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Release Date: July 26th, 2016 Movie Release Year: 2016

Fairy Fencer F: Advent Dark Force

Overview -

Compile Heart's 'Fairy Fencer F' hit the PS3 back in 2013 (Japan) and 2014 (North America). This battle-heavy RPG features weapons cast by a god and a goddess. These power-imbued weapons have become furies, and are now, in the time of the game's story, wielded by warriors. These Fencers must naturally not only fight each other, but must also strive to find more (and more powerful) examples of these ancient and mystical weapons.

'Fairy Fencer F: Advent Dark Force' not only features upgraded visuals; it also features three story paths to play. The battles can now feature six characters in total at a time, which is a big change coming from the PS3 version.

OVERALL:
Worth a Look
Rating Breakdown
VIDEO
AUDIO
Tech Specs & Release Details
Release Date:
July 26th, 2016

Video Review

Ranking:

The original 'Fairy Fencer F' was a dull game to look at on PS3, and the same is true on PS4. The game now runs at 60FPS, a far cry from the often laggy original, but it's a flat, visually bland game for the most part. There are some great animations during combat, particularly during the more intricate attacks, and the character and environmental artwork during cutscenes is pleasant, but that's about as good as it gets.

Audio Review

Ranking:

Though it boasts a soundtrack by 'Final Fantasy' veteran Nobuo Uematsu, the music here is largely fairly generic, with Uematsu himself having only contributed a handful of tracks. There are some excellent battle themes though, and a couple of the vocal tracks are so unabashedly silly and cheesy that I can't help but love them. The voicework is surprisingly strong in both English and Japanese, though the English dub does have far fewer voiced lines overall.

Final Thoughts

Though it more often feels like a Director's Cut than a true remake, 'Advent Dark Force' nonetheless turns a flawed PS3 RPG into a stronger experience overall, making it the absolute best way to play 'Fairy Fencer'. The story has been made a great deal more interesting, playing with concepts that the original only hinted at, and the combat has been given a big shot in the arm thanks to the expanded party sizes and rebalanced difficulty. The game's biggest issue is that it feels like it could've been improved a great deal more than it has, leaving us with a game that's good, but falls just short of greatness. Still, it's a worthwhile adventure that lays down enough strong groundwork that could lead to a truly excellent sequel.