For so many years, Final Fantasy had followed the traditional JRPG formula. You take control of a diverse group of characters, fight some monsters, and save the day. Tactics was one of the first games in the series which began to deviate from that norm, expanding the catalogue into turn-based-strategy territory. Then along came the MMOs, then the sequels and remakes, the movies, the music games, etc. With the announcement of the upcoming Dissidia arcade fighting game (which looks amazing by the way), there are seemingly no boundaries for the iconic franchise. With each new installment of a game bearing the Final Fantasy name, you’re never quite sure what you’re going to get, so when I sat down with Type-0, I was prepared for anything.
Final Fantasy Type-0 is one of three main series that make up the collective Fabula Nova Crystallis which includes Final Fantasy XIII and XV, along with their sequels and companion games. Much like the Ivallice Alliance, which consisted of the Tactics series, Final Fantasy XII and Vagrant Story, the games all have ties to the same lore, rewarding the diehards with multiple references. Type-0 introduces its place in the lore through a drawn out opening cutscene and a fairly short Mission battle. Unless watching Chocobos die a slow, painful death for 20 minutes is a pastime of yours, it’s a really odd way to kick off your game. Afterwards, you are free to roam around your main base of operations, a training ground/school called Academia. If this sounds familiar, then rest assured, this is as far away from VIII’s Garden as it can get.
Your party consists of twelve playable characters from Academia’s Elite Class Zero. Each member of Class Zero has a unique weapon specialty; anything from swords and guns to a Soul Calibur-esque blade-whip that would make Ivy jealous. Each character also has a set of upgradable skills, some of which are latent. These include providing an increase in maximum dodge-roll limits, and some are equip-able abilities, such as unique weapon attacks and different types of magic. Some time into the game, you will be introduced to the Altocrystarium, which can be accessed in Academia or at any time from the options menu. Here, you can trade collected Phantoma collected through battle for magic and special move upgrades. However, be aware that with each stat you upgrade, it will reduce a different stat’s efficiency so you will need to plan upgrades accordingly. Depending on your taste for action, you will likely realize a combat favorite or two.
During random battles and missions, you will take control of the character that you have assigned as your lead (or the first character in the party list if that one dies) plus the next two characters at the top of your party list. After defeating an enemy, you will need to target them to absorb their Phantoma and items, should they be carrying any. You’ll realize pretty quickly that having a character with area magic such as Blizzard will be essential for mowing down low-level random encounters. One fantastic feature of Type-0’s battle system is the ability to time your attacks for massive damage, often after your enemy performs a powerful attack or spell. I got a real kick out of tactically defeating level 55 Behemoths with characters less than half their level. If at any time a character is defeated in battle, you can swap them out for another until all of your twelve are used up. There is no real traditional escape option, so make sure you’re as prepared as you can be before heading off to battle.
Mission battles in towns will allow you to experience an interesting feature of battle within Type-0. Before Mission Battles, you may enable a feature which allows characters with names based on the game’s developers to join your party at random during a Mission. These characters disappear after a set time, which can be extended by defeating enemies, bosses and advancing through the mission. They will also gather SP, which can be used to trade for items back in Academia making their usefulness last beyond developing the game you’re reading about. If you’re more of a lone wolf, you can choose to disable the option if you’d rather go it alone. Though it sounds pretty cool, I found the feature to be a bit intrusive and restricting, although the characters themselves can be quite useful in a tough battle. However, if you happen to be controlling a character you don’t particularly want to play with for extended periods of time, you’re stuck with them until the time-limit runs out and your original playable party member returns to battle.
You’re given a set amount of time to explore the world until Mission Day, which will advance the main story. Talking to NPCs within Academia with a bright green exclamation point over their head or interacting with marked locations will trigger an Event. Events take up 2 hours of your time until Mission Day and will awards an item for completing them. Most of the time, you will usually get some mundane flavor text regarding a no-name NPC you happen to be chatting with. Sometimes, however, these interactions will trigger a short in-game cut-scene including various members of Class Zero. Some of these events are character-specific, and they usually tell you what character you need to trigger the Event.
Certain marked NPCs will have various Tasks for you to complete. Tasks are usually very straight forward and they don’t take away any time from your Mission Day countdown, unlike Events. Fetch-quest type Tasks can be completed without too much extra hassle, but Tasks where your party is asked to defeat certain enemies or numbers of enemies out in the field require you to use up the game-standard six hours for exploring the over-world in order to complete.
On that subject, here’s a tip that made managing Missions more enjoyable. Every town on the over-world map usually has at least one NPC with a Task for you to complete. However, if you are working on completing a hunting request, it is advisable to complete it before attempting any from townspeople. Towns can also hide unmarked NPCs with a hidden task for you to complete. Sometimes the task will be spread among multiple NPCs, so it’s I’d suggest talking to as many of them as possible. Certain towns also have salesmen who will buy any extra Phantoma off of your party for a pretty fair price, so be sure to remember where you find them!
If you’re a fan of the lore of Fabula Nova Crystallis, make sure to be on the lookout for L’Cie crystals lying around the game. You can turn them into a specific hidden character in a certain town to hear the last words of the L’Cie they belong to. There are more than 40 to collect and they can be found almost anywhere, offering an interesting nod to those who were engrossed by the universe introduced in FFXIII.
Aside from the main battle system, occasionally you will need to participate in territory wars in the over-world to capture territories and towns from the enemy. Mog’s tips will be essential for completing these scenarios effectively, in addition to tons of patience. This battle system takes away from the flow of gameplay, feeling completely different compared to the normal battle system. It can get a bit a bit frustrating if you don’t like or are not used to the style of gameplay.
Speaking of side modes, Chocobo breeding also makes a return in Type-0. When you visit the Chocobo Ranch through the central portal in Academia, you will eventually be given a sort of “starter set” of Chocobo. From there you can breed by using various types of greens as per the norm where the series mainstays are concerned. Different greens may yield new outcomes of Chocobo with interesting battle and travel specialties, so it’s best to stock up on greens where you can and try different combinations at the ranch every few in-game hours. Don’t worry too much about running out of birds to breed either. They can be found running wild on the over-world map, just waiting to be caught.
Final Fantasy Type-0 has a LOT of content. Like, a lot. Be prepared to spend many an hour at your console of choice searching caves for Task items or defeating wave after wave of random encounter enemies, harvesting rare Phantoma for upgrades. Personally, I felt pretty detached from the story as a whole, but found the battles, Missions and Tasks to be the most enjoyable part of the game. It seems that this installment tried to be a little bit of something for everybody, and no matter how you choose to spend your time in the world of Type-0, it’s definitely worth your 60 bucks.
Final Score- 4.25/5