What’s Up With EDGE’s Final Fantasy XV Preview?

Yesterday, something controversial happened. Something that still has people debating and arguing over it today.

That’s right, the Final Fantasy XV preview in EDGE Magazine!

For its 300th issue, EDGE Magazine previewed Final Fantasy XV. Or… maybe they reviewed it. That’s where a lot of the confusion today comes from.

(Note: I have not actually read the article in question. People have said it contains spoilers, not only story spoilers but also gameplay spoilers. If you wish to read it, the scans are here.)

The controversy began because the preview had a lot of criticisms: the game felt disjointed, the story wasn’t as strong as he wanted, the late-game sections weren’t good, etc. However, despite the negative tone of the article, the writer says it was a positive experience overall.

But as fans tried to come to terms with the article, it got even stranger than just negative comments about an anticipated game. How much of Final Fantasy XV did EDGE get to play? Was it a review, the way the article makes it sound?

Although the article’s writer, Simon Parkin, says he played it all the way to the final battle, the official Final Fantasy XV Twitter account’s reaction to being asked why they gave EDGE the entire game was “We didn’t.”

Another fan then asked how EDGE could discuss the game’s ending, and Square Enix repeated that EDGE “didn’t play the compete game or finish the game for their preview,” and that they didn’t get to see the complete story.

So, what exactly is going on here? Was it a review or an extended preview? Did Parkin play all 15 chapters or only 14? Did the preview build have pieces cut from it, leading to mistaken conclusions?

According to the writer, the preview covered 40 hours worth of gameplay. That seems a bit short for Final Fantasy XV, but fits the idea that it was a run straight through to the end, with side content and other content cut from the build. But still, a preview that includes the ending?

This mystery has tossed the Final Fantasy XV subreddit into chaos as fans argue over whether EDGE played the full game or not.

What do you think is going on with EDGE’s preview/review of Final Fantasy XV? Do you believe EDGE or Square Enix… or do you think the truth lies somewhere in the middle?