I have to admit, I was rather skeptical about Final Fantasy Explorers when I first heard the gameās description, but after hearing the game directorās initial pitchā¦ Iām actually even more skeptical.
Final Fantasy Explorers is described as an action RPG with mutli-player capabilities. Players band in parties of up to four characters and fight familiar Final Fantasy monsters and summons. The game takes place in the land of Amostera where crystal gatherers, known as Explorers, earn a living by undertaking various quests in the town of Libertas and going out to the various parts of the world.
Initially, my skepticism radar started beeping when I noted that the gameās mentioned features sounded very Monster Hunter-esque, while the descriptions themselves seemed to be trying very hard not to sound like Monster Hunter. The multi-player, the battling large boss-like summon monsters, the central town where players get quests, the various locations like fields and volcanoesā¦ It was hard not to notice similarities.
Then came the developer interview in the latest issue of Weekly Famitsu. Asked what distinguishes Final Fantasy Explorers from the numerous other multi-player action games, director Atsushi Hashimoto stated, āFirstly, itās not simply an RPG, but itās an action RPG where players can roleplay with the jobs from the Final Fantasy series. Secondly, you can battle the famous historical summon monsters.ā Basically, the director of the game just said that the gameās biggest appeal was that it was a Final Fantasy game.
Now, granted, this isnāt really a new practice for Square Enix. Theyāve been riding on the success of the Final Fantasy brand and its iconic characters and creatures for quite some time now ā often to very enjoyable results. Itās not necessarily a bad thing, but in terms of building credibility, Iām going to need a little more than that.
Hashimoto did go on to explain other features of the game, like the ability to capture and train monsters, and the combo capabilities. Hasihimoto even went on to say he didnāt consider the game to be Final Fantasy-ish, but rather a toy chest with multiple different enjoyable elements contained within. Still, the almost deliberate avoidance of comparisons with Monster Hunter wasnāt very reassuring.
I suppose I am āoptimistically skepticalā ā if thatās a thing ā about the upcoming Final Fantasy Explorers. Iām skeptical, but I donāt want to be. Iām fairly certain that Square Enix will offer an enjoyable game. I should add that while I would understand a developerās hesitation to want to be compared to a juggernaut like Monster Hunter, I personally have played many Monster Hunter āclonesā that Iāve enjoyed quite thoroughly. The God Eater series, Phantasy Star Portable 2 Infinity, Square Enixās own Lord of Arcana and Lord of Apocalypse. Iām also looking quite forward to the release of Freedom Wars next week. Hopefully Final Fantasy Explorers will be equally fun, but as it stands, with what info Iāve been given, I can only warily hope.
Final Fantasy Explorers is scheduled for release on the 3DS. No release date has been announced at this time.
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