Stranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Origin Reviews
You could do worse than with Square Enix's brave new venture into Soulslike territory that's roughly 20 hours or less depending on your skill level. I personally would love to see Team Ninja continue on with this take on Final Fantasy, but with better level design and a less banal plot thread that's a bit more accessible to non-fans.
Stranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Origin does a fantastic job on the gameplay department, but fails at almost everything else. The combat is fun, and the class system gives the player an immense amount of freedom to play however they want, but the lackluster graphics and pretty straightforward levels certainly ruin some of its most epic moments.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
All leading to an ending that long-time fans will appreciate but newcomers will leave confused. Stranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Origin is a mixed bag of highs and lows that collide together for an average adventure.
From pure gameplay standpoint, Stranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Origin is one of the best action/rpgs ever which gives the players so many options to experiment with almost infinite number of builds and possibilities. Plot-wise and the use of music also feels like a love letter to not only the first Final Fantasy but the whole history of this franchise so it is very unfortunate that the game’s outdated visuals may turn off some of the audience from even trying it.
Review in Persian | Read full review
Stranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Origin will go down in history for being memorable for better and for worse. Many of its sections are a mess, but if you can get past its flaws and learn to enjoy them you'll find a game that will entertain you immensely. Especially if you love action RPGs with rewarding combat and progression systems.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
Stranger of Paradise is a game that will mainly interest the fan. The game doesn't have a very strong storyline and can feel very monotonous after a while. Also, the game doesn't look very nice. Fortunately, the cool combat system makes up for a lot. This certainly doesn't make the game great, but it does work as it should and plays very nicely. A disappointment that may still please you.
Review in Dutch | Read full review
Stranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Origin is an interesting proposition for many players, but you can not expect a hit. The Japanese use many well-known ideas, but unfortunately only a few have received adequate attention to offer high quality. The title is a good proposition for great fans of the NiOh series and fans of Final Fantasy.
Review in Polish | Read full review
Team Ninja nails the gameplay. Killing classic Final Fantasy monsters has never been more fun than it is as Jack Garland. If you can dive into Stranger of Paradise knowing that you’re in for a chaotic mess with a solid gameplay foundation, you’re in for a good time.
Stranger of Paradise Final Fantasy Origin offers a counterintuitive experience that has terrible presentation and an unintentionally hilarious narrative. It’s slightly saved by a fairly enjoyable combat and job system. Take both of those away, and this game will feel more like a parody of the legendary franchise.
Team Ninja serves up some solid Soulslike combat with a generous helping of cheese.
Stranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Origin is an enjoyable experiment in melding Soulslike conventions onto a Final Fantasy skeleton. However it undercuts itself by not daring for more complexity, setting up great narrative and gameplay turns that never come to pass.
So yeah. Stranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Origin. I don’t know if anyone was actually expecting it to be good — but it turns out it is. Really good, in fact. Now I’m off to go play a bit more of it.
Stranger of Paradise is at its best a mediocre game that becomes boring and tiresome in many cases. It's a bad moment for Team Ninja that reminds me of Ninja Gaiden's 3. The only satisfying thing in this game is its gameplay which is inspired clearly from the Nioh franchise. If Team Ninja had more time in its hands to perfect it maybe we'd have a much refined game but it's not the case for this one.
Review in Greek | Read full review
Mixed feelings with this prequel to the Final Fantasy saga which seems to be not well polished and unfinished. The narrative and the poor technical level (low res textures, flaw animations and strange shadows) does not help to create an inmersive atmosphere. Only the combat part seems to be enjoyable with different combos that allows different strategies to face our enemies.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
Stranger of Paradise does indeed feel like a stranger in the Final Fantasy series, but mostly succeeds because of it.
Stranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Origin is a great addition to the list of numerous titles and genres already presented by the franchise over 35 years of history. The game unites mythology and gameplay in a strange way, but it works. It lives up to the reputation of Team Ninja and Koei Tecmo Games when it comes to action, delivering a product that has the responsibility to honor the franchise. Yes, it is unlike anything that has been done with the franchise and has its reasons for being a Final Fantasy game that only has its name on the cover. However, in the end, the game is audacious and it's able to leave the franchise's comfort zone.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
I have mixed feelings with Stranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Origin, a game that makes constant Final Fantasy one winks, a magnificent Combat of Team Ninja and a sublime soundtrack, but all this is tarnished by a poor technical section and an absurd plot. I don't know if I recommend the game, I leave that to your discretion. What weighs more for you, the combat or the story? If it is the second, I do not advise you to compare it. That's right, it's not a bad game as a whole, but I can't encourage you to buy it when you're only going to enjoy 10 minutes of it. Not to forget its missions, well, be prepared to walk endless corridors with non-existent lighting.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
On top of the surprisingly stellar story that takes a bit to move into place, Strangers of Paradise is just entertaining from start to finish. Jack grumbling about memories and wanting to kill Chaos offers plenty of meme potential and the core action is always satisfying. It also delivers on its subtitle as this is a meaningful Final Fantasy origin story that adds a lot of significance to its least plot-heavy game.
I have to wonder if the gaming audience is quite ready for the kind of metatextual experience that Stranger of Paradise presents. It’s not only a game that doesn’t take itself seriously, but it outright challenges players’ expectations on how games are made and how they should be played. It’s hugely entertaining and as experimental as Final Fantasy at its best, but I do wonder how well something so reflective will click and be remembered as a great in the longer term. I only hope that people realise that the nonsense of Jack, his iPod, and his obsession with Chaos is just the surface of this brilliantly smart, layered thing, and they then take the time to dig into what Stranger of Paradise is really saying as a work of metatextual satire.
An inconsistent experience, but one that for better or for worse is also an unforgettable one. Come for the Job system, stay for the bonkers story
Review in Arabic | Read full review