The demo is a bit disappointing. DO NOT EXPECT it to be a showcase of gameplay whatsoever even though they put the near final version of the battle system. Also, it seems like the assets used were unfinished assets from the game itself. Resolution is a bit of an improvement and looks like it's dynamic now switching from 1080p to 900p from time to time. Framerate is a mixed bag. It's smooth in normal exploration and battle(as a kid) but whenever real time particle effects come into play(Try throwing those magic attacks as kid noctis then running towards the magic explosion), it takes a dip and It actually performs worse than Duscae 2 or closer to the original Duscae demo when fighting the Iron Giant and that's only with Noctis alone. The camera also gets way too close and kinda wonky every time you get stuck in a corner or move towards an object that does not move out of your way immediately or at all. They need to fix this and have the camera set to a fixed distance that will not be affected by the environment.
That said when it's performing great, it shines. Objects around you when fighting the Iron Giant are destructible as well as some objects around the city when you play as Kid Noctis. You can also move the blocks in the room. Lighting is fantastic, and you can easily see this by changing the time of day or the weather system anytime. Particle effects are great as well and magic has its own lighting meaning it will make objects around it cast shadows separate from the global lighting. You can see this clearly when you cast fire on the Iron Giant and burn him as the fire will have its own lighting and will cause real time shadows.
Overall it was not as I expected it to be and was merely a mini game to get Carbuncle. Nothing else, nothing more. If you want to experience or see a glimpse of FFXV, just stick with Episode Duscae.
