Thoughts on Episode DUSCAE FFXV

[Rowan]

Straight outta Duscae.
The good;
-Looks beautiful
-Cindy ma new waifu
-Noctis voice
-delicious foods
-L1+R1 after aquiriing phantom sword (nice)
-Little towns and shop areas
-quests/subquests
-Summoning looks amazing
-Jumping!

Not so good;
-Combat System
-Nocts sword equip system sucks
-Camping cancels sub quests
-Inconsistent framerate
-Sword warping gimmicky and non-existent unless targetting an enemy.
-Lack of camera control and zooming functions



Why have we not talked about this yet. Allow me to start with what I consider the greatest downfall, the combat system. It is clunky, boring and a 'hold down square' fest. Sure, i can press triange to use up my and do a special move, which hardly works since enemies bounce all over the place, usually end up missing. I dont like how you swap around the 5 swords in the menu, it seems crappy and has strong KH stench with it, which I think is tainting the overall combat of FF15.

Now some background on this demo. I am hoping that this demo is from a build/engine that is a few years old. I hope this because I really do think they gotta work on this battle system much more before release. It is very clinky and boring. Hardly any strategy involved and I'm not sure thats even a debatable point.

What did you guys think?


Also, many users have figured out how to break through FF15's barriers on the edge of the map and gain access to the 'forbidden' parts of the game. Breaking this barrier is only possible by running along the edge and jumping on top of a car passing through. going too far will cause the message "forbidden area" to pop up, promply exiting your game. Looking in the right place however, will show you something special. You can see in the video below.

[Andromeda]

The only issue I had with the game was the camera speed was too slow, which I fixed in the menu and everything was perfect afterwards. The combat is simple on first glance and welcoming for new comers, but has a lot of depth and complexity to it for those hardcore that want more out of the game. It is well suited to both types. This will be a good game for new players unfamiliar with the series to enter without feeling overwhelmed. And it has everything else for the RPG diehards. And there is a lot open for experimentation, which is pretty impressive right now since there are only 5 weapons to move around.

[Rowan]

The combat is simple on first glance and welcoming for new comers, but has a lot of depth and complexity to it for those hardcore that want more out of the game.

Could you elaborate? So far I must respecfully disagree.

[Andromeda]

Every weapon has passives that active on use. So planning where you want to use those passives are important. There are 5 weapon slots all contextual to the action in combat. Each weapon type has different speeds and weights to them allowing for different types of staggers. So it is important if you want the most out of the system you need to move around the weapons to find what is the best both for your play style and to achieve your goals. Sure as it is, you can get through combat, but it's not being uses to its fullest. Knowing all your weapons and where they fit are important when dealing with larger swarms of enemies.

It's a good system that is simple at first glance, but has a lot of depth when you start digging in. There's quite a bit of variety and customization you can have and it is only 5 weapons right now. It'll only get more open with more equipment added in the full game. And just remember, the magic system was not included and there was not armor or accessories include either. There is still a lot of systems not in the demo.

[loaf]

Uncompleted game.

[SuperSabin]

I discovered there is a tree you can run at and float from and, in fact, i'll just show you a screenshot to point it out. This is the only tree in the game demo (that I know of) that you can run at and cause noctis to float in the air. It's in the field over towards the place where you can rent chocobos. There is a dirt path as you can see on the screenshot and the tree is right beside the path. Blow up the image for a better picture. I did try this with other trees but I did not get the same result.



EDIT: Found the said tree. Correction, you have to run at the right corner of the tree for him to float upwards. The location of the specific tree is on the right of the dirt path where the path joins together. The dirt trail i'm referring to is the only oval shaped path in the area where the tent is. If you take the path on your right (left map-wise) and follow the path around, you'll see the tree right next to the dirt path close to where the trails join.

UPDATE: I have further information about the tree, its the one with the largest trunk on that trail, ok i'll stop talking about the tree now.

[Rowan]

Combat system is dirt, i hate it even more after playing more of it. KH has ruined final fantasy if this is seriously the direction they want to take the battle system. I hate kingdom hearts and whats its done to FF.

[loaf]

They can't please everyone...

I've said this 50 thousand times...this is a new generation of Final Fantasy so stop expecting shit to be as good as anything prior to 13. You start with 13 and go from there, yeah it sounds stupid but that is literally the direction they are doing. 13 is the new 1.

[Andromeda]

Tabata said he wanted a game that older people can play as well that wasn't heavy on high skill reactive sort of combat. The gaming audience is getting older and he wanted it to still be enjoyed by people who don't necessarily have the reflexes anymore. The system is very different from KH though. But Tabata did Crisis Core and Type-0, both are action RPGs, so that probably says more about his influence than the KH series.

[Rowan]

They can't please everyone...

I've said this 50 thousand times...this is a new generation of Final Fantasy so stop expecting shit to be as good as anything prior to 13. You start with 13 and go from there, yeah it sounds stupid but that is literally the direction they are doing. 13 is the new 1.

I'm not demanding they please everyone, I'm demanding they please me.

The gaming audience is getting older and he wanted it to still be enjoyed by people who don't necessarily have the reflexes anymore"

yet they pander to the action RPG genre. Wtf is wrong with them. If the culmination of my character development is based on switching around some swords in the menu, then the game is doomed for me. I'm not a plebian, I require something more intricate, not something with the illusion of intricacy. I finished the demo holding down square.

[loaf]

I finished the demo holding down square.

Sounds like it's catering to older people.

Rowan, I have beat most FF games by holding down X and just attacking...does that make FF7 bad cause I can hold O and win?

[Andromeda]

Pretty sure the Behemoth killed you if you were just holding down the attack button. ;p

But you're over simplifying your experience. If you don't get buffs, the demo will wreck you. If you only get modest buffs, the game is going to be rough and you'll need to dodge and take advantage of parrying or counterattacking. Only with max buffs will you breeze through the game pretty easily. Though at night goblins, wolves and Magictek soldiers all attacking you at once even with max buffs will require you to pay attention and dodge and react. The Magictek soldiers have a one shot move that you need to dodge or parry otherwise you're dead if a party member doesn't save you.

It is very easy to get in over your head in the game.

[Rowan]

Rowan, I have beat most FF games by holding down X and just attacking...does that make FF7 bad cause I can hold O and win?

You have to customize your characters to get to that point at end game, something that is fun and worthwhile to achieve. I can 1 shot every boss in ff8 if I make the effort to play the minigame, use card to not gain exp and gain AP etcetc, there is so much involved to get to that point my dear loaf and that is what I'm getting at. Those are the things that make the game enjoyable, the system is designed to be exploited if you put the effort in (more-so in VIII) but you cannot just attack your way to victory in ff7 early game - mid game.

Pretty sure the Behemoth killed you if you were just holding down the attack button.

Behemoth kicked my ass, but when I was near death, I 1 shot him with a summon. Look, I know its for the demo, but cmon thats so cheap. You can also easily get to level 99 in the demo and fight it normally. A lot of stuff in the demo should and most likely will not represent the final product. The food idea is cool but also, should not represent the final product as having status immunity from eating a meal, is realllllllyyyy overpowered.

Sorry for being so sour, but after all these years, I expected more ; instead of something thats not accurate representation of what to expect in the final game. Im to the point where they shouldnt have released anything at all because my expectations have now changed when they possibly needn't have. I guess I'm just not a fan of the sword system. It just doesnt feel right to me. I certainly getting this when it comes out ,but I hope that it grows on me somehow.

[Andromeda]

Should try fighting him without the summon around the 40s. It is a good challenge, took 25 minutes, but I killed him. But he's horrible exp for having 500k HP. Immunity to status effects is like having a ribbon on, it'll probably be in game, you'll just have to get some really great food to achieve it. But this is a demo it is representative of their game. Some things were tweaked for the sake of the demo, but systems shown off will likely all be there just with more content.

But if you've been watching the videos I posted here, even before the demo arrived you should have known about nearly all of this. They explained very clearly how combat would function before the demo released. So my expectations were already adjusted with what was being delivered. The only surprise was Ramuh.

[SuperSabin]

I'm enjoying it myself. It took me a 2nd time to understand the battle system better and now I'm enjoying it. I kinda forgot how to mess around with the different swords and equip them in different slots, I'll have to research how that was done again. I really like the exploration, its a breath of fresh air getting to just mess around and go sightseeing, I even bothered to chill at the gas station near one of the demo's barriers (which apparently was a sidequest anyway). To those who either love it or hate it - If you like it, you like it. If you hate it, you hate it.

Oh and not to really jump in on the holding confirm button debate, I just wanted to say that I've been able to hold down O button for the normal battles around midgar (with the exception of boss battles of course). XV really does require some strategy though.

[cetra_aeris]

Whelp, finally got time to play it myself and I have to say, I think it's pretty interesting. The battle system is a little different, but I have noticed what Andro said about how the different weapons offer different staggers for enemies and such. With more weapons available it could become a very intricate system which could prove a challenge for making sure you have all the ones you need and setting up strategy for areas and bosses. It's fun, but not my normal cup of tea. The teleporting thing is a little bit different than I was expecting but has a nice few uses, including escape to higher ground when overwhelmed.

The thing I loved the most was probably the exploration and open map. That was fun. Plus the character commentary could get pretty funny at points. Added notes, Prompto is a scardy cat.

The battle system in my opinion, is unique and doesn't really remind me too much of Kingdom Hearts. More Crisis Core than anything with the ability to dodge and then parry or continue fighting. I'm still not that great with it yet, so those who've been watching me have gotten some good laughs while I run around and scream while trying not to die, save part members and kill things. BTW the little goblin imp things are creepy as 'eff and I hate them all. 'Effing swarms of them dropping form the ceiling and coming out of crevices.

I haven't fully finished it yet because I'm a slow dork and I'm running around enjoying the scenery and making Noctis hop like a bunny on things. But so far, I'm content. The older games will always hold a special place in my heart, but with everything else around us changing and updating it wouldn't make sense for Square to keep the older battle systems. They're trying to adapt but still keep some of the same components. I am hoping to see more with the customization and leveling in the actual game. I'm assuming that the techniques that are "blocked" and the magic system will help with that.

[loaf]

Rowan's posts is why I don't play demos or read up of video games until I play it myself on the final release.

[Rowan]

Rowan's posts is why I don't play demos or read up of video games until I play it myself on the final release.

Loaf knows that when it comes to opinions, I am the butter.

[loaf]

Rowan's opinions and complaints is why I am still here.

[SuperSabin]

I forgot to mention something on my thoughts on FFXV. The game reminds, honestly, reminds me of Xenoblade Chronicles. Both games are so similar in gameplay and feel, both are good, but I like FFXV more than chronicles. I am looking forward to X though, but that's another discussion for another thread.

I wonder if there will be some sort of FFXV/Xenoblade crossover?

[loaf]

I saw this on an xbox one dashboard at a friends house. Almost played it

[Zargabaath]

Finally gave this a whirl; haven't completed it like cetra_aeris I have been running around, getting a feel for combat. The camera could use a follow target camera, but so far it is pretty interesting. As Andro says, it is simple to grasp, hard to master; it took me a while to get countering. I didn't meddle to much with options or if there are any but the ability to change the camera distance from Noctis would be a welcome addition.

Hopefully they'll change this - perhaps I should chime in (Tabata talked about getting feedback from the demo in a recent interview) - when making camp it will abandon all incomplete quests. I can see this becoming a problem. Having to go back and start quest again - too much backtracking. No real reason why camping would do this.

Dialogue has been a bit humorous and it seems like the bros mesh well. Eng VA seem fine as well, one of them sounds familiar.

[cetra_aeris]

I also thought one of them sounded familiar, particularly Ignis. For some reason whenever I hear his voice I keep thinking that it is Baltheir's VA but I can't confirm it. Was driving me nuts for a bit there.

Also to note, finally finished it and have replayed a bit. Points for this game because apparently the banter and graphics are entertaining for the toddler as well, which means mommy can play and kiddo can direct exploration. This has been fun, which hasn't been possible with some of the other games and leave me waiting to play until bed time. The only other game she had a similar reaction to was Lightning Returns.

[SuperSabin]

I also thought one of them sounded familiar, particularly Ignis. For some reason whenever I hear his voice I keep thinking that it is Baltheir's VA but I can't confirm it. Was driving me nuts for a bit there.

Also to note, finally finished it and have replayed a bit. Points for this game because apparently the banter and graphics are entertaining for the toddler as well, which means mommy can play and kiddo can direct exploration. This has been fun, which hasn't been possible with some of the other games and leave me waiting to play until bed time. The only other game she had a similar reaction to was Lightning Returns.

I get the idea that Lightning Returns was the testing grounds for what Square-Enix could use from that game to implement into Final Fantasy XV, but then again, they were developing KH 2.5 at the same time so it could be more of KH ideas than Lightning Returns, or it could be a mixture of the two. It does have some gameplay similarities to Type-0 with the targeting.