Four years after its Japanese release, “Final Fantasy Type-0 HD” coming out of left field hit Western audiences.

It’s much darker and was action-based rather than turn-based like the “Final Fantasy” series.

When I was younger I played a lot of turn-based role-playing games and a lot of the older “Final Fantasy” games that had been ported to the Game Boy Advanced, but as the years have passed I’ve been more into action RPGs with the exception of the Persona series which I am still completely fine with being turn based.

There are 14 different characters with different play styles and abilities that the player has the choice of using and finding combinations they like between them.

I enjoyed the gameplay in this game.

Having full range of attacking and dodging as well as being able to switch characters on the fly makes it action packed.

Being a port of a portable game it can be played at whatever pace the player feels like.

It’s very possible to play the game at different times and not get lost or forget where you were.

There are some downsides to the game.

First, the game is priced at 60 dollars. The graphics received a bit of an overhaul but never really look like they’re up to snuff with PlayStation 4 hardware.

The game looks like a mid-tier PlayStation 3 game with some shoddy PlayStation 2 textures in it as well.

The game also suffers from being plagued with a bunch of stereotypical anime tropes that will no doubt scare some people away from it.

I personally have a high tolerance for it but there’s a few times in this game where the stereotypes and voice acting had me cringing pretty hard.

The voice acting itself isn’t bad, but the script definitely suffers.

The story is also a bit obtuse in the beginning.

Only about four of the playable characters offer any real character development in the main storyline.

Learning about a character is a chore.

Those playing have to actively seek out events individually throughout the hub that provide insight into the character.

Those who purchase this game will also have access to a playable “Day One Edition” of Final Fantasy XV, and that alone justifies the purchase.

Final Fantasy XV has been long a long awaited game and it is nice to play it so early on.

The demo had me go from skeptical of the series to actually being really excited for the game to be released.

Overall, I’d give the game about a 7.5 out of 10.

The combat is really fun and the darker take on Final Fantasy is interesting, but the anime tropes, odd script and middling graphics hold it back from being potentially great.

Mace Mackiewicz is a senior journalism major.

He can be reached at 581-2812 or mmmackiewicz@eiu.edu.