As far as Gacha games go, there aren’t many as popular as Granblue Fantasy, a game released all the way back in 2014. A decade later, the latest addition to the franchise, Granblue Fantasy: Relink has been one of the most talked about games of this year.
Granblue Fantasy: Relink is very different from the original when it comes to gameplay. Still, is the game a gacha game? We will be looking at the various aspects in Granblue Fantasy: Relink that determine if a game is gacha or not.
Is it a Gacha Game?
So, what makes a game a gacha game?
The main elements most people would consider consistent in all Gacha games are:
Monetization through microtransactions that have randomness attached to them and impact gameplay
Live service, which means that the game has daily or weekly updates that affect gameplay.
Granblue Fantasy: Relink does not have both of these elements in the game, so it isn’t a gacha game. The game is actually much more similar to other action RPGs than it is to its predecessor.
Monetization
In terms of monetization, Granblue Fantasy: Relink is not similar to gacha games. You will have to pay a certain amount to purchase the game to play it. After that, all the content in the game can be accessed without spending any more money.
This differs from gacha games, as gacha games have an ongoing system where there is a lot of content that can only be unlocked through microtransactions.
Granblue Fantasy: Relink is not a live service game. It allows players to play online with friends and other players, but it can also be enjoyed on your own.
Gacha games are known for enticing players to keep playing their games on a daily or weekly basis. They do this by having systems like a battlepass, or content that is unlockable within a specific time frame.
Granblue Fantasy: Relink does not have these things. That doesn’t mean that the game will not have updates or additional content in the future, it just means that the game is not reliant on luring players in to constantly play the game.
Overall, Granblue Fantasy: Relink is not a gacha game in any sense. The game is more similar to traditional RPGs, with an online mode that does not have any gacha elements.
The world of games is constantly changing and evolving and Ali is always looking for the new best game out there. With nearly 2 decades spent gaming, Ali has been playing video games since the early days of the first Xbox.
Ali enjoys all sorts of games, and writing allows him to channel his love for gaming through his work.