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Reviews are coming out
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Feb 22, 2024 15:04
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| # ? May 24, 2024 23:12 |
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Was going to say the same, it is an awesome game, even though I still have no idea what I think about the ending. - The game is improved mechanically (better combat), the side quests are more interesting, the open world activities aren't too annoying (but can add 30-50 hours if you want to clear everything), there are a ton more combat challenges, the music is as always awesome. On chapter select, you can keep your side quest AND open world activities progress! First playthrough (all side missions, most minigames) took me 95-100 hours - A whole lot of minigames. Like, a ton. - So many funny moments - Cait Sith is more sympathetic. - The story will be the biggest controversy. The ending will be talked about quite a lot. Personally, I think they made some stuff too confusing or ambiguous.
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Feb 22, 2024 15:07
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https://x.com/finalfantasyvii/status/1760394213462778133?s=46&t=CBKJcBX0BD3U5HgUdsqBtw
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Feb 22, 2024 15:08
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Current Metacritic score is a 93
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Feb 22, 2024 15:09
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Just a few highlights off the top of my head: - The stuff best avoid spoiled isn't the story but the comedy, because the game has some amazingly pitch-perfect jokes that deserve to be seen without knowing it. - Queen's Blood is something you should absolutely play. It has its own (incredible) story and honestly I think it is as good, if not better, than Triple Triad. - There are so many loving minigames. So many. Most of them are pretty fun and don't overstay their welcome, a few are intentionally annoying, anything that was in FF7 classic that shows up again is better here. - Cid and especially Vincent not being playable feels a bit more off than Red XIII, I expect it to annoy people. - Cait Sith is a massively improved character and actually ended up one of my favorites. - In fact *all* the characters by and large come across extremely well. The biggest sticking point I anticipate is Cid, who is introduced in a very different context, and comes across more sympathetic (And to some degree softer) than the GET THE loving TEA Cid from the original. I think it's an improvement but it's the one character I can think of who really felt different. -If you liked something in FF7's version of these events it probably shows up in some form in Rebirth except, sadly, The Triceratops Tank. Maybe they're saving it for part 3. -The references can get extremely loving niche. There's one reference to something so obscure I imagine only the most die-hard fans will get the (hilarious) joke. -Combat is improved all around. Characters now get 'free' elemental spells as abilities which means you're never in the position of not having the right element. (Even discounting Yuffie's ability to do any element.) MP restraints are actually tighter than before but you now have ways to naturally regen MP or temporarily get infinite MP. - Hard Mode has the same restrictions as before but due to the aforementioned changes it feels much less restrictive. The massive size of the game will make it a bit more of a chore to go through. (My first playthrough, in which I did almost everything but not all the combat challenges/crafting stuff/hard mode) was 95 hours. ImpAtom fucked around with this message at 15:19 on Feb 22, 2024 |
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Feb 22, 2024 15:16
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From Gamespot’s review:quote:There is one specific moment that has been the subject of will-they-won't-they speculation for years, and how it resolves manages to be confusing to the point of being incomprehensible. For the original Final Fantasy 7, it became an iconic moment crystalized in the minds of millions by its emotionally devastating impact--and for many, it changed the way they thought about video game characters. In Rebirth, it is bewildering and undermines multiple characters, diminishing and obfuscating qualities that define who they are, the decisions they make, and their motivations for doing so, while also being unclear about what is actually happening. Aerith, in particular, is robbed of a moment that is so crucial to her character by the messy delivery; the message is lost among narrative noise that wasn't there before and it's so uncharacteristic of a game that otherwise is sharp in how it presents its characters. In my case, there was also an instance where the way the story unfolded and a character behaved contradicted how the actions I had taken up until that point dictated it should have played out. Of course, all of this is open to interpretation and perhaps some will find meaning where I couldn't, but having to untangle a story in a desperate bid to make sense of it isn't what I wanted to be doing when the journey was complete.
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Feb 22, 2024 15:16
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ImpAtom posted:-If you liked something in FF7's version of these events it probably shows up in some form in Rebirth except, sadly, The Triceratops Tank. Maybe they're saving it for part 3. poo poo game 0/10
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Feb 22, 2024 15:18
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ZeeBoi posted:From Gamespot’s review: The ending is messy but I don't think it's really confusing. If anything it's a bit more straightforward than FF7R's ending in terms of what is actually happening. It's going to bug people but largely for the same reason FF7R's ending did. I can't really say more without spoiling things. (I also have no idea what they mean by 'contradicted the choices I made' because the story is largely linear with the exception of the Gold Saucer date. The dialogue choices you make largely just change your relationship levels or occasionally how certain segments play out.) ImpAtom fucked around with this message at 15:24 on Feb 22, 2024 |
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Feb 22, 2024 15:21
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So can anyone clarify how the demo save import bonuses work - do you need to have finished the whole thing or is just having any demo save enough? I've seen people claiming either, and while I did go through the first half of the demo I'd rather skip the rest and wait for the full thing, but I also don't want to miss out on the goodies...
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Feb 22, 2024 15:23
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fezball posted:So can anyone clarify how the demo save import bonuses work - do you need to have finished the whole thing or is just having any demo save enough? I can't say the demo imports but the save file imports just need a save file, not a finished one, so I can't imagine the demo is much different.
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Feb 22, 2024 15:24
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ImpAtom posted:Now that embargo is up: About how long does it take to finish the game if you don't go out of your way to do lots of sidequests?
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Feb 22, 2024 15:25
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Spermando posted:About how long does it take to finish the game if you don't go out of your way to do lots of sidequests? I can't imagine why you would do that but it would probably be an easy 60-ish hours. It's a long-rear end game. Sidequests are important though since they are where you can find some weapons/skills/materia/etc. Oh! The game does have costumes, but they are locked to a specific area until you finish the game at which point you can wear them anywhere.
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Feb 22, 2024 15:26
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Sailor Barrett reporting for duty
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Feb 22, 2024 15:28
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ImpAtom posted:The ending is messy but I don't think it's really confusing. If anything it's a bit more straightforward than FF7R's ending in terms of what is actually happening. It's going to bug people but largely for the same reason FF7R's ending did. I can't really say more without spoiling things. (I also have no idea what they mean by 'contradicted the choices I made' because the story is largely linear with the exception of the Gold Saucer date. The dialogue choices you make largely just change your relationship levels or occasionally how certain segments play out.) Out of curiosity: did you like the ending, or did you feel like it lacked impact like the reviewer says? I can get behind messy but that can also mean a lot of different things.
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Feb 22, 2024 15:31
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https://youtu.be/LIjMI8uZ5-0?si=qJ6TzKI57iWozlRb Edit: not in-depth due to an embargo, another video will be posted on release day. ZeeBoi fucked around with this message at 15:40 on Feb 22, 2024 |
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Feb 22, 2024 15:32
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Harrow posted:Out of curiosity: did you like the ending, or did you feel like it lacked impact like the reviewer says? That is genuinely an impossible to answer thing without spoilers, but my general feeling: I like some of what it does and dislike some of what it does. There's a lot of individual things I like on their own, but I'm not sure how I feel about them together, there's at least one thing I really like, and at least one thing I really disliked. A good chunk of it however I understand why they approached it the way they did, even if I don't agree with things it does.
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Feb 22, 2024 15:34
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Spermando posted:To anyone who has trouble hitting flying enemies: Gotta echo some of the above, trying to play Red a bunch for the demo really didn't go well, especially for the boss. Not a great way to put their best foot forward for a demo. Plus I forgot how to trigger Cloud's ranged move since the last demo, so I was stuck having Barrett do everything while also trying to keep the others alive, which was even harder without that life link skill from the first game. Took me three tries and a lot of frustration. I'm sure it would have gone better if I were more familiar with current movesets and such, but on a casual look around I did not notice the synergy tutorial to even have a chance to practice. Seems like the sort of thing to solidly point a player at.
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Feb 22, 2024 15:42
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Also with regards to Vincent: They fuckin' nailed it with him. Dude is pitch perfect for the kind of character he is, in that he's the perfect mix of "He's so cool" and "This guy is the world's biggest loving loser" and I am unbelievably hype for this inevitable DLC. (Because the game realllllly implies he's getting a DLC.) Zomborgon posted:Gotta echo some of the above, trying to play Red a bunch for the demo really didn't go well, especially for the boss. The main game makes all of that a lot more blunt.
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Feb 22, 2024 15:44
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I'm low key excited that in 6 years or so we can do a LotR extended edition-style playthrough of all 3 games over 200 hours.
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Feb 22, 2024 15:44
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Oh, the one thing I do dislike, but it may just be me: The game makes Ever Crisis relatively more front and center. It doesn't absolutely dominate the plot but it gets a few serious moments of intense focus that fell absolutely flat for me. They don't need you to play Ever Crisis to get what is going on, it's made pretty clear from context, but somehow I found it much more distracting than any time Zack came up. I'm going to be genuinely annoyed if it goes KH3 and in RE3 I have to have played a lovely gatcha mobile game to understand WTF is going on.
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Feb 22, 2024 15:46
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The Polygon review said it was full of bloat and there were too many mini games. Also they seemed to think that you had to do most if not all of the side content to stay at a high enough level and have the right equipment to tackle the main story. That doesn’t sound right, sounds more like a skill issue. If that were true, wouldn’t every reviewer have been saying it? They said they were torn between loving and hating it. I could understand feeling that way when it’s literally your job to play through the game quickly and write about it, instead of being able to take it at your own pace.
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Feb 22, 2024 15:48
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Isn't Ever Crisis just a reimagining of bits of CC and the OGFF7 or is there more to it than I realize?
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Feb 22, 2024 15:50
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SettingSun posted:Isn't Ever Crisis just a reimagining of bits of CC and the OGFF7 or is there more to it than I realize? It has an original prequel story called The First Soldier although I couldn’t tell you if it’s related to the previous, failed mobile game. The stories of FFVII and Crisis Core are the same. They flesh out what happened between the two a little bit more in some extra content, like how Barrett got to Midgar with Marlene or what Tifa was doing after she recovered (selling a shitload of dumplings)
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Feb 22, 2024 15:52
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SettingSun posted:Isn't Ever Crisis just a reimagining of bits of CC and the OGFF7 or is there more to it than I realize? IIRC there are new characters and expanded lore for things like Sephiroth's backstory. Not sure what does or doesn't come up in Rebirth and I haven't played Ever Crisis myself so I can only go on what I've heard.
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Feb 22, 2024 15:52
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Blackbelt Bobman posted:The Polygon review said it was full of bloat and there were too many mini games. Also they seemed to think that you had to do most if not all of the side content to stay at a high enough level and have the right equipment to tackle the main story. That doesn’t sound right, sounds more like a skill issue. If that were true, wouldn’t every reviewer have been saying it? I mean there is a lot of bloat and a ton of loving minigames, but it depends on if that's a feature or a bug for you. I'd compare it closest to Yakuza in that regards in that the game is clearly anticipating you doing stuff besides beelining the main story. SettingSun posted:Isn't Ever Crisis just a reimagining of bits of CC and the OGFF7 or is there more to it than I realize? It has its own individual plot involving some early SOLDIERs and babby Sephiroth.
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Feb 22, 2024 15:53
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ImpAtom posted:except, sadly, The Triceratops Tank. Maybe they're saving it for part 3
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Feb 22, 2024 15:54
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ImpAtom posted:I mean there is a lot of bloat and a ton of loving minigames, but it depends on if that's a feature or a bug for you. I'd compare it closest to Yakuza in that regards in that the game is clearly anticipating you doing stuff besides beelining the main story. So they reference that story in it? Interesting choice… by which I mean you’re right it’s some Kingdom Hearts poo poo lol Matt and Lucia are cool, Glenn can gently caress off though.
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Feb 22, 2024 16:06
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Oh man, the music. The music is loving amazing. They went absolutely balls to the wall and there's like unique music for almost every single sequence in the game. One of the standouts is that a minor NPC gets his own dedicated theme song timed to the cutscene he is in so that the vocals in the background work as a hypeman for the dialogue he's saying in the cutscenes. And this isn't a major character or anything, they just decided "this loving dude gets his own hypemen in his own song." The only 'complaint' I have about the music is that there's a marked difference in style from the original FF7 songs and some of the brand new ones, which can be a bit distracting. Even then some of the songs are incredible. Crazy Chocobo from FFXIII-2 returns with a bangin' new remix. edit: Also the game does go into more detail and explain more parts of certain elements of the backstory but for the most part the explanations or changes genuinely make sense and are coherent for the worldsetting without being distracting or feeling out of place. Some relatively minor stuff gets built up in ways that made me go "Oh, huh, that makes total sense." If anything I think part of what might make the ending bug people is that kind of like FF7R it feels like a shift from the rest of the game in places. ImpAtom fucked around with this message at 16:21 on Feb 22, 2024 |
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Feb 22, 2024 16:17
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Easy Allies review confirms no materia loadouts 0/10, game ruined, slap in the face, Nomura's a hack, etc., etc.
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Feb 22, 2024 17:03
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Guess I'm gonna watch the ever crisis scenes cause I'm a huge dumb nerd
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Feb 22, 2024 17:04
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Harrow posted:Easy Allies review confirms no materia loadouts Honest answer: The game makes materia swapping far less essential. The overall number of material slots is lower, especially early on, and there's like one segment where the game unequips your materia and it is only for a specific character. It's generally better to build a character for the role you want them to fill than to swap things around. A big thing is that every character will learn free magic spells as abilities now, so it's genuinely not necessary to slap magic materia on every character. Aerith benefits a shitload from magic materia because of Arcane Ward and the fact that her Sphere Grid lets her learn 'enhanced' magical spells which other people can't, but other characters don't need them anywhere as much. Almost every character has more options on what to do that aren't tied to magic Materia. Red XIII is actually a great example. The new skills he gets actually use his Vengeance Gauge as a resource and can do things like refill ally ATB, give everyone haste or have a super powerful heal. That gives you more room to load him up with other kinds of Materia to boost his tanking abilities. Edit: Oh, one thing I should note - Barret no longer has melee weapons. All of his weapons are ranged guns, but his melee moves have now been folded into into Synergy Skills or abilities for other weapons. For the most part this is just a plain buff because he can still functionally fight at close range, but it does disappointingly mean you can't have him beat a dude over the head with a wrecking ball.
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Feb 22, 2024 17:11
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Is Assess still a materia that you have to equip? (if this is answered by the demo, I've been avoiding playing it)
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Feb 22, 2024 17:14
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ImpAtom posted:Honest answer: Oh that's nice. I did like a lot of the changes and new abilities in the demo. Cloud's Firebolt Blade (I think that was the name?) where he can do fire and lightning damage with just ATB and no MP is a good example. It looks like they maybe took some ideas from Yuffie's combat in Intergrade, where she has more ways to hit elemental weaknesses than just spells. It's nice that it seems like characters are more capable independent of materia so it feels like there are fewer "must-have" materia this time. DO IT TO IT posted:Is Assess still a materia that you have to equip? (if this is answered by the demo, I've been avoiding playing it) Yes, unfortunately. It's in the demo.
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Feb 22, 2024 17:14
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if the game didn't have an excessive amount of minigames it wouldn't be FF7
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Feb 22, 2024 17:16
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DO IT TO IT posted:Is Assess still a materia that you have to equip? (if this is answered by the demo, I've been avoiding playing it) It is. That said, there's another thing worth noting: Materia Earrings. The game now have accessories tied to various Materia types, which function as fully leveled version of those Materia and take up an accessory slot instead. You get Assess Earrings pretty early on, well before you have any super significant accessories, so you can just slap them on Cloud or another character and have access to it without wasting a slot Harrow posted:Oh that's nice. I did like a lot of the changes and new abilities in the demo. Cloud's Firebolt Blade (I think that was the name?) where he can do fire and lightning damage with just ATB and no MP is a good example. It looks like they maybe took some ideas from Yuffie's combat in Intergrade, where she has more ways to hit elemental weaknesses than just spells. There's elemental abilities like that and also straight-up magic spells that function basically like tier-1 spells but with unique attributes (Aerith, for example, gets "Wide Range" so her spell inherently can hit multiple enemies.)
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Feb 22, 2024 17:17
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As a Breath of Fire fan, "excessive minigames" is a selling point for me, if anything
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Feb 22, 2024 17:18
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In the same way that Cloud got the Nail Bat last game, can you confirm if any other character got their dumb gag weapon this time, like Aerith with the umbrella or Barret with the spring-mounted boxing glove?
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Feb 22, 2024 17:19
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Asterite34 posted:In the same way that Cloud got the Nail Bat last game, can you confirm if any other character got their dumb gag weapon this time, like Aerith with the umbrella or Barret with the spring-mounted boxing glove? Gag weapons absolutely appear but not as standard weapons, they're usually tied to a sequence of some kind. (Not a plot spoiler but hints at a funny gag.) Cloud grabs an umbrella in place of his Buster Sword when a fight breaks out on the beach for example. I wouldn't be surprised if there is a way to permanently skin weapons that way, since there are at least a few unlockable costumes and such.
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Feb 22, 2024 17:21
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Blackbelt Bobman posted:The Polygon review said it was full of bloat and there were too many mini games. Also they seemed to think that you had to do most if not all of the side content to stay at a high enough level and have the right equipment to tackle the main story. That doesn’t sound right, sounds more like a skill issue. If that were true, wouldn’t every reviewer have been saying it? It was a weird review and seems geared towards people who are 40+ and also have a day job as a teacher and are exhausted by the idea of reviewing games, let alone long rpg games.
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Feb 22, 2024 17:21
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| # ? May 24, 2024 23:12 |
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I made the mistake of dismissing reviews similar to that Polygon one about FFXVI but then I ended up agreeing with some of them, so I'm not dismissing it out of hand. I might feel the same once I play it. I hope not, but hey, you never know.
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Feb 22, 2024 17:22
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