Shadowbringers

RTG | Games of the Year 2019

Editorials

I know, I know, I’m later than everyone else doing this, but a lot posted theirs before the year ended so I win. Ahem, anyway, 2019 was a pretty good year for games, wasn’t it? The Switch continued its march for dominance, Capcom made a triumphant return to form, and the first proper whispers of the next generation of consoles began to surface. Oh, and Google released their Stadia thing with all the gusto of a wet fart.

But, that’s not what we’re here for, especially not the Stadia thing; we’re here to celebrate the games of 2019 in all their glory. So here it is – my picks for Games of the Year 2019!

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Review | Final Fantasy XIV: Shadowbringers (Final Review)

Reviews

Normally I wouldn’t review a game twice; but after writing my review-in-progress previously, there was so much left to discuss, which was only added to by the remainder of the expansion. So, having finished the entire Main Scenario of the expansion, as well as the optional dungeons and Raid content, I wanted to review the “full” Final Fantasy XIV: Shadowbringers experience.

As I mentioned before, the story of Shadowbringers is easily the best yet, with some of the most intricately crafted character moments in gaming. It’s more than this though as the narrative on this expansion builds so successfully on the previous story beats, whilst bringing in new threads to progress the plot. Needless to say, and I’ll say this right now in bold capitals so you all know …

SPOILERS. AHEAD.

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Review | Final Fantasy XIV: Shadowbringers (In Progress)

Reviews

Final Fantasy XIV cannot really be considered as anything less than a success. With over 14 million active players at last count, and active communities thriving around the game – whether it be through art, cosplay, or at the popular Fan Fest events – the game is nothing if not huge. Something that Square Enix are leaning into with the most recent expansion – Shadowbringers.

I’d like to stress before I start that this is a review-in-progress of the expansion. Owing to the sheer amount of content in the expansion, with Square Enix once again living up to their promise of it being the length of a “full length adventure game”, I’ve only reached level 75. This is despite a considerable amount of time plugged into it, but I couldn’t wait to share my thoughts.

This review will avoid the majority of spoilers though, so there’s that.

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