The game is great. But the only exception I'd give is the combat. I've been playing on hard mode, I'm not new to high difficulty in games at all. But so far every major fight goes about two ways, either you're equal / under levelled and you spend most of the time avoiding the same attack patterns. Or you're above level and can actually afford to tank some damage to end the fights faster. While the enemies are predictable, practicing on getting the perfect vanish on their attacks just wasn't worth the time, as dodging them by just flying around in a circle is just safer and more efficient. As the XP you get from battles is determined by the rank you get, getting anything less than S is just a waste of time, since you will need to grind more.
Higher level = shorter fights, shorter fights = less danger, less danger = more S ranks, more S ranks = more XP and more levels. Every other aspect of the game is spectacular I'd say, graphically its amazing, and it runs smoothly too. Although I run into a strange issue where the game will stutter until I restart my PC. But the combat had so much potential but just turns into spamming the most optimal moves. While playing the game going for perfect vanishes and trying out combos feels fun, it isn't optimal. And it just ends up in wasted effort and an A rank at the end of battle. The biggest tell of the issues for me was during any fight where you aren't allowed to influence your level / stats beforehand, the enemy will just completely delete your health bar if you happen to get hit. I imagine that the other difficulties aren't nearly as poorly tuned.

If I play the battles by playing optimally, its so easy to the point I just feel bored.
If I try playing the battles by playing "flashy" it sometimes works and sometimes just results in frustration.

Don't let anyone tell you that it's a "skill issue". Just turn down the difficulty and keep playing as long as you think its fun.


Note for people going in blind, I'd recommend carefully reading all of the tutorials, and all of the community board buffs. And even with that knowledge, know that meals also give PERMANENT buffs, they are listed as the "Status buff".

I'd give the game about an 7/10 so far. I'm confident that my view on the game will not change as I progress further, but I'm also far enough to see that the whole game is going to be like this. Don't buy it all full price either, wait for sales, it is unfortunate that people who bought the "Ultimate Edition" were left with less content than someone who bought the "Legendary Edition" later.

The game is great. But the only exception I'd give is the combat. I've been playing on hard mode, I'm not new to high difficulty in games at all. But so far every major fight goes about two ways, either you're equal / under levelled and you spend most of the time avoiding the same attack patterns. Or you're above level and can actually afford to tank some damage to end the fights faster. While the enemies are predictable, practicing on getting the perfect vanish on their attacks just wasn't worth the time, as dodging them by just flying around in a circle is just safer and more efficient. As the XP you get from battles is determined by the rank you get, getting anything less than S is just a waste of time, since you will need to grind more. Higher level = shorter fights, shorter fights = less danger, less danger = more S ranks, more S ranks = more XP and more levels. Every other aspect of the game is spectacular I'd say, graphically its amazing, and it runs smoothly too. Although I run into a strange issue where the game will stutter until I restart my PC. But the combat had so much potential but just turns into spamming the most optimal moves. While playing the game going for perfect vanishes and trying out combos feels fun, it isn't optimal. And it just ends up in wasted effort and an A rank at the end of battle. The biggest tell of the issues for me was during any fight where you aren't allowed to influence your level / stats beforehand, the enemy will just completely delete your health bar if you happen to get hit. I imagine that the other difficulties aren't nearly as poorly tuned. If I play the battles by playing optimally, its so easy to the point I just feel bored. If I try playing the battles by playing "flashy" it sometimes works and sometimes just results in frustration. Don't let anyone tell you that it's a "skill issue". Just turn down the difficulty and keep playing as long as you think its fun. Note for people going in blind, I'd recommend carefully reading all of the tutorials, and all of the community board buffs. And even with that knowledge, know that meals also give PERMANENT buffs, they are listed as the "Status buff". I'd give the game about an 7/10 so far. I'm confident that my view on the game will not change as I progress further, but I'm also far enough to see that the whole game is going to be like this. Don't buy it all full price either, wait for sales, it is unfortunate that people who bought the "Ultimate Edition" were left with less content than someone who bought the "Legendary Edition" later.