Final Fantasy Type-0 is an action role playing game set in the Final Fantasy universe that was developed by the Square Enix 1st Production Department, the same developer that has, in the past worked on the Dragons Quest Franchise and other prominent titles in the Final Fantasy franchise. Square Enix also published the game during its first initial release. Read on for more details.
Final Fantasy Type-0 was first released in October of 2011. The game dropped in Japan on the PlayStation Portable (PSP) where it sold exceptionally well; beating two other smash hit titles during its release window. It beat Monster Hunter Portable 3rd (another PlayStation Portable title) to the top spot on the charts and it was one of the best selling video game in Japan. Renowned Japanese video game publication Famitsu scored and reviewed the game highly, giving it a total score of 39 out 40.
Following the game’s success of Final Fantasy Type-0, the game was added to the Square Enix Ultimate Hits list and soon after, plans were set in place to develop a high definition remake that would be released on the upcoming 8th generation home consoles. The 8th generation HD re-release of the game is being developed by Hexa Drive, the Japanese Osaka based independent game developer that previously worked on Metal Gear Solid: Snake Eater 3D for Nintendo 3DS and The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker HD for Wii U.
Final Fantasy Type-0 HD is set to release on both the PlayStation 4 and the Xbox One. It will launch in Japan on March 19th and North America on March 17th. PAL regions will receive the game on March 20th.
The development cycle for Final Fantasy Type-0 HD began at some point in the middle of 2012, sometime during Q2 or Q3, this was to have the game serve as a promotional tool for the upcoming 8th generation consoles, but the role of promoting the new home consoles has very much been placed on the shoulders of Final Fantasy XV with it being the most anticipated Final Fantasy game in quite some time after it showed some impressive screenshots and demos which were then expanded upon during Tokyo Game Show with an even more impressive gameplay demo and an announced playable demo.
The mid 2012 period that began the development cycle of Final Fantasy Type-0 HD was the same time that Final Fantasy XV made the swap from PlayStation 3 architecture to the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One architecture. It was also around this time that Hajime Tabata came on board to work on the project. Tabata is a video game director that works for Square Enix and is well known for his work on the Final Fantasy Crisis Core games. Final Fantasy Type-0 HD is reportedly using the very same DirectX 11 technology that’s found in Final Fantasy XV which enables the game to render considerably better lighting and visual effects; it also lets the consoles render the HD assets that will be included in the game.
Since then, Final Fantasy Type-0 HD has taken on a lesser role in the promotion of the new hardware, but it still retains the fan base that made the original game such a success. Final Fantasy Type-0 HD is fundamentally the same game when it comes to the core game, there are three prominent changes being made to the game, please see the Gameplay portion of this Wiki.
Final Fantasy Type-0 HD takes place in a land called Orience, it’s a world that is split between the four Crystal States nations, known as the Dominion of Rubrum, the Militesi Empire, the Kingdom of Concordia and the Lorican Alliance. Every one of these four nation states is in possession of a power granting crystal, rather than waste these gifts, each nation has its own academy where they research and learn about their nation’s respective crystal.
Each of these crystals has the uncanny ability to mark select individuals, effectively branding them with a chosen symbol and giving to them a “Focus”. This Focus is a task that the individual must complete. The branded individuals are marked as distinct and are servants of the country, they have a longer life expectancy and the ability to take on a crystalline form. Every branded servant will, over time, lose their memories, leaving them without a definable past.
Gameplay remains largely unchanged except for the following changes:
The original game, Final Fantasy Type-0, featured a passive gameplay mechanic called “perstylium”. A game mode that allowed characters to continue to level up while the PSP’s sleep mode was activated provided the battery wasn’t dead. This is unlikely to return in the console version given that it’s not intended for portable play.
The original game, Final Fantasy Type-0, featured three different levels of difficulty, normal, hard and impossible. In Final Fantasy Type-0 HD this has been altered slightly to include an “easy mode”. This means that Final Fantasy Type-0 HD will have four difficult settings, Easy, Normal, Hard and Super Hard.
Final Fantasy Type-0 featured a multiplayer system that allowed players to assist each other within a set lot of missions, this feature wasn’t available in the beginning or later portions of the game. In Final Fantasy Type-0 HD, this feature has been removed entirely during the console optimisation process. To compensate for this loss of content, magic abilities that were only available in the multiplayer content has been introduced into the single player campaign itself.
Other than the above mentioned changes, the gameplay remains unchanged for the most part. Players will take control of up to 14 members of class zero and progress through a mission based story structure. The player is given control of three characters that can be switched between at any time. Target locking helps in attacking enemies, but the selected target can be changed in between each attack allowing for dynamic reactions.
Characters will generally all make use of specific special weapons and special attacks that are unique to them, but this may change given that abilities that were previously locked to the multiplayer component of the game are now available in the single player campaign. Performing a well timed attack whilst an enemy prepares their own attack can deal very high damage to the opponent, this is called Break Sight. Another ability called Kill Sight will kill a normal enemy in one hit. Furthermore, all three party members can be called upon to execute a synchronised attack called the Trinity Attack, this combines their attacks and deals the highest amount of damage to the opponent, despite it’s obvious strength, this ability can be used as many times as the player wants.
The combat mechanics in Final Fantasy Type-0 HD is similar to that found in the Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII game which was also launched on the PlayStation Portable.
The characters found in Final Fantasy type-0 HD are the exact same as those found in the original PSP version of Final Fantasy type-0. But given the extensive cast of characters that spans multiple nations, this Wiki will only detail certain characters.
Machina Kunagiri – A dual wielding swordsman (specifically rapiers) transferred from class 2 to class zero.
Rem Tokimiya – A dual dagger wielding girl transferred from class 7 to class zero.
Ace – Ace is, as his name suggests, a card user with leadership abilities. He’s considered a team leader.
Deuce – Deuce uses a flute and her music as a weapon. Deuce is the youngest member of Class Zero.
Trey – Trey is an archer that specialises in the Longbow discipline.
Cater – Cater makes use of an antique magic gunpowder pistol.
Cinque – An unpredictable girl that wields a large mace.
Sice – Sice is a person with good judgement and is skilled with scythe.
Seven – Seven is a cold yet good natured individual that makes use of a chain whip.
Eight – Eight is a young man that likes to use his fists rather than a conventional weapon.
Nine – Nine wields a spear that fits his harsh personality.
Jack – Jack makes use of a Katana to match his sharp wit.
Queen – Queens is a young woman strongly against injustice, she wields a longsword
King – King is a young but mature individual that uses dual revolvers.
Note: This wiki will be updated once we have more information about the game.