Final Fantasy XVI
This is quite a departure from the traditional FF experience, but one thing I always respect in this franchise is that they try new things. It doesn't always work out, but they aren't afraid to take risks, which is admirable. In this case, they sure did do a lot of things that will probably piss off purists. Clive is the only controllable character, the combat is purely action based, there are no airships, the world is made up of large hub areas instead of one seamless map, the story is firmly rooted in medieval times, there is significantly more gore and swearing, and there are several series staples missing such as cactuars, tonberries, and status effects.
But let's say you're okay with all these changes. How does it hold up as a standalone game without the FF legacy to live up to? Well, pretty decently, I'd say. While the combat was clearly inspired by games like Devil May Cry, it also isn't as complex or as difficult as a true character action game, which is by design. There is a hard mode, but you only get access to it in NG+, which I think was a mistake because the game is kind of easy in normal mode. You get access to a sword, magic that you shoot like a projectile, a handful of command abilities, and equippable special abilities granted by the game's summons. Once you're fully decked out it's got a decent amount of depth without being overwhelming, but it'll take you a while to get there because Clive's combat abilities unlock over the course of the story. The first few hours are pretty simple and button-mashy. Normal enemies you can just whack to death but for large enemies and bosses you will need to use the right abilities to quickly fill their stagger meter and then unload on them with your hardest hitting moves while they're down.
The game also has a LOT of cutscenes. Apparently 11 hours worth, according to Youtube, and I could definitely see some people getting put off by this if they're not used to Kojima-like storytelling. Fortunately, I found the plot rather engaging and the characters pretty likable. In fact, this game has what is now my favorite Cid in the franchise, even more than FFVII's Cid. It had shades of Final Fantasy Tactics and Final Fantasy IX to me, which are two of my favorite games in the franchise, but of course your mileage may vary. One thing pretty much everyone can agree on is that the voice acting is probably the best it's ever been in a Final Fantasy game. A really nice feature is the Active Time Lore. At just about any time, including during a cutscene, if you're having trouble following the story you can hold down the touchpad and it will pause the game and bring up a small menu of relevant people and places that you can quickly read to bring yourself up to speed. As many people and countries as there are getting constantly discussed, this is a big help in making sure you don't get hopelessly confused.
My main criticisms of the game are its easy difficulty and the fact that most of the sidequests boil down to "go here, kill this." You don't want to skip them though because some of the sidequests unlock important upgrades or even gameplay features, like a rideable chocobo. If you play it, I recommend not using any of the auto-dodge or auto-combo rings that you are given in the beginning because they turn the game into a brainless button masher and also hold you back from using the most efficient combo strings. Think of this as something like Metal Gear meets Devil May Cry meets Asura's Wrath.