TerraEarth Forums


Final Fantasy XIII
Goto page 1, 2  Next
 
Post new topic   Reply to topic    TerraEarth Forums Forum Index -> General Gaming
View previous topic :: View next topic  
Author Message
Jason Tandro
The Undying TE Fanatic

Level 20: Guardian of Pandora
Rank: Moderator

Moderator


Joined: 04 Dec 2004
Posts: 6383
Gems 8,090
Location: Tiptoeing the line between confidence and arrogance.

PostJason Tandro Posted: Thu Apr 07, 2011 3:51 pm   Post subject: Final Fantasy XIII Reply with quote

Reply with quote
I'm starting to believe that 13 is an unlucky number.

Final Fantasy XIII is, without question, the most boring Final Fantasy I've ever played.

I'm four chapters in and so far it's missing all the key elements of a good Final Fantasy.

Where's the open-world exploration?
Where's the towns and interesting locals?
Where's the shopping and questing?
Where's the mini-games and side-quests?

Even Final Fantasy X, which was basically an extended pretty line to the final boss had sub-objectives, towns, and mini-games.

I mean seriously, remember how open Final Fantasy XII was. How after a few basic tutorial chapters you could pretty much explore at will any terrain you liked; although you risked getting killed by venturing beyond your level.

They took that and condensed this game into what is essentially the same linear corridor repeatedly. It doesn't feel like Final Fantasy.

You know what it feels like? Xenosaga.

Anybody play Episode 1? Where you're just going from place to place and doing the objective before moving on?

And even THAT game let you revisit old areas and had some degree of exploration, especially later in the game.

In all fairness, it's not all bad, otherwise I would not be playing it.

==

The graphics are, of course, top of the line, proving with every action-packed cutscene that the PS2 would have not been able to pull it off. The degree of quality between cutscene characters and the ones you control has been made even tighter. By FF16 I think we'll just be playing an extended cutscene (of course by then the cutscenes will be in Real3D, so what the hell am I saying?)

I was originally concerned when I learned that Nobuo Uematsu would not be composing the score for 13. However it was composed by Masashi Hamauzu, and anybody who has played Dirge of Cerberus can instantly recognize his hand at work in the score. Certain areas, like Lake Bresha, also remind you of Final Fantasy X, for which he was a co-composer. However Uematsu's lack of influence is one of the biggest separating factors. Without the standard anthem and fanfare it feels even less like a Final Fantasy.

The battle system starts off pretty boring but once you learn all the tricks to it (something which I feel really shouldn't have taken 3 chapters to introduce) it can be quite invigorating. It fades the line between turn-based and real-time combat and any steps in that direction I applaud.

The characters are bog-standard superficially, but once the story gets going they develop as nicely as any Final Fantasy you'd expect.

And the story, while convoluted beyond all recognition, perhaps even worse than FF12, is still interesting enough to keep me playing.

So, what's the word?

I've heard that it gets really good by about Disk 2. Is that true? Is there hope yet for the game part of this game?
_________________
Support me on Patreon!

Rest in peace, old avatar.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail Visit poster's website
Flamez
Hail to the King baby!

Level 16: Cursed Armor
Rank: Resident

Resident


Joined: 10 Jan 2005
Posts: 1240
Gems 7,228
Location: Australia

PostFlamez Posted: Thu Apr 07, 2011 3:54 pm   Post subject: Reply with quote

Reply with quote
I got 15 hours in, and was bored shitless. Never finished it.

By far the worst Final Fantasy I have played.
_________________

Joined TE on May 30, 2002, 2:26am!
Yeah, beat that.

I'm hot stuff.

http://terraearth.proboards.com - Original TE forums.
http://www.facebook.com/lochy - I gots facebook! yay for social networking?
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
tay120n64
The Koholint Knight

Level 19: Soul Blazer
Rank: Moderator

Moderator


Joined: 19 Jul 2007
Posts: 3186
Gems 7,572
Location: North Castle, Hyrule

Posttay120n64 Posted: Thu Apr 07, 2011 5:23 pm   Post subject: Reply with quote

Reply with quote
The problem with FFXIII is that it is VERY linear and VERY Japanese. SE tried to make FFXIII non-traditional, but took it in the opposite direction of current RPG juggernauts: Bioware and Bethesda.

They did their best to make a J-RPG unlike any other. They made the game streamlined and accessible, but the problem is that thanks partially to the success of games like Mass Effect and partially to the nature of J-RPG fans outside of Japan, the game was destined to fail. It was a smash success in Japan, but only has a niche following anywhere else.

If you can look past the linearity, its a rich game with great audio and visuals, a moving story, and a fast-paced battle system.
_________________


Back to top
View user's profile Send private message AIM Address Yahoo Messenger Windows Live Messenger
Fazermint
Shameless Pirate

Level 10: Dark Bat

Level 10: Dark Bat


Joined: 15 Jan 2011
Posts: 336
Gems 712

PostFazermint Posted: Thu Apr 07, 2011 6:01 pm   Post subject: Reply with quote

Reply with quote
tay120n64 wrote:
The problem with FFXIII is that it is VERY linear and VERY Japanese.


Amen. I really hate it when they leave hints of Japanese-ness in games. Not to disrespect the creators, but nobody gives a damn about where the game is from.

I didn't try FF13, simply because I don't own any console it runs on. Seems like I haven't missed anything XD
_________________
Hey. I'm Fazermint. And I'm Juicy!
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
inferiare
TerraEarth Historian

Level 20: Guardian of Pandora
Rank: Administrator

Administrator


Joined: 13 Dec 2004
Posts: 6791
Gems 14,506
Location: Under a rock, which is under a bigger rock...

Postinferiare Posted: Thu Apr 07, 2011 9:42 pm   Post subject: Reply with quote

Reply with quote
While the game is stupid linear, the story kept me going for the game. Chapter 11 is when you get to go to the open world, and wait til you see it: visually and graphically, that area is probably hands down the most beautiful part of the game. I'm partial to the Sunlith Waterscape (when you're trekking on with Vanille and Sazh) and Nautilus as well.

My advice? Don't try to look at it as a traditional Final Fantasy game. Think of it as its own game. Thinking "Oh this isn't as good as (insert number here)" and comparing it will make it seem less interesting and a lot less good on its own.

I like that they tried something different, and honestly, I don't know if Uematsu's music would have worked for 13 (I know, blasphemy) since each composer has their own style. His style wasn't matched up right for 13, in my own opinion. Honestly, I liked Rikku's bouncy FFX-2 theme more than her FFX theme because it fit her character more, and Uematsu didn't touch FFX-2. (Also, Uematsu doesn't work for Squeenix anymore, he's an independent composer who Squeenix can hire if they so wish, so that might be a reason why too.)

Either way, give it a bit of a chance. Think of it as the newer Indiana Jones movie: it's not part of the original trilogy, it is its own movie with no ties to the originals. You'll probably enjoy it a lot more that way.
_________________

Presia firle anw faura,
van futare parge iem...
Melenas.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Visit poster's website AIM Address Windows Live Messenger
tay120n64
The Koholint Knight

Level 19: Soul Blazer
Rank: Moderator

Moderator


Joined: 19 Jul 2007
Posts: 3186
Gems 7,572
Location: North Castle, Hyrule

Posttay120n64 Posted: Thu Apr 07, 2011 10:55 pm   Post subject: Reply with quote

Reply with quote
Expanding on what Raini said, you need to keep in mind that each entry in the Final Fantasy series strives to be its own game, both in regards to story as well as gameplay. Though there are tropes that permeate every game (moogles, attack names, summons, etc.), its not like Dragon Quest or Pokemon where every entry is expected to be the same as the last.
_________________


Back to top
View user's profile Send private message AIM Address Yahoo Messenger Windows Live Messenger
Jason Tandro
The Undying TE Fanatic

Level 20: Guardian of Pandora
Rank: Moderator

Moderator


Joined: 04 Dec 2004
Posts: 6383
Gems 8,090
Location: Tiptoeing the line between confidence and arrogance.

PostJason Tandro Posted: Fri Apr 08, 2011 1:41 am   Post subject: Reply with quote

Reply with quote
But therein lies the problem. If Squeenix wanted to make a cool J-RPG that shouldn't be judged in the mold of other Final Fantasy juggernauts, this entry should never have recieved a Roman Numeral. From what I understand, Versus XIII is going to be a title that is a better FF game, and yet it gets the sub-title.

I intend to finish the game, if only to add another notch to my Final Fantasy belt.

(still hasn't beaten Final Fantasy 12 yet... Mad )
_________________
Support me on Patreon!

Rest in peace, old avatar.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail Visit poster's website
inferiare
TerraEarth Historian

Level 20: Guardian of Pandora
Rank: Administrator

Administrator


Joined: 13 Dec 2004
Posts: 6791
Gems 14,506
Location: Under a rock, which is under a bigger rock...

Postinferiare Posted: Fri Apr 08, 2011 1:58 am   Post subject: Reply with quote

Reply with quote
Not really. Aside from minor problems like how linear the story is in the beginning, the story is all that really matters. That's how it is in any game. If you're expecting it to be like another one of the FF games, you're going to be disappointed. They wanted to break away from the mold that they had created, and they did. While it's not the best way to do so, they know what went wrong and how to fix it.

And Versus-13 isn't a subtitle per se, it's part of the Fabula Novalis Crystalis or whatever it's called: part of the 13 storyline. Different time of the world, different story.
_________________

Presia firle anw faura,
van futare parge iem...
Melenas.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Visit poster's website AIM Address Windows Live Messenger
Dark_Gaia
Level 12: Soul Knight
Rank: Resident

Resident


Joined: 26 Nov 2009
Posts: 582
Gems 6,560
Location: Australia, NSW

PostDark_Gaia Posted: Fri Apr 08, 2011 9:52 am   Post subject: Reply with quote

Reply with quote
i gotta agree with jason on this one, being a big ff fan, this one trying to be a seperate game or not was fairly average. not a huge lot of enjoyable content and the characters were a bit boring.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail Windows Live Messenger
tay120n64
The Koholint Knight

Level 19: Soul Blazer
Rank: Moderator

Moderator


Joined: 19 Jul 2007
Posts: 3186
Gems 7,572
Location: North Castle, Hyrule

Posttay120n64 Posted: Fri Apr 08, 2011 5:21 pm   Post subject: Reply with quote

Reply with quote
I reiterate: Every single Final Fantasy ever made tries to break the mold of the previous title.

FFXIII is nothing new. It's kind of the direction the series has been going since FFX.
_________________


Back to top
View user's profile Send private message AIM Address Yahoo Messenger Windows Live Messenger
Jason Tandro
The Undying TE Fanatic

Level 20: Guardian of Pandora
Rank: Moderator

Moderator


Joined: 04 Dec 2004
Posts: 6383
Gems 8,090
Location: Tiptoeing the line between confidence and arrogance.

PostJason Tandro Posted: Fri Apr 08, 2011 9:15 pm   Post subject: Reply with quote

Reply with quote
tay120n64 wrote:
I reiterate: Every single Final Fantasy ever made tries to break the mold of the previous title.

FFXIII is nothing new. It's kind of the direction the series has been going since FFX.


I disagree. FF8 and FFX are heralded as "black sheep". There is a definite formula in Final Fantasy, one that, so far, I feel 13 has strayed from.

And this coming from a guy who's favorite FF is Final Fantasy 8, loved 10 and thought that 12 was the most immersive Final Fantasy he's ever played.
_________________
Support me on Patreon!

Rest in peace, old avatar.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail Visit poster's website
arkisdabomb
Level 9: Sabre Dog

Level 9: Sabre Dog


Joined: 30 Nov 2004
Posts: 248
Gems 2,148
Location: Canada.

Postarkisdabomb Posted: Fri Apr 08, 2011 11:55 pm   Post subject: Reply with quote

Reply with quote
Every Final Fantasy for the most part tries to do something different from the last, to the point where you could call them something completely different than Final Fantasy and it wouldn't have the stigma of being judged against the game that came before it (for example, Vagrant Story). As early as Final Fantasy II they were trying to do things differently. Yes, the core gameplay is more or less the same in the earlier games, but even then the battle systems change if not every new Final Fantasy, then every few.

I gave us the core gameplay. Turn Based play, classes and class changes etc.
II was the first attempt at a non-traditional leveling system, which would eventually be perfected in X's Sphere Grid system
III further improved on the class system (further than that I don't know cause I haven't played it)
IV gave us one of the cornerstones of future Final Fantasy games, and JRPGs in general, Active Time Battle, as well as gave us (to my knowledge) our first glimpse at what is another cornerstone of future games, Summons.
V Arguably perfected the concept of the class system, which is about all I can say on this one as well, since I haven't fully played it
VI introduced the concept of giving each character defined classes, a concept that would carry on for the next three games, as well as the concept that everyone can use magic, regardless of class. Also was the first game with Limit Breaks, though most people are lucky to have ever seen one of them, let alone all of them.
VII gave us Materia, 3 person parties, and for most of us, Limit Breaks
VIII gave us the much (for most people) dreaded Junction system
IX I shall pass on cause I don't remember much from that game
X introduced a new battle system, Conditional Time Battle, as well as the Sphere Grid, and the ability to switch party members mid-battle.
X-2 is the /other/ game that I would personally argue perfected the class system over V, with the ability to change classes mid-battle, as well as (as far as I know) the only game in the series with a combo system in battle.
XII was, long story short, a single player MMO.

I have not played XIII, so I can't really say anything about that, but as I pointed out, saying that Squeenix don't try to do things differently game-to-game is a gross understatement.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Jason Tandro
The Undying TE Fanatic

Level 20: Guardian of Pandora
Rank: Moderator

Moderator


Joined: 04 Dec 2004
Posts: 6383
Gems 8,090
Location: Tiptoeing the line between confidence and arrogance.

PostJason Tandro Posted: Sat Apr 09, 2011 12:38 am   Post subject: Reply with quote

Reply with quote
You just made this hardcore FF nerd rip his hair out.

Character specific classes started with II.
Final Fantasy IX didn't bring much new to the table as it was meant to be a reflection on the series so far.
Limit breaks first made an appearance in the rare desperation moves with Final Fantasy 6.

But other than that, fairly good description, but my point of there being an underlying formula is still valid. I haven't played much of 13 yet, so maybe it catches up with it later on.
_________________
Support me on Patreon!

Rest in peace, old avatar.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail Visit poster's website
inferiare
TerraEarth Historian

Level 20: Guardian of Pandora
Rank: Administrator

Administrator


Joined: 13 Dec 2004
Posts: 6791
Gems 14,506
Location: Under a rock, which is under a bigger rock...

Postinferiare Posted: Sat Apr 09, 2011 3:23 am   Post subject: Reply with quote

Reply with quote
The necessities of a FF game are there in FF13.

A lot of people didn't like The Spirits Within because "it wasn't Final Fantasy, there wasn't any FF-related elements in it! No chocobos, no moogles, nothing!" which... omg so what? Chocobos weren't in the originals, nor were moogles. Moogles weren't a staple in the series until 5 or 6, and chocobos weren't in the games until 3 or 4 (I can't remember and I can't be assed to look it up at the moment.)

There's plenty of things that are the same: a good story, fantastic music, and a really fun battle system. As the games went on, they went from "Raini mad, RAINI BUTTON SMASH!" to "oh hey this is super interactive and a lot of fun!" They've constantly changed up the games, and FF1 was more like DnD when they made it (after a certain level, their class changed to a stronger class, much like DnD). They changed it from there to be an amazing series, but expecting the same thing? Sure, we do it. I was a little disappointed with it when I first started playing, but as the story grew from about chapter 5 or so, I started to enjoy it a lot more. Seeing the backstory of the events made the game a lot more enjoyable, as most events aren't really shown, just talked about.

Bottom line is, a predictable game is something we're familiar with: we predict there's going to be core elements of something. But when they make it different, people freak out. I like that they made it different, and really, in terms of story, the game is really only slightly more linear than FFX. However, it fits into the story of "we only have a short amount of time to really live at this point. We have to move forward instead of dwelling on things."

The same predictability does get kinda boring after a while though, so maybe I'm biased.
_________________

Presia firle anw faura,
van futare parge iem...
Melenas.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Visit poster's website AIM Address Windows Live Messenger
Fazermint
Shameless Pirate

Level 10: Dark Bat

Level 10: Dark Bat


Joined: 15 Jan 2011
Posts: 336
Gems 712

PostFazermint Posted: Sat Apr 09, 2011 6:40 am   Post subject: Reply with quote

Reply with quote
It's hard for game designers... Die hard Final Fantasy fans do not welcome changes very much, but others think that if it's always the same, it's boring as well. Finding the balance point between keeping it in a good, old FF style and bringing in something new is really hard.

A game that hasn't been mentioned is FF:Crystal Chronicles. Many don't accept it as a real FF game, because it's probably the game straying the most from the FF etiquette. It is, as far as I know, the only FF game to be based on dungeons. There is no level system, no experience points. Instead, you may choose an artifact after completing a dungeon that raises your stats. It is also the most non-linear FF game ever. There are 13 dungeons in total, and only in the first cycle you're following a certain path. After that, you'll have to go through a second and third cycle in order to gain enough artifacts to become strong enough for the final dungeon, and you can do it however you want.
The only thing I hate about it is that it's CLEARLY designed for multiplayer, but require GBA's to do that. 2-Player would have made the game twice as much fun. Sad
_________________
Hey. I'm Fazermint. And I'm Juicy!
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Display posts from previous:   
Post new topic   Reply to topic    TerraEarth Forums Forum Index -> General Gaming All times are GMT
Goto page 1, 2  Next
Page 1 of 2

 
Jump to:  
You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot vote in polls in this forum