Playing the Final Fantasy Type Zero Demo ("Live" first impression)

[Bells]

The Demo opens with a very awesome Squeenixesque CG sequence that sort presents you with the game and some of it's characters... just by looking at the Cg and gameplay footage it FEELS a lot like a mix of Kingdon Hearts + Dissidia + 3rd Birthday. I feel this is where Squeenix is trying to evolve right now with all these games, making this the new new "TBS system" of theirs. Let's play and see what happens.

Right now, the opening (several minutes long) has got me pumped for it, very well done and as Anime-esque as ever.

Also, animations both ingame and CG are fantastic as you would expect. It actually looks better than Dissidia.

Music is also very "epic sounding", loving it so far!

Picking New Game now...

Another cutscene, seems to be the same of the trailers we already saw, but it's not ... seems more complete somehow, can't really compare. It's a game intro alright, presenting the characters in the middle of the conflict. A full fledge warzone and things don't seem to be going well at all.

Also, a lot of Adult soldiers killing Mage Kids, guess this is a theme... Hey, an armored chocobo killed soldier! cool. GAH!! Someone gunned down my chocobo! Still a cutscene though... this game does not shy away from blood.

Now i meet the main character, typical blond shonen boy followed by typical Girl with glasses.

changing to another cutscene, other two characters. Typical dark haired "serious guy" and typical cutie.

HA! Now i get to play, the "crystal music" plays and i have a meny and control of my character. This game does look really really good and i control the cutie in what seems like a magic school. Can just run and Roll with X. like Dissidia's dodge.

Seems like an academy of sorts, its filled with kids in student clothing, some older people in armor too, and even a couple of Moogles . I find a moogle that transports me to another room, some characters have Symbosl over their heads, blue or orange ones, seems like missions...

I guess i can add Final Fantasy Crisis Core to the list of inspirations

Actually, the character with the blue symbol was a Shop vendor, and i get access to my party list, 8 characters! All on lvl's 6-7

REM (character i'm using right now)
NINE
QUEEN
ACE
SICE
KING
MACHINA

Characters can equipe 2 accessories, 1 weapon, at least 2 "commands" and 1 "Defense Magic", Characters also have AP (connects with FF13? It is a Fabula Crysalis game after all... ), aside from HP, MP, Xp and 6 attributes.

I can equip in commands either Abilities or Magic attacks, each character seems to have their own. Rem for example can choose between 2 ice spells, 1 fire spell and 1 thunder spell

Also, so far, the camera seems Semi-Fixed, but functional

i picked a random option from another moogle and got transported to a Forest-Like setting, seems i got a fighting mission. The game is showing me commands i can't read cause they are in japanese =P

Oh... it's a training mission. an enemy attacks me and i press circle, giving it a Fireball attack, a Red text shows in the screen... i think i failed.

nop, it worked i just got a wave of those flying eyeballs, they look VERY detailed.

X Dodges with a roll.
O Shoots a magic attack
[] Shoots the other magic attack
^ Hits with melee.
Pressing R zooms on target
Pressing and holding L opens a menu i can't use yet

i can combo attacks, but i can't jump or fly away. I can charge my magical attacks by holding the buttons and move freely around too

Ah! Pressing X lets me dodge, but holding it let me cast cure. Nice... also, you can't pause the game during fights, so good luck with that. Camera seems less intuitive right now, Been blindsided by enemies a couple of times already.

I'm on the 4th enemy wave now and i completed it. A portal heals me and lets me get out of the forest. I'm back at the previous room! And i've leveled up

Weird thing, if you press start, you summon a menu, but you can still move around. to actually pause the game you need to select the first menu option

I have a few tabs on the menu here, the first one seems to let me pause or quite, the second one seems like my inventory, many options in here. but i only have 3 healing items and a crystal (upgrade system?)

Then there is my party screen but i can't seem to be able to change characters

Then there is your basic options and a "controls" tab.

i go to talk with a Military looking officer lady, maybe she gives me a mission?

Yep, seems like it. I can accept something with a number 10 in it. I'm guessing i have to defeat 10 of X

i accept it, but nothing else happens, so i guess i need to go somewhere else now?

another moogle takes me back to the first map, the front of the academy, now i'm looking for a place to go, there are 2 paths plus the one i came from, plus the entrance to the academy. Taking the left path, can't proceed. Dude blocks me. going right; dude blocks me. Maybe if i go for the gates i can find some sort of world map... and nope.

Ok, only one way left to go, back to the academy and talking with the mission giving Moogle

BTW, all moogles dress diferently and are ultra cute.

back to the same mission, but this time i holded Triangle and Circle, my character charges, seems to "faint" and holy crap i turned into a summon!! Shiva. a Giant Girl on Rollerskates. This if veeeeeery FF13. I have a timer and 4 attacks and deal a truckload more damage.

The timer runs out and it seems i lost the mission because i didn't kill the enemies in that time period. Seems like using Summons is VERY risky in this game.

i found another thing to click, like a huge crystal that gives me a menu

Member Select (seems like i CAN pick my character after all)
Reserve member (maybe the character that takes over yours if you use a summon and faints?)
Equipment
Member Setting (and summon setting! I have Shiva and Golem! And it seems you can customize their abilities and choose which character has which summon)
There is something called ALTOCRYSTARIUM... if i understand this correctly you can craft and upgrade your magic (Materia Fusion from Crisis Core?)

And of course, save and load.

Just for kicks i decided to pick Queen and go a few rounds with her (she is the girl with glasses)

and she does handle a bit different. Her melee attacks are shorter but stronger (Rem had a much faster, wider range but weak attacks, even though they both use blades) Queen's magic are also really different. Rem's could shot a blast of lightining and a fireball... Queen can charge a flame cross that rools around her or charge a Ice blast that has to be manually aimed and freezes the targe. Much slower magic user, with much more power to boost. Nice!

Well, that seems to be it for the demo. I must say i'm quite please with this. This game seems to be going on rather nicely! If you guys have more questions, shout it out!

Also, you can probably find a few Gameplay videos of it on youtube right now, that's why i didn't bother making one.

[Kim]

I'll shamelessly self-promote my own hands on of the game from a while back.

Absolutely loved it. Camera was a bit dodgy but it's a PSP game, I'm willing to cut it some slack. Definitely looking to be one of the better FF titles, assuming the plot holds up.

[Spooniest]

Gad dangit, now I'm gonna have to get a new screen for my PSP and get this freakin game...

...Sounds like fun.

[Bells]

i was really surprised, it really does feel like several recent squeenix games have come together (With the best parts of each) to create this new experience, you can really see all the different parts connecting like a puzzle to form this game, and for a few seconds there during the demo i would dare to say i was looking at something that was one step away from looking as good as Final Fantasy 12, which, on the PSP, is a very nice compliment.

[Locke cole]

I can't remember, has an English-language localization of this game been confirmed yet?

[Kim]

Not yet, but it seems fairly likely. Depending on the Vita's US release, which I'm expecting during the summer, a localization is more than feasible. I honestly see no reason why they wouldn't, unless it completely bombs.

[Donomni]

It's also going to be a downloadable title on PSN, so chances are a lot better it'll get over here, what with the Vita being able to play PSP games from the PSN and all.