| Platform | OVERALL |
|---|---|
| PlayStation 3 | 8.80 |
| Overall | 8.80 |
|
Final Fantasy XIII I feel gets way too much negativity. I understand that it was not a traditional Final Fantasy game but I feel that is the point of this series, to keep surprising us. The biggest complaint levied against XIII is it's linear approach, often times leaving the player no option but to keep moving forward. That is what held back XIII for me as well, so when the sequel was announced to have far more exploration I was excited. XIII-2 is a time traveling RPG adventure, one we have not seen since the Chrono series. This is easily one of the most unique methods of exploring a game and it made jumping to the next location extremely exciting. Anything with time travel excites me so getting to see the history of the XIII universe play out was a great thrill. The time traveling is done through a fancy menu system where you enter gates which lead to new locations and times. As you explore you open more gates which lead to new times or locations. You never know where you will end up until you take the plunge into the gate creating this awesome sense of unknown. The game world is simply stunning. With no restraints to what could be covered you basically explore a huge variety of locations. From forests filled with flan (the creature, not the hispanic dessert) to an amazing futuristic city to a ruined city long abandoned. Many times you will end up in alternate versions of a time line a la Marty McFly in Back to the Future 2. If you enjoy time traveling stories this game will capture your attention and never let it go, it is an absolute blast to explore. The combat is largely unchanged from XIII though this time instead of a large cast you only have two characters, the third member of the party is taken from a collection of monsters you capture. Like Pokemon you may capture enemies and raise them which allows them to learn new skills. Each creature has a dedicated class, some level up quicker than others, some have a unique spell or skill you may want to use. The two main characters Serah and Noel can use all classes allowing nearly any kind of combination of classes possible. Combat remains fast paced with the focus not being on selecting the correct action but shifting to the proper class. If you enjoyed combat in XIII you will enjoy the combat in XIII-2. Even though XIII-2 addressed the exploration issue it just doesn't feel like a proper epic Final Fantasy game and that is why I still enjoyed the original more. The lack of a full cast really hurts the title, Final Fantasy games are about building your team as much as it is about exploring a sweeping story. There is no team building, even leveling up was simplified leaving almost no room for customization while leveling up. Where XIII was linear in its level design this game is linear in its character building. Also having the full range of all classes available in combat from the start actually hurt the overall quality of the battles. This sounds crazy but the way FFXIII limited certain classes and kept team members away from each other allowed a certain level of focus to the enemies, boss battles in particular were specifically designed for the team the game gave you. Here boss battles can range from tough to super easy depending on how you decided to level up early on. The balance is all over the place, mainly cause leveling up is so simple, by the halfway mark you may be close to maxed out. FFXIII-2 is filled with loads of secrets just like any other FF game. The best of them being the alternate endings earned by replaying older areas with a super powered team to defeat enemies you couldn't earlier. The paradox endings are rather weak but just having new takes on boss battles is a blast. The combat truly shines when taking on way stronger enemies and sadly that only seems to happen in post story play. There are some neat side quests like a casino complete with chocobo races which is a direct nod to FFVII. There is Colosseum which through DLC allows you to battle famous Final Fantasy bosses. The story itself is mostly nonsense but I love how fleshed out this world is. This game allows the player to explore the entire timeline of this planet so we don't just see the era our heroes come from. A databank keeps track of everything, all the lore, all the characters creating the most fleshed out Final Fantasy universe. But the main quest Serah is on makes no sense what so ever and is filled with so many time line paradoxes and rule breaking that it becomes impossible to really understand why anything is happening. This game uses multiple time travel theories but you cant mix BTTF rules with "one timeline" rules, it just doesn't work. After a while I stopped trying to make sense of it and just went with the fun ride. Final Fantasy XIII-2 is a must play for XIII fans and I would even strongly recommend to those who simply love fast paced exciting RPGs. The game is absolutely BEAUTIFUL, there is no RPG on the market that comes close to the production values of Final Fantasy. While it plays great and its fun to explore this game feels like a side story, it is missing that special something that feels like a full fledged Final Fantasy title. Great game, not as good as the original XIII. |
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Posted by Dvader Fri, 21 Mar 2014 05:26:19
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gamingeek (6m)
I mostly agree with your review. Weird.