Type-0 HD is a bit of a double-edged sword in that it has grandiose worldbuilding and lore that is still marred by the limitations of its original PSP release. If you can look past that, you’ll find a solid entry within the Final Fantasy universe.
Many non-mainline Final Fantasy endeavors have failed to stick their landing and really be on the same playing field as the mainline series. Having played most entries, I found that X-2 was rushed and ultimately was unnecessary as X was masterfully done. XIII-2, while a bit outlandish and all over the place, at least has it’s biggest strength in introducing Caius, who is a highly underrated antagonist. I’m mixed because without that title we wouldn’t have LR:FFXIII, which I personally enjoyed although it scaled things back with no party members and a time management system. It felt more niche but I love Lightning so I’ll lap up anything I can get. Dirge Of Cerberus was decent, but the shooting mechanics were not as crisp as they needed to be, and let’s not forget that any additional VII material is wrapped up within the PSP, making it inaccessible for some. While different platforms are great, it certainly doesn’t aid in continuity. All of this brings me to Type-0, or more accurately, the HD version.
The story of Final Fantasy Type-0 HD spans various regions in the world of Orience. You play as the students of Class Zero, a group of 14 individuals, each with their own skills and choice of weapon. Their strength and exploits are highly regarded among Rubrum, the Dominion you are sworn to. Each Dominion has a crystal, until one day the Militesi Empire begins to launch attacks and claiming crystals. Your team of 14 is dispatched to defend Rubrum, and this is the start of the journey to protect your nation, as well as uncover the truth behind the mysterious origin of Class Zero, and the powers that are plotting to plunge the world into chaos. One thing that immediately stands out is that this game bears a much more darker tone than most games in the series, and is heavily based on military manuevers and political tensions amongst the various regions.
I didn’t play the original but right off the bat I can say the story feels more grand than what you are actually experiencing. I feel the biggest reason is due to the fact that this game was built for the PSP, thus had to wrangle with the technical limitations of the handheld. If this were a true and proper release on the PS4/XB1, this game could have easily been much larger in scope, way more fleshed out and really been an excellent contender within the series. I’ll be honest, my initial play wasn’t that enjoyable. I found the characters to just be these generic, stock image versions of Final Fantasy characters. They sure filled the spot for a variety of classes, but they felt very empty and unlikeable. This and the linearity sort of put me off for many years. It was when I started taking serious cracks at my backlog that I revisited the game, and found that some of them had a but more growth and depth to them. Ultimately, I think that is what hurts Class Zero the most, as by the end I didn’t feel the sense of attachment to any characters that I was expecting to have.
Combat was pretty cut and dry, but it held its chops as an ARPG. You have skills mapped to the 4 main buttons, whether it be magic or weapon techniques. Each character has a unique playstyle so you can determine the character that fits you best, but Ace was a beast and he has the capacity to decimate enemies. Magic is powerful, but the system for upgrading magics just felt very bland and tacked on. You can harvest various energies called Phantomas from enemies, and these are what can be invested into different schools of magic to upgrade them. Certain enemies drop certain phantomas, and the grinding isn’t really worth the outcome in my opinion. I think utilizing the cadets’ in tandem was a much more effective strategy than focusing on magic or eidolons, which also felt very weak. One interesting aspects which very much fits into the military narrative were the overworld skirmishes. These were essentially a small strategy base defense minigame, where you are protecting your base while pushing forward and trying to capture the enemy base. Different units had different strengths and weaknesses, and the stride of battle could change suddenly, forcing you to reassess your strategy and find a different method of attack.
One aspect I really liked was the gritty feel of the cutscenes. They had these filters that gave a bit of a worn feel to them, as if they were captured on the go in battle with whatever equipment they could procure. The game itself has a nice coat of paint slapped onto some areas, and by some I mean environments of great importance, and the main characters/important NPCs. Random NPCs looked like ass, but if you are playing a visually upgraded PSP game, chances are you aren’t in it for the graphics. Aside from some silly design choices and the lack of truly meaningful character growth, Final Fantasy Type-0 HD provides a decent, albeit shallow experience for fans of the series.
-Game Info- Final Fantasy Type-0 HD Developer: Square Enix Publisher: Square Enix Release Date: 5/18/2015 Platforms: PS4, XB1, PC -GamerDad Info- Completed On: 3/20/2021 Played On: PS5 Time Played: ~40 Hours Rating: 5.75/10
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