Dissidia Final Fantasy NT / Square Enix
DISSIDIA FINAL FANTASY NT HANDS-ON IMPRESSIONS
We go Hands-On with Square Enix's ultimate Final Fantasy crossover brawler.
by Felipe Parada
Recently, I had the chance to spend a good chunk of time the up-coming Dissidia Final Fantasy NT. The more time I spent with this group super brawler the more I came to realize that this isn't just another fighting game. With characters spanning over the course of 30 years, it's apparent that teamwork is the most crucial aspect when it comes to certain victory.
I admit that when I went to play Dissidia Final Fantasy NT, I had very little knowledge of how Dissidia actually worked. I always wanted to play it but I just never had the opportunity to pick it up. I know, how can I call myself a Final Fantasy fan and not play any Dissidia game? Now that I think of it, a fighting game with only Final Fantasy characters? How could I have not played this game already? Thankfully I am now given the opportunity with the Dissidia Final Fantasy NT Open Beta.
Originally a PSP titile, this version takes the battle to a larger scale and has you fighting in teams of three with the goal of defeating the other group. With a large roster spanning over different titles, there is a large variety of different fighting styles to master. Each character has strengths and weaknesses that you need to take full advantage of and the stages provide a good balance of open fields with bits of harsh terrain. The characters are set into classes of Vanguard, Assassin, Marksman and Specialist, so balancing out your team is very important to the flow of combat. If you overspecialize your group you run the risk of finding yourself being incapacitated very quickly.
The HUD can become a bit confusing but you'll get used to it.
Dissidia Final Fantasy NT / Square Enix
Taking more of an over-the-shoulder view, your character essentially floats around a battlefield, locks the camera onto an enemy and you just press buttons. You attack with square and use skills with triangle – each character gets multiple skills depending on the loadout you choose before the match begins. But just mashing the buttons won't guarantee you an easy victory. You have to get accustomed to know when to cancel out of a combo and when to use your skills to effectively deal more damage to your opponent.
The good thing is that Dissidia provides you with an in depth tutorial systems that go over all the tiny aspects of this crossover brawler. You will spend a lot of time in the tutorial menus getting familiar with all the characters and how to effectively use the skills and terrain to your advantage. On top of just going over gameplay mechanics, you are given breif tutorials on other game modes in the beta. As if right now you can access story mode, online battles, offline battles, shop and tutorials. It's quite a bit of content for an open beta. I highly reccommend checking out the tutorials before jumping into a battle because there is nothing worse than feeling overwhelmed and confused when you play a new game.
In summing up my time with Dissidia Final Fantasy NT, I am dissapointed in myself for not picking up this franchise sooner. The game looks and plays amazing with a very large roster to boot. Everything else can’t possibly be conveyed in a fifteen-minute demo, it's just too much to go over. Either way, I now know that I am officially interested in Dissidia Final Fantasy NT which hits stores on January 30th, 2018 for PlayStation 4.
Check out some gameplay video below and feel free to leave a comment.