2023-09-04 18:27:25
The wait is finally over. Cygames has lifted the veil on the Granblue Fantasy Relink release date February 1, 2024 on PS4, PS5 (in physical and digital version) and Steam (in digital version). Additionally, Cygames revealed a trailer which raised the hype even more during Gamescom’s opening night live.
Once upon a time in 2018
I think Pxlbbq has been telling you regarding Granblue Fantasy Relink since 2018. Since then, I have been feverishly hoping at each Gamescom to be able to learn a little more regarding this title. 5 years later, the wait is finally rewarded because I was able to put my little hands on a playable demo of this Action RPG to be released on February 1, 2024.
I fell in love with the Granblue Fantasy license since the release of the mobile game around 2014 for its universe and its character design. Unfortunately, the game was never released in Belgium and we had to fall back on the Japanese version (with an English translation) to be able to play it.
Since then, other derivative titles have come down to us such as Granblue Fantasy Versus or the manga adaptation of Granblue Fantasy which unfortunately ended at 8 volumes.
Impressions on the demo
The playable Gamescom demo of Granblue Fantasy Relink was relatively short and showed me how a mission of the game unfolded. In fact, I did not receive any revelations regarding the story but rather a gameplay demonstration. Despite this I was not disappointed.
The essence of the game is the composition of a party of 4 characters balanced and optimized to carry out the hundred missions proposed. These are achievable in solo or cooperative multiplayer.
The Gamescom demo threw me into a single-player mission with 3 AI-controlled characters. There list of playable characters is posted on the game’s official website for your reference. I was able to repeat this mission with 3 different characters, including Io (elemental mage and heal), Catherine (swordsman, heal and ice magic) and Siegfried (two-handed sword, berserker style). The goal was to go through a corridor level, face some small trash mobs and finally beat 1 boss within a certain time limit. If this one was defeated, a second more “tanky” appeared. Beating him didn’t allow you to progress any further.
Assisted or not, it’s your choice
The combat mechanics give pride of place to sometimes complex combos. This will be necessary because the bosses have a hell of a lot of health and bludgeoning them with normal attacks won’t do them much. The key to Granblue Fantasy Relink will be placing the ” skills ultimes » of your characters in a synchronized way (chain burst). This will achieve a devastating combo that will greatly reduce the life of the bosses. However, this is easier said than done because all allies will need to have their burst gauge filled at the same time. You can also make link attacks in response to your allies’ actions. This will give you temporary buffs.
Players who prefer to focus on the story and simple progression will be able to activate different modes d’assistance. The mode ” full assist will throw all the most optimized combos only by clubbing the single attack key where normal mode requires performing the combos manually.
A plethora of editions, except for Europe
Cygames has announced a number of different editions for Granblue Fantasy Relink including 5 digital editions and 3 physical editions.
This comparison from the official site illustrates quite well the different contents of the digital editions.
On the other hand, I am relatively sad compared to the physical editions. Indeed, nothing is yet confirmed for Europe. However, you can get an idea of what is sold (and already sold out) in the United States by visiting the store of XSeed Games.
Fortunately, nothing is lost because the official site announces that discussions are underway with Plaion for European physical editions. I’m crossing my fingers that the Collector and Deluxe editions will offer the same content as the US and Japanese editions.
1693878031
#Granblue #Fantasy #Relink #Gamescom #Release #Date #Preview
