The title is immediately after the stories told in Fate / Extra , where the protagonist, having woken up without memory in a bizarre virtual
world, is forced to participate in the Holy Grail War, an event well known to all the connoisseurs of series. This premise could mean that you must have played that prequel to enjoy full Fate / Extella plot, and we do not hid
e from thinking it alike, albeit with reservations. Marvelous’s story, though not lacking in many references, remains to be enjoyed even by those who have n
ot had the opportunity to know its antecedents, however displayed in summary form at the beginning of the title. What may be a limitation for the player is the setting itself, which, as we have already said, is very different from the classic one, although it shares the boundaries.
The events of Fate / Extellatake place in a virtual environment that is home to the moon, created by a super computer designed to observe and preserve the earth. This system is powerful enough to be able to replicate the Holy Grail, along with all the compo
nents needed to complete the ritual. For those who do not know it, the Holy Grail War is, as the name suggests, a true war fought between magicians, called for the “Master” opportunity, each side flanked and supported by a “Servant”, powerful heroes and divinities from different ages and civilizations. This war, replicated cyclic
ally over the centuries, ends when a single Servant lives, rewarding the two winners with the achievement of the Holy Grail, a very powerful
relic that is said to be able to satisfy any wish. There would be much more to say about it, so if you’re interested in the topic that is the mainstay
of the whole series, we recommend that you retrieve Fate / Stay Night or one of its transpositions. For the moment you just need to know thatFate / Extella begins right at the end of the Holi Grail War fought on the moon, putting ourselves in the shoes of its own winner.
We will avoid talking in detail about the title story, as it is the main dish offered by the product. What we can tell you is that it moves far away from the canons of the series, embracing a more breathtaking scenery that sees the protagonist fighting for the preservation of all humanity. Despite Fate / ExtellaUndoubtedly belongs to the Musou genre if we only consider
gameplay, narratively it is much closer to Visual Novel. The same main story is presented with a structure consisting of three “routes”, ie narrative lines that are conceptually similar but differ in different aspects, which modify the events. In the title in question, the main difference that distinguishes one route from the other is in the Servant that fits the protagonist, which allows the player to watch the plot from different points of view so that he has a com
prehensive and complete overview. What is usually limited to being a narrative artifice, in Fate / Extellanot only is justified and realized in such a way as to be functional and convincing, but becomes the keystone on which
the entire plot is built. This particular aspect has pleasantly struck us, making the bitter flaws affecting the narrative segment even more bitter.
First of all, it is undoubtedly the rhythm of the game, which in the alternate gameplay and plot phenomena is extremely swinging, enough to t
ire in the case of long playing sessions. In it we find frenzied gameplay pieces that evolve into endless narrative sequences, consisting of many dialogues from static similar to that of a Visual Novel. Fate / Extellasubmerges the text player, abruptly interrupting the
gameplay, and subjecting it to reading stages that easily exceed thirty minutes. Of course, the presence of such a large number of dialogs dramatically expands the plot, but it also exacerbates it a lot, causing the player to enjoy it, which could easily be led to jump over more than one dialogue.
The situation is somewhat mitigated by the excellent Japanese dubbing, which, besides boasting the same voices of the anime (for the characters who clearly share), has often hit us in the moments of the most emotional instability of the characters. Unfortunately, the pro
tagonist does not share these qualities, but in fact is absolutely devoid of any dubbing, making its elucubrations even heavier than the average. Secondly, we have a long time to take off, and then streaked by countless scenes characterized by the lightness typical of the Japanese fan service, which though it may please small doses tends to tire long, especially when inappropriate in relation to its context.
That is why we appreciated most the third route, that is, the one that accompanies us with the supposed title antagonist, where the most serious and tragic tones contribute to creating a feeling of genuine interest in the player. especially when ina
ppropriate in relation to its context. That is why we appreciated most the third route, that is, the one that accompanies us with the supposed title antagonist, where the most serious and tragic tones contribute to creating a feeling of genuine interest in the player. especially when inappropriate in relation to its context. That is why w
e appreciated most the third route, that is, the one that accompanies us with the supposed title antagonist, where the most serious and tragic tones contribute to creating a feeling of genuine interest in the player.In short, that of Fate / Extella is a plot that convinces it especially thanks to a great dubbing and a well-made plot twist, but it’s likely to get tired even before things can really make you interesting.
