Fairy Tail is an anime/manga series that has gained popularity due to its lighthearted humor, heartfelt moments, magical world, and above all, lovable characters. It doesn't make it to many Top 10 lists, but it's entertaining enough for what it tries to be - a typical shonen genre story that's just fun to read or watch.
The RPG Fairy Tail, on the other hand, doesn't have the same magic as the show or the manga. It was delayed once before launch, but it still feels like it needed a little longer to reach its full potential.
The good ideas are certainly there as a base, but the game is much better in concept than in execution. A few familiar faces and places aren't enough to keep this game's spells from missing the mark.
Fairy Tail Review: Not Enough Magic
As advertised, this Fairy Tail release drops players right in the middle of the plot. To be more specific, the game starts at the end of the Tenrou Island arc. That means it starts around episode 122 of the anime and chapter 253 of the manga.
In the opening scene, players use the main mages of the Fairy Tail guild as they take on the leader of Grimoire Heart, Hades. You take control of Natsu, Lucy, Erza, Gray, and Wendy for this little tutorial fight.
If that sounds the least bit confusing, prepare to be extremely overwhelmed by everything if you're not at least this far into the series before starting this game. You'll also need to get used to hearing Japanese voices when playing the subtitles if you are used to hearing English dubbing. It's the only option here.
There's an in-game encyclopedia for terms, characters, and missed plot points, but it's a lot to take in when you start a new journey. For example, it starts with eight arcs you should read, along with 21 character biographies and 19 important terms.
All encyclopedia entries are meant to be helpful. But in reality, you might find yourself even more lost after reading them if you are a newcomer. Some entries use terms that you will need to learn from other entries, creating a cycle of confusion.
New names and concepts are continually used as the game's plot moves from one major conflict to the next with little bits of Lucy's storytelling filling in the unseen gaps between the two. It can be hard to keep up, and I say that as someone who finished the Fairy Tail manga at the end of 2017.
I can only imagine the struggle of new fans or curious newbies.
Fairy Tail really begins shortly after this Battle of Hades, with the start of the X791 arc. A major time jump occurs and the Fairy Tail Guild is no longer the household name it used to be. You will be tasked with upgrading various aspects of the guild while completing quests to regain Fairy Tail's popularity and rank it among other guilds in the world.
This is one of those ideas whose concept sounds better. The game system of Fairy Tail allows you to constantly rank yourself in a guild ranking. By doing so, you're supposed to feel like the guild is more recognized, but it never feels that way because the world is empty and soulless, which might be one of the worst offenses for a Fairy Tail game. .
There may be a total of eight different NPC models for townspeople in the game, and not everyone in the Fairy Tail guild has a character model. Some will just start talking out of nowhere, despite not being on screen. Because of this, the guild is full of random NPCs that look alike to make the building feel fuller. It's kinda sad to watch.
To surround yourself with these city worshippers, you'll need to take on a number of uninspired and not-so-optional side quests in bland, labyrinthine locations. It could be a consequence of playing on the Switch, but those bland areas are also on the ugly side, graphically.
There's definitely some side content that fans of the series will enjoy purely for the charming character interactions. Seeing Erza try acting on stage again is one of those perfect moments, but the majority of them feel like unnecessary padding.
These side quests also seem mandatory from a gameplay perspective, as some main story missions are locked behind a specified guild rank. They're also needed for leveling up, upgrading characters, and bonding companions, allowing you to chain their moves together.
Grinding isn't the issue here, though. The main problem with Fairy Tail's side quests is that they all feel more or less the same. You go to a location, defeat monsters or bandits, then return for your reward. That's all.
What makes matters worse is that you can only accept one task from the guild quest board at a time. It's a tedious gameplay loop that boils down to completing a simple kill quest just to get back, then embarking on another similar quest.
The amazing fast travel system ends up keeping those quest loops from being unbearable. You can fast travel anywhere on the world map at any time. There are even multiple fast travel points in small locations, so you never really have to physically run anywhere for very long. The game also has options to skip combat animations and/or use an auto-combat feature.
Fairy Tail's combat system isn't exactly what fans expected. At first glance, the series' over-the-top action seems more suited to a 3D arena fighter like so many other anime-based games.
However, I'm happy to say that Fairy Tail works pretty well with turn-based RPG combat. There are currently 16 playable characters, each with unique move types, strengths, and weaknesses. In most battles, you can use up to five mages at once to take out enemies on a grid-like board. Your mages can be traded and changed in the guild unless your team is auto-set for conspiracy reasons.
Creating my own dream team full of powerups, healers, support characters, and tanks was a lot of fun. The game rewards players for experimentation and stability. Using all characters or staying with the same team for long periods of time has advantages.
Experimenting leads to everyone being strong enough during mandatory plot-related changes, and sticking with the same team allows bonds to grow between characters, unlocking new Chain Attack bonuses.
I found myself trying several different characters because honestly the majority of the spells look good, although too many effects on screen at once can drop the framerate. It's always great to see iconic moves from the series used as attacks in the game. However, in the end, you'll probably end up disabling these animations to complete missions faster.
Examen de Fairy Tail – The Bottom Line
Benefits
- The characters are still adorable and true to the source material
- Rewarding and customizable party system
- Combat is solid and entertaining
The inconvenients
- The story skips important moments, making it harder to follow
- Extremely repetitive mission structure
- The world feels bland and empty
Fairy Tail has many shortcomings as the first console release of the series. It's a chore to do after a while, thanks to all the almost identical quests that mix in at the end.
Luckily, the combat is enjoyable and the characters are well done. Happy and Natsu still show up at Lucy's house uninvited, and Juvia still likes Gray so much that she has a cardboard cut out of him.
It's those little moments that will make Fairy Tail fans smile, despite the game's flaws. And for that reason, I can't recommend this one enough for those who already enjoy the series.
[Note: A copy of Fairy Tail was provided by Koei Tecmo for the purposes of this review.]
