FINAL FANTASY XIII-2 Review Thread [Update: More Reviews]

My impression of the story based on a few videos that were released a while ago is that the whole space time thing seems to come out of no where.

At least compared to FFX-2 from what I remember, it dealt with the existing world and characters/factions, while in FFXIII-2's case there were no prior hints in FFXIII that the space time thing could even occur. I have only played the demo though so I could be wrong on that point.

I have to wonder though, if a Final Fantasy 15 is ever produced, will it be a "return to form" or will it continue down the same kind of path set by FFXIII.
 
MTMBStudios said:
I agree 100%. Grinding and strategy are essentially polar opposites. All "JRPGs" would be better if:

1. Every single fight was different.
2. Defeating an enemy/encounter means he never appears again (and of course, no random battles).
3. Maybe even get rid of XP/leveling up entirely. Lock upgrading / etc to certain intervals at max (maybe after bosses).

If your battle system is not enjoyable without the prospect of "leveling up" after it, it is probably bad.
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The are some RPGs where they try to mitigate these types of issues. Lost Odyssey implemented a level cap for certain areas, which was simple but somewhat effective. (There were still ways to avoid this - Numara Atoll - if I'm remembering that correctly.)

The Last Remnant has a lot more to do with learning skills and formations rather than levels. The system tries to keep several key fights relatively on par with your squad. If fact, fighting too many battles actually could be counter-productive.
 
Can someone please tell me what time is this in Europe?

final-fantasy-xiii-inline_1327089862.jpg
 
When it comes to RPGS for me, a good story is a bonus, icing on the cake. I can deal with an RPG with a horrible story if the mechanics are great. I have a much harder time playing through a game if the mechanics are bad. This is why I, for the most part, enjoyed playing XIII and I'm sure I'll enjoy playing XIII-2.
 
Shitty story again, huh? Really disappointing, but sort of expected when the impression i got from reading interviews was they treated this project as a chance to try something new instead of really trying to fix ffxiii's flaws. I'm going to get it anyway just because the box will look good on my shelf..... -_-
 
8 from IGN is a fair score. I was expecting a 7.5 or a 9 (because they really dug themselves in a hole when they gave the original a 8.9) Though at this point, review scores from commercial sites like IGN are irrelevant to me. Either they over inflate the score (IGN, GS) or they undervalue it. (Playstation lifestyle. I'm not a butthurt fanboy, I read the review... it wasn't bad at all. The score 5/10 is unjustified though)

Sites like RPGsite are excluded obviously (I seriously doubt that review will get topped) and the feedback from neogaf is all I need really.
 
RPGSite – 80 (Import/English)
Eurogamer – 8
Machinima – 9
Digital Spy – 4/5
Inthegame.nl – 9
Joystiq – 3/5
IGN – 8
OPM UK – 8
 
The final part of the Joystiq review is enough to tell me I should continue to not care about this game:

Ultimately, if Final Fantasy XIII took the series five steps back, Final Fantasy XIII-2 takes it one hesitant step forward. Features like non-linear dungeons, optional side quests and NPC-populated towns are wonderful and all, but they were RPG staples twenty years ago. While Final Fantasy XIII-2 does quite a bit to fix the mistakes of its predecessor, it does very little to stand out on its own merits. It's enjoyable, but it's also disappointing in many ways. Final Fantasy deserves better.
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http://www.joystiq.com/2012/01/28/final-fantasy-xiii-2-review-fixing-the-past/
 
Honestly the reviews are much higher than i expected. I honestly think its just people propping up the series name in desperation for when they actually deliver a worthwhile entry.
 
Finally tried the demo and I came away very impressed. I never really got used to the battle system in XIII, but it just clicked in this demo, about halfway through the first fight. Watching IGN's video review made me want it even more. I hadn't planned on it, but I think I'm on board with this one.
 
Is the framerate in the retail game as bad as it was in the demo ( played on PS3, btw) ?

I know it was raining and all, but damn that demo didnt do the game any favors in the eyes of the skeptical, from a technical standpoint.
 
Yep the Gametrailers review pretty much confirmed to me that game is good. Now I'm very excited.

JerzeyDevil said:
Is the framerate in the retail game as bad as it was in the demo ( played on PS3, btw) ?
.
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It wasn't even bad, but no according to posters here it is. If that's your problem, you shouldn't buy the game.
 
Rahxephon91 said:
Yep the Gametrailers review pretty much confirmed to me that game is good. Now I'm very excited.


It wasn't even bad, but no according to posters here it is. If that's your problem, you shouldn't buy the game.
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Oh, I wont be buying the game based off of other things, like the really shitty character designs, the goofy weapons, the moogle, etc.

Im just surprised an FF game is so.......unimpressive. Even XIII had alot of polish, despite its obvious shortcomings. All I got from the XIII-2 demo was the feeling that Square Enix just threw a bunch of random ideas into a blender, and out came XIII-2. It feels like sloppy game-design. Dont know how else to put it.

I guess Im bein a little harsh, but its hard not to feel that way considering the serie's pedigree.
 
burgerdog said:
Since when is 25FPS acceptable? Even lower if you buy the 360 version. Please.
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Skyrim sold a lot.

JerzeyDevil said:
Oh, I wont be buying the game based off of other things, like the really shitty character designs, the goofy weapons, the moogle, etc.

Im just surprised an FF game is so.......unimpressive. Even XIII had alot of polish, despite its obvious shortcomings. All I got from the XIII-2 demo was the feeling that Square Enix just threw a bunch of random ideas into a blender, and out came XIII-2. It feels like sloppy game-design. Dont know how else to put it.

I guess Im bein a little harsh, but its hard not to feel that way considering the serie's pedigree.
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Your loss I guess. I think the graphics are good and the character designs fine.
 
I did notice the frame rate being rather uneasy in the demo. Overall it was sort of fun, but I can't stand either main character. Serah looks like a cheap hooker and the other dude looks like a KH reject, both with the personality and interest of a rolling log. The monster being a 3rd party member thing is also cheap and stupid.
 
DR2K said:
I did notice the frame rate being rather uneasy in the demo. Overall it was sort of fun, but I can't stand either main character. Serah looks like a cheap hooker and the other dude looks like a KH reject, both with the personality and interest of a rolling log. The monster being a 3rd party member thing is also cheap and stupid.
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I agree. However a floating cat wearing a paper boy hat is not stupid.
 
The reviews are tepid for a major release, but I do like some of what I hear. If nothing else, I'm glad that Square apparently backed off the endless corridor design from FF13. The sheer monotony of that game actually made me stop playing it for ~10 months before I could bring myself to finish it. The addition of towns, puzzles, and more frequent side quests should do a lot for the sequel.

My biggest concern is that Serah is the new protagonist; I absolutely hated her character in FF13. I honestly don't know if I can take a game where you only get two party members and she's one of them.

Maybe I'll wait a month and see if the price drops.
 
Gametrailers says the main story is only 20 hours or so. IGN said it took him about 33 hours in the livestream. Does this sound about right for the people who played that Japanese version? I plan on playing a few of the side quests, so if I pick it up I can expect around a 30 hour game?
 
zashga said:
The reviews are tepid for a major release.
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Yes but, like I said in the other thread, is quite promising that this time everyone more or less agrees on rating this game with a full 8 out of 10. XIII's case was quite the opposite way, with scores ranging from 10 down to 4. It was crazy. Now we know, this is a good game almost for everyone.
 
samus4ever said:
Gametrailers says the main story is only 20 hours or so. IGN said it took him about 33 hours in the livestream. Does this sound about right for the people who played that Japanese version? I plan on playing a few of the side quests, so if I pick it up I can expect around a 30 hour game?
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Took me 25 hours for the story, 65 total for all items/quests/endings obtained.
 
I don't really understand the hate for Serah. She hardly did anything in XIII on account of being a crystal. And outside of being a crystal all she did do was talk about how it sucks that shes a L'cie. When I hate a character it tends to be because they actually did something more then had like 5mins of screentime.
 
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