Gamer Diary - Final Fantasy XVI (Entry Two)

If you spend enough time playing a video game, you can see a developer's intentions.  Final Fantasy 16 should be an epic adventure of political intrigue with heavy action sequences.  Having played Final Fantasy 7, Rebirth - 16 should be the game that ties in all the experimentations of the previous titles. Instead, it continues to feel more like an odd project the studio released to fill a release quota.

Stilted Character Presentation

I've talked about this before, and I continue to harp on the game's lack of cohesiveness regarding the story.  Cutscenes and cinematic moments have no flow. For example, a conversation between Jill and Clive will occur over multiple cutscenes with jump cuts that feel like commercial breaks. When Clive explains to Otto what transpired during a mission, instead of an actual conversation, the character's arm movements portray the character in explanation mode. I would expect this from an early PlayStation Final Fantasy, but not this.  A lack of music further exacerbates the problem. One thing Final Fantasy is known for is the soundtrack.  Emotional moments often lack energy when presented with characters speaking with no music in the background. Add on the lack of character moments, and it's two 3D models standing stiff, delivering lines.  Here's an example 

Combat Has Improved, But Not By Much

Since the last game, I've gleaned more powers from enemy Eikons, which have opened up the combos, which is something that I wanted earlier in the game. However, there's still a level of complexity that I'm looking for in the game outside of just mashing a button and switching powers. Even though I wasn't the biggest fan of the combat mechanics in Rebirth, I did enough to develop various strategies using different character combinations. I wish the characters in 16 weren't always on autopilot, especially when I stagger an opponent and need to use my most potent Eikon powers to do massive damage.

Clive Deserves Better

After the death of a significant character, I stopped to think about the journey I've had thus far. I can't believe this game was released in this state, especially when you compare it against other games. I look at games like God of War and Horizons, where the director put together such a tight experience. It's cliche, but those games play like movies regarding visuals. Final Fantasy used to be that game. Hell, they did it with Rebirth. Why couldn't they do the same with a mainline title? Clive's story deserves better. There were veins to mine within this universe—the plight of the bearers and their masters. The political war ravaging the country and, of course, seeing more of how the blight has affected those in the land. I would have taken a linear story and traded breath for focus.