A great game, but not without its flaws.
It was then, a surprise to see that the actual game is truly enjoyable from the first moment. To begin with, I opened the box and saw 3 discs. This shocked me. I had only been told of 2. I am not yet far enough into the game to tell you of how well the game is paced, and whether the length is truly necessary, but it is somewhat satisfying to see multiple discs when it has been so rare since Final Fantasy 9.
The game itself runs as you expect (ie. put in disc tray and it loads.) There is no initial "Microsoft" and "Mistwalker Studios" sort of intro either. You are taken directly to the menu. I must confess that I have not kept the English voiceovers. I started immediately with Japanese. For the sake of this European review, I probably should have chosen English- but 3 DVDs? No thanks. I did hope that the in-game settings would allow me to slip between languages seamlessly, but as far as I am aware you must retain the same language throughout.
So- a new game. What amazed me from the outset is the graphical engine. Immediately you are thrown into the game, being able to move the character and change camera angles, despite the game credits fading into the foreground. It is, in a sense, a self-created intro to the game. The beginning movie is also fantastic, with [Japanese] lip syncing perfectly and a brilliant voice cast as well as the stylised animation which really adds to the feel. The gameplay itself is odd. It is somewhat familiar to anyone who has played an RPG. You run around and you talk to people, and you kill things. Thankfully though random encounters have been wiped. All enemies can be seen before hand and with the fantastic in-game mechanics battles are reliant on your actions before hand. Did you strike first in the field, or did they catch you from behind? It is far more in depth later in the game, but it helpfully steps you into the experience. Its not too slow nor too fast making it ideal for beginners and veterans alike. One flaw that stood out from the start is unnecessary sections of play time. There are moments where 2 steps will take you to a cut scene. Its not bad, so to speak, but its a shame that you can't just play, or sit back and watch like a movie.
The battle system itself is perhaps overly familiar. Nothing is really new, despite the shadow monsters. Its all just selecting your moves etc. It is quick though, allowing the careless to rapidly tap and get through with relative ease. Its obviously not a hard game, but for gamers like me this isn't bad. RPGs are all about the storyline, not the repetitive battles after all. Using the field to your advantage helps to give it a more involving feel too, so experimentation always helps to detach you from the grinding experience which inevitably lies beneath the gorgeous surface. Character customisation lacks innovation also, using a reasonably linear class system but its enough to sink your teeth into without having to sepnd hours organising your stats.
The game is somewhat quirky. The script contains some fun things to keep you occupied when in the field, most notably, and I quote "You have found a poo. Would you like to search it?" It is just the occasional inflections that truly bring the game to life. Now I come to the 2 flaws I have encountered in my short play of the game. Despite being vastly improved from the demo- the game still suffers from extensive slow down. It isn't particularly bad but just enough to be annoying. Occasionally frames will skip, but most commonly, what seems like a steady 30 fps, will drop down to a noticeable 18. Achievements are also notoriously impossible with some requiring you to achieve things first time at various points in the game or fail to get the SECRET achievements. If you could see when you needed to go back to previous saves it would be far less of an issue, but for completionists like me it is impossible to achieve without previously looking things up online. The game is strong and definitely worth your money and time but the lack of originality drags it down. Like the only RPG currently on Xbox 360 (Enchanted Arms) this does nothing new with the genre and is therefore somewhat forgettable. At least it would be, if it didn't take you so damn long to complete. Whilst the graphical style is different, environments are often plain and thus not really pushing it. The music, despite being very hyped up is truly average, wih some tracks being very muteable. It is fun to play, but whether all the hours it offers are worth drawing out is down to you. For me, it certainly is, but played sparingly. After all, you should never have to much of a good thing.