Having missed Granblue Fantasy Relink when it came to PC and consoles in 2024, I was excited to dive into the new DLC, Endless Ragnarok – especially when I read into just how much it was about to add. I’d already been kind of sold on the idea that the endgame had a distinctly Monster Hunter-esque flavour to the quest system, rolling out on almost random missions to grind for upgrade materials, chasing down an almost endless loop of challenge and progress. Having now played through Granblue Fantasy Relink: Endless Ragnarok, I can honestly say I’m glad I waited for this version.
As a brief recap, Granblue Fantasy Relink is set in a world of floating islands traversed by crews of skyfarers in huge airships. It’s a Final Fantasy-esque universe that mixes magic and technology in ways that don’t really make sense, but it won’t matter as you explore enclosed mission maps for treasures and dangers, or engage huge bosses in extravagant battles with your party of four badasses. Sure, some of the characters are a bit talky and the story has a touch of filler to it in places, but that really is all part of the charm.
While the primary campaign is largely untouched here, the DLC focuses more on bolting on new modes and extending the endgame grind. Once you finish the twenty-ish hour main story, which sees your crew of daring Skyfarers fend off an invasive god and the insane sycophants trying to restore it to power, you’ll need to take care of some extra curricular stuff before you’re able to move into the new chunk of story, which will take a further twenty or so hours. It’s not much better or worse in terms of overall storytelling, but fans of the base campaign’s over-the-top action set-pieces won’t be disappointed.
Ultimately though, as with the main game, the story is nothing more than prologue for the extended endgame. Perhaps the most exciting element for many will be the inclusion of six new playable characters to unlock. Two will be available with Crewmate Cards at any point, two (Gallanza and Maglielle) will become available at the end of the main campaign, and the final two will be unlockable when you finish the DLC story. Each brings their own new Skybound Arts, ultimate move, and of course you can customise their weaponry and appearance.
That’s kind of only the tip of the iceberg though. Having not played prior to this version I wasn’t even aware that the new roguelike Conflux mode had been added, as it fits so snugly into the overall gameplay loop. Here you will be taken to a shady back alley and shown a weird anomaly, which upon closer inspection leads you into a pocket dimension where you can jump in and run longer and harder sequences of encounters for the chance to earn heaps of rewards. It starts off pretty easy, but by the end of the campaign and beyond you’ll have access to some seriously taxing runs.
Additionally, CyGames have tweaked the way endgame progression works. While they still cap character levels at 100, now you’ll be able to develop your Crewmate much further, with new skill trees that function like swappable loadouts, “Overmasteries” and transcendent weapons. It’s honestly a lot, and I’ve not spent nearly enough time picking apart the new systems or even fully learning how they all slot together. Suffice to say that, as a newcomer to the game, none of them feel too much. It all slots in smoothly and that suggests to me that veterans will find a lot of reasons to return to Granblue Fantasy Relink with the Endless Ragnarok expansion.
The real-time, combo-based combat remains responsive and varied with the new characters dropping into the lineup with some interesting mechanics, like Beatrix who has a three-focus system allowing her to increase her damage, defence, or Arts efficiency based on your preference. Fan-favourites like Lancelot, Vane, Rackam, and Sandolphon have received tweaks and updates to better balance their damage output and mitigation. The new Summons system allows you to take combat to even higher levels, with huge god-like entities coming to your aid, including Rolan and Lyria, whose in-game power levels wouldn’t make much sense if they became mere playable crewmates. Using these characters also allows new Primal Bursts, which replace the Full Bursts to deliver even more devastating group damage.
It doesn’t necessarily feel easier to earn Gold Badges in solo play, but hopefully the release of Endless Ragnarok will bring players back to the multiplayer mode. That said, you can now summon a “backup” character like a Dragon’s Dogma pawn, essentially borrowing another player’s high-level crewmate to help you manage tougher missions. The new Chaos difficulty makes it harder to button mash or abuse exploits, too, presenting a genuine challenge for veteran players who want to rely on skill expression over cheesing mechanics.
It’s worth noting how beautifully this runs on PC – and on Nintendo Switch 2 where it’s also being released (which we will be bringing a full report on. I played almost the entire game on my Steam Deck, and if you happen to have one it’s a superb option as Endless Ragnarok runs flawlessly on Valve’s handheld. Granblue Fantasy Relink: Endless Ragnarok adds so much to not just the endgame but the whole experience that it feels like a 2.0 release. It does what any good expansion does, building on every element from story to combat to character lineup, and, of course, broadening the endgame with new modes and deeper character progression and build-crafting. It’s a no-brainer for fans of the base game, but I’d urge anyone with an interest in large-scale RPGs and frenetic character action games to try Granblue Fantasy Relink: Endless Ragnarok.
