The first footage from the Final Fantasy-based rhythm game Theatrhythm Final Fantasy has emerged, and fans are not happy.
Before you read any further, you really ought to watch the clip embedded at right. As I said, it’s the first footage from the Nintendo 3DS’ upcoming Theatrhythm Final Fantasy, and apparently it’s an abomination unto the Lifestream.
Kotaku and Joystiq both bashed the game’s lo-fi aesthetics; the former slamming the game via headline, while the latter tried its hardest to be diplomatic.
I gotta say though, I don’t really see the problem here. Granted, the game won’t win any game of the year awards for its stunning graphics, but in the handheld rhythm game subgenre, hyper-detailed, gorgeous environments are kind of a detriment. I mean, the gameplay is dependent entirely on focusing one’s attention on colored circles, and responding to audio cues in time — cluttering the screen with billions of polygons and textures is just going to make that more difficult.
Then again, maybe I’m not the best judge of this kind of thing. I’ve played many Final Fantasy titles, but I wouldn’t claim any sort of fanboy status.
Perhaps that’s the problem. Perhaps my American sensibilities just don’t get it. Perhaps there’s some innately Japanese — or, failing that, innately otaku — element that my Oregonian mind is too sheltered to comprehend.
I bet if I had a Gundam wall scroll I could understand why this footage is so lame.
Source: Andriasang
