Gonna agree with you for opposite reasons. The combat in the postgame dungeon, Costlemark I think. The one where you can’t use any healing items, it was a worthy challenge.

The other postgame dungeon, the platforming one was, was way better than many final fantasy challenges like jumping rope and dodging lighting.

Special mention for the incredible soundtrack, the Matoya’s Cave remix especially.

But ya everything before the postgame, the umm main game I guess, was ridiculously short. Imagine FFIV ending when you drill into the underworld, or FFVI ending when the the world breaks, that’s what the story in FF15 feels like. As soon as you depart to the next continent you get rug pulled by a time jump that takes you to the final boss 🫠

Xbox was so great when it launched. Thanks for bringing us decent length controller cables, hard drives, and Riddick Escape from Butcher Bay 👌

Nowadays, uhh thanks for making an unnecessary media center I guess 🤷‍♀️

The mediocrity as I understand was from the rift that developed in the team about the vision of the game being a sandbox vs a campaign.

However, I witnessed a new divide among the team which was less well-known; as more core game developers (such as myself) were recruited to help finish the game, a cultural gap emerged between the newer ‘gameplay’ team and the older ‘Sim’ team. The former group (which went on to spearhead Darkspore) was primarily concerned with how Spore played as a game. Were the mechanics engaging? Did the player’s choices matter? Was the game replayable? In contrast, the ‘Sim’ team carried the traditional Maxis DNA and was more comfortable with Spore as a toy box. Could the players express themselves? Was sharing one’s creations with other players meaningful? Did the game spark the imagination?

These cultural divides ruined Spore’s chances to be a focused, cohesive experience.

http://www.designer-notes.com/2013/09/

Same :(

I gave it a try on mobile and my general feedback is I think the game doesn’t work on my phone/browser.

My specific feedback is that I can’t tell what’s interactive and what isn’t, except for the giant arrow buttons to sidescroll the stage.

Great work getting the game up and out there 👍

Amen, I am equally puzzled.

Truly some of the worst FF decisions all in the same game.

Why is the key to the postgame dungeon a piece of undifferentiated loot? Why did the game allow me to accidentally lock myself out of the postgame by selling it?

Why is the story is a low effort clone of Star Wars?

Why set FF12 in the world of FF:Tactics but make no reference to it?

Why, oh why, an all-women-race of playboy bunny girls in lingerie and heels?

That being said, programming your own teams’ AI is peak jrpg wish there was more of that. This baby got thrown out with all that dirty bath water unfortunately

RIP Escapist Magazine

Your 4 year goal reminds me a lot of Cogmind’s development and the video about the journey

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9yJflbg0V38

Best of luck