The 3DS was Nintendo’s last iteration of the DS, and still serves as theirlast all-out handheld consolethat didn’t also double as a traditional plug-and-play model. It might not have been the best of the bunch, depending on who you ask, but one thing’s for sure. It played host to some knockout hits.
10 Best PS2 JRPGs, Ranked
The best-selling console in the world featured some of the best JRPGs the industry has ever seen.
One of which was Fantasy Life, a lovingly crafted and devilishly addictive JRPG which masqueraded as an Animal Crossing clone. However, this was far from a cheap cash grab. Fantasy Life on the 3DS was an underrated gem.
Ultimately, this is the reason we find ourselves today marveling at the upscaled and polished remake,Fantasy Life I: The Girl Who Steals Time. A game that ultimately does little more than drag the existing story, visuals, score, and gameplay into the modern era. But these tweaks and changes make all the difference here.
This new and improved version looks the part, and much like its predecessor, threatens to do as the title suggests and steal what little precious free time you have. But, the question remains, should you willingly submit and pour hours into this former handheld hit? Well, in short, yes. But stick around to find out why.
The JRPG Journeyman Approach
When discussing a game with a gameplay blueprint as varied and novel as this, it’s only natural that we dive right in and explain what’sunder the hood of this cozy JRPG.
Fantasy Life I isn’t a game that’s content with focusing on one core gameplay mechanic, or even offering one world with a distinct time period to operate within. Instead, it offers you multiple worlds, each with activities that vary wildly from one another.
Firstly, you have the job system, which is less about combat classes in the way Final Fantasy presents jobs, and more akin to leveling up various skills through grinding like you might associate with something like Runescape.
It’s MMO-esque in its approach, but thanks to the freedom the player has to passively level up in each role in tandem with story beats, random excursions, and while hopping through time, it never feels like an overwhelming set of tasks weighing you down, but more like a meze of treats to try.
However, these roles are only part of the framework, as you also have an island in the present day, which feels like your typical Animal Crossing town that you’re able to build in your own image, populate with your favorite NPCs, and stylize with your own brand of creative flair.
That would probably be more than enough for even the most voracious of JRPG fans, but Fantasy Life also adds exploration-based dungeon crawling into the mix, offering a Zelda-esque layer to this elaborate JRPG trifle.
On paper, it feels like a ‘too many cooks’ situation, but to keep the trifle analogy going, every layer complements the others, making for a very tasty arrangement.
Idle Hands Are The Devil’s Playthings
Just as the framework that makes up the core gameplay is very busy, you will also be. Which sounds daunting, but it’s exactly what you want from a game such as this.
In most JRPGs, after the initial novelty of learning each system fades, and you’re locked in, the gameplay turns into a rather repetitive and predictable grind. But, thanks to Fantasy Life’s varied approach, you’re never stuck doing one task for too long.
This endless bounty of tasks is what makes Fantasy Life so addictive.
In the space of minutes, you might be on a story mission, checking off a plot point, mining some ore, completing a job mission, fighting a boss, completing a daily, hooking a fish, finding a strangeling, and then finally heading back to your island to restore them to human form.
This endless bounty of tasks is what makes Fantasy Life so addictive. Most games start off by giving the players endless little wins to offer a burst of serotonin to scratch our little rat brains.
However, eventually these games ween you off and make you work harder for those little crumbs of joy. Mercifully, though, Fantasy Life never lets that happen, as every minute is jam-packed with little victories and all the spoils that come with them.
However, what stops this from being a mountain to climb that would intimidate most is the fact that none of these tasks are time-critical, there are no fail states, and the game allows you to progress at a steady pace that suits you.
Granted, you will routinely hit a wall when the game all but forces you to switch jobs to a role that accommodates another, such as the blacksmith role, allowing you to forge better gear for combat roles, or the farmer role, allowing you to stock up on ingredients for your Chef role.
But, even if that is the case, there is never any pressure to play in a certain way. You can engage with what you want, when you want, and that’s what cozy gaming is all about.
Brilliant But Basic
Here’s the thing about games that offer a smorgasbord of activities and gameplay variations. To do that, you need to sacrifice detail and nuance, and that’s the story when it comes to Fantasy Life I as well.
I do want to set my stall out first and say that I have no issue with the rather basic nature of each aspect of the gameplay, as I see this as a game as something you seek out when you are tired of the depth and nuance of bigger AAA adventures. However, it still needs to be said, the moment-to-moment gameplay is a stone’s throw away from utterly mindless.
The majority of job actions boil down to mashing a button to deplete a health bar, the more involved crafting actions are little more than quicktime events, and the quests outside of the main story are basically a series of filler odd-jobs and fetch quests.
This is to be expected, but this simplicity is prevalent in all aspects of the game’s make-up. The combat is a prime example, as it is nothing more than a cheap imitation of a top-down Zelda game of yesteryear. You have an attack, some basic power-ups, and the ability to dodge. It’s serviceable, but it’s something you would expect from an average MMO.
Then, you have the narrative. If you’re yet to dive into Fantasy Life I, and need a point of reference. Just imagine every single JRPG trope from the last twenty years, close it in your fist into a tight little wad, and that is essentially what you’ll get from this title.
The biggest compliment I can give this new version of the game is that it looks so good, it’s hard to believe it was originally a 3DS title.
Again, none of this is enough to derail the fun, as the writing is solid, and the combat merely serves as a means to an end. But if you’re on the fence and hoping for a JRPG with substance, this probably won’t sate your appetite.
An Almighty Glow Up
For those who played this game’s predecessor of the same name, you’ll know that it was very much a game that looked and felt like a product made for the 3DS. The models and world were grainy; the UI was designed for small screens, and everything felt a touch more jagged and clunky.
That’s not something that plagues this new and improved version, which offers incredible visuals by comparison, a jovial score, and plenty of quality-of-life improvements that will ensure even returning players feel like they’re playing something wholly different.
The HDR-fueled visuals make this game look and feel like a top-tier chibi JRPG, while also evoking a Nintendo-esque family atmosphere. The biggest compliment I can give this new version of the game is that it looks so good, it’s hard to believe it was originally a 3DS title.
However, considering how much of the game has been altered and polished, it does leave me questioning some decisions. For example, the main quest’s pacing in spells.
There are large areas where the player will enter a cave or The Depths and explore deep into the area, only to finish what they are doing and need to trek all the way back the way they came.
Having played Oblivion and Skyrim recently, the difference a looping dungeon makes as opposed to rooms to nowhere is staggering, and it’s just one of a handful of small gripes that could have been addressed in this rework.
The Inevitable Grind
I’ve danced around the topic for as long as I can. We need to address the giant whetstone in the room. Get it, because you grind with a whetstone? Forget it.
Medieval blacksmithing equipment aside, Fantasy Life I is a game that all but forces you to embrace the grind right from the word go, and your disposition toward this will ultimately dictate whether you vibe with this game or not.
As soon as you select a job, you’ll be inducted into an endless loop of performing repetitive tasks mindlessly, and you’ll be ticking off story quests that rarely evolve beyond ‘go here, collect this’.
But, it’s pretty clear that this is what the game is cooking up from the outside looking in. That’s not the issue that I have with the grinding. The issue I have is the speed of progression and the lack of tangible rewards.
Sure, you’ll level up something practically every second, which will trigger a celebratory sound effect. Or you’ll take down a big enemy, showcasing your superiority in combat in the process. But, there’s often very little to show for it other than a slightly fuller XP bar.
Your bag is routinely overflowing with items and materials, but it’s very hard to discern what they are for, what’s worth keeping, and what has any actual value. Which often leads to boss and quest rewards feeling rather hollow.
Then you have the fact that a lot of the crafting and decorative aspects of the game, where your island is concerned, aren’t available to you for what feels like an age.
I’m all for a steady progression from zero to hero in a JRPG. After all, that’s what a JRPG experience is in a nutshell. But this gatekeeping in Fantasy Life just feels unnecessary, as it limits player freedom until they are tens of hours into the game, by which point, they could well have checked out.
If you’re someone who really gets a kick out of looking back after a monumental number of hours played to see how far you’ve come, this is a game that will undoubtedly give you an overwhelming feeling of satisfaction, pride, and catharsis. But, only if you’re willing to put in the work. It’s not hard work, but there sure is a lot of it.
Closing Comments:
Fantasy Life I: The Girl Who Steals Time is a lovingly crafted and well-deserved glow up for one of the shining stars of the 3DS era. The visuals, score and overall presentation have been elevated beyond recognition, and yet, the things that made the original great remain intact. The abundance of gameplay mechanics and variety via the different islands and time periods is a standout feature that makes the endless grind paletable, and while every action in the game borders on basic, it never crosses the threshold to be considered boring. It’s a quintessentially cozy game that deserves its flowers, and for those who have long wished for a true Animal Crossing competitor to wriggle from Nintendo’s grasp, it seems your wish has finally been granted.
