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An action role-playing game with an emphasis on action, Granblue Fantasy: Relink is based on the hit mobile title Granblue Fantasy. For the past decade, developer Cygames’ intention has been to spread the good word of Granblue to a wider audience, which is why it greenlit games like Granblue Fantasy Versus and Relink, console ports that would (hopefully) prove the value of property outside of mobile space.
Relink in particular has been a long time arriving. The project was first announced in 2016, and original Bayonetta and NieR: Automata developer Platinum Games abandoned the process in 2019, when Cygames acquired the title in-house. The question, then, is whether this prolonged wait, compounded by multiple delays, has finally borne fruit.
For what it’s worth, there’s definitely still some platinum DNA left in Relink. The hack and slash combat is accessible but requires timely blocking and dodging, not unlike the systems you’ll find in the studio’s best-known releases. What sets Relink apart, however, is its reliance on RPG elements; Stats, equipment, and big damage numbers are at the core of how the game works, while battles are punctuated by character-specific attacks and abilities that operate during cooldowns.
Speaking of characters, Relink has a pretty large roster of playable heroes. The title is effectively made up of two parts: the single-player story campaign and Monster Hunter-style quest-based quests that can be tackled with CPU allies or other online players. The latter is where you’ll make use of the aforementioned roster of characters, but you’ll need to complete the main campaign before you can tackle the vast majority of the game’s additional missions.
In a way, the single-player story acts as an introduction to Relink’s mechanics, but calling it a tutorial would be a disservice. This is a complete campaign made up of cutscenes, action-packed levels, and some surprisingly impressive cutscenes. It is very clear that a lot A lot of effort has gone into the title’s main act; The main adventure is a truly thrilling ride for most of its duration, as you fight brilliant bosses and engage in some crazy platforming sections. Again, there are times when everything seems very Platinum, especially when it comes to pacing and combat encounters that seem to get more and more ambitious as the plot progresses.
However, having such an intense campaign has a downside. In terms of length, the single-player story lasts around 15 to 20 hours (available side quests included), and when the credits roll, it feels a bit short-lived. Don’t get us wrong, everything builds up and concludes satisfactorily, but if you’ve spent the last few years expecting Relink to be a sprawling RPG adventure, you’ll probably be disappointed.
On the other hand, the fact that Relink has little to no filler is something that should be praised. Too often, we see bigger-budget action RPGs like Final Fantasy 16 destroy their own momentum so they can funnel players into boring filler stories and snore-inducing side quests. Relink’s campaign may only take 20 hours to complete, but it’s 20 hours of fast and furious fun.
Moving on, the narrative itself is nothing special, but it is charmingly told through a cast of likable characters. You play as the captain of a ship sailing through the sky – the same male or female protagonist who is central to the mobile game. Relink’s story is actually a spin-off of that title, as the captain and his trusted crew head to Zegagrande Skydom, a collection of floating islands they have yet to explore.
Naturally, things don’t go as planned and the crew quickly make enemies of a cult-like organization, resulting in an adventure that takes the captain and his companions across the elementally diverse islands of Skydom. The plot is predictable and the characters don’t have much time to express themselves, but it does a good job of tying all the action together. Even if you’re not familiar with the franchise, you still get a decent idea of the personalities on offer and the celestial world they inhabit.
At the beginning of the campaign, you have the opportunity to unlock playable characters that are not part of your immediate crew, using items that can be acquired through quests. However, it is important to note that these additional heroes have nothing to do with the main story, which focuses exclusively on the captain and his five closest allies. As such, we’d probably recommend completing the campaign before exploring your expanded roster, if only so you can get to know the core team better.
In battle, you play as a single character while the AI manages up to three members of your party, and each character comes with their own unique fighting style and fighting ability, which can be upgraded through an incredibly long skill tree. Without a doubt, one of Relink’s key selling points is the aforementioned playable roster; is diverse in terms of gameplay and we had a hard time finding a hero that wasn’t fun to use in combat.
The captain, equipped with a short sword and sporting a wide range of aggressive and support abilities, is pretty much the default choice, but there are armed ranged fighters, spell-casting magic users, and plenty of pretty, oversized anime-carrying warriors. weapons on. Trying them all, finding favorites, and building them into high-level powerhouses is really the big draw of Relink once you’re done with the main story.
Fortunately, you’ll have plenty of quests to take on after the campaign. These quests come in many shapes and sizes; Some task you with eliminating waves of monsters, others have you defend a location, and others pit you against especially dangerous bosses. However, generally the missions do not match the spectacle shown throughout the story. The end-game missions are approaching and almost require mastery of defensive techniques so your health bar doesn’t melt, but most missions will be over in a matter of minutes.
The idea here is that you’ll grind objectives to level up characters and accumulate materials, which can be used to forge and upgrade weapons. This is really where the Monster Hunter comparison comes into play, because it’s the same kind of structure: select a mission from the central city, gather your CPU friends or find allies online, complete the mission, and then return to the center so you can strengthen your character, ready to do it all again.
The thing is, your mission mileage will vary depending on how much you enjoy Relink battles. On a fundamental level, the combat system doesn’t have anywhere near the addictive depth of the famous Capcom franchise, and if you want to complete each mission, you’ll be working on Relink for who knows how many hours. To some extent, the variety of characters keeps things interesting, and the title’s toughest bosses can present a serious challenge, but whether you’re on the CPU or other players, repetition starts to set in long before you’ve beaten them. to all.
That’s not to say that Relink’s combat system is bad, far from it. At its best, it’s a thrilling ballet of combo attacks, tightly timed blocks, and last-minute dodges. It feels a little floaty at first, but once you get used to the pace, there’s a lot to like about the action. What’s more, teamwork is actively encouraged, as even the toughest enemies require a barrage of blows to take down. Fighting close to your allies opens up enemies to high-damage link attacks, and a wide range of support magic (healing spells, barriers, and buffs) means it’s generally best to be side by side so the entire party can get together. benefit.
Beyond the eventual repetition, our only complaints about the combat don’t come from the system or mechanics. Firstly, battles can sometimes be a complete cacophony of visual noise, making it difficult to react to incoming attacks. And secondly, characters. never shut up. This isn’t a big deal during side quests, but in the story, there are points where characters will offer absurd amounts of exposition while you’re knee-deep in a desperate act of survival. It’s a shame the cast is incapable of keeping quiet, because Relink has a downright fantastic orchestral soundtrack that’s often elevated by the roar of electric guitars.
Before we jump to the conclusion, we should note that while Relink has gorgeous art direction, it’s pretty rough graphically. You can certainly say that it was intended to be a PS4 release, but disappointment comes when you realize that the PS5 version’s performance mode is capped at just 1080p. The low resolution means resources can look noticeably choppy on a 4K display, but at least you get a smooth 60 frames per second.