It’s undeniably a weird package, but Monster of the Deep: Final Fantasy XV manages to make its eccentricities work for it, rather than against it. Not only is it the best fishing game I’ve played in virtual reality, but it’s also a true delight for Final Fantasy fans.
It’s a relaxed, laid back and generally amusing side story to the Final Fantasy XV universe, and it throws some great variety and boss battles into the gameplay mix. It’s not the essential VR experience, but it is a delightful little game that fundamentally benefits from the VR platform.
The wonky motion tracking and cumbersome menus may leave you reeling, but Monster of the Deep: Final Fantasy XV is not the gimmicky gag that many expected it to be. This is a hearty package with a surprising amount of meat on its bones, and it’s a feast for the eyes in PlayStation VR. Cut corners like 2D cut-scenes do break the immersion somewhat, but relative to expectations, this is way better than it has any right to be.
Monster of the Deep: Final Fantasy XV is a chill-ass game that's meant to lure in a very specific type of player. Seeing random wildlife from Eos and interacting with the cast was fun, and I feel like the tension of seeing everything in first-person elevates the sometimes rote act of fishing. It's just silly enough to work for the select few that will meet all of the requirements to actually boot it up.
Monsters of the Deep is not very innovative with the fishing mechanic and the story is not exciting but boy did I enjoyed every second of it. From the incredible graphics to soothing sounds and music, this game is a must for everyone who's looking for a game to lay back, relax and have a cold one. Daemon battles are a blast but my favourite game type was free fishing.
While this fishing simulator is visually a-lure-ing for a virtual reality game thanks to its Final Fantasy heritage, the snags are packed in like sardines. [Jan 2018, p.95]
Monsters of the Deep is a beautiful tragedy in terms of a VR experience. The visuals are stunning and it could have been a great fishing simulation, but ends up being lazy and broken. A fishing VR game is a good idea and the controls may be better with the motion controls, but trying to fish is a hassle even when a sense of consistency is established.
The fact that a Final Fantasy game has a VR game is absolutely mindblowing. Although this game can be considered a mini-fishing game, it was still fun nonetheless. Meeting the characters in VR was awesome, and although some people consider fishing a boring task in the main game, it was honestly the most fun. And now that this game was made, and the fishes being described as "monsters", it's actually a really good addition. You can just play it for fun, and to take off some time.
I really want to like this game. I swear, I try. I trying to do this SO MUCH HARD. But still... I can't. My name is Nameless Fisherman, and this is my story.
Me and my wife really like the fishing-simulators, and we're like Final Fantasy XV. To be honest, our Noctis spent more time with a fishing rod than with a sword. We've looked forward to VR-experience in FFXV, but nah, Square Enix has their own plans. They canceled VR-part of the original game, but then announced a fishing simulator! With Noctis and friends, with monsters and trophies, with more complex gameplay, then we see in FFXV. And yeah, we are really waiting for this game. And our disappointment is incredible.
First things first - our main character is nothing, but a nameless dummy. No story, no lore, not even a personal motivation. Absolute zero! Of course, I really want to play as Noctis himself, or maybe as one of his crew, even as one of the 3rd-line characters (fisherman from fisherman's quest maybe?)... But no, all we have - is this strange character. I know, I know, we have "Comrades" and all that stuff, but nah, I come to play a different game, not a multiplayer add-on with poor customization.
Okay, maybe it will be so nice and beautiful game, that I can forget about this little mistake? Well, I guess not. The graphics are awful. It got so many problems with details, resolution, shadows, water quality, textures, and grain. Especially grain, because it's so strong that sometimes I can't see anything more than a 2-3 meters away from me. Yeah, it's almost first-line PSVR game, but that line has different games with nice graphics. So it's really sad because Square Enix really can make beautiful games. But for some reason - they don't.
Okay, fine. Let's forget about character issue and graphics. What about gameplay? It's really hard to break standards of fishing-simulator games, almost all of them is fine... But you know what? Square Enix successfully ruined it! The fishing itself a really boring stuff in this game, you just need to repeat some simple movements. You scant the river, you lurk the lure, waiting a little bit, then playing mini-game from original FFXV, and here you go! The only difference now - you "holding" rod by your left hand, and make some circle-movements with your right hand to catch the fish. How fun is it? Not so much. And with that fancy graphics, I tell you about - it feels like torture, not like pleasure.
And this disappointment comes after you everywhere! You want to customize your rod - here you go, few not really noticeable changes. You want to do some interactive exploring when game send you in the garage? Forget about it! There are no interactive points at all. You can't grab the bottle of beer, can't read all these books, can't open the car, or even turn on or turn off the lights! Just think about it! In VR-game, when you have two nice arms, controlled with PS Moves, you can't grab, touch or hold anything! Why the hell they make this garage then? Or better ask, why are they making this game so poor, boring and ugly? All Final Fantasy's always has something unique inside, from the original Final Fantasy game to multiple spin-offs, Cloud-on-bike mobile simulator and card-battle games. "Monster of the Deep" has an absolutely empty soul, this game is not the beloved child of her makers. Square Enix just want to take his place in VR-segment, and trying to do this by selling a low-quality product. It's very very sad.
But hey, I totally forgot about one thing, what works perfectly! It calls "The Photo Mode", and when you activate it, you can take a nice screenshot of your character, who makes a "facepalm" emotion. That - is the quickest way to explain what the hell is going there.
Final Fantasy XV: Monster of the Deep is not a game at all. It's quick-maked, poor painted, poor quality lure, what Square Enix lurk inside the new and clean river calls "VR market". And after all, I feel like a fish, who accidentally foolish enough, to eating it.
My name is Nameless Fish, and this is my story....
SummaryThe fishing feature of Final Fantasy XV has been revamped and revitalized for PS VR. Join Noctis, Ignis, Prompto, Gladio, and other familiar faces in a picturesque virtual reality backdrop en route to a thrilling encounter with the menace that lurks in the depths.