Granblue Fantasy: Relink may have gained a new fanbase after Granblue Fantasy Versus was relaunched. But, as a lover of mobile RPGs before, my expectations were very different.
The series has moved from phones to PC and PlayStation. It now features exciting real-time action. This kind of action fits well with story-driven games like Final Fantasy XVI.
While it has obvious mobile roots, the story may be tighter and less bloated than its competitors. But, other parts of the game just don’t feel quite right. Granblue Fantasy: Relink’s fun combat and charming characters have kept me entertained for over 35 hours already.
Storyline of Granblue Fantasy: Relink
The story of Granblue Fantasy: Relink follows a crew searching for a mysterious island called Estalucia. The protagonist is a silent character who chooses between Gran and Djeeta.
One of the key characters is Lyria, a young girl with summoning powers. The central cast’s interactions are interesting due to their mix of personalities.
Relink is a mobile-like RPG that offers a refreshing change from games like:
- Persona 3 Reload
- Dragon: Infinite Wealth
As in a mobile game, the chapters are concise, and the dialogue is minimal. A player is given objectives to complete, moves on to a new location, defeats a boss, and moves on to the next. It takes 15-20 hours to complete the main campaign, providing a refreshing change from long role-playing games.
Cinematic Moments
There are many cinematic moments in Relink, such as ambushing monsters and fighting them off as they try to board your crew.
There are even scenes comparable to Final Fantasy XVI’s biggest confrontations, such as controlling Bahamut or climbing a stone giant. Xenoblade Chronicles 3 or The Legend of Heroes: Trails into Reverie are more grandiose games.
There are no characters that look bad in or out of combat.
Granblue Fantasy features many characters, but only a few plays actual roles. Many more can be summoned with tickets earned through side activities. A watercolor drawing style and clean lines add charm to Relink’s main menu, while the 3D models are beautifully rendered with emotion and life.
The mobile roots of Relink are weak when it comes to Fate Episodes, which provide lore and background for each character and increase their stats. A few of the 10 Fate Episodes have a playable component, while most have boring cutscenes.
As in Genshin Impact, Relink’s strength lies in its diverse roster of characters, each with their own playstyles and skills. Gran and Djeeta fight with swords, while Eugen uses bombs, third-person lock-on and shooting mechanics. Players are likely to find a favorite character among the many available.
A character’s arts level determines how effective their special skills are in Relink’s real-time action combat. Players become more powerful the longer they wait for skills. Healing skills heal more HP at higher Arts Levels, creating a risk-reward dynamic. The game is both fun and challenging due to the need to decide when to seek immediate help.
The risk and reward dynamic of your Arts Level is interesting.
Ultimate Attacks in Combat
Relink’s Skybound Arts are unique ultimate attacks that are popular combat features. When the party waits before firing off Skybound Arts, Full Burst, a group attack that deals significant damage to the whole party, can be activated.
Also, you can command your party to hold on to their own Skybound Arts before activating yours.
Relink was developed by Cygames, which previously worked with PlatinumGames on the title. Granblue Fantasy: Relink features smooth, responsive controls similar to Nier: Automata.
It occasionally switches up real-time action to prevent stale combat. Similarly, to Armored Core games, players can use guns on their ships to pick off enemies, or control a mech to fight robots. There is still excitement and fun in these short-lived moments.
Tasks to Complete
Players must complete tasks such as defeating bosses, eliminating enemies, and protecting objects during the story and post-game.
Players can customize their online sessions with numerous matchmaking options in Relink’s multiplayer. The process of forming a crew is made easier when friends are invited to join their lobby.
Although PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 players can play together in Relink’s multiplayer, there’s no crossplay between PlayStation and PC. It limits the matchmaking potential and divides the user base of a game that already faces the risk of being niche.
As far as the online experience is concerned, I didn’t see any connection issues or framerate issues while playing with my friends on PlayStation.
Quests grant materials for weapon forging and upgrading, as well as for enhancing Sigils. A sigil is an equippable orb that adds effects such as skill cooldowns or base attack stats. It is possible for players to customize their playstyles.
Post-game bosses and quests require proper Sigil planning to overcome. Taking on these challenges allows for ample teamwork and preparation, which makes the victory even sweeter.
Features:
Granblue Fantasy’s mobile game Relink features light gacha mechanics, but no microtransactions. Sigils can be traded for vouchers that can be redeemed for new sigils.
There is no plan to implement microtransactions in the future, thus ensuring equal playing fields and encouraging players to spend more time playing rather than paying. Cygames has confirmed no plans to implement microtransactions in the future.
Worldwide Downloaders of Granblue Fantasy: Relink
Moreover, the game’s popularity only defines by how many downloaders it has. Similarly, let me show you how many downloaders this video game has.
As mentioned previously, this edition is only available for PS and Windows gamers. So, here’s the report of that:
- PlayStation Downloaders: 11361 with 69 Rating (Source)
- Windows Downloaders (Via Steam): 29,082 with 4+ Rating (Source)
Price of Granblue Fantasy: Relink
Yes, Granblue Fantasy: Relink is available for download on the PlayStation Store. The game was released on February 1, 2024. It’s available for both PS4 and PS5. The game supports up to 4 online players with PS Plus.
There are different editions of the game available for purchase:
- Standard Edition includes the Granblue Fantasy: Relink Game and GBF Special Item Set: Relink Pack for $59.99.
- Special Edition includes the Granblue Fantasy: Relink Game, False Sword of the Apocalypse, Color Pack 2, Color Pack 3, Starter Item Pack, and GBF Special Item Set: Relink Pack for $79.99.
- Digital Deluxe Edition includes the Granblue Fantasy: Relink Game, False Sword of the Apocalypse, Color Pack 1, Color Pack 2, Color Pack 3, Starter Item Pack, Digital Artbook & Soundtrack, and GBF Special Item Set: Relink Pack for $99.99.
Additionally, there are various add-ons available for purchase, including Character Color Packs and Upgrade Packs.
Conclusion
Granblue Fantasy: Relink maintains high storytelling standards despite its short campaign. Multiplayer questing with friends, despite the lack of crossplay, is thrilling, despite the game’s mobile origins. Even after defeating the final boss, Relink’s action combat and interesting characters keep players engaged.
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