Granblue Fantasy Relink Review:
When I first witnessed Granblue Fantasy Relink during its announcement days, we were in disbelief at what this game offered: a flashy battle system, glamorous art, and an interesting lore to immerse ourselves in. The impressive 2016 showcase even outshone huge names in the industry like the Tales Series, which my colleagues teased me about as a Tales Series fan, calling it “Tales with a Budget.” However, following that stunning announcement, the game entered a very long period of development, which dimmed its exciting light. But finally, after years of waiting, we finally got our hands on this new flashy Action RPG. So, was the wait worth it?
A Tale Written in the Skies:
The story in Granblue Fantasy Relink takes you on a journey with Gran, an airship captain who once sacrificed himself to save Lyria, a girl with the power to summon mystical fiends that once posed danger to the world. His sacrifice, which did cost him his life, ends up with him sharing his life-span with Lyria via soul linkes allowing him to get back to life and keep living but now their fates are intertwining and they start traveling the world to find a way to be separate and whole again.
Where Granblue Fantasy shines is in its lore rather than its story. The series depicts a population of different races living in the sky, building cities in floating domes that you can traverse using airships. This concept alone offers unlimited possibilities for different stories and even different games, which I really find briliant, unlike games like Final Fantasy XIV, which are confined to a set map on a certain planet or world. The sky is limitless, giving developers the freedom to build whatever worlds they want.
Relink is not directly related to any of the main releases or stories of the mobile games and despite not introducing the characters right away, the game makes an effort to tell their stories through voiced and written formats through characters specific chapters. Personally, I would have loved the tutorial to delve into their past to introduce at least the four main characters, as they are the pillars of the story. However, the game chooses to throw you into the middle of the action from the start instead.
I felt that Granblue Fantasy Relink doesn’t take itself seriously throughout the entire game. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but I prefer games to have a theme that engages your mind as well as your eyes. The story of Granblue Fantasy Relink is straightforward and easy to grasp, with a set of very likable characters who shine throughout the journey. Coming from a mobile game, especially a gacha game, Granblue Fantasy has always focused on its characters, and they are indeed brilliant. The main cast is lovely, fun, and funny, they indeed mesh together well. I found myself giggling and laughing throughout the entire journey especially when they converse while walking around the open maps and deungoens. Unfortunately, the story itself doesn’t help them be memorable, and with time, they may be forgotten. However, what will not be forgotten is their presentation, wit, and humor, which made the journey worthwhile.
They Are 20, And You Will Play Them All:
Gameplay-wise, Granblue Fantasy Relink features a state-of-the-art battle system. While it may appear like a blend of Tales of and Nier, what sets it apart is the introduction of 20 playable characters. Initially, you start with 6, but you can recruit more by acquiring “tickets” through the story or by completing quests.
What’s truly impressive is that each character offers a completely different style of gameplay. Gran, for example, is your basic balanced JRPG hero who can a master in melee, ranged skills, healing, and buffing. Katalina, a knight princess, can summon an ice fairy after accumilating charges and use her to deal huge damage to enemies. Rackham, a ranged gunslinger, uses his heat meter to inflict devastating damage over time. Io, a ranged mage, specializes in chargeable magical attacks.
However, the game surprises you with charcaters outisde the main cast as well, each character offering a unique and addictive playstyle. Zeta, the dragoon, can create combos by chaining aerial attacks at specific times to keep her in air, while Lancelot, the incredibly fast dual-swords knight, can execute an unlimited number of chain attacks seamlessly while being able to evade and dodge with the press of a button without breaking the combo counter.
With a total of 20 characters at launch, the game offers a huge variety that caters to any playstyle. You might think that this variety comes at the expense of skill and magic variety, but you would be wrong. Granblue Fantasy Relink boasts one of the most extensive character development mechanics in recent history. Centered around PWR (or power), characters need to reach a certain PWR level to accomplish specific quests, whether main or side and PWR is linked to various aspects, primarily weapons and skill boards.
The skill boards are vast, with approximately 100 nodes to unlock per character. While it may seem daunting at first, it’s quite achievable, especially since the game is divided into two sections. After completing the first part, you’ll realize you’re not even halfway through your characters’ skill boards. However, you’ll progress quickly thanks to the abundance of quests available after completing the main quest section.
Quest 1, Quest 2... Quest 110:
The game introduces you to fairly varied gameplay mechanics focused on defeating waves of monsters. You can attack these monsters directly or use the environment around you, such as cannons on the ship or triggering bombs and ice pillars to crumble over the monsters’ heads. The grand boss battles are smartly designed, requiring you to work around and avoid certain mechanics, such as aggressive typhoons pulling you toward the boss or meteor showers falling in designated places, adding depth to the gameplay.
However, the variety of monsters diminishes in the second half of the game, where you’re introduced to 110 side quests that you have to finish to progress the story. Most of these quests involve fighting the same monsters but with harsher attacks and it easily becomes tiresome to kill the same giant monster repeatedly in quests that take 15 minutes each, because the mechanics are still the same, not just the monsters and bosses themselves. For example, the Excavallion Boss quest comes with a gigantic monster where you have to break its legs first they shoot at its body to bring him down so you can climb to its back and start shattering its core where the entire process take in average 15 minutes and you have to do it the same way in 5 different quests.
Another questionable aspect is maxing out and developing your weapons. While the existence of a “wish-list” makes it easier to find materials and in which quest you can get them, acquiring these materials can be tedious. Sometimes, you’re forced to play certain online-only quests to get tickets to buy these materials. The online experience in this game is one of the worst I’ve ever encountered. Matchmaking is challenging, and I would often spend 15 minutes trying to connect with anyone while adjusting confusing various settings. This made the online experience unfavorable, leading me to finish all the side content by myself and ignore the materials needed for weapons development.
Despite these issues, the side content is very challenging and fun, reminiscent of Monster Hunter in a way. You hunt specific monsters or groups of them and get rewarded for your efforts. However, as you progress past 50 quests, the content becomes repetitive, with different monster colors but not different mechanics.
One Beautiful World:
Yet, despite these mishaps, Granblue Fantasy Relink shines again when it comes to graphics. The game embodies the concept of beauty, thanks to its watercolor style. You’ll find yourself gawking at certain sections of the game, amazed at its beauty. As an artist, I’ve always noticed, especially while playing, that the backgrounds aren’t really 3D; they are watercolor paintings. This works exceptionally well, especially in how it provides a sense of depth to the world around you and blends seamlessly with the game’s overall style.
Regarding the music, aside from the main themes that we all know from the mobile game, nothing is remarkable or groundbreaking, but it’s very enjoyable overall. The same goes for the voice acting, except when they try to be squeaky for the “smaller characters.”
Granblue Fantasy Relink was an excellent experience despite the wait. It presented us with lovable characters, a gorgeously designed game, and a variety of battle mechanics that will be remembered for years to come. However, it has a messy online system and a lack of monster variety. Despite these shortcomings, Granblue Fantasy Relink deserves to be on your radar because of how addictively fun it is to play through all its characters. There aren’t many games that have done this as well as Granblue Fantasy Relink.
- Twenty characters, each with a different playstyle, will keep you interested in playing with all of them, as they are made with perfection.
- The character banter throughout the world is witty and hilarious..
- Entertaining boss fights with clever mechanics to bring you on your toes.
- Amazing water-like graphics that are vibrant and brilliantly blend with the world, easing the strain on your eyes.
- An abundance of quests that are actually just a rehash of one another.
- The online matchmaking system feels like it's from two decades ago.
- The story is very short and feels incomplete, as it doesn't cover all aspects of the world-building.
- The second part of the game doesn't add any actual value, despite hinting that it would.
