8 Things We Know About Final Fantasy Type-0 HD

It felt like eons ago when Square Enix released Final Fantasy Type-0 in Japan on the PlayStation Portable.  Since its late 2011 release, the prospective of an English localization was mired in uncertainty, with director Hajime Tabata feeling unsure of the PSP and PlayStation Vita’s performance in North America. 

After a long period of growing fan support for the title overseas and a controversial shutdown of a fan translation, Square Enix officially announced a HexaDrive-developed HD remaster of the game at E3 2014 slated for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.

I sat down with a PS4 demo at a recent Square Enix press event on the advent of New York Comic Con to see how this high-def spin-off fares among the endless plethora of Final Fantasy titles out there. Here’s a list of eight things everyone should know about my experience with this early build prior to the full game’s long-awaited release on March, 17 2015.

 

1. This is a PlayStation Portable game redone in HD.

Final Fantasy Type-0 was originally a Japan-only Final Fantasy game released on PSP in 2011; hence it still plays like a game made for portable systems. 

At its heart and soul, it still plays like a PSP game with a HD makeover. That means the amount of enemies onscreen are still limited, and the missions are a tad shorter than what one would expect out of a console JRPG. The updated textures put in place are far smoother and crisper than the PSP original. Just don’t expect anything groundbreaking.

2. Combat is in real-time.

The game is an action RPG in the vein of Kingdom Hearts and Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII, so players will primarily be using the face buttons for skills and attacks.

The game is split up into missions, accessed by a world map where the player can choose to tackle the main story or venture off into sidequests. Said missions are comprised of several areas peppered throughout with groups of enemies that will automatically engage you in combat sans any scene transitions. Characters will have four attacks at their disposal, including staples like Cure and Blizzard that require MP.

During missions, players will have a party of three characters. If a character dies and can’t be revived, one can bring in another from a roster. Speaking of dying, my characters did a ton of that during my playthrough. For the sake of the demo, they automatically revived. Nevertheless, I was pretty surprised by how hard-hitting the enemies were.  As a response to feedback from Japanese players, Type-0 HD will include an “Easy” mode for those looking to decrease their Phoenix Down intake.

3. The camera and targeting systems need some work.

With another analog stick at the player’s disposal, Type-0’s camera can finally be fully controlled. Manual control of the camera felt manageable, but some issues cropped up when the game took that control away.

When I clicked in the right analog stick to target a nearby foe, the camera zooms in closer behind the character and focuses towards the direction of the targeted enemy.  This zoomed-in view really made it difficult to get a scope of the entire battlefield, resulting in a lot of moments where I was blindsided by enemies that were out of view.

To make things even more awkward, when an enemy was defeated, the targeting reticule still focused on its motionless figure. At this point you’re supposed to press a button that lets you suck out that enemy’s soul, which grants you a little MP and differently colored “Phantoma,” used for enhancing skills and magic. My character had to be still in order to absorb the Phantoma, otherwise they would just uselessly attack the defeated foe.

4. There are 14 characters in total.

I was given control of three individuals from Class Zero: a 14-person army of students fighting against the invading Militesi Empire. 

In the full game, one can pick any three characters from the 14 for a mission, but I was assigned a specific trio for the demo.  I noticed many of Class Zero’s members were named after playing cards, like Jack, King, Queen, Seven, Eight and Nine.  Playing up this card theme in the demo was Ace, a character who used card-based attacks a la Gambit from X-Men. His “Cut Card” skill allowed me to charge up four cards that featured randomized effects, like a cure spell or a fiercer attack. 

The other two playable characters, Rem and Seven, also feature their own weapons and abilities. Rem could unleash a flurry of daggers while Seven used a whip that could ensnare enemies that slowed enemies down. Suffice to say, the game gives you a lot of options in deciding how to effectively tackle each combat situation, and I enjoyed the ease in switching between each one.

5. Magitek armor makes a comeback.

I was pretty psyched to see Type-0 feature Final Fantasy VI’s Magitek armor. 

The game uses these pilotable mechs in spades, with enemy combatants oftentimes piloting them in battle. Even the demo’s boss was using it, albeit a more enhanced, flying one that’s more in line with your typical flying mobile suit. 

Magitek armor has clearly come a long way since 1994.

6. Be prepared for lore overload.

Judging by the lengthy opening cutscene, I could already tell that the game was going to confuse me with its terminology and lore.

The game is set in the Fabula Nova Crystallis universe that makes up all of Final Fantasy XIII, so be prepared to digest more exposition about the “l’Cie” and a handful of peculiarly-named areas like “Rubrum,” “Millitesi” and my personal favorite, “Vermillion Peristylium.” 

7. Type-0 is exceptionally gritty for a Final Fantasy.

For all of the things that make this game a Final Fantasy title, it’s still surprisingly a far grittier game than most titles in the franchise.

You’ll still get adorable moogles that gleefully exclaim “Kupo!” and there’s still a character named Cid. Plot-wise, however, players will be getting far darker; a story brimming with total war, massive amounts of death and students being sacrificed to summon giant Eidolons. 

I raised an eyebrow upon witnessing sprays of blood as a crazed villain in Magitek armor gunned down students in a cutscene at the end of the demo. I wouldn’t be surprised if this got a M-rating from the ESRB.

8. It’s being packaged with a Final Fantasy XV demo.

Square Enix is pulling a Brave Fencer Musashi with this one by bundling the game with a demo of a far more anticipated title. In Musashi’s case, that was a 1998 demo of Final Fantasy VIII. With Type-0, fans will be getting Final Fantasy XV.

It’s a smart move that will undoubtedly boost the game’s sales. And let’s not forget that its March 17, 2015 release date would make a great birthday present for me. Just putting that out there.