Granblue Fantasy: Relink Reviews
Relink impresses with its fun, addictive, accessible, and diverse character combat, tightly paced story, lovable characters, and beautiful presentation. Several aspects detract from this experience, including the surface-level complexity of the hub, side mission, and exploration system, the simplicity of the Mastery Points system, and some technical challenges like the lack of online quest cross-play between PC and consoles, frustrating lock-on targeting camera, and the PS5 Performance graphics mode resolution.
Granblue Fantasy: Relink features a really short story that you can finish in a few days, and the post-game could potentially keep people playing for a while especially when taking its superb combat system online. The lack of real depth and effort explaining the lore is a real problem though, so I’d be wary of that before committing to whatever investment you put into this one.
Lost in time and lost in its own design, but it's possible to see glimpses of creativity in the cooperative combat and its focus on online modes.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
Granblue Fantasy Relink was not only well worth the wait, but it blew my expectations clear out of the water. If I’m honest, I anticipated a JRPG that was a bit above average but wouldn’t really be a blip in a Game of the Year discussion. Well, shut my mouth because, while it does tell the traditional tale of preventing the apocalypse, it handles it exceptionally.
There are few games that have been able to break out of development hell and satisfy those who have been waiting for it for a long time and their fans. Granblue Fantasy succeeded in this test with a highly polished gameplay and a charming adventure atmosphere, thanks to which it was able to place itself as a strong candidate as one of the best games of this year in the JRPG classification.
Review in Arabic | Read full review
It took me around 32 hours to complete the Main Story and Postgame Story in Relink. I found no glaring grammatical issues throughout my playthrough, which is a big plus. Afterwards, an even more difficult level (Maniac) for Counter Quests is unlocked, and completing those quests will unlock an even tougher difficulty level (Proud). Completing the Main Story also unlocks the Chapter Select, which allows you to replay past Story Chapters at different difficulty levels, and also lets you find collectibles you may have missed the first time around. The Chapter Select menu also tells you how many collectibles you found in each chapter, so you can be on the lookout for certain things as you replay the chapter. However, this only tells you overall the missing collectibles. This is an issue because when you choose to replay a Story Chapter, you can choose a specific part to start from. So if you choose to start a chapter from a specific point, you could possibly be skipping over a collectible and not even realize. You really have to go through each chapter from the beginning with a fine tooth comb if you’re looking to find all the collectibles. So, with the addition of new Counter Quests to tackle and the ability to replay Story Chapters, there’s plenty to do for the completionists out there. And even if you’re not a completionist, you can still tackle more difficult Counter Quests online with friends for fun.
Plan your trip on this good ole fantasy adventure ship
Granblue Fantasy: Relink was a bit of a surprise for me. I was expecting a good time to be sure, but I am shocked by how deeply engaged I’ve become with the game. The story might disappoint some who were expecting a long, in-depth JRPG, but if you know what you’re getting into that shouldn’t be a problem. The combat is phenomenal. The character variety provides an endless supply of fun, with tons of opportunity to experiment and optimize your play. I’m going to be playing Granblue Fantasy: Relink for a long time, even after finishing this review there are a wealth of characters I want to dive deeper into and master, and I want to continue playing with those I’ve already spent hours upon hours with. I hope we see more games like this from Cygames going forward. They have a killer foundation to build on here.
Granblue Fantasy: Relink transitions from mobile to console and PC, offering a balanced mix of action-oriented combat and deep storytelling that competes with top RPGs like Final Fantasy. Despite minor exploration and performance issues, its compelling narrative, striking visuals, and innovative blend of single-player and live-service elements make it a standout title in the RPG genre.
The biggest issue with “Granblue Fantasy: Relink” is its not-so-great camera, but that’s a small price to play in an RPG so full of amazing setpieces, well designed characters (from a mechanics standpoint), amazing quests and a very solid campaign. A fantastic entry to the “Granblue” franchise and a must play even if you never heard about it before.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
Granblue Fantasy: Relink is an accessible and well-packaged JRPG that is sure to delight fans of the series thanks to a well-thought-out combat system, a wide range of usable characters, and a curated art style. Despite this, its appeal definitely diminishes for all those unfamiliar with it.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Although the runtime of the main narrative is relatively short, clocking in at about 20 hours or so, the replayability value of Granblue Fantasy: Relink is off the charts. Taking into account the more than 100 quests on offer, the Fate Episodes to learn more information about every character, and the online mode to set out on adventures with up to three friends is virtually an endless trove of entertainment for those looking for an Action RPG with substance.
I will play Granblue Fantasy: Relink for many more hours to come. It perfectly scratches that itch of slaying giant beasts to upgrade one of many individual characters to then slay even bigger beasts in this beautifully illustrated steampunk fantasy world.
Granblue Fantasy: Relink is an entertaining title, beautiful to look at and play, especially with friends. Unfortunately, the fast pacing of the story gives too little space to in-depth analysis of the characters. The technical side is not exceptional and not being able to handle 4K at 60 fps on PS5 today is a serious flaw for a developer like Cygames. However, all this problems magically disappear in front of the vastness of the sky of Zegagrande, accompanied by the music of Tsutomu Narita and the great Nobuo Uematsu.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Despite being in development hell for almost 8 years, Granblue Fantasy: Relink surpassed my initial troubled expectations. With its beautiful animations, addicting combat, and varied character roster, Relink is undoubtedly an experience that will appeal to fans of the series and the action RPG genre in general, especially the end-game multiplayer content. However, as a standalone solo-player JRPG experience, it’s a generic and bland affair.
While there's room for improvement in a few places, Granblue Fantasy: Relink is still quite impressive. It has been much anticipated, and Cygames has delivered something that truly captures the essence of an engaging adventure. Even though its primary narrative isn't very long, it still delivers a stripped-down story without any unnecessary filler, which is remarkable. Whether you're playing solo or with pals online, Relink is a fantastic journey. But for a complete experience, it’s best played with friends. It's exciting and fills your urgent hunger quickly. If you're looking for a unique battle experience, you should join other postgame players.
Granblue Fantasy: Relink offers a gorgeous experience with fantastic combat, fan-favorite characters, and a welcoming storyline that is hindered by excessive endgame grinding.
I had a blast with my journey in Granblue Fantasy Relink. When it comes to a great RPG, I will be engrossed and invested into their story to the point that I lose track of time. Having a bit of history with the franchise, I ate this story and its many flavors of mechanics as if it’s a meal made by Gordon Ramsey. I wanted and hoped for the story to keep going, but a part of me knew the end was coming sooner rather than later. Wishing for more of the story, Here’s to more for this series.
Granblue Fantasy: Relink is a wonderful RPG that offers a tantalising narrative, wonderful visuals, and epic action-orientated battling. I found myself completely hooked in from the moment I started playing, whilst the streamlined approach ensures that the adventure feels perfectly paced and never forces players to grind. And don’t worry – even those who haven’t heard of Granblue before will be able to appreciate it’s storytelling. I know that the PlayStation 5 has a few high-profile RPGs releasing in early 2024, but honestly, if you’re a fan of the genre, you REALLY won’t want to skip Granblue Fantasy: Relink.
Granblue Fantasy: Relink is a magnificent ARPG in which we must save our dear friend Lyria from the hands of the Church of Avia. A very fun title, but it shows that it draws on so many other games and lacks originality. However, it is still a very fun installment to which you can spend many hours with a great variety of characters, unforgettable settings and a really beautiful soundtrack.
Review in Spanish | Read full review