The lights are on
Final Fantasy was one of the franchises that turned me into a gamer. Magic, swords, monsters, and battles? My 10-year-old self was completely sold. Ever since, I’ve been a devoted player, waiting with great anticipation for each major installment. Along the way, favorites have emerged, and others fall by the wayside in my memory. But through it all, I’ve respected that Square has managed to consistently try new things, even while maintaining a core identity to the franchise that has carried over from one game to the next. Like countless other gamers, I dove into Final Fantasy XIII this week with intense excitement, and I’ve really enjoyed my early hours with the game. Like every previous installment, there are features I like and dislike. However, at this point, it’s the discovery of what has changed and what has stayed the same that is a big part of my enjoyment. Here, then, are the things that are totally blowing me away in the new game, and a few little problems that tick me off. Things I Love:1. The IntroductionThe best Final Fantasy beginnings impart an air of mystery, excitement, and the flavor of a brand new world. They introduce the main characters in a meaningful way, give a hint of the conflict to come, and do it all with a marked cinematic flair. Final Fantasy XIII succeeds on all fronts. In the first couple of hours, we’re thrown into a complex and detailed setting – the complex interplay between the worlds of Pulse and Cocoon is immediately intriguing. The train sequence calls to mind the ever-popular opening of Final Fantasy VII without directly copying it. We meet Lightning, Snow, and most of the rest of the main characters, and see them engaged in pitched battles and daring encounters. More importantly, those early hours deliver a meaningful connection between these main characters – there’s no doubt why they’re working together after the early part of the adventure. Those first hours are intense and beautiful, with a suitable degree of melodrama and disaster to set the stage for the long journey ahead. It ranks for me as one of the great game openings, not just in the franchise, but in the whole role-playing genre. 2. Visual PresentationFinal Fantasy XIII reveals on-screen what my imagination always thought the series should look like. Nomura’s detailed and complex character designs mix Japanese youth fashion with an inimitable fantasy styling that sets the game apart from its contemporaries. The world of Cocoon and how it works is shrouded in secrecy and shadow, even as fluorescent glows and soaring architecture capture the eye. Most importantly, the visual look of the battles is dynamic, action-packed, and constantly engaging. As Lightning leaps and flips among her enemies, I realize that this is what I always wanted a Final Fantasy fight to look like. 3. The Battle SystemThe brave new directions that Final Fantasy XIII takes in its battle scenes change a lot about what fans have come to expect. While these fights share many features in common with earlier entries (particularly Final Fantasy X), there are so many new additions this time around that it feels like a whole new approach. The daring attempt to try something new pays off. The paradigm shift system is enormously fun, demanding that players control the flow of battle while simultaneously initiating individual actions from the party leader. As the battle system opens up, the battles become increasingly impressive and varied, such as the unique gestalt fights and their situational demands. After a fight, the game returns characters to their full power. Along with the elimination of MP or other limitations on magic usage, it means that every encounter can be exciting and challenging, without the need to conserve resources. Every fight becomes an all-out explosion of powers and attacks. Each battle demands my attention, and I’m constantly learning new ways to increase my effectiveness. 4. The Narrative FrameworkFinal Fantasy XIII takes some chances with its storytelling method, and I really adore the overall approach. While the first few hours introduce players to the protagonists of the story, there’s a lot about their background that we just don’t know. As the story moves forward, cinematic flashbacks tell the tale of the days leading up to the game’s opening scene. An intricately crafted web emerges, connecting characters and their actions even before they met. Back in the present, the game opts for a largely linear story track. Especially early on, your choice of direction and characters is dramatically limited. While some players may call foul at this forced narrative path, I think it serves the game extremely well. By splitting the party up in various situations, we’re forced to spend some designated time with each of the heroes, learning about their problems, fears, and strengths. On top of that, the story as a whole is tighter and better paced because of the linear path of the characters. Other games are well served by complex moral choices and constantly branching paths – Final Fantasy XIII follows a simpler and more direct storytelling method, and is better for it. 5. The WorldWhen talking about RPGs, it’s easy to talk about favorite characters and storylines, but forget what lies behind it all – the world of the game. A good setting is a character in its own right, and Final Fantasy XIII has a fascinating world to explore. There’s an oppressive weight to the stratified world of Cocoon that is communicated in the earliest minutes of the game, even as that world’s incredible natural beauty is made clear while the train rushes through canyons, mountains, and technologically remarkable cityscapes. I love the mystery of the fal’cie and the l’cie, and how their long history ties in directly to the plight of the main characters of the game. Meanwhile, the classic fantasy monsters of Final Fantasy, like the behemoth, take on new life with sci-fi styling and lifelike animation. As the story advances, the game continues the fine tradition of the franchise of presenting individual locations that are full of imagination and unusual sights. Even early in the game, the crystallized lake scene is amazing to behold. Seeing a Final Fantasy game has always had the power, from time to time, to evoke awe and wonder. Thirteen games in, Square Enix still manages to pull off the trick.
Email the author Matt Miller, or follow on Game Informer.
FYI, some enemies technically do drop money in the form of credit and incentive chips that can be redeemed for a chunk of gil.
I'm also going to have to disagree on the cutscene and datalog thing, but that's a matter of opinion, haha. I found that the datalog often ended up just restating things that were insinuated within the game itself if you were paying attention. As for cutscenes, I don't feel like they're overdone in this iteration. I found that they were beautifully rendered and were only used in instances where it paid to be cinematic than to provide some gameplay. For the most part, I feel like the most intense combat moments are given over to the player.
Anyways, that was a great read, it's nice to see some diverse opinions on the game. Now back to my playthrough, have to finish up the end of Chapter 9/hour 27, hehe.
i really want this game but i got bad company 2 so i have to get a little more money first.but there is still the problem of choosing between FF XIII and dragon age origins,what do you think?
I really like the game so far. I've put in about 9 hours. I like the linearity, the story, the graphics, the characters, and the battle system is slowly growing on me. The music is amazing...I'm considering buying the soundtrack.
I don't like the weapons upgrade system, the leveling up system, and the whole shopping system. I liked FF-X's weapons upgrades and the sphere grid much better.
I'm definitely having fun with it. Worth the buy (unlike XII, which I never finished).
I'm enjoying my playthrough of XIII as well. The point on the battles, I too was not enjoying the opening parts (especially Vanille only having attack, why wouldn't you pick auto-battle in that case?). However I did appreciate that the character position played a big part so stuff like knowing when to use Blitz or Grenade made the opening hours bearable.
i agree with you about the datalog, the first few hours I was like "wtf?", and didn't know i had to read the built in story-companion. all in all, I'm enjoying the hell out of this game.
Wait a second... you are supposed to sell the credit chits? F*CK! No one told me that, I as just like, why the hell would I want this thing that is only worth like two upgrade points. Now I have go perform save point grinds to deal with that sh*z. I was wondering why they gave me so few things to upgrade my weapons with and not nearly enough to upgrade each one. ***, that means I could have a had a fully upgraded set of weapons by now.
And oh my god FF X's dialogue was AWFUL! The whistling wasn't the worst part though. The part where Yuna told Tidus he just needs to laugh and then there is that pained forced laugh from the both of them. *face palm* It was so bad it was funny, and so funny it was painful. But that game made up for because the ending is literally the best twist I have ever seen in a video game ever. When I beat the game the first time I stared at the screen for a few seconds, shut it off, went to sleep. And then in class the next day I actually verbally spoke the words, "What the f*ck! That is the most amazing twist I have ever seen. It took several hours for my brain to register the fact that it was blown and that I had just played an entire game with people interacting with people who didn't exist anymore. And then there's the whole thing with Auron and Tidus at the beginning and when you get to the end you start thing about that and then you start to second guess the entire game and then your hooked. In their defense though, they've only been doing voice work on the Final Fantasy series for three games and the translations have come a long way from VII. Their team up with Disney has obviously helped the overall quality of the voice work as evidenced from X to XII(which I thought had fairly decent dialogue, even though it is kind of hard to express the emotions of a character like Fran)
Opening battles have always been drawn out. I don't think I've played a JRPG where they aren't. They also always pit you against an enemy that generally kicks your ass later on down the road.
If those character motivations and information were included in the game then it would probably be a 10, at least in my opinion. I mean, the fact that the characters aren't developed out in the open is what causes the characters to seem slightly shallow, which is one of the few faults that I have seen consistently mentioned in the reviews across the board. But... they now have a sound technical base to work off of and we should see the return, or maybe even explosion, of amazingly detailed stories. The possibility of a game on FF XIII's platform with a more completely told story is staggering.
I have not stopped playing Final Fantasy XIII since I've gotten it.
Matt, you pretty much nailed my opinion of this ridiculously awesome game. I go back to the first FF on the NES, absolutely love the series. I'm about 10 hours in, and having consistent "Holy s**t" and "f**king awesome!" moments throughout. Like you said, I do have minimal gripes, which are promptly forgotten at the next cutscene. I was extremely wary of how this game was going to turn out with all the reported "linearity" and battle system stories, but I give Square Enix a standing ovation. Time and time again they nail it, and this time is no different.
I'm going to pick this one up in a few minutes, and I'll be starting it shortly after that. Given the fact that every FF I've ever played has pissed me off in at least 5 ways, if not more, I'm feeling pretty optimistic that I'm going to love XIII in spite of some gripes I'll probably also have with it.
I got it at midnight release and I have been LOVING it. I was really worried about if I would like this game or not.
This is pretty much how I have always wanted a FF game to look during battles and gameplay.
Yeah it is really linear in the beginning but if you quit focusing on it and start playing for the story it's easy to forget about and you don't even notice.
The battles where what I was most worried about and it did take me an hour or so but now that I have Paradigms down and how to stagger the battle system is really coming out as being amazing. And boss battles are no longer mashing x and occasionally looking up from my book/magazine/cell phone to see if I need to heal.
Have to agree about the cut scenes. The quality between normal game play and the cinematics has gotten so close that it seems unnecessary to take control away from the player unless it serves a narrative purpose or creates an image that could not come about with complete control.
i neer played a final fantasy game, buts its still awesome!
I HATE square enix, and all its sucky weird crap japenese games. To hell with them!
You pretty much took the words out of my mouth, Matt, especially with the not-so-authentic melodrama between the characters. Although it's nowhere near as bad as any other JRPG, dialogue's a little awkward at times.
my thoughts, love the character design, hate the voice acting, love the cut scene, hate how frequently they incur, love the battle system, hate not being able top switch to other party members, love the level up system, hate the weapon upgrade system. Love the stotyline, music and graphics. All in all great game, yet not as great as the hype that was made for it.
I've come to accept the melodrama and such as things that people in that world would do since it isn't on earth. I haven't gotten to a place where it opens up but so far I'm loving it and haven't had this much fun in a final fantasy since FF10 (never played 11 and 12 was good but not up to the standards of quality I've come to expect from final fantasy)
I AGREE WITH THIS b*tch!
I am not a fan of the character design. Pink hair and afros with chococbos hiding in them.
The visuals are one of the biggest let downs to me. Sure, the cinemas look great, but general gameplay doesn't hold up. It looks very similar to the visuals in XII, and the characters tend to be rather blocky.
The music is terrible. Bring back Nobuo Uematsu.
The lack of money has been an issue for me as well, as is the super linearity of the level design and lack of grinding areas.
The story is lackluster in my opinion. I am at chapter 10, and it has yet to get interesting.
The characters are a major letdown as well. Hope reminds me of Shinji Ikari from Evangelion, he has just been granted ridiculously awesome power and all he wants to do is whine about it. Grow a pair, kid. Snow's dialog is what kills him. He is just too cheesy. I hate Vanille with a passion. Her VA is terrible and needs to choose one accent and stick with it. She is also too perky to the point of annoyance. Lightning is literally the same character as Cloud, but a woman. The only characters I really like are Sazh (although the chocobo nest on his head is stupid) and Fang.
I hate how they split up your party for 85% of the game, because it never fails that you will get into a fight where you need a certain type of attacker (specifically early in the game where Lightning is your only Commando), but since you don't have that type of attacker, the fights end up being harder than they should be. I don't like that, due to the ranking of battles, I always feel like I am in a hurry and can't really enjoy the battle system.
The battle system itself is something I really enjoy. I like being able to change class in the middle of a fight. I like that it went back to a classic turn based system. I don't like that you can only control the leader or if that leader dies the game ends.
The weapon leveling system is too extensive for the amount of items/gil you get. The guide says it takes 1,500,000 gil to level up a weapon all the way from base level to ultimate weapon. There are six characters, each with a multitude of weapons. This quickly becomes a daunting task.
The leveling system is great. The only thing that drags it down is how new tiers open up. I think all the tiers should be open from the beginning, instead of plot determining how much I am allowed to level up.
Overall, my experience has been generally negative, and as a longtime fan of the FF series, I want to say I look forward to the day that Square stops worrying about the game market, and looks back at their fans and the things that made their first IX games great, and return to that mold. Although I can tell, I am in a minority here.
Thanks a lot for your comments, Matt. I was listening to the Special Edition podcast you guys did and I found it very entertaining. I have played all Final Fantasy games and consider myself a huge fan. I haven't finished FFXII. Now that I'm reading all this and heard the podcast made me remember how much fun and exciting this franchise is, so I'll plug my old PS2 and finish one more quest. Great work GI staff!
I'm picking this up tomorrow. :D