Hands-on: Final Fantasy Explorers

Another year, another Final Fantasy game. As the world eagerly awaits Final Fantasy XV, Square Enix and co-developer Racjin are preparing to bring Final Fantasy Explorers to international shores after its release in Japan back in late 2014. We took some time out to play the game’s rather involved demo, and there’s a fair bit here for hardcore fans to sink their teeth into.
Final Fantasy Explorers plays more like a Monster Hunter game than anything from the Final Fantasy franchise because you progress through the game by completing quests and fighting in real-time combat. Your characters can specialize in specific classes (also known as jobs), and you’re given the option of choosing how you specialize and adapt those jobs. You also have access to helper characters that will follow you around and aid you in battles – you can’t ride the chocobos, though.

The demo tasked us with navigating a brief dungeon and finishing off a familiar foe in the form of Ifrit. Movement controls were agreeable; walking was mapped to the analog disc with a dedicated run button. Camera control is tied to the 3DS’s D-pad, but you can center the camera behind your character by pressing L, which I appreciated. Overall navigation felt natural, and traversing the many in-game menus was straightforward as well. Nothing stands out – but everything works.

Combat is a bit more complex. Holding L or R gives you access to stronger moves and stat buffs, and pressing both together at certain points enables even more powerful abilities. It took a bit of time to get used to the combat, but once I wrapped my head around it, you can plow through smaller encounters easily and approach bigger monster fights with more creativity and strategy. Unleashing spells, projectiles, and your partner characters on big bosses feels fairly satisfying, as does tearing through smaller enemies. The depth of the gameplay, which includes varying specializations and a wealth of items and equipment, should keep interested players busy, and both online and local multiplayer will give the game a bit more replay value.

Final Fantasy Explorers feels like a fairly fun, if unspectacular, diversion for big fans of the series and the Monster Hunter style of gameplay, but I’m not sure how much farther its appeal will extend. It’s certainly polished and intelligently designed, and it’s explicitly targeted toward people who don’t normally play these types of games, but your appreciation for it will still ultimately depend on how much you enjoy this genre in general. International gamers who want to give it a go will finally get a chance to experience Final Fantasy Explorers when it launches on Nintendo 3DS on January 26th for North America and January 29th in Europe.