At long, long last Dissidia has arrived. Lord knows I’ve been waiting for it for far too long, and I’m sure the most of you are with me on that. Ashamedly enough, I didn’t pick it up on launch day – the release of the PS3 Slim caused me to overlook it. But I quickly remedied it the next day, and since then I’ve managed to clock in a WHOPPING… three hours.
I try, okay? I really do. In any case, I’ve played enough to warrant some initial impressions of the game. A full review will follow someday, sometime.
You all know the basic premise behind Dissidia, so I won’t bore you with all of that. After creating your save file, you’re taken to a screen with multiple options for play: Story Mode, Arcade Mode, Quick Battle, and Communications Mode. Other options include the “PP Catalog,” which is where you use “Player Points” to purchase goodies such as new playable characters and costumes.
The modes are all fairly self-explanatory. The Story Mode lets you play through the individual storyline of one of the many playable characters. The Arcade Mode lets you choose a character and play through five random battles. Quick Battle allows you to customize a single, quick fight. Like, say, if you really want to see what would happen if Firion from Final Fantasy II were to face off against Kefka from Final Fantasy VI. Communications Mode is the game’s multiplayer mode. Sadly, (and shockingly) there is no online play. If you want to face off against against a real person, you’ll need a buddy with a PSP and a copy of the game.
The Warrior of Light!
I’ve spent some time with all modes except Communications Mode thus far. Story Mode is clearly the meat of the game, and I’ve played through two chapters of it. Upon selecting story mode, you’re treated to an absolutely gorgeous CG cutscene that you probably watched on the internet months ago. (I did.) Afterwards you’re thrust into the swing of things as the nameless Warrior of Light. How it works is this: each chapter has five “levels” that are represented by a checkerboard grid. You start on one side of the grid, and the goal is, essentially, to move to the other side. The catch is, multiple squares are guarded by baddies, and the amount of times you can move is limited by the number of “Destiny Points” – or DP – you possess. The grids are also occasionally littered with treasure chests or potions, which can aid you in your quest. (At the expense of DP, of course.)
Between each grid is a cutscene devoted to the player you chose and the companions he’s traveling with. To be utterly blunt, these cutscenes are borderline painful to watch. As cool as it is to see Cloud, Tidus, Cecil and Firion in the same place, the dialogue is God-awful cheesy and the delivery isn’t a whole lot better. Although, to their credit, Square Enix seems to have gone out of their way to re-acquire actors who have voiced Final Fantasy characters in the past. Steve Burton returns as Cloud, James Arnold Taylor voices Tidus, Yuri Lowenthal is back as Cecil – the list goes on. However, the bottom line is: don’t buy Dissidia if you’re hoping for an epic, involved Final Fantasy narrative. While the game as a whole rises above, the plotline remains firmly rooted in typical fanservice drivel.
Kuja VS. Zidane
But enough negativity. Let’s turn to the many (many) positive points of Dissidia. As I mentioned in the demo impression I wrote some weeks ago, the combat is just fantastic. For those unfamiliar, there are two attacks at your disposal: bravery attacks and physical attacks. Bravery attacks steal an opponent’s Bravery Points (which translates directly to the amount of damage a character can deal), while physical attacks deal damage in proportion to the number of bravery points the player has accumulated. Thus, battles become less about hack-and-slash, and more about striking at the right time, with the right amount of bravery points.
While it wears the veneer of a fighting game, Dissidia includes some extensive skill and weapons customization options that JRPG nerds (such as myself) will have a blast playing around with. For whatever reason it’s a ton of fun to deck your fighter out in whatever gear you manage to get your hands on. Like any respectable Final Fantasy game, there are summons, which can be called to battle to aid you. There’s a strange pseudo-synthesis system that works by meeting certain requirements in battle (frankly I’m still unsure how the system works) and there are shops to buy crap from. Outside of the actiony battle system, Dissidia features some fun and solid JRPG mechanics.
But the single greatest thing about Dissidia will have to be experienced to be appreciated: the amount of trivial fanservice Square Enix has packed into the game is unbelievable. Every option on the menu has its own tutorial, hosted by a different Final Fantasy character. References are made to spelling and translation errors in older Final Fantasy games. (“There is no Vicks! Only Biggs! Ahem. Moving along…”) To say much more would be to ruin the best that the game has to offer.
I’m loving Dissidia so far. It’s fairly simplistic, but addicting. It’s a whole lot of fanservice, but the mechanics underneath are solid enough so that the experience doesn’t feel hollow. If you’ve been playing Final Fantasy for any length of time and own a PSP, you absolutely cannot go wrong here. Look for a full review soon. And by that I mean when I finish it. Which is God-knows when.
