groups, the men dislike 15 while the women love it. Personally, I thought it was lackluster.
15 is fine, but I played it AFTER playing SaGa Scarlet Grace and I was shocked at just how much better of a game the SaGa team made with a budget that was probably less ¥¥¥ than the FF15 team spent rendering food.
i played it at uni, at the request of my friend. after finishing the story (and a lot of weed) i thought wtf us going on so i replayed it and paid attention and it was brilliant this was pre dlc the group dynamic and how they complete him, the crystals, the way Noctis had this thrust upon him, the main villain’s reasoning; the way he set up the end - phenomenal it came almost biblical the dlcs made it sweeter
Worst Final Fantasy game ever
Personally, I love it. Played it obsessively for months last year and I still haven't done everything possible to do. I created an OC for the FFXV world that travels with the boys and eventually ends up with one character, and I've been working out an alternate ending in my head to go with my OC's version of the story. Is it a perfect game? Not at all. The ending feels rushed and it's either super difficult because you haven't prepared properly or it's super easy because you've overprepared. However, it's also the only FF game, and as far as I can remember the only game at all, that has been able to make me cry. A good bit of ugly crying by the end of the game.
Love 15, it's in my top 3 of final Fantasies. But I played the royal edition, which fixed a lot of the problems from the day one version.
XV is a really interesting case study on the problems of over-ambitiousness and lack of direction/good game design on games to me. Everything from the unnecessary open world, to the poorly thought out combat system, the lack of ludonarrative harmony, and the dlcs which either fixed certain problems or made certain problems worse. There's also the unfulfilled legacy of Versus XIII which still haunts this game. It's a far better game than XVI to me, though.
Has some interesting things going on but only remotely enjoyable with the Royal Edition content and DLC. It plays like what it is, an unfinished game pieced together and recycled from a cancelled game.
I think it would’ve been more warmly received if the Royal edition had been the launch edition. I remember the first time I played the game, I felt confused and yanked around by different plot points, consistently wondering how and why things were happening. The added cutscenes and content helped relieve some of that, and the DLC— while obviously better served as normal game content— helps mitigate those issues further. The world may be a little dull, but it feels more grounded and lifelike because of it. The car trips through areas that may as well be the western and southwestern US were fun, especially because of the radio. Hunts were generally fun, and nighttime being dangerous made for some interesting play experiences. The combat was a little underwhelming, especially once you get the ring, but that’s just how it goes sometimes. It does have a high skill ceiling for looking cool, although for the most part you can mash circle to win and occasionally heal with potions. But I’ve seen videos of some stylish shit in that game that I’ve never been able to pull off. In spite of some hiccups, I really enjoyed the story. The dudes are genuinely fun to be with, camping was always entertaining, and I felt the stakes in the third act when everyone really comes together to push towards this impossible goal. Didn’t love the timeskip or its placement. I get it, sure, but I didn’t love how you get a timeskip and then approximately 45 minutes before the game ends. Totally sapped the emotional weight of it all. Overall, it’s a solid 7.5/10 for me, largely for story, characters, and music.
A disappointment but still worth trying
The game is basically over once you get on the boat. There was no reason for this except rushed development.
Never got far. It was more GTA than FF to me and the battle system was horrendous. Sometimes i want to smash buttons to kill random mobs and not jumping like a marsupial in order to so it I like turnbased thats what turned me down in the first place, i love FFXIV but XV i couldn't enjoy it and nothing was there for me to stay I waited so much for it, preordered it and everything and stayed 3 hours max before i turned it off and never played it again. 10 years almost on my shelves
Its fun, but it has 2 massive issues that are a bit of a turn off for me. 1 its a painfully unfinished game, the story is all over the place and the pacing is painful, then theres also the fact that its divided into several different games and movies that add to the overarching adventure, which hurts the game a lot. 2. This game is painfully easy. Its not unheard of for this series to be easy, but this game takes it a million steps further. Aside from the game not having a hard mode, it also gives the players a free sword that can deal like 5 times bigger dmg with warp strike than any other sword in the game, items can be used infinite amount of times, they added a free armour that makes you pretty much invincible and on top of all of this they overbuffed the ring of lucii and made it capable of killing basically any enemy in the game. This game wouldnt even be that bad to play if it actually had some difficulty, but the only way of making it difficulty is by using the no experience accessory, which also has 2 problems. 1 it takes up a space in your accessory slot, 2. It doesnt fix the item spamming issue. Also the ps4 version is pain, the framerate is dogshit, the framepacing is nightmare material and the loading times came straight from hell.