Final Fantasy XV: the next No Man’s Sky?

[Flintlock]

I've spent some today working on an opinion piece, which I'd like to offer TLS for publication, if you want it. If not, that's cool too, I'll just leave it here for people to read.

The piece is about some things I've noticed about the backlash to No Man's Sky, any how they might or might not relate to the launch of Final Fantasy XV. I've tried to double-check everything, and I've included dozens of sources, but if I've made any factual errors, please let me know. Also, this is only the first draft - after hours of writing, I want to take a break before I read it back, so don't expect it to be perfect.

Edit: the article has now been published, so read that version instead.

 

[AvecAloes]

I found this to be an interesting read. I'm definitely not the one to ask about fact-checking as far as these two games go, but I think the comparisons you drew were solid. I'm definitely for TLS putting it up.

 

[LicoriceAllsorts]

I like it. I think it touches on some problems that are wider than just these two games, and it's quite thought-provoking. It would be nice to see a discussion get going.

 

[The Twilight Mexican]

A well-worded and researched article here, Flint. You make some insightful observations.

Let me know if you want any copyediting assistance before publishing it on the front page.

 

[Jason Tandro]

Just finished reading this article Flint. Your usual high standard of writing is maintained all throughout, the content is fascinating, the comparisons you draw brilliant and, if I'm being honest, a little bit scary. You also wonderfully frame your argument. Just a great article.

 

[Lex]

Brilliant. Publish it yourself, you still have front page access rights

(when you're ready/ if you want it proof'd by tres ofc)

 

[Flintlock]

A well-worded and researched article here, Flint. You make some insightful observations.

Let me know if you want any copyediting assistance before publishing it on the front page.

That would be grand. If you PM me your email address I'll give you editing rights to the document on Google Drive so you can suggest changes. I've done the same for Jason before and I think it worked well. Thanks.

 

[Claymore]

I don't agree about making such a stark comparison between such a small team behind NMS and SE with FFXV ... but good, well-made points nonetheless.

 

[Flintlock]

Are you referring to this paragraph, or something else?

Unlike No Man’s Sky, which was a new title, developed by a small team with presumably a small budget, Final Fantasy XV has been in development for between five and ten years (depending on whether you include work on Versus XIII, as the game was known before it became XV), and is likely to be the most expensive Final Fantasy game ever developed. In other words, Square Enix have a lot more to lose than Hello Games, who, despite the negativity towards their game, are still likely to make a significant profit. Square Enix need high sales, which required good publicity, which requires fans to enjoy the game in significant numbers.

Because even when I was writing it, that was one of the parts I felt least happy with, so I'd be open to changing it.

 

[Octo]

I enjoyed that Flint. I actually had no idea about XV. I'd kinda tuned most of it out. It does not bode well at all. Constantly delaying in order to 'meet fans expectations' it's a fools errand because the more you delay the higher the expectations become.

Anyway good article, and you managed to hold my interest even though I barely give a shit about either of those games. Kudos

 

[Flintlock]

The article is now live on the front page. Big thanks to Tres for copy editing, and a hat-tip to Tets for sharing screenshots in the FFXV thread, which I linked to.

Note to self: manually converting articles from Google Drive to Wordpress takes fucking ages.

 

[Kermitu Kleric Katie]

I'll be honest, I lost interest in FFXV long ago. But this article is pretty neat.