Final Fantasy XIII

[9robin3]

yeah idk ive heard that alot peri how alot of people couldnt stand the char/plot, i guess i liked how "old world fantasy" it was

and yeah another reason i hate this shit is because they keep showing like a million differant battle systems FUCK YOU SE JUST PICK ONE FAGGOT

If they should have made the SAME battle system for all FFs would you play them? I would get bored, but thats just what I think. Ofcourse they must make new systems. But the worst I have ever played is the system for Valkyrie Profile. It is so badass stupid.

Anyway FFXIII is faking. It will sell only because Square know that people buy FF games. Not because it is a FINAL fantasy. But I still believe it will be a little good anyway^^

 

[mawk]

I don't think they should necessarily stick with the same system throughout. even if it's taken them in a really faggy direction this time, I like how later FFs have been exploring different gameplay schemes. just think of it like they're exploring the opposite end of the spectrum from 12. next game will probably be better.

speaking of which, what's the news on Versus? I haven't been following it at all, but I like what I've seen so far.

for one thing, I like that the character designs are actually feasible for a modern-day setting. KH-style gameplay could work, or it could fall flat. it depends, really.

 

[moog]

uh youre missing my point i mean they are showing like a million differant ones in the preview but theres only like that one shitty ass TBS dominant in the game

and peri i wanna respond to you but i dont wanna keep getting off track so ill catch you in irc and well talk it up ;D

also

But the worst I have ever played is the system for Valkyrie Profile. It is so badass stupid.

WHAT ARE YOU SHITTING ME DO YOU KNOW WHAT THE WORD GOOD MEANS YOU LITT i respectfully disagree

 

[Jason]

speaking of which, what's the news on Versus? I haven't been following it at all, but I like what I've seen so far.

for one thing, I like that the character designs are actually feasible for a modern-day setting. KH-style gameplay could work, or it could fall flat. it depends, really.

Well they haven't said too much more about it, although Nomura wanted to show it at E3, but since then he's said they're making changes to the map system so he very much doubts we'll see anything.

Apparently, from what was shown to the press (But in a room where photogrophy etc. was prohibited), the world map is similar to the older Final Fantasy games, showing Noctis (Main character) running around etc. but I think this is what's changing, I heard somewhere that they weren't happy with having a big character on a small map (You know, where the towns etc. were little), so I'm wondering as to what they're changing it to.

The battlesystem is meant to be like Kingom Hearts, but with a TPS (Third Person Shooter) mechanic thrown in there, now I have no idea what that could be, but it definitely sounds different. He also talked about a feature of the battles where you could absorb magic from enemies and use it against them, which I'm pretty sure has been done before, but either way, cool I suppose.

It's also said to be a darker take on Final Fantasy with more violence too, makes a big change, we'll have to see how it all plays out, but either way, this is the only game by SquareEnix that's interested me in the last decade, minus Final Fantasy X ofcourse.

 

[9robin3]

uh youre missing my point i mean they are showing like a million differant ones in the preview but theres only like that one shitty ass TBS dominant in the game

and peri i wanna respond to you but i dont wanna keep getting off track so ill catch you in irc and well talk it up ;D

also

But the worst I have ever played is the system for Valkyrie Profile. It is so badass stupid.

WHAT ARE YOU SHITTING ME DO YOU KNOW WHAT THE WORD GOOD MEANS YOU LITT i respectfully disagree

I am not fighting with you so you know! Sorry if it seemed so :p
Okay then I know. In the trailers it is not clear at all how the (crazy) battlesystem of XIII works. It only makes the viewer dizzy O_o

 

[9robin3]

speaking of which, what's the news on Versus? I haven't been following it at all, but I like what I've seen so far.

for one thing, I like that the character designs are actually feasible for a modern-day setting. KH-style gameplay could work, or it could fall flat. it depends, really.

Well they haven't said too much more about it, although Nomura wanted to show it at E3, but since then he's said they're making changes to the map system so he very much doubts we'll see anything.

Apparently, from what was shown to the press (But in a room where photogrophy etc. was prohibited), the world map is similar to the older Final Fantasy games, showing Noctis (Main character) running around etc. but I think this is what's changing, I heard somewhere that they weren't happy with having a big character on a small map (You know, where the towns etc. were little), so I'm wondering as to what they're changing it to.

The battlesystem is meant to be like Kingom Hearts, but with a TPS (Third Person Shooter) mechanic thrown in there, now I have no idea what that could be, but it definitely sounds different. He also talked about a feature of the battles where you could absorb magic from enemies and use it against them, which I'm pretty sure has been done before, but either way, cool I suppose.

It's also said to be a darker take on Final Fantasy with more violence too, makes a big change, we'll have to see how it all plays out, but either way, this is the only game by SquareEnix that's interested me in the last decade, minus Final Fantasy X ofcourse.

TPS? Yore talking about FFXIII (not Versus XIII) right? That would be so COOL! I really liked Dirge od Cerberus that was TPS :D

 

[Jason]

Lol hell no, I'm talking about Versus XIII here, lol.

 

[moog]

ohhhhh ive been addicted to the theme song

i didnt know leona lewis sang it shes has a really good voice

i mean the song is essentially pop but idc im listening to it like crazy fuck you guys DONT JUDGE ME

 

[9robin3]

Lol hell no, I'm talking about Versus XIII here, lol.

haha Yeah ofcourse whata retard ia am O_o but anyway I think Noctis is cooler than Vincent, so FFvs XIII will tehrefore be better (I think) than DC. AND IT WILL BE TPS!!! I SO LONG FOR THAT GAME! After I beat Omega Weiss in DC i thought : "couldnt Square Enix make a new shooter game because DC was great" and now it'll come :D

Go Noctis!!!

 

[mawk]

DoC was an alright concept, but it could definitely have used more polish (and less of Reeve cosplaying as John Lennon. in fact, all the character designs in that game were more or less garbage. forget I brought them up). if they revisit the whole TPS thing, they'd probably come out with something pretty cool, so I'm totally with you on that.

 

[moog]

doc was terrible and thats a fact

 

[mawk]

the aesthetic was really really horrible and the plot sucked but the whole shooter thing was decent at the core at least

they just loaded it up with all kinds of redundant bullshit is all (LOL LET'S ADD A LEVELING MECHANIC... GET IT BECAUSE WE'RE RPGS)

(HOPE YOU LIKE RANGE BEING AN UPGRADEABLE STATISTIC BECAUSE THESE BULLETS ARE NOSTALGIC FOR THE EARTH'S EMBRACE AND WILL ROCKET DOWN TO THE GROUND IF THEY FLY MORE THAN TEN METRES)

I figure if they tried it again they'd clear it out a little

 

[Venetia]

THESE BULLETS ARE NOSTALGIC FOR THE EARTH'S EMBRACE AND WILL ROCKET DOWN TO THE GROUND IF THEY FLY MORE THAN TEN METRES

ahahahahaha

 

[Kuahewa huki 'ino]

I figure if they tried it again they'd clear it out a little

Well Parasite Eve got it pretty right with range, where a gun's range was its "effective range" rather than its "maximum range." I'm fairly certain you could target anything outside of your range bubble (with firearms, your nightstick was still limited), but your accuracy was abysmal.

 

[bacon]

~Added a preview and two reviews in the Previews and Reviews section~

 

[Kuahewa huki 'ino]

someone wants to pretend the more legitimately-cutting reviews don't exist i see

 

[bacon]

someone wants to pretend the more legitimately-cutting reviews don't exist i see

Uh, no. These are just the two review I found. If you want to post any other review, post it in a spoiler or tell me and Ill post it on the main thread. The whole point of this thread is to provide different interpretations of the game itself, and the main thread isn't biased from what I have checked over, except for the two reviews and previews I have and I'm really not familiar with any other site that does so. Again, post a different review that makes legitimate points and opinions and Ill post it in the main page. But seriously, don't start being an ass for the sake of being an ass, its immature and this thread is not for intentionally starting arguments. I understand that you have your own views of the game as well, but there is a difference between people understanding what you say and people agreeing what you say. Reviews are reviews, and whether or not you agree with these reviews is all your opinion. If you have a problem with it, take it to PM but please act somewhat decent.

 

[Kuahewa huki 'ino]

Again, post a different review that makes legitimate points and opinions and Ill post it in the main page.

No. Problem.

Final Fantasy XIII is a mix of some good ideas and questionable implementation. Square are trying to push the series in a new direction and there are some very obvious growing pains, but also promise of a better future for the series as a whole (and when you're speaking about a multi-million selling franchise, a better future is good indeed).

You've all heard of the weaknesses already: the plot is thin and in parts incomprehensible, the characters are usually 2D caricatures and the game is extremely linear. None of these would be big problems in and of themselves, but when you put them all together, you end up with a game that feels very light. It's almost like Square made a 20 hour RPG but then decided the game needed to be 40 hours long after all and just stretched it out.

As a result there are long segments in the game where very little happens aside from you running down practically identical corridors and fighting the same four enemy types indigenous to that particular dungeon over and over again. Again, this wouldn't be a big problem IF there was something else to spice up these corridor runs. Some neat mechanics that varied from dungeon to dungeon based on the locale. Something that would make Space Corridor A different from Lovely Forest T, other than the background graphic. There isn't, though, and so the game became very much a grind for me by the 10th hour when I felt like I'd seen all there was to see and was just waiting to see everything again repeatedly.

The combat system is the real gem of Final Fantasy XIII. It mixes computer assisted decision making, great graphics and a nice group system into a package that offers an experience you won't find in any earlier Final Fantasy games. As a result it really feels fresh. When things are at their most hectic, it's tons of fun to jump from paradigm to paradigm in an effort to keep everyone alive while keeping the enemies debuffed, your party buffed and still doing damage.

It's a shame, then, that this wonderful system isn't really utilized all that often. Aside from boss battles and other big nasties, most battles are little more than 10 second diversions where the default Slash & Burn paradigm crushes all enemies while you hold down auto attack -- and then you have to repeat literally the same battle 40 more times to complete the dungeon. I would've liked to see far fewer, but more involved and complicated fights to really take advantage of the system.

One part worth mentioning are the Gestalt battles, which are where you obtain new Eidolons, this game's version of summons. They are traditionally crazy and flashy, maybe a bit too much so: it's hard to keep a straight face when two space lesbians embrace each other into a motorcycle or a huge fiery satan turns into a dune buggy, but that's Japan for you.

The battles, though, feel like little more than puzzles, and unwelcome ones at that. I appreciate the theory: each Eidolon has a specific weakness you have to exploit to fill up his Stagger bar and thus his Gestalt bar, battering him into submission and winning the battle. The trouble is that these combinations are absolutely binary. If Space Satan requires one member to block attacks and the other member to buff up his physical defence to yield, everything else will result in absolutely and automatic failure, once the battle timer is up. These combinations are often extremely arbitrary and thus frustrating to figure out.

So, then. Paper-thin and incomprehensible plot, character caricatures that are supposed to entertain you for the linear 40-60 hours it will take you to complete the game and a battle system that isn't really utilized. These problems are very real and do affect the game to a significant degree. Many people will absolutely hate it. Worth it, though? Surprisingly I will say "possibly". There's a certain charm to Final Fantasy XIII that's buried under the ridiculous fantasy lingo, sudden mood changes the seemingly manic-depressive characters go through every five minutes and critically high Japan levels, but it's all a game of "occasionallys".

Occasionally you will find a fight that really tests your mastery of the paradigm system and makes your adrenaline flow. Occasionally you will watch a cinematic that is so masterfully made and hits its intended emotional marks so well that you can't help but be truly moved. When these occasions find you, the game really works and you can see why Square's revolution-in-the-making might be worth suffering 30 hours of grinding space bees for.

Edge Online review:
http://www.edge-online.com/magazine/rev ... ntasy-xiii

As they should be, in both cases, numbers are an afterhtought, if even present at all.

 

[bashful crobat]

UK release today

gird yourselves

 

[9robin3]

Release in SWEDEN SOON!!!!!!!!!!