It’s been 13 years since the first Fantasy Life game released, and even then, that was only on the Nintendo 3DS. Since then, there have been the odd mobile or online release but in all honesty, Level-5 have been focussed elsewhere.
A sequel is now here in the form of FANTASY LIFE i: The Girl Who Steals Time, and a multi-platform release as well. After my time with it, I don’t think Level-5 can leave such a big gap between releases again.
Similar to the first game, FANTASY LIFE i is set on the island of Reveria. There are a couple of references to locations used previously, but don’t worry if you never played the first title. This is a standalone sequel that is very newcomer friendly.
After crash landing on a strange world, you must begin to piece together what has happened. Your friends have disappeared, and you appear to have travelled back in time. What’s worse, people will only take notice of you if you have a job.
Working 9-5
These jobs aren’t the monotonous kind like stacking shelves, serving pints or inputting data into a spreadsheet. Instead, FANTASY LIFE i feels more like Final Fantasy XIV; you have a choice of 14 jobs that can be undertaken at any time. Some of these are combat focussed, but others will have you gathering or crafting items. These jobs are all things you have done before, such as cooking, fishing or alchemy, but it is the freedom to switch them whenever you like that feels so Final Fantasy XIV. There will be times you do not want to progress the story and instead will prefer to mine some mineral deposits and that is fine, there is no pressure to follow objectives at any point.
These jobs – or Lives as they are referred to – offer welcome distractions from a story that isn’t quite the most engaging tale ever told. There are some interesting characters to meet on your journey but one character seems to spend half their time running off from you only to end up being rescued time and time again.
Ginormosia is Ginormous
There is an interesting sub-plot involving denizens that have been transformed into all manner of objects including caps, dolls and bizarrely, wardrobes. These are known as Strangelings. Some of these you will encounter on your journey, but many can be found in a large open area known as Ginormosia.
You are introduced to this large map as part of the main story, but it is mainly up to you to explore this region. Here, FANTASY LIFE i: The Girl Who Steals Time plays a lot like Breath of the Wild with turrets to find and uncover the map, and shrines to explore with puzzles inside. There are even cute little critters to find called Leafes that are essentially Koroks. It isn’t quite a carbon copy of Hyrule, but it isn’t exactly far off either.
Any Strangelings you find can be brought back to the present world and set-up as villagers in your unique island. As if FANTASY LIFE i didn’t already pack enough in, there is also a whole life simulation to go alongside everything else. It does feel a bit more basic in comparison to some of the many others out there, but you are still able to shape your island however you like, build plenty of structures and items, strengthen relationships with residents and even take them with you on your quests. It is genuinely impressive how much has been crammed into FANTASY LIFE i; the first few hours are a joy as new features and mechanics are unlocked at a great pace.
Life is Better With Friends
Whether you decide to focus on a combat, gathering or crafting Life, there is no shortage of things to do. Each Life has its own unique skill tree, new abilities to learn and so much more. Combat has you spamming the X and Y buttons and, whilst fun, is a little basic. But the minigames for gathering fish and minerals, and crafting new clothing and recipes offer some enjoyment. Which is just as well, as it will be something you are coming back to again and again. Levelling up each and every job to a Master rank will take some time, and more importantly, a lot of patience.
Whilst you can take your residents with you as you go questing through caves and dungeons, nothing can beat a real-life companion. FANTASY LIFE i also has four-player online co-op. But even locally, a second player can join with a controller and control Trip the bird. Both are viable options, but FANTASY LIFE i is just as enjoyable when playing single-player too.
A Charming and Expansive Life Sim for All
Level-5 have been making these fantastic genre mash-ups ever since Dark Cloud mixed dungeon crawling with a city builder way back in the year 2000. FANTASY LIFE i: The Girl Who Steals Time is no different, effortlessly blending an action RPG, with a life sim and an open-world adventure. There are times when these genres blend together, but for the most part, they are kept separate, whilst feeding generously into each other.
As a complete package, FANTASY LIFE i: The Girl Who Steals Time is a wonderful game – and suddenly the world has another cracking life sim to sink all manner of time into.
Important Links
Time-Traveling RPG FANTASY LIFE i: The Girl Who Steals Time Begins its Xbox Journey – https://www.thexboxhub.com/time-traveling-rpg-fantasy-life-i-the-girl-who-steals-time-begins-its-xbox-journey/
Buy FANTASY LIFE i: The Girl Who Steals Time on Xbox – https://www.xbox.com/en-GB/games/store/fantasy-life-i-the-girl-who-steals-time/9PP7TDRDZGHD/0010
Go Deeper With the Deluxe Edition – https://www.xbox.com/en-GB/games/store/fantasy-life-i-the-girl-who-steals-time-digital-deluxe-edition/9P0GXWKVRCZ1/0010
