Final Fantasy XII: Revenant Wings
| Final Fantasy XII: Revenant Wings | |
|---|---|
 North American cover art for Revenant Wings. | |
| Developer(s) | Square Enix Think & Feel Inc. |
| Publisher(s) | Square Enix |
| Designer(s) | Yasuhito Watanabe (producer) Motomu Toriyama (director) Toshitaka Matsuda (art director) Hitoshi Sakimoto (composer) Kenichiro Fukui (composer) Ryoma Itō (character designer) |
| Series | Final Fantasy series Ivalice Alliance |
| Platform(s) | Nintendo DS |
| Release | [1] [2] |
| Genre(s) | Tactical role-playing game |
| Mode(s) | Single player |
Final Fantasy XII: Revenant Wings (ファイナルファンタジーXII レヴァナント・ウイング, Fainaru Fantajī Tuerubu Revananto Uingu) is a real-time strategy RPG developed by Square Enix and Think & Feel Inc. for the Nintendo DS. It is a sequel to the best-selling 2006 PlayStation 2 role-playing game Final Fantasy XII.
One year after the events of Final Fantasy XII, the protagonist Vaan is now a sky pirate possessing his own airship. He is joined in a new quest by his friend and navigator Penelo, other returning characters from the original title, as well as new characters such as Llyud, a member of the Aegyl race who have wings protruding from their backs.[3] Their treasure-hunting adventures take them to the purvama (Floating Continent) of Lemurés and the ground below, where the story begins.
Revenant Wings is the first title announced in the Ivalice Alliance series of video games. The North American release of the game was rebalanced to be more difficult than the Japanese version, and was released on November 20, 2007. [4]
Gameplay
Players start the game with an airship, named after the player's clan (with a default name of Galbana, or Beiluge (ベイルージュ, Beirūju) in the Japanese version). The airship is used as a base where the player can check on their current mission and view other tasks, customize equipment in the synthesis shop, or travel between the four islands of Lemurés. The airship's interior can also be customized by the player.[5]
Battle system
Revenant Wings is a real-time strategy game, but with elements reminiscent of Final Fantasy Tactics and Tactics Advance.[6] It can be played entirely with the Nintendo DS stylus. Like in Final Fantasy XII, battles initiate once the party comes in contact with the enemy, and the characters can attack automatically. The player is given the option to give commands to the characters by tapping on them with the stylus. Possible commands include changing the character's target, setting their gambit, or using various abilities. Area spells can be cast by drawing a rectangle around the enemies with the stylus.[7]
Each character is distinguished according to three types: melee, ranged and flying. Melee characters attack at a close range, and ranged from afar, while flying are able to travel unbound to terrain. The types oppose each other in the manner where melee wins over ranged, ranged wins over flying and flying wins over melee.[8]
Summoning
Summoning magic returns from Final Fantasy XII in Revenant Wings and have a larger role; director Motomu Toriyama stated that Revenant Wings has more summons, or Espers, than any previous Final Fantasy game.[3] Summon abilities are learned via the new Ring of Pacts system, which is used to allow the summoning of Espers. Each slot in the Ring of Pacts is placed with an Auracite to create a pact with the Esper.[8] The number of summons available to the player is fifty-one, and they are classified in different categories, with each character able to summon a large number depending the party's combined capacity.[9]
Summoning Espers to aid in battle is accomplished by using an Summon Gate located in the play field area. The ability to summon the different creatures depend on the Affinity of the player characters. Additionally, two Espers per character are automatically summoned at the beginning of each battle where Espers are allowed. Espers can be linked to battle groups using a system reminiscent of the earlier Squaresoft game Bahamut Lagoon. Summons are ranked from 1 to 3, with Rank 1 and 2 able to manifest in large numbers, as opposed to Rank 3 which summons only one entity. Before the battle begins, players can select five Espers to possibly summon through Esper Gates in the upcoming battle(Esper "Decks"); one Rank 3 Esper, two Rank 2 Espers, and two Rank 1 Espers. Summons are also differentiated by varying elements, which are fire, water, earth, and lightning. Recovery and non-elemental are two other types.[8]
Synthesizing
An element of alchemy and synthesizing is used in the game, where the player obtains recipes and materials necessary for the synthesis process. Only Leader Characters can obtain the materials, of which high grade material enhances the equipment to which it is synthesized more than a low grade of material.[8]
Plot
Setting
A few locations in the Ivalice of Final Fantasy XII and Final Fantasy Tactics Advance return in Revenant Wings, along with a new setting: Lemurés. Described in the official website as a legendary purvama (Floating Continent) raised into the skies by the god Feolthanos long before the events of the game due to the Cloudstones, this land is ruled by magical stones known as the "Auraliths", which erected a barrier to shield the Purvama from the rest of the world. In time, the "Legend of the Floating Land" became an ambition for sky pirates who seek the island and what riches are on it. The ruins of Lemurés are where the Aegyl reside; the Aegyl are a human-like race with wings sprouting from their backs and a life-span of forty years. Due to being shielded within Lemurés, the Aegyl have no knowledge of the outside world.
The magicite in Lemurés are found Auracite. Fragments of Auralith, Auracite is used in the Ring of Pacts to summon beasts known as the Yahri, refered by others of Ivalice as Espers.[8]. However extended use of Auracite can purge the user of his or her anima, which becomes a new Yahri and continues the cycle until the user becomes a souless shell devoid of feeling.
Characters
The characters are designed by Ryoma Itō, who was also the character designer for Final Fantasy Tactics Advance. Itō based some of his designs on those of Final Fantasy XII character designer Akihiko Yoshida. Itō "traded secrets" with him, with the confidence he gained from Final Fantasy XII creator Yasumi Matsuno's praise on his tampering with Final Fantasy Tactics Advance's Moogle designs.[10]
Summon designs have also differed. The lizard design of Salamander, for example, was changed to be boar-like to ensure that the designs would come out well in the game graphics. Each summon had three Ranks,[9] and the designs of each Rank are so that there are relations between one Rank and another.[10]
Story
Revenant Wings begins a year after the events of Final Fantasy XII, with Vaan flying his own airship with Penelo after Balthier and Fran 'stole' the Strahl, visiting them in Bervenia, accompanying them inside to obtain the Cache of Glabados. There, they encounter the Esper Ifrit and defeat him before obtaining the treasure, two strange crystals, taking leave when the building begins to collapse on itself. Balthier soon drops Vaan and Penelo back in Rabanastre where they, along with Kytes and Filo, witness a strange object flying overhead: an airship. After sneaking aboard the airship and defeating the Bangaa headhunter Ba'Gamnan, Vaan and gang christen the airship whatever the player decides, defaultly 'Galbana', and find themselves on the purvama Lemurés by accident. While looking around the unknown ruins, they meet Llyud of the Aegyl race and learn that his people are locked in battle with sky pirates who are raiding the island for treasure. Lemurés is said to possess summoning crystals called Auracite. Deciding to aid the Aegyl in defending Lemurés, Vaan's group learn that the pirates were recruited by the mysterious Judge of Wings, who seeks out the three Auraliths, grand masses of Auracite that protect Lemurés from the outside world. In their pursuit of the villian, the gang are eventually reunited with the friends they made during their previous adventure and face enemies, old and new, while learning the truth behind the Eternal, the god Feolthanos, the Auracite's true purpose, and the mysterious Judge Of Wings.
Development
The game was directed and its story written by Motomu Toriyama, who also directed Final Fantasy X-2 and has been directing Final Fantasy XIII.[11] According to Toriyama, the game is aimed at Nintendo DS owners who are not experienced with Final Fantasy games, and will remove "overly complicated elements from the battle system...that will allow [the player] to defeat the enemies with minimal controls."[12]
The game features a sprite-based graphics engine with 3D backgrounds and character designs by Ryoma Itō (Final Fantasy Tactics Advance). Producer Eisuke Yokoyama cited Warcraft and Age of Empires as sources of inspiration and expressed a desire to "extract the pure 'fun' of those games" and bring it to Final Fantasy.[13]
For the North American localization, Revenant Wings has been rebalanced to make it more difficult, because the North American market is judged as "more familiar" with the real-time strategy genre.[13]
Audio
Revenant Wings was scored by Final Fantasy XII composer Hitoshi Sakimoto, joined by Kenichiro Fukui, who had arranged the English version of "Kiss Me Good-Bye". Most of the music for the game is arrangements from the previous title. While the Nintendo DS has more technical limitations than the PlayStation 2, Sakimoto considers that it is not particularly noticeable in practice.[14]
Unlike in Final Fantasy XII, the music is entirely dynamic and context-dependent. Each track possesses different parts, such as a peaceful or a battle one, which are activated when the actions of the players require it and are looped until the context is changed again.[15]
Reception
As of May 13, 2007, Revenant Wings has sold 421,000 units in Japan. It was the best-selling Japanese console game in the week of its release, then the second best-selling in the following week.[16]
The Japanese version of the game scored 32/40 in the Japanese gaming magazine Famitsu.[17] The game also received praise from reviewers of Dengeki DS & Wii Style. Praise was given to the mission-based storyline and battles for being "simple and more involved". The large number of characters who can enter the fray at one given time gives a sense of involvement for the player as if they were "close to the action", and the game's difficulty may appeal even to those who "do not normally play role-playing games". The only criticism found was with the usage of the stylus; as its usage in selecting areas on the battlefield can be difficult.[18]
The North American version of the game scored mainly positive reviews. Nintendo Power gave it a 7.5/10, IGN gave it a 8.3/10, 1up gave it an 8/10, Gamespot and GameZone both gave it a 8.5/10, and X-Play gave it a 4/5.
Electronic Gaming Monthly also gave it generally favorable reviews, with staff giving it scores of 8, 7.5, and 6 (all out of 10). The reviewers praised the game's combination of role-playing and strategy, but criticized the screen size relative to the amount of action.[19] IGN named it Nintendo DS Game of the Month for November 2007.[20]
References
- ^ Square Enix staff (2007-07-09). "Square Enix brings together fresh new faces and timeless classics at E3 2007". Square Enix NA. Retrieved 2007-07-10.
- ^ Matt Berti (2007-12-05). "A mélange of release dates for Europe". Square Haven. Retrieved 2007-12-05.
- ^ a b Gantayat, Anoop (October 30, 2006). "Final Fantasy XII Revenant Wings Update". IGN. News Corporation.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|date=(help); Unknown parameter|accessmonthday=ignored (help); Unknown parameter|accessyear=ignored (|access-date=suggested) (help) - ^ Jeriaska (2007-07-14). "Square Enix gesticulates in regards to Revenant Wings bonus content". Retrieved 2007-07-15.
- ^ soul (April 4, 2007). "New Revenant Wings Scans". Forever Fantasy.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|date=(help); External link in|work=|accessmonthday=ignored (help); Unknown parameter|accessyear=ignored (|access-date=suggested) (help) - ^ Sullivan, Meghan (May 1, 2007). "Final Fantasy XII Revenant Wings: Pre-Battle Jitters". IGN. News Corporation. pp. 1–2.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|date=(help); Unknown parameter|accessmonthday=ignored (help); Unknown parameter|accessyear=ignored (|access-date=suggested) (help) - ^ Xcomp (December 7, 2006). "FFXII: Revenant Wings, Battle System and the Egul Race". Xcomp's Yuuenchi. GameBrink.Com.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|date=(help); External link in|publisher=and|work=|accessmonthday=ignored (help); Unknown parameter|accessyear=ignored (|access-date=suggested) (help) - ^ a b c d e "Final Fantasy XII Revenant Wings" (in Japanese). Square Enix. 2007.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|accessmonthday=ignored (help); Unknown parameter|accessyear=ignored (|access-date=suggested) (help) - ^ a b Morcos, Antoine (March 2, 2007). "FFXII : Revenant Wings : les invocations". Jeux-France.com (in French). PressÉlite.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|date=(help); External link in|work=|accessmonthday=ignored (help); Unknown parameter|accessyear=ignored (|access-date=suggested) (help) - ^ a b Balistrieri, Emily (March 16, 2007). "Previews: FFXII: Revenant Wings". 1Up.com. Ziff Davis.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|date=(help); Unknown parameter|accessmonthday=ignored (help); Unknown parameter|accessyear=ignored (|access-date=suggested) (help) - ^ Freund, Josh (September 20, 2006). "Final Fantasy XII: Revenant Wings (DS) scan, details - Update #1". GamesAreFun.com.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|date=(help); External link in|work=|accessmonthday=ignored (help); Unknown parameter|accessyear=ignored (|access-date=suggested) (help) - ^ IGN Staff (September 21, 2006). "TGS 2006: Final Fantasy XII Update". IGN. News Corporation.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|date=(help); Unknown parameter|accessmonthday=ignored (help); Unknown parameter|accessyear=ignored (|access-date=suggested) (help) - ^ a b Harris, Craig (May 16, 2007). "Interview: Final Fantasy XII Revenant Wings". IGN. News Corporation.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|date=(help); Unknown parameter|accessmonthday=ignored (help); Unknown parameter|accessyear=ignored (|access-date=suggested) (help) - ^ Shea, Cam (February 15, 2007). "Hitoshi Sakimoto AU Interview". IGN. News Corporation.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|date=(help); Unknown parameter|accessmonthday=ignored (help); Unknown parameter|accessyear=ignored (|access-date=suggested) (help) - ^ Kulata, Kurt (May 16, 2007). "Second thoughts on Final Fantasy XII: Revenant Wings". Siliconera.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|date=(help); External link in|work=|accessmonthday=ignored (help); Unknown parameter|accessyear=ignored (|access-date=suggested) (help) - ^ "Top 30 Japanese Console Game Chart". The Magic Box. 2007.
{{cite web}}: External link in|work=|accessmonthday=ignored (help); Unknown parameter|accessyear=ignored (|access-date=suggested) (help) - ^ Parkin, Simon (May 28, 2007). "First Impressions - Final Fantasy XII: Revenant Wings". Eurogamer. Eurogamer Network. p. 2.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|date=(help); Unknown parameter|accessmonthday=ignored (help); Unknown parameter|accessyear=ignored (|access-date=suggested) (help) - ^ Gantayat, Anoop (April 16, 2007). "FFXII: Revenant Wings Reviewed". IGN. News Corporation.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|date=(help); Unknown parameter|accessmonthday=ignored (help); Unknown parameter|accessyear=ignored (|access-date=suggested) (help) - ^ Electronic Gaming Monthly, Issue 223; HOL. 2007
- ^ Harris, Craig (2007-11-30). "Nintendo DS Game of the Month: November 2007". IGN. News Corporation. Retrieved 2007-12-01.