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There's a lot to manage in combat--despite only having direct control over Noctis as opposed to your entire party--which makes for a satisfying juggling act once you understand the game's demanding pace and the extent of your abilities. Though you can pause the action to re-equip characters and use items mid-battle, combat is otherwise a non-stop, fluid process and very different from previous Final Fantasy systems. Unlike Final Fantasy XII which allows you to dictate the behavior of your companions, you have to rely on AI to ensure your allies have your back in Final Fantasy XV. The only time you can issue direct commands is when they deal enough damage and fill up a meter, and you call upon the one ability you assigned to them.
By holding down a button, Noctis will deliver a combo attack until he's interrupted by an enemy. If you're quick, you can press another button to phase through an incoming attack and continue your assault. Noctis can also warp-attack from great distances, swap between four weapons--mid-combo if need be--, cast magic, and on rare occasions, summon god-like Astrals onto the battlefield to mop up enemies.

Astrals are powerful beings that align with Noctis throughout the story, to be summoned later in a time of need. They offer some of the most impressive moments in the game--typical of Final Fantasy "summons"--towering high above battles while unleashing incredible displays of power. But much like distant friends, you only see Astrals when it works for their schedule. Each of the four Astrals you acquire call for very specific battle conditions, but even if all criteria are met--being dangerously low on health in the vicinity of water, in one case--there's no guarantee an Astral will actually appear. Where you could always count on summons to save the day in previous Final Fantasy games, it's disheartening that they usually fail to appear during Final Fantasy XV's most difficult battles.

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