Granblue Fantasy Relink Hands-On Preview – Developed by Cygames (although Platinum Games was involved up until 2019) Granblue Fantasy Relink is coming to PS5, PS4, and PC, with the action-RPG set in the same realm as the original title, albeit in a different location. I was lucky enough to go hands-on with the game, and based on my time with the game, Granblue Fantasy Relink is shaping up impressively.One of the first things I did when starting my hands-on playtime was load up the options to check all the different things that can be toggled. The game’s current build has a 1080p 60 FPS Performance Mode, which seems to run pretty smoothly, but there is also the traditional 4K 30 FPS option if you wish to select this. Granblue Fantasy Relink has a very fast-paced action, so unless you really want the graphical improvements I would probably suggest the 60 FPS option for most players. Of course, this is based on preference and also what kind of TV/Monitor you play your games on.Granblue Fantasy Relink PS5 Hands-On PreviewDuring my look through the options I found an Assist Mode too, though this can only really be activated when playing on the easy setting or when tackling easier quests. As such, this feature seems like it could be useful for end-game farming. There’s a simple assist which means that if you pressed the action button (which is Square by default) then the game would automatically combo enemies for you. Meanwhile, a full assist mode allows you to just walk forward and have the game not only perform combos, but also block, dodge, etc. This is good for people with disabilities and it’s also a solid option for people who might have to grind resources later on in the game.There is also a toggle for if you want the motion blur on or off, as I know quite a few people find motion blur to be a real pain or just don’t enjoy the visual effect. I also saw a mode for colour blind support; this had two different options to choose from. Attacks just like in the MMO Final Fantasy XIV are often shown on the ground to be dodged with a red circle marker, and so colour blind support will provide assistance here to make combat more enjoyable. There was also an option to auto skip cutscenes if you wish to.I got to experience a few cutscenes with my hands on with Granblue Fantasy Relink, and one of the first things to look for was if there was an autoplay feature. Yes the game does support autoplay, so don’t need to keep pressing x if you just want to sit back and enjoy the dialogue as its voice acted. The game also features in game storylog which you can access from the dialogue cutscenes too if you wish, so if you do want to scroll up and double check what was said during the cutscene this is a feature you can use. Some words are also in a yellow font, these words are added to a glossary which you can also access during these cutscenes so you can go back to check any key characters,locations or other things you might not remember or have missed.During combat, you have the ability to hold up to four different items. These items can be easily accessed from the d-pad; the default setting has you holding the button to use them, which I preferred as there’s less chance of accidentally using an item. After battling several enemies, the link gauge slowly fills up, and once it’s maxed out, you have the ability to do link skills with L3+R3 with other members of your team. I would suggest when playing online to try and wait until the other party members have also got the skill bar ready. When playing with AI, you are able to press the touchpad and Square button to determine if they perform the skills when the bar is charged or wait for the rest of the party. I found that you also seemed to have an extra guest member join some of your quests also, this party member can not be swapped and is story locked. For the main story, you are also locked to always bringing the main character too.Enemies have an elemental weakness, and each character you bring has a different role and element type, so it’s best to try and bring different builds to increase your chances of staggering your foes. Enemies take more damage when staggered, so it’s worth keeping that in mind. This comes to one of the biggest flaws that I saw in the preview. You gain mastery points for levelling up, for doing quests, and other things. These points are then used to upgrade skills on each character, but the pool of points is shared with everyone so you have to decide who to give your points to.Now, I don’t know for certain if other characters that join your party later have points to spend, but if not, this could prove quite frustrating. If you have invested 15-plus hours into a character you kind of like, but then a new character joins that’s someone you wish to switch to, it’ll be a pain having to grind up to catch that person with the current team. I was also told that there will be no way to respec the characters, so you cannot just reset the points total (hopefully this may change in the future).The mastery tree has two different pathways to go down at first – offensive and defensive – with each one having unique skills for each character in the game. In addition, these are complemented by some basic nodes such as increased HP, attack, link skill rate and others. I found that some skills were locked till you completed chapter five, so you couldn’t scroll all the way down until progressing further in the story.The preview also gave me access to the game’s main hub town. Pleasingly, the town is a hive of activity and genuinely feels alive with so many different NPCs doing their chores and going about their business, from small children to random folk chattering away in the background. Among the highlights I saw include some of the kids training with wooden swords, while other NPCs were indulging in a spot of fishing too. I did actually ask the game’s director if they would be adding a fishing mini game, but there’s no plans to do so right now.While in the town you have access to many different shops, such as a blacksmith, which can be used to upgrade sigils. Sigils are accessories in the best way I can describe them that upgrade certain stats or traits for your character; one increases the amount of potions you could carry at a time, while another gives HP buffs, and are also used to upgrade weapons. Elsewhere, players can sell trash items to the blacksmith. Furthermore, when out on a quest,, you have access to a save crystal at points; these crystals restore health but they also give access to the blacksmith and other shops in the town.Overall I had a really pleasant experience with the game, and I can’t wait till its release in February to jump right back into the world. With its diverse set of characters, environments and gameplay attacks I can’t wait to explore Granblue Fantasy Relink.Granblue Fantasy Relink is due for release on February 1, 2024 for PS5, PS4, and PC. I’d also like to extend my thanks to the wonderful folk at Cygames for the invitation to play the game!
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