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Square Drops A Trailer And New FF XIII Details

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by Meagan Marie on October 02, 2009 at 02:34 PM
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One of the most impressive kernels to come from TGS was the debut of a new seven-minute Final Fantasy XIII trailer. Those of us in attendance sat back in awe of the visuals, gripped by a story we couldn’t understand without an English translation. But that’s not a problem now that we have the dubbed version in our hands.

So what did we learn from the trailer?

The first and most surprising tidbit is that main protagonist Lightning has a sister, Serah. Even more, Serah is engaged to the rugged male lead Snow. The couple takes a leisurely hover bike ride at the beginning of the trailer, chatting about the news of their engagement. There words are tinged with sadness, however, as Serah divulges she has been marked as an l’Cie.

The l’Cie are central to the plot of FF XIII, and as far as we understand are individuals marked by a great crystal to fulfill a higher destiny. Each l’Cie’s destiny is specific and comes with a great cost. Although they are not explicitly aware of what they must achieve, if an l’Cie fails to fulfill their destiny within an allotted time they will die and be transformed into a type of monster. It’s not a pretty fate, so we understand Serah’s concern. 

Aside from the looming threat of a fate worse than death, being an l’Cie isn’t all bad. l’Cie’s are gifted with the ability to summon master creatures. It appears that the majority of FF XIII cast members are l’Cie, and the trailer highlighted three of the unique summons. Called Eidolons, each summon has a standard and vehicle form – one that the character can ride to amp up their attacks. We’ve already seen the impressive showing of Odin’s horse form (via Lightning) and Shiva’s motorcycle incarnation (via Snow).

The trailer introduced a third Eidolon, who bears a slight resemblance to Ifrit in terms of color and an affinity for fire. Summoned by Sazh, the newly revealed Eidolon transforms into a hotrod and spews flame from its exhaust pipes. Despite the similarities to Ifrit, this Eidolon could be an entirely new creature to the series.

So who are our heroes fighting? The world of FF XII is spliced in two, the majority being the wild and untamed Pulse, and the second a floating paradise named Coccoon. Lead by one of the lead antagonists, Yaag, an entire army has been created to deport those influenced or tainted by Pulse and to take out the l’Cie, which are seen as a threat to the entire existence of Cocoon.

What else did we see? The trailer was full of eye candy, from epic air battles to skirmishes with behemoth war machines. And there was plenty of existential dialogue and questioning of each character’s place in the world. But enough from us. If you haven’t already, go watch the thing!

Mouse over the image to play

Now that a few more details about the enigmatic game have come to light, it’s getting tougher to contain our enthusiasm. The fanfare of the pending Japanese release is sure to fan the flames even more.

 

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  • by Friday, October 02, 2009 at 04:40 PM

    Amazing.

    Can't wait to here more information about the game!

  •
    by Friday, October 02, 2009 at 05:12 PM

    While my interest in the series is slightly fading and I'm not entirely sold on Final Fantasy XIII, the latest trailers have finally started to gain my attention. Maybe I will actually end up playing through the 360 version instead of just letting it sit in my collection.

  • Staff
    by Friday, October 02, 2009 at 05:15 PM

    FF 12 bugged out on me and removed the ability to use the triangle button from ALL my saves - and yes, I was in the final tower and about to face the final round of bosses. (and yes, I tried just about everything in the world to fix it).

    This game looks amazing but if I get that bug again in another Final Fantasy game it will not be pretty.

  •
    by Friday, October 02, 2009 at 05:26 PM

    I can't wait. I used to buy ANYTHING with Final Fantasy plastered on it. I've been a bit disenchanted with the brand over the years because they put out SO many games now. But the titles in the numbered series have been nothing short of fantastic. Seriously, these things eat away my life when I finally get them home.

    The story of this one really intrigues me. Sure, it has a bit of the political stuff, but the narrative seems a bit more about the characters and how they handle the massive burden placed on them.

    Ugh. US Release seems so far away...

  •
    by Friday, October 02, 2009 at 05:28 PM

    I'm so damned excited for FF to be born on the ps3. I have a feeling it will be a favorite amongst us RPG fankids.

  •
    by Friday, October 02, 2009 at 05:29 PM

    Wow... I am definitely going to pick this up. Not right away, but it just made my must-buy list. Fantastic.

  • Staff
    by Friday, October 02, 2009 at 05:33 PM

    As long as I don't need to buy licenses to use items and magic that I already own, I'll be happy.

  • by Friday, October 02, 2009 at 06:29 PM

    This looks amazing. Are they actually speaking English? Their lips seem to be moving perfectly with the words. Spring 2010 can't come soon enough.

  •
    by Friday, October 02, 2009 at 06:53 PM

    So, that girl dies.  Thanks for ruining it, Square Enix.

  •
    by Friday, October 02, 2009 at 06:58 PM

    If I get this game is going to be the first Final Fantasy game I`ll get, well besides Dissidia.

  •
    by Friday, October 02, 2009 at 07:18 PM

    @iceap12

      Maybe she doesn`t die. Maybe something happens, nobody knows!

  •
    by Friday, October 02, 2009 at 09:19 PM

    I haven't been this excited about a Final Fantasy game since FFX.

    I really hope this game turns out great.  

  •
    by Saturday, October 03, 2009 at 12:13 AM

    Something tells me that Serah won't make it in time. When a Great Crystal tells you to do something, you do it!

    I think this will be a solid game.

  •
    by Saturday, October 03, 2009 at 07:40 AM

    @icecap:

    come on, as soon as snow said they were engaged i knew that she was going to die. That was probably a pretty minor plot twist too.

  •
    by Saturday, October 03, 2009 at 11:45 AM

    The trailer is amazing, like so many others have said. There's one thing about it that seems ridiculous, the summons turn into vehicles? That is the stupidest thing I've heard or seen about the game so far (except for some of the lame names, Snow? Lightning? Wow, how creative). I hope the story is amazing because these little things can add up and kill this game for me.

  •
    by Saturday, October 03, 2009 at 12:42 PM

    This game just needs to come out already!

  •
    by Saturday, October 03, 2009 at 03:10 PM

    The trailer looks epic.

    FFX XII was a little disappointing, I'm hoping Square we redeem themselves with XIII.  Judging by this video, they will do just that.  

    Sring 2010 GET HERE ALREADY!!

  •
    by Saturday, October 03, 2009 at 06:19 PM

    To be sure this game will be HUGE all around the world, however i just think the series is just needlessly complicated and uninviting to new players. Does anyone else agree?

  •
    by Saturday, October 03, 2009 at 10:01 PM

    Looks sweet but the problem with me is that I'll play half of a Final Fantasy Game and quit playing it for a couple months, and when I get back I have no clue what I'm doing so I have to start over. It's a vicious cycle.

    I'd rather play Harry Potter anyways.

  •
    by Sunday, October 04, 2009 at 12:46 AM

    Gotta hand it to Square for being able to keep the fans interested this long! And it's so close I can't believe how 5 years will have gone by when this game finally comes out.

    It's amazing to see them working so hard :)

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