Though it took a couple of days to become functional, the Trial Version of Stranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Origin is finally out and ready to be played. I wasn’t alone in feeling that the game looked a bit lackluster when I saw its E3 trailer, but I have faith in Team Ninja, so I jumped into the demo, ready to be impressed. Surprisingly enough, I came out of the demo with a positive impression of what I played, and I’m looking forward to trying the full game next year.
There’s been a quote floating around about how Stranger of Paradise is a game about “an angry man,” and that certainly seems to be true. Jack and his friends sure do want to kill Chaos, and they’re quite aggressive in how they go about it. They definitely don’t seem like Warriors of Light aesthetically (though you can change their outfits with equipment,) even though this appears to be a prequel to the original Final Fantasy. While I’m intrigued to see what happens after you fight Garland in the game (given that he’s the first boss of the first Final Fantasy,) as Stranger of Paradise really doesn’t feel like it’s set in the colorful world of Final Fantasy. That being said, watching Jack angrily smack Garland in the head repeatedly is pretty entertaining. I don’t have much to say about the characters, as the demo barely gives any info on them beyond “they’re angry,” which will hopefully be expanded upon.
Stranger of Paradise’s gameplay is surprisingly layered, as there’s a lot to do beyond just slashing your way through enemies. By pressing circle, you can do a sort of parry that can absorb enemy skills, block enemy attacks, and expand your maximum MP. You can choose to block or dodge attacks instead, which is safer, but you won’t be able to build on your MP gauge or gain skills that way. Absorbing skills feels somewhat reminiscent of Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow, in that you can take certain enemy attacks and use them, albeit temporarily. These skills were quite useful in the Trial Version and were easy to perform between physical combos.
If you hit an enemy enough in Strangers of Paradise, they go into a weakened state where you can grab them, turn them into crystals, and smash the hell out of them. It’s hilariously aggressive, but chaining these finishers is very satisfying. There are multiple different weapons and classes to use in the demo, which all feel distinct in how they play. Using a lance as a Dragoon gives you different skills and boosts than using a greatsword as a Warrior does, and experimenting with each job is rather engaging. I hope the full game has quite a few classes, as I could see myself getting way too into swapping classes and amassing various skills.
“If this is the challenge level we can expect from the full game, I can’t wait to get kicked around by each boss.“
The boss fight at the end of the demo is quite a challenge, as it asks you to use all the skills you’ve gained thus far with proper timing. It’s tough to win, but I felt like a real Warrior of Light when I pulled it off. If this is the challenge level we can expect from the full game, I can’t wait to get kicked around by each boss.
The biggest problem with Stranger of Paradise is that the visuals are just kind of drab. Everything is brown, gray, and black, with little variation. Those memes about this being a PS3 game aren’t inaccurate in that regard, as it seemed as though we left that color palette in the past when we moved onto the PS4. I hope later areas of the game are more lively, as we’ve likely seen very little of what the game has to offer.
If you’re interested in trying the demo, it’ll only be available until June 24th. It’s a couple of hours long, and it has a survey at the end for if you want to voice your thoughts on what you played. If you’re unimpressed with what you’ve seen, I implore you to give the demo a go. I wasn’t too hot on the trailer but came away from the demo with a genuine interest in the full game. I’m looking forward to finally getting to kill Chaos next year.
