This games art design is severely lacking.

[Thule Esperada]

Sigh. I was kind of worried this would be the case back when Duscae came out, but the art design is incredibly generic all around. Sure there is some nice architecture here and there, but everything else has this feeling of "seen it before" you know. The flora isn't really destiguishable from other open world games, and I know about the whole "fantasy based on reality" bit, but there are alot of real world natural phenomenon that would put this "fantasy" to shame. Why not draw inspiration from that.

And even if they wanted the nature to feel "familiar" there is no excuse for the dungeons to be so unbelievably uninspired. The dungeons consist almost entirely of caves and old ruins with square shaped rooms and metal bars, with the odd military outpost. They aren't even good by cave standards. I felt ill when I saw the "Secret Dungeons". Platforming on square platforms, or going down a series of square rooms fighting the same 3 enemy types over and over again.

I remember there being an early interview where the director stated that he wanted the dungeons to feel eldritch and unnatural to contrast the more mundane open air locations. But I guess that can be piled up with all the other stuff they failed to deliver on. This game is so dull to look at, especially compared to the installments from the PS1 onward. Why do so many rpgs these days suffer from artistic bankruptcy.

I just wanted to express my frustration and disappointment a little. Sorry.

 

[ZaXo Ken'Ichi]

I disagree. As an artist myself, I can more than appreciate the subtle things. It may not have the grand spectacle (so far... I'm only about 16 hours in) of something like a Souls game, but I think it pulls off the theme of 'fantasy based on reality' really well. I'm constantly stopping to revel in the fact that everything feels so legitimate and 'real', as if is just an alternate reality Earth. As for the variety, I would agree to some extent. But then again, the only open world games that trump this in variety have a significantly higher budget, and well over a decade of open world experience (like Rockstar). Even games like Elder Scrolls repeat ideas more often than XV has so far.

 

[AlexkOuellet]

I don't think you need to apologize for sharing your thoughts! Anyway...

I'm inclined to disagree though. I feel like they put a lot of thought into the design of this game. (Hey they had to be doing something for 10 years, right? Haha...)

Going to Ravatogh mountain was one hell of an experience for me. Not only did I feel like I was truly climbing a mountain, but it was also something far into the distance I could reach and actually scale.

The vesperpool region with it's swamps.

The stretching, beautiful plains in Duscae!

And don't even get me started on Altissia! Not as cool as I'd liked it to be story wise, but the whole Venician feel to it just had me in awe.

I recommend you look through the artbook, if you so happen to have gotten your hands on one!

Anyway, just my two cents!

 

[Thule Esperada]

Well to me it's not really about how pretty the game looks, but rather about how interesting it all is. The problem to me is that there's really nothing in this game that suprises me. There isn't any fantastic looking flora, or unusual geometry and even the monster variety is rather low, and the summons (except Levi-chan) are all humanoid. Heck, Bahamut attacks by throwing swords instead of megaflare. That was a big letdown. There isn't even a desert with giant sand worms, my favorite trope.

And as I said about the dungeon designs, they are extremely clinical. The places they could have been the most creative with feel like the least amount of effort was put in. And for a series with a history of really cool and interesting dungeons, it feels inexcusable to me. I could have put up with a generic overworld if the dungeons had been facinating, but now it's just too much of a deal breaker to enjoy.

 

[Baks]

The art isn't the only thing lacking.

Imo the story, gameplay, sidequests, combat system, villains and characters are also are severely lacking imo

The whole game is just a mess.