If you ask me what I think about the Final Fantasy XV story, I will say that the story in Final Fantasy XV isn’t that bad.

And I mean it when I say that.

Yes, I admit that the game starts in a weird way. Rather than starting the game with you having to fight hordes of enemies, the game starts with you having to push a car that breaks down in the middle of the road.

And you have to push it until you reach a workshop in Hammerhead.

Even with such a weird start, I still think that the game has an interesting premise overall.

It’s just sad that Square Enix messed up the story big time.

With the game suddenly rushing towards the end and with so many things left unanswered even after seeing the ending, the game doesn’t leave you with a satisfying feeling at all.

It makes you feel like you’re missing something too as if you’re not unlocking the true ending.

Heck, even Tabata said it himself how messy the story has become.

It doesn’t matter whether you’re new to the game or you’re a longtime Final Fantasy fan. There’s no denying that the game fits the definition of a basket case, story-wise.

What’s causing the Final Fantasy XV story to be in such a hot mess

For many of us, the game comes to mind when we talk about Final Fantasy XV.

Well, it makes sense since Final Fantasy is a game, first and foremost.

But the thing about Final Fantasy XV is that it doesn’t just exist as a game alone.

Apart from the game, there’s Kingsglaive movie which fleshes out the event that leads to Niflheim’s invasion of Insomnia.

Remember the scene in the game where you get a few seconds of cutscenes that summarized everything that happened in Insomnia?

Well, you’ll get a full story about the Insomnia invasion in Kingsglaive.

And then there’s the anime Brotherhood too which fleshes out Prompto’s, Gladio’s, and Ignis’ backstories.

You can watch the anime for free on YouTube. And as for Kingsglaive, it’s available on Netflix.

And then there’s a light novel called Final Fantasy XV Prologue Parting Ways. The story in the light novel takes place a day before Noctis and the rest is heading to Altissia.

With so many bits and pieces of information scattered all over the place, it’s no wonder that Final Fantasy XV story is a total basket case.

You have way too many sources to keep up just to fill in the gaps in the story.

What makes Square Enix thinks that it’s a good idea to have the story scattered all over the place?

While I can’t say for sure what Square Enix was smoking when they decided to make the story available in many different formats, I’m guessing that the reason may have something to do with the game having an open-world concept.

Yes, they’re greedy for wanting to have both the open-world concept and an engaging story in the game.

But knowing how much of a basketcase the game has become even during the development stage and with time isn’t on their side, something needs to go.

And you can guess which one they decided to forgo.

The gameplay wins, hands down.

They know that there’s no replacement for the gameplay since it’s the game’s bread and butter.

But the story?

Well, they can always patch things up and expand the story if they want to in many different formats.

Having the story available in many different formats frees up the resources too. With other people in charge of filling up the gap in the story, now the development team can focus more on what matters the most which is the gameplay.

And having the story told in many different formats helps with having the game able to reach as many people as possible too.

So, this many different formats approach works in their favor. They’re killing two birds with a stone with this approach.

Does it even work?

Well, you can guess what happens after that. This whole multiple-format approach is a disaster in the making.

Sure, having the story fleshes out in a movie, anime, and light novel may help with bringing the new and existing fans back to the game.

But it’s actually a big mistake.

For one, most people aren’t willing to go the extra mile consuming other forms of sources just to fill in whatever burning questions they have about the story.

They expect the story to be complete without having to rely on additional sources just to fill in the gap.

And the biggest blunder of all? Many people aren’t even aware that the Kingsglaive movie, the Brotherhood anime, and the light novel exist.

Well, you can’t blame them for not knowing any of these when Square Enix doesn’t care to mention them at all when they promote the game.

While the next few updates for the game, the release of Episode Gladio, Episode Prompto, and Episode Ignis and The Dawn of the Future novel is a saving grace for the Final Fantasy XV story, the story is beyond saving at this point.

This multiple formats approach is already doomed to fail from the start.

And they never seem to learn somehow

If you think that this tangled mess is only happening to Final Fantasy XV, you’ll be hard-pressed to find out that they’re about to do the same thing to Final Fantasy VII Remake with the release of this spin-off novel, Final Fantasy VII Remake: Traces of Two Pasts.

The novel has yet to be released as I write this.

But judging from the book description, it sounds like a spin-off to me since the novel is expanding what we already know about Aerith and Tifa.

How the story in the novel remains as a standalone has yet to be seen.

But knowing Square Enix, I won’t be surprised that you may need to read this novel as well if you want to make sense of all the things that are happening in the game.

If it does happen that way, consider yourself warned this time.

P.S I admit that I don’t enjoy seeing a dark ending in Final Fantasy XV. But I do enjoy reading a story that has a dark premise but still ends on a happy note.

If you enjoy reading a light novel with that kind of story, then you may enjoy reading my psychological suspense light novel, The Diary of Modern Cinderella.

You can take a look at the digital version of the light novel right here on my Payhip store:

The Diary of Modern Cinderella

Interested in buying the light novel? Don’t forget to use the coupon code SEKINAMAYUBLOG to receive 25% off on your purchase.

Just to let you know that this book is also available in print and on other retailers such as Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Kobo, and Apple Books. But you can only get a discount when you buy from my Payhip store, though.