Fate/Extra Critic Reviews

If viewed as an RPG with a tiny world and far too much text, I would imagine players walking away from Fate/Extra feeling unsatisfied or bored. However, when taken as what it really is-a visual novel with a superb level of gameplay-then it can only be appreciated as the fine effort that it is.

Aksys Games nailed the localization with Nine Hours, Nine Persons, Nine Doors and they've done it again with the excellent writing in Fate/EXTRA. Unfortunately, a sea of monotony and repetitiveness plagues the game's potential for being one of the PSP's elite RPG's.

There are better visual novels and better RPGs out there than Fate/Extra, and with similar themes to boot, so skip this title and play The World Ends With You; Chaos Rings; or 9 Persons, 9 Hours, 9 Doors instead.

All things considered, Fate/Extra simply isn't a game I can recommend to everyone, but those who can accept the game's many imperfections will likely enjoy their time with it.

Were it not for its great boss fights and fascinating story, repetitiveness and sparse exploration might have derailed Fate/Extra.

Fate/Extra is an intriguing game that features a brilliant story, solid characters and good art, but when it comes to the RPG aspects it's all a little uninspiring, and at times tedious and boring, with too much repetition in gameplay and design. If you like to play RPGs for the story and aren't worried about a basic battle system based around luck, then by all means check Fate/Extra out, you'll certainly get a well worth kick from its story, just don't expect to be blown away by its gameplay.

The plot is compelling, the visual style is gorgeous, but the combat can't hold up its end of the bargain and sustain excitement.

If it didn't suffocate you with screens of sub-par writing it could almost look the Persona series in the eye. Almost.

It's a serviceable package, but could have been so much more if its mechanics matched the sweep of its story and the story didn't wear itself out on tangents. The participants in the Holy Grail War are nuanced, cleverly designed characters, but they gutter and die before becoming truly awesome.

Just a hack with a medium-hot license - play the real thing instead.