Final Fantasy XIII

[AwakenTheDemon]

After being highly disappointed with XII, and not really sold on everything I read about XIII, I wasn't sure if I'd be picking up XIII without a rent first. However, I knew I'd still be a sucker and get it the day it came out... because it's a new Final Fantasy.

All in all, I'm pleasantly surprised. I'm let down by the lack of towns and traditional shopping (shopping through save points is so lackluster to me. Plus I love the feel of walking around a town, talking to the NPCs and perusing the local shops' inventories). Not to mention, I miss the days of earning gil from battles, I hate having to sell old equipment and items to get money. The new battle system is interesting and pretty fast paced. I can't remember where, but someone claimed it was "more strategic than Final Fantasy X's and faster than Final Fantasy X-2's". While it is indeed faster than X-2, I found it hard to consider it more strategic than X.

The graphics are top-notch (like every new Final Fantasy) and the story is more engaging than I thought it would be (from what I've read). While it isn't some new, cutting-edge plot to the world of RPGs, it throws in a few twists to the normal "Group of Unlikely Heroes Saves the World" shtick. Thankfully though, the characters and scenery helps bring the story and world to life, so to speak.

My only true gripe is that, due to the lack of towns (therefore the typical break from the action) the game goes from "dungeon" to "dungeon". Your only break from the battles are the cutscenes you come across while progressing through said dungeon. It gives the game the feeling more of an action game with some RPG elements than of an actual RPG. That shouldn't stop you from at least trying it out, it's actually a pretty good game (which surprised me). I haven't lost my trust in Square-Enix or the Final Fantasy franchise yet. Even if it seems that they go further away from traditional Final Fantasy elements with each new game.

[darklight1216]

I'm thinking of borrowing it, but I'm pretty sure that I won't buy it. I don't like the lack of towns and the story just doesn't interest me.

For what it's worth, I'm looking forward to Verus 13.

[FlaccoFlicker]

I agree with you Demon I am on Chapter 7 of the story,and I too miss the towns,the battle scheme reminds me of Kingdom Hearts a little,and of course the constant cutscenes ,I feel like I am wayching as much as I am playing.Now the Crystlium(sp) grid reminds me of X grid,but all in all I am finding myself immersed for hours trying to get through each map.
The graphics are beautiful,loving the way it looks.

[SaVaGe]

I've heard from die hard FF fans this was a huge disappointment and that in their opinion the battle system is great but too much of the game has been "dumbed" down. Seems like Square-Enix was creating a game to bring in new gamers who were uneasy about previous games instead of catering to their core fans.(Huge mistake most of the time)

[theFRANCHISE]

The lack of towns was a deal-breaker for me. I play RPGs for the emotional hook of when you meet the people who inhabit the world you're trying to save. Why should I care about the world in the game if: 1) I don't care about the protagonists, or 2) I don't know who I'm saving? I like playing RPGs at my own pace, and the linear structure of the game seems extremely off-putting. I don't need an entirely non-linear experience like Elder Scrolls: Oblivion or Fallout 3, nor do I need a sandbox game like Grand Theft Auto. But I would like a reasonably-sized world to explore with an enjoyable travel experience, and I'd like to encounter people that are memorable for their quirkiness or charm. It's almost as if FFXIII is daring me [i]not[/i] to care, and that really irks me.

I hated FFXII and quit playing it after three or four hours; the MMO-inspired battle system was the ultimate deal-breaker, not to mention the lack of any compelling reason offered to continue playing. I haven't liked the direction of the series ever since FFX. The sad thing is, I really wanted to like FFX but the conclusion and plot twist was what killed it for me.

[AwakenTheDemon]

Well, I've heard the reason for the lack of towns is mainly due to the story. According to SE, it didn't seem logical or "realistic" to be able to explore towns due to the nature of the story (don't want to spoil anything for anyone). It is heads and shoulders above XII though. I loathed the battle system and the faux-MMORPG feel it was going for. Not to mention the Gambit system didn't work fluidly or correctly half the time.

I've also heard that the reason so many RPG traditions were left out was because it would have (and I'm paraphrasing here) prolonged the already lengthy development of the game. Honestly, I would have rather waited longed to get a game that has what a RPG fanatic expects, so that logic seems extremely lazy to me. Oh well, it seems the traditional RPG is slowly being phased out in favor of massive open world, do-whatever-you-want design. It's kind of sad to me, seeing as I enjoyed turn based battles, FFX's was perfect.

I wouldn't let the linearity of the game affect your purchase. Yeah, there's not really as much exploring as in the previous games, but it does still suck you in with the story and battle system. I did find myself interested in the characters and care about what happened to them (aside from Hope during the first third of the game or so). Despite my not having much hope on XIII, it still found a way to get me hooked. As for "dumbing it down for new players", I don't personally like how simplified everything was, but I wouldn't say it was quite "dumbed down". As long as it kept away from the horrendous XII system...

XII and XIII don't match up to X though, sadly. And I have a feeling no Final Fantasy will. Final Fantasy XIV will be another MMO, so here's to hoping Final Fantasy XV shows some return to the franchise's and genre's roots. It's okay to evolve and improve, SE. Just don't break it.

[FlaccoFlicker]

[quote name='AwakenTheDemon' date='16 March 2010 - 12:47 AM' timestamp='1268714878' post='377281']
Well, I've heard the reason for the lack of towns is mainly due to the story. According to SE, it didn't seem logical or "realistic" to be able to explore towns due to the nature of the story (don't want to spoil anything for anyone). It is heads and shoulders above XII though. I loathed the battle system and the faux-MMORPG feel it was going for. Not to mention the Gambit system didn't work fluidly or correctly half the time.

I've also heard that the reason so many RPG traditions were left out was because it would have (and I'm paraphrasing here) prolonged the already lengthy development of the game. Honestly, I would have rather waited longed to get a game that has what a RPG fanatic expects, so that logic seems extremely lazy to me. Oh well, it seems the traditional RPG is slowly being phased out in favor of massive open world, do-whatever-you-want design. It's kind of sad to me, seeing as I enjoyed turn based battles, FFX's was perfect.

I wouldn't let the linearity of the game affect your purchase. Yeah, there's not really as much exploring as in the previous games, but it does still suck you in with the story and battle system. [b]I did find myself interested in the characters and care about what happened to them (aside from Hope during the first third of the game or so)[/b]. Despite my not having much hope on XIII, it still found a way to get me hooked. As for "dumbing it down for new players", I don't personally like how simplified everything was, but I wouldn't say it was quite "dumbed down". As long as it kept away from the horrendous XII system...

XII and XIII don't match up to X though, sadly. And I have a feeling no Final Fantasy will. Final Fantasy XIV will be another MMO, so here's to hoping Final Fantasy XV shows some return to the franchise's and genre's roots. It's okay to evolve and improve, SE. Just don't break it.
[/quote]
I felt the same way about Hope haha,just got to Chapter 7 today,it is definitly immersing.Sux that GOW 2 came out today cuz now I will have to divide my time.And just think at the end of Chapter 9 is like a intermission lol I think we finally7 get to choose party members.It's a great game and I absolutly love it can not wait to dive deeper and find out what's going to happen.
Hey Demon
[spoiler]Do you think they will revive Serah?[/spoiler]

[AwakenTheDemon]

I don't think they will, per se. But from the direction the story has been going though...
[spoiler]it definitely does seem as if she's not gone for good though[/spoiler]

[FlaccoFlicker]

epic battle at the end of chapter nine whew that was crazy! Must beat this game so I can bust up some GOW but taking my time,imense story with alot of things revealed,at the so called half way point,this is the first game I have been addicted to in a looong time....
Leveling the Crystariums is gonna suck tho they start getting up to the 30-60-120-thousand cps per unit!

[AwakenTheDemon]

Yeah, I'm on Chapter 11. They ramped up the difficulty five fold now. The Crystarium is indeed a pain to increase, it seems like the little light takes forever to get up to speed and before you know it, you're out of CP. Thankfully you gain CP much, much quicker starting in Ch. 11, so it slightly balances it out. You still need to fight quite alot to gain enough to increase multiple spots. The monsters are an absolute pain, I've yet to beat an adamantoise. After ten minutes, I've barely moved their HP bar then he steps on the ground and everyone's dead. Needless to say, I'm taking a break or else I'll get to the point where I'm too annoyed to even bother beating it.

[FlaccoFlicker]

Be wary of the Adamantoise in chapter 11 you can't beat them yet,believe you will come back later as some of the treasures are unattainable at the moment.

[TheRavenouseD2008]

once the yoshi stopped doing less the games went in the crap hole after 12 I will never by another again 9 was the last one i liked , mystwalker needs to sign up with MS not just nintendo , and for the love of pete when did FF become a genre I hear the name of and DREAD. I will stick to bioware game now thats Enix for Ruining Square idiots


killing time via video game should not be as painful as watching the Lions try not lose while waiting for the Ravens highlights

[FlaccoFlicker]

beat 13 finally now to finish up the trophies and what not how are you coming demon? i need someone to talk to about it lol

[theFRANCHISE]

I won't touch this game until my friend finishes it and lets me borrow it, or it's heavily-discounted. I won't even bother renting it.

I'm waiting for Final Fantasy Versus XIII instead. The towns and NPCs are a big reason why I play RPGs, factoring that even over the story.

[BohBalmerOsbohs]

[quote name='theFRANCHISE' date='02 April 2010 - 04:22 PM' timestamp='1270243334' post='385846']
I won't touch this game until my friend finishes it and lets me borrow it, or it's heavily-discounted. I won't even bother renting it.

I'm waiting for Final Fantasy Versus XIII instead. The towns and NPCs are a big reason why I play RPGs, factoring that even over the story.
[/quote]


Then you would Love Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic. Im not a star wars fan, But You really dont have to be.

[Clutch Ravens]

They started to go on the wrong path with X, although it was still enjoyable and a worthy installation of FF. XI I never bothered with because Final Fantasy was never meant to be an MMORPG and, from what I've heard, it was dreadful.

The new battle System in FF XII made me smash the disk within an hour of playing it. The guy who concocted that abomination should be black-balled from game design for the rest of his life. It truly is THE worst combat system I've ever seen.

The fact that they're keeping that load of trash in FF XIII bewilders me. The worst combat system ever made and you actually persist with it? Why? I rented it and it was back at Blockbuster within an hour. The guy at the counter just looked at the game, looked at me and said "I'm surprised it took you this long to take it back."

Square (Enix) need to get back to their roots, infact, they should do next gen remakes of FF 7 and 8 just to refamiliarise themselves with a GOOD Final Fantasy game.

As long as they persist with the new combat system then every new Final Fantasy title will be utter garbage. I don't understand how anybody can like it. Anyone able to give me any insight as to how anyone can like that abomination?

[AwakenTheDemon]

[quote name='Give it to Clutch Clayton' date='06 June 2010 - 07:03 PM' timestamp='1275869020' post='418569']
They started to go on the wrong path with X, although it was still enjoyable and a worthy installation of FF. [b]XI I never bothered with because Final Fantasy was never meant to be an MMORPG and, from what I've heard, it was dreadful.[/b]

The new battle System in FF XII made me smash the disk within an hour of playing it. The guy who concocted that abomination should be black-balled from game design for the rest of his life. It truly is THE worst combat system I've ever seen.

The fact that they're keeping that load of trash in FF XIII bewilders me. The worst combat system ever made and you actually persist with it? Why? I rented it and it was back at Blockbuster within an hour. The guy at the counter just looked at the game, looked at me and said "I'm surprised it took you this long to take it back."

Square (Enix) need to get back to their roots, infact, they should do next gen remakes of FF 7 and 8 just to refamiliarise themselves with a GOOD Final Fantasy game.

As long as they persist with the new combat system then every new Final Fantasy title will be utter garbage. I don't understand how anybody can like it. Anyone able to give me any insight as to how anyone can like that abomination?
[/quote]

Final Fantasy XI was absolutely fantastic. Yeah, no one thought Final Fantasy would ever go online, but I got into the Beta, and I was hooked. I don't know where you heard it was "dreadful" as it got good reviews (38/40 from Famitsu, 8.2/10 from GameSpot, 4/5 from GameSpy, 8.8/10 from IGN). It was hardcore though, but incredibly fun with a great community. If you haven't played XI, you can't really knock it. I spent 4 years of my life playing FFXI, and I still have the urge to fire it up again every now and then.

Also FFXIII's battle system isn't like XII's. I'm not sure where you heard that. XIII's is more traditional, you have turns via the ATB gauge. It only really gets radical in the paradigm system and the fact that there are no towns.

[FlaccoFlicker]

i really enjoyed 13 i spent hours upon hours to obtain my platinum trophy,and really i am so tired of hearing people wanting remakes of 7 and 8 we dont need remakes i enjoy the way the games are now.Sephiroth had major mommy issues lol
11 was fun but it ruined my marriage,too many thought it was an inline bar.

[McBurks]

[quote name='Give it to Clutch Clayton' date='06 June 2010 - 08:03 PM' timestamp='1275869020' post='418569']
[b]They started to go on the wrong path with X, although it was still enjoyable and a worthy installation of FF.[/b] XI I never bothered with because Final Fantasy was never meant to be an MMORPG and, from what I've heard, it was dreadful.


[/quote]

Did you mean they started to go on the wrong path [i]after [/i]FFX? FFX was a great game and I have little to no complaints about it. I played XI but it took me and my friend so long to download it we just said screw it.

[quote]

Square (Enix) need to get back to their roots, infact, [b]they should do next gen remakes of FF 7 and 8 just to refamiliarise themselves with a GOOD Final Fantasy game.[/b]


[/quote]

[url="http://www.joystiq.com/2010/02/20/kitase-final-fantasy-vii-remake-unrealistic-would-take-too-l/"]FF7 would take too long to develop[/url]

[quote]
As long as they persist with the new combat system then every new Final Fantasy title will be utter garbage. I don't understand how anybody can like it. Anyone able to give me any insight as to how anyone can like that abomination?
[/quote]
The combat system did suck but just because they have a different one for FFXIII doesn't mean that they will bring it back in FFXV.

[quote name='AwakenTheDemon' date='06 June 2010 - 08:09 PM' timestamp='1275869399' post='418570']
[b]Final Fantasy XI was absolutely fantastic. Yeah, no one thought Final Fantasy would ever go online, but I got into the Beta, and I was hooked. I don't know where you heard it was "dreadful" as it got good reviews (38/40 from Famitsu, 8.2/10 from GameSpot, 4/5 from GameSpy, 8.8/10 from IGN). It was hardcore though, but incredibly fun with a great community. If you haven't played XI, you can't really knock it. I spent 4 years of my life playing FFXI, and I still have the urge to fire it up again every now and then.[/b]


[/quote]

Exactly,I did play a little bit of XI and it was pretty good but not something I could get really into.The community is amazing and if you need help people will lend a hand.

[quote]
Also FFXIII's battle system isn't like XII's. I'm not sure where you heard that. XIII's is more traditional, you have turns via the ATB gauge. It only really gets radical in the paradigm system and the fact that there are no towns.
[/quote]

It was more traditional but not being able to control what your other party members do is a real pain in the ***.Say I'm Lightning and I want Vanille to heal me,she heals someone else instead and I die.Game over.

[url="http://www.toplessrobot.com/2010/03/13_reasons_i_hate_final_fantasy_xiii.php"]This article sums up my feelings.[/url]

[McBurks]

[quote name='FlaccoFlicker' date='06 June 2010 - 08:38 PM' timestamp='1275871119' post='418580']
i really enjoyed 13 i spent hours upon hours to obtain my platinum trophy,and really i am so tired of hearing people wanting remakes of 7 and 8 we dont need remakes i enjoy the way the games are now.Sephiroth had major mommy issues lol
11 was fun but it ruined my marriage,too many thought it was an inline bar.
[/quote]

Dude you thought Sepiroth had mother issues? Check out Kadaj from Advent Children : [media][url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7YnLd3lXXCM"]http://www.youtube.c...h?v=7YnLd3lXXCM[/url][/media]

[FlaccoFlicker]

lol simba yeah him to I loved that dvd got it release day the fight scene with cloud and sephy was intense and the rock remix of one-winged angel was priceless

[Purple Punishment]

I played this game from begining to end. I have to say the storyline was difficult to catch on to in the begining because you were thrown into a war at the start of the game. All in all, I have to say the written story was not well thought out. I felt like cutscenes were extremely overused. Using them as a break from action was not a good idea as well.

Character Development was a change from the norm. No more leveling up. Better farm them CPs or when you get to the end of the game, you are going to be in BIGGGG trouble. All in all, I like the fact that there were caps on the Crystarium at different points of the game. It kept the difficulty level which goes hand in hand with the next subject

Battle System. I have to say I was impressed with the abiility to stagger and juggle adversaries in mid air causing mighty amounts of damage for as long as you could juggle them. P-Shifts were new to me and I thought I would have trouble with them. Far from the truth. It was very easy to shift strategy. I liked that you had to use P-Shifts for purposes of just surviving a battle against normal run of the mill enemies. Use the wrong P shift, or rely on one too much in a battle, you just might have to fight it over again. FFXIII did not play when it came to P-Shifts. Use them correctly or don't progress. The difficulty level in battles set on this game surprised me alot. I have to say my 2 hardest battles were against Cid Raines (Im sure Im not the only one) and the Juggernaut, when I first reached Gran Pulse. I kept losing to him, so I looked up a strategy on google, and to my dismay, it was strongly advised to not fight it at all. I stayed in the area and farmed CP for 4 hours to max out and beat the Juggernaut!!! It was not easy at all and I would love to say I won with skill, but LUCK is what made me victorious.

All in all, I felt that Square really just put this one out there. They could have done alot of things diffent. Heck, they could have done a few things different to make it a GOTY nominee. I really pray that Square does not make these lackluster made for T.V. movies for the PS3 and get back to their roots. Im ready for the FFVII remake for PS3. Please make it Square PLEASE! lol

[Purple Punishment]

bump, *updated* ^^^

[TreTheRaven]

I couldn't stand 13. I couldn't stand the fact it was basically walking in one straight line. I couldn't stand the fact they removed all towns & NPCs. This is not Final Fantasy like. I quit with in an hour of playing it and haven't touched it since. I'm sad I wasted money on this. Oh well, you win some and you lose some.

From what I have heard is that Final Fantasies in the future are going to be the same way with no towns or NPC's and 14 is going to be yet another MMORPG.

It looks like I will start renting before I buy any more of their product.

Man do I miss the days of VII, VIII and VIIII.

[darklight1216]

[quote name='TheMethodicalPoster' date='29 June 2010 - 05:04 AM' timestamp='1277802270' post='427626']
I couldn't stand 13. I couldn't stand the fact it was basically walking in one straight line. I couldn't stand the fact they removed all towns & NPCs. This is not Final Fantasy like. I quit with in an hour of playing it and haven't touched it since. I'm sad I wasted money on this. Oh well, you win some and you lose some.

From what I have heard is that Final Fantasies in the future are going to be the same way with no towns or NPC's and 14 is going to be yet another MMORPG.

It looks like I will start renting before I buy any more of their product.

Man do I miss the days of VII, VIII and VIIII.
[/quote]
I liked FFXIII at first, but then the things you mentioned forced me to stop.

I don't really understand how this new format is supposed to draw more people in. Didn't they change everything because they were trying to get casual games to jump on the FF bandwagon? How does going in a straight line while controlling what a developer admitted is a female form of Cloud Strife make more people want to play? Perhaps I'm in the minority, but I just don't get it.

I know that 14 is going to be an MMORG, but I hadn't heard that they were all supposed to be like that. I hope your sources are incorrect because I was looking forward to Versus.

[FlaccoFlicker]

FFXIII was the fastest selling Final Fantasy of the series,I forget to what number but I know it was on of the best selling.I agree with the lack of extra story and interaction with NPC'S.
From what I understand stand FFXIII Versus will incorporate the towns and all that again,not alot is known but as I find stuff I will post.

Yeah xiv is going to be an MMORPG as XI was so not sure whether or not Ill join XI was too much like a friggin singles bar lol

My favorite is still IX,Zidane,Vivi,Garnet and all,VII I think I grew tired of sadly maybe because I have played it soooo much.

I didn't mind XIII that much tho,there is soo much to do.Once you beat the game you get the last Pardigm set unlocked and you can finish of the side quests.I went thru it all and enjoyed it.

I just wish there was a more complex story,and Cid made his appearence again lol

[darklight1216]

[quote name='FlaccoFlicker' date='29 June 2010 - 09:05 AM' timestamp='1277816748' post='427640']
[b]FFXIII was the fastest selling Final Fantasy of the series[/b],I forget to what number but I know it was on of the best selling.I agree with the lack of extra story and interaction with NPC'S.
From what I understand stand FFXIII Versus will incorporate the towns and all that again,not alot is known but as I find stuff I will post.

Yeah xiv is going to be an MMORPG as XI was so not sure whether or not Ill join XI was too much like a friggin singles bar lol

My favorite is still IX,Zidane,Vivi,Garnet and all,VII I think I grew tired of sadly maybe because I have played it soooo much.

I didn't mind XIII that much tho,there is soo much to do.Once you beat the game you get the last Pardigm set unlocked and you can finish of the side quests.I went thru it all and enjoyed it.

I just wish there was a more complex story,and Cid made his appearence again lol
[/quote]
Booo! It was just hype. >.<

I think Cid is supposed to be in every core game... Cid and perhaps Shiva.

I like your Versus sources.

[AwakenTheDemon]

[quote name='TheMethodicalPoster' date='29 June 2010 - 04:04 AM' timestamp='1277802270' post='427626']
I couldn't stand 13. I couldn't stand the fact it was basically walking in one straight line. I couldn't stand the fact they removed all towns & NPCs. This is not Final Fantasy like. I quit with in an hour of playing it and haven't touched it since. I'm sad I wasted money on this. Oh well, you win some and you lose some.

From what I have heard is that Final Fantasies in the future are going to be the same way with no towns or NPC's and 14 is going to be yet another MMORPG.

It looks like I will start renting before I buy any more of their product.

Man do I miss the days of VII, VIII and VIIII.
[/quote]

FFXI was a top notch MMORPG, I dunno where you were that you found it like a Singles Bar (directed to Flicker). FFXIV seems to be everyway an improvement over FFXI. It really annoys me when people complain about FF having MMOs, because "it's not Final Fantasy, FF was never meant to be online". Stop complaining and try it, the game was hugely rewarding and fun to play (that's not directed to anyone, just a generalized statement). I've actually been pondering going back to play it again to tide me over til FFXIV.

Secondly, where have you heard that every FF is going to be without NPCs and towns? SE has barely said [i]anything[/i] about any FF that isn't XIV or part of 13's world. I'm a huge FF Fan, so I would have heard if they said every FF was going to like 13. SE loves to experiment with it's storied franchise since 7 (Materia for 7, Junction/GF for 8, Sphere Grid for 10, MMO for 11, real time battles for 12). Aside from the lore, not much as carried on between installments.

[TreTheRaven]

[quote name='AwakenTheDemon' date='29 June 2010 - 01:52 PM' timestamp='1277837528' post='427793']
FFXI was a top notch MMORPG, I dunno where you were that you found it like a Singles Bar (directed to Flicker). FFXIV seems to be everyway an improvement over FFXI. It really annoys me when people complain about FF having MMOs, because "it's not Final Fantasy, FF was never meant to be online". Stop complaining and try it, the game was hugely rewarding and fun to play (that's not directed to anyone, just a generalized statement). I've actually been pondering going back to play it again to tide me over til FFXIV.
[b]
Secondly, where have you heard that every FF is going to be without NPCs and towns?[/b] SE has barely said [i]anything[/i] about any FF that isn't XIV or part of 13's world. I'm a huge FF Fan, so I would have heard if they said every FF was going to like 13. SE loves to experiment with it's storied franchise since 7 (Materia for 7, Junction/GF for 8, Sphere Grid for 10, MMO for 11, real time battles for 12). Aside from the lore, not much as carried on between installments.
[/quote]

A local game store. One of the more popular ones for that matter, GameStop. My friend Stef has also heard the same news.

I don't know if it's true, it's just what I've heard. I certainly hope it's not true and I hope it's not another linear game.

[FlaccoFlicker]

http://ps3.ign.com/objects/826/826846.html

IGN'S FFXIII VS page