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

I loved Final Fantasy XIII, but that doesn't mean I really want more games like it. It was a nice one time thing, but I'm hoping they change directors with the next game after XIII-2.
 
DarknessTear said:
I loved Final Fantasy XIII, but that doesn't mean I really want more games like it. It was a nice one time thing, but I'm hoping they change directors with the next game.
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I actually really like the battle system in general so I don't mind more games having it, but I do think it should stay "Fabula Nova Crystallis exclusive," if you follow. Whenever they get around to XV I hope it's something totally new.
 
Perfo said:
Yet both famitsu and dengeki gave XIII-2 a perfect score.
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Famitsu gets paid for such scores because their main intention is to advertise the product, not to be critical about it, and Dengeki gave to the game the ridiculous score of 120/100 (much like they did for FFXIII, really). Those two sources are not credible for honest and critical reviews.

Meanwhile, amazon.jp (not very credible, neither) has been bombarded with users who hate the story.

8 out of 10 is actually a good rating if the journalism in the last years stopped abusing that same score on worse titles and the 9 pratically everywhere. I haven't played XIII-2, but I'm confident in saying that is surely a better experience than Dragon Age II and XIII. But it got the same scores, how come?
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That's why many people don't take scores so seriously now, and focus instead on the text of the review.

To be honest, FFXIII would probably get a 7/10 average from many reviewers if they knew what they know today.
 
DarknessTear said:
I loved Final Fantasy XIII, but that doesn't mean I really want more games like it. It was a nice one time thing, but I'm hoping they change directors with the next game after XIII-2.
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I'm ok with Toriyama, but I'd like to see a Final Fantasy closer to the style (/setting, general style) of the first three in the series more than the usual modern/future settings we've come to expect. Just for a change.
 
Grivenger said:
That's why many people don't take scores so seriously now, and focus instead on the text of the review.
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And that's exactly what I did try to say. By reading these reviews – in the current landscape of gaming journalism – it seems to read of a game surely better than an 8 out of 10 of today.
I've been called a moogle because of this :(
 
Rahxephon91 said:
Such as? The two choices she makes, make sense. She doesn't want to tell Light, because like Light says if she is a L'cie its her job to deal with her, you know kill her. She goes to the Pulse Vestige because she has no other choice. Its what she thinks her focus is and she gained some reassurance from Snow that this is what she should do. Completing your focus is better then turning into a monster. What are the child choices she makes for no reason?

How is she a cry baby? Yes I would cry to if some machine god just handed me a death sentence. I'm not sure why this isn't reasonable. I'm not sure why showing some emotion makes her a cry baby. Besides, she's not crying in every scene, she really only literally cries in 1 and well she was turning into crystal and probably thought she would never see Snow or Light again. The other cutscene where she seems down sees her turn fine when Snow reassures her. Oh I guess she shed a tear during the fireworks scene, yeah what a crybaby. Shedding a tear because realize your going to die.

How? What does she do that is like a 5 year old. The answer is probably nothing.

I don't see the problem or why she's not worthy. FFXIII was about Light doing most of the things she did because of Serah. XIII-2 seems to be the reverse. Makes sense to me.

Fair enough I guess, but I'm not seeing an actual reason as to why she's shitty here. Beyond I guess she looks stupid? Is she a plot device. Yeah she is and she mostly works.
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I've already listed why my opinion is as is, you're just analyzing the same scenes from a different POV and not understanding why they can be seen differently. I do wish I played your FFXIII.

Heads up to those waiting on a price drop or something, Target is offering a $20 giftcard with purchase.
 
kayos90 said:
Many people overrated XIII. XIII-2 is getting good scores.
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Yep. A lot of outlets passed out high scores like candy based on brand name alone. Now with most places fairly scoring XIII-2, their absurdity for the original game's score is all the more evident.
 
The game is getting even more good reviews. 8 is very good to me as I would have rated the original XIII 7. I will get this when it drops in price a bit. I enjoyed the demo but there was some annoyances in there for me. Loved how I could infuse monster abilities into other monsters and loved how it's possible to get money easily again. Didn't like the battle system much again. I always feel like I'm not in control of anything as I'm always using Auto battle except when I'm the Medic.

Demon Lizardman said:
Guys, just go buy Xenoblade if you're looking for an awesome RPG.
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What does this have to do with a FFXIII-2 review? Personally I've found Xenoblade to be pretty average.
 
Demon Lizardman said:
Guys, just go buy Xenoblade if you're looking for an awesome RPG.
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I'm planning to do it, but people seems to forget that Xenoblade – while probably being a better game – is certainly not a triple A jRPG. I like Final Fantasy also because of its high production values, that's why also titles like Bioware's RPGs, Bethesda's ones or Call of Duty are way more successful than others. There's nothing bad in playing both type of games, or preferring one over the other, but I think it's important to remember why FF is also successfull: there's no other triple A jRPG around from... 1997? With portables around things got even worse lately. It's Final Fantasy or Final Fantasy.
 
Kagari said:
Yep. A lot of outlets passed out high scores like candy based on brand name alone. Now with most places fairly scoring XIII-2, their absurdity for the original game's score is all the more evident.
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There are some that show that it's still credible. I still think out of the major publications Gamespot pretty much nailed it.
 
Perfo said:
I'm planning to do it, but people seems to forget that Xenoblade – while probably being a better game – is certainly not a triple A jRPG. I like Final Fantasy also because of its high production values, that's why also titles like Bioware's RPGs, Bethesda's ones or Call of Duty are way more successful than others. There's nothing bad in playing both type of games, or preferring one over another one, but I think it's important to remember why FF is also successfull: there's no other triple A jRPG around from... 1997? With portables around things got even worse lately. It's Final Fantasy or Final Fantasy.
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Being "AAA" doesn't automatically guarantee a game will be good.
 
Kagari said:
Being "AAA" doesn't automatically guarantee a game will be good.
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I didn't say this. But I found every main Final Fantasy a good game while also providing the benefits of being an AAA budget game, so it's not my problem :P
 
DR2K said:
I've already listed why my opinion is as is, you're just analyzing the same scenes from a different POV and not understanding why they can be seen differently. I do wish I played your FFXIII.
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Well I don't understand because I haven't been given much reason to.

Demon Lizardman said:
Guys, just go buy Xenoblade if you're looking for an awesome RPG.
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I already have played Xenoblade. It's a good game, but I also like XIII and is some respects like it a bit more. XIII-2 looks good and if it is as good as I think it is, then I may like it more then Xenoblade.
 
The reason like Xenoblade is because I found the characters and scale of the game to be far superior. Yes, FF13 looks better because it's on a more powerful console. Also, the music is better as well.
 
Perfo said:
I didn't say this. But I found every main Final Fantasy a good game while also providing the benefits of being an AAA budget game, so it's not my problem :P
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I can agree with this. Some FFs are just not that good (7..9..) but the high production values and polish still make it a more enjoyable experience than a game like Legend of Dragoon (still a fine game) or Enchanted Arms (also a fine game). AAA does not equal good but it can sometimes take your mind off the bad. Unfortunately Square is slowly losing their AAA credit rating..
 
Ah, seems like from reviews the story is just ok like FF13. I figured it wouldn't be all that good, but I'll still be picking it up in hopes that gameplay is more improved like FFX-2 was, which is my favorite FF battle system by far.
 
Reviews sound good. I hope the story is at least bearable.

Kinda sad that I'm not hyped for the game anymore, but am still getting it day one.
 
ULTROS! said:
Reviews sound good. I hope the story is at least bearable.

Kinda sad that I'm not hyped for the game anymore, but am still getting it day one.
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Yeah, I don't know exactly what killed all my hype for this game, but I'm still buying it day one.

I guess it's a good thing I've lowered my expectations dramatically.
 
Perfo said:
I'm ok with Toriyama, but I'd like to see a Final Fantasy closer to the style (/setting, general style) of the first three in the series more than the usual modern/future settings we've come to expect. Just for a change.
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But 12 wasn't modern/future??
I'd say X was a mix, technology was a sin...lol
and IX was medieval kinda, 13 was actually the first futuristic FF since VIII & VII really...I actually hope the next one is VIIish

@ DR2K

Man, if thats you in ya avatar then u seriously look like my ex's sister's boyfriend, it weird
 
Perfo said:
I'm planning to do it, but people seems to forget that Xenoblade – while probably being a better game – is certainly not a triple A jRPG.
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Actually, relative to other Wii games I imagine it is PRETTY CLOSE to being one. Huge world, tons of VA, plenty of in-game cutscenes, certainly this isn't some Sting or Atlus game.
 
I have read more than once that some problems with XIII are now gone in XIII-2 but what problems are these that people say? Any kind GAFfer care to explain please?

I played with a friend on his 360 and went only until the second DVD, I'm a main PS3 user and I'm tempted to get this one, however I still wonder if I should get XIII too.
 
The most obvious problem gone is the stifling linearity. There's also more substantial quests rather than just a bunch of marks.
 
It seems to me like a lot of people just find it impossible to give a mainline (or mainline sequel) Final Fantasy game the low score it might actually deserve for some reason or another, hence all the 8 and 9s out of 10.

Unless they're actually serious
 
PlayStation LifeStyle's 5/10 Review:

A story that spends 20 hours causing headaches before turning its ship around, a soundtrack with a severe identity crisis, a jumping mechanic that can’t figure out how it wants to work, monster allies, maps that are no longer shoe strings, beautiful environments with opportunities to explore, an addicting level-up and customization system, time travel, and a heavy metal red Chocobo whose theme music will ask you “Are we in Hell?” This is Final Fantasy XIII-2.

Final Fantasy games have been highly divisive this last decade, and XIII was even more polarizing than usual. So you know your reviewer here, I thought Final Fantasy XIII had some good stuff going on, but ending up being an overall average affair. It had great things, it had some disappointments, but I found it to be worth playing, though it’s perfectly understandable why a lot of people didn’t. What’s sad is that Final Fantasy XIII-2 feels like over compensation, as if the developers tried to include way too much, the result of which forms a game largely without an identity of its own. There’s a lot of good in this game, but so much of it is smeared with other aspects that disappoint or underachieve.

Final Fantasy XIII-2‘s music is a big example of its identity crisis, with types of music that feel mismatched and don’t fit together to make a functional soundtrack. There’s props to be earned by visiting several musical styles within a game’s OST, but the selections rarely feel appropriate. Things get especially awkward when vocal pop-type tracks serve as the BGM for some towns and dungeons. From an orchestrated opening, to some remixes of the XIII soundtrack, right into some J-pop. While running around, looping vocalized songs provide thought-provoking lyrics such as “everything looks shiny.” That’s deep. Later in the game, the music does improve, thanks mostly to having these painfully bad vocal tracks show up less frequently. Some of it is actually some real, solid RPG music that makes one wonder where the heck this stuff was from the get go.

The same thing happens with the story. For about 20 hours, the convoluted plot and poor writing render this story almost unbearable, but then there are these glimmers of hope, these shining moments when one must — as with the music — ask all too late “Where have you been this whole time?” By the end, however, most of that even washes away as complete nonsense and over-the-top direction come back from lunch break.

This tale isn’t helped at all by the two main characters. Sora’s older brother in both stance and pants, Noel is sent by Lightning to protect Serah, and he immediately starts trying to stuff his huge ego into everything. He’s a boring character that is hard to care about. From his introductory moments until the end, he’s ripped right from any of a hundred manga franchises. His dialogue is predictable, and he spends all game being a prototypical anime jackass. Simply having bad things happen to you does not make you a good character. Even when the rest of the cast members are evolving, he isn’t, and it eventually leads to eye rolling and makes it hard to care about him late in the game. All of his lines are the same type spewed by characters like Snow (FFXIII), Naruto (Naruto), Avan (Valkyria Chronicles 2), and the other “I’m gonna be the hero!” toolshacks of anime and games. JRPGs and anime have provided some great characters, but Noel isn’t one of them. He could be used in a writing class as an example of a poorly made character.

Serah is a little better. At least, during the middle of the game, she comes around, she grows, we see some of what is called in the business, “character development.” It’s just tragic that it takes so bloody long. For the first half of this 40-hour game (excluding epilogue), however, she struggles. If you want the audience to care about making choices as a lead, you have to make us enjoy being in her shoes. Making most of Serah’s dialogue options brain-dead bimbo things like “I don’t understand what you’re saying!”, especially when what’s going on is perfectly understandable is a terrible decision. Even if the player doesn’t pick it, the fact that it was even a possibility suggests that it’s a thought that was floating around in Serah’s head. Worse, there are several conversation selections that specifically don’t include an intelligent response. Sorry, I don’t want to play as a character who repeatedly demonstrates her idiocy. Serah is constantly asking questions with the perfect inflection and tone which lets you know that behind that mouth of hers is a whole head full of air. Naturally, Noel is constantly mansplaining things with his infinite wisdom.

The tremendous value of subtlety is lost on writer/director Motomu Toriyama. Rather than allowing the player to see things unfold and understand them, the player is smacked over the head with unnecessary filler dialogue. Get ready to have your intelligence repeatedly insulted, sometimes directly, sometimes using Serah’s airheadedness as the vehicle. Things the player obviously understands will then be explained and re-explained, often through Serah asking stupid questions. And when the answer isn’t so obvious, or there appears to be a contradiction, Toriyama shrugs and goes “Um, whoops, uh, time paradox!” and calls it good. Proving that the claim of developers fixing all the problems with XIII was exaggerated, there are, once again, large story chunks that need to be read in plain text form. This might be the worst story in Final Fantasy history.

Mog is perhaps the best example of squandered opportunity and destruction of subtlety. What could have been a funny, cute, enjoyable side character is made into an overused one-note joke that inappropriately injects itself into nearly every conversation. Scaled back a little bit, and Mog’s comic relief could have been a great addition to the cast, but eventually his voice and antics get annoying because of just how overused they are. Most of Mog’s sound effects and shorter voice clips are recycled from Final Fantasy Type-0, which hasn’t come out in North America, so perhaps Square Enix is banking on you not noticing, but I did notice because fuck.

A jumping mechanic further demonstrates Final Fantasy XIII-2‘s multiple personalities. Players can tap O to jump at will, and on rare occasion, this will prove useful in exploration, but it’s fairly inconsistent. Sometimes she can leap right over a fence waist-high, but others, invisible walls hold her back from hopping something only up to her ankles. It’s random and sloppy. At other points, there are glowing circles in which Serah’s jump will launch her into a sort of automated sequence similar to what was done in XIII. Auto-jumping can work fine, manual jumping can work fine, but Final Fantasy XIII-2 uses a mish-mash of the two for no particular reason. For most of the game, there’s not much point to the manual jump, until the platform-loaded final dungeon. Why was there no other platforming before this point? If given enough attention, it may have opened up some neat possibilities. But there we are again with the main theme of FFXIII-2: not really focusing on one thing and doing it well, but struggling to include anything and everything that anyone could have ever liked.

Instead of feeling like its own game, Final Fantasy XIII-2 feels like Motomu Toriyama trying to show off to Tetsuya Nomura, as if to prove hey, “I can make a crazy game with no gravity and stuff, too!” We got used to the no-gravity thing in Advent Children, and you have to make allowances for video games — even more for ones that include time travel — but some scenes in FFXIII-2 are off-the-wall ridiculous. There’s so much going on, to the point all these extra backflips and flying and swooping aren’t badass anymore, they feel forced and lame. Just because it’s possible to make a big flashy scene doesn’t mean it makes the game better. Tone it down a notch.

In a lot of ways, this sequel doesn’t run with some of the things Final Fantasy XIII did well, most prominently the tension of the world. Certain story elements that promised good things in XIII are hardly given a passing reference in XIII-2. While there are NPCs to talk to, we very rarely see any real, everyman citizens of the world doing their thing. What’s the social climate of these worlds and time periods we’re visiting? We don’t know.

Not all promises of gameplay amendments were broken, however. Exploration makes a welcome return. Especially after its introductory stages (about 6 hours), Final Fantasy XIII-2 puts players into some big, beautiful areas that are genuinely interesting and fun to explore. One of the big drawbacks to XIII was that its characters were running around these graphically impressive, nicely designed areas that really only had one place to go and gave no reason to look around. Heck, looking around wasn’t even possible in most of the places. This sequel thankfully ditches that, for the most part. It’s not a genre pioneer or anything, but the game does contain lots of areas that feel very rewarding to check out in full. Players who do so will usually be rewarded with items, gate keys, and of course, a few more chances to fight.

Another element of Final Fantasy XIII turned almost completely around in XIII-2 is the linearity. Once time travel possibilities are opened, the player really gets a lot of control over where the team goes and when. Several areas might open up at once, so from the menu, there’s a big decision to make as to where to go. Each place and time period has its own consequences, story bits, and other reasons the group might wanna check it out, making the decision all the more exciting. One can even see several scenarios play out differently depending on decisions made, up to and including different endings, which can be quite good. This was one of the biggest things the first game lacked: the ability for a player to make his adventure at least somewhat unique from that of other players. It feels great to have the aspect back. Saying this is in part a knock against XIII and in part praise for XIII-2; while XIII‘s laughably small amount exploration and over linearity drew complaints, those aspects are completely revived in XIII-2. The utilization of time travel is done particularly well — so much so that it might even draw complaints from Chrono fans that this mechanic wasn’t saved for a third game in that series. The story itself is convoluted and silly, but wow is that time travel pulled off well. There’s some great post-ending content that allows the player to continue zipping all around time and space, finding new areas and making sure to explore the old ones to the fullest, which will not be easy.

For the most part, battles have remained the same as they were in FFXIII, the biggest change being summons swapped out for group attacks. The same combatant roles are there, and players can once again group them as they please to fit their play style. Changing strategies for certain boss fights is a necessity, and drawing up the battle plans now has an extra twist. The third party member is a captured monster. Any monster that the team captures (this is done automatically, by chance, after winning a battle) can become an ally and has one specific role. Players select three different monsters to have on board for battles and then configure their Paradigms. This is where the game can get really addictive for level-up fiends, as monsters make progress through use of items, the vast majority of which can only be found after battles. Wanna get that next little smidge of statistical progress for your monster buddy? That’ll be two items. Another level will be two more. It’s strangely engaging to be constantly checking on the monster’s stats and wondering if another beast in the group could potentially prove more useful than one of the three in your main group, improving your little dudes a small step every handful of battles. Final Fantasy XIII did have some super cute enemies as well as a few badasses, so having them along for the ride, while probably sounding awful to some people, is surprisingly fun.

That right there is where Final Fantasy XIII-2 does truly shine. The gears of a great RPG are really there. It’s got a good progress system, Square Enix managed to create a leveling scheme in conjunction with a combat system that feels satisfying to play and to work through, and it’s easy to be excited about getting those new bits of loot to upgrade your favorite monster. Couple that with the gorgeous environments the party gets to explore and the framework is there for something great.

Making multiple saves per playthrough is odd in Final Fantasy XIII-2, as it can only be done in the Historia Crux menu, not in the field or town. Saving while exploring simply prompts an autosave that overwrites the previous file. If you’re wanting to compare the effectiveness of a certain character in a certain role or see if spending your monster items on Cait Sith is actually worth your time, you’re stuck with the inconvenience of having to exit the area, save, then re-enter the area of your choice, which can seem a little bit jerky and interfere with the flow of the otherwise fast battling and leveling. The Historia Crux causes an autosave of its own, and other autosaves happen before most story sequences. How many of us have multiple save files of our favorite JRPG, that were created along a singular play? People like to do that, so it being this oddly planned by including so much loading feels strange. (Update: This system is available for creating new saves in the Japanese version of the game, but at this time, stateside reviewers with pre-release copies are claiming that there is no way to create multiple save files. NA version comments cannot yet be confirmed, though the criticism of the Japanese version remains.)

Those who despised Final Fantasy XIII have no reason to even attempt the sequel; those that did should take it as highly recommended. If you play RPGs with your focus on plot, characters, and storytelling, you’re probably best to drop this game off your radar, unless you’re cool with it taking 20 hours to get good. If you play it for interesting progress systems and combat, it becomes interesting close to the five-hour mark and for the most part, holds its own. It’s a hard game to review, because you’re gonna get sacks of hatemail no matter what. Praise this game and you’re “contributing to the downfall of the series,” slam it and “you just didn’t get it, man.” Millions of people will fall very passionately on both sides of this one. For me, Final Fantasy XIII-2 lands right smack in the middle.
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Holy Shit. And I've pre-ordered and paid off both the limited edition guide and game ...

But I actually liked XIII (and have played every Final Fantasy ever) so, I'm not to worried cuz I'll prolly end up liking this one too !
 
Sounds exactly how I have perceived everything I've seen and heard from the game straight down to the numerous pop songs-- so it seems likely that my opinions of the game will mirror that review, but I'm still all for finding out myself.
 
If you play RPGs with your focus on plot, characters, and storytelling, you’re probably best to drop this game off your radar, unless you’re cool with it taking 20 hours to get good.
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Sounds oddly familiar.
 
From that review and what I heard on weekend confirmed I'll wait this out when it's under 30. Loved the combat from XIII and this seems right up there but the rest just seems horrible.
 
mr2xxx said:
From that review and what I heard on weekend confirmed I'll wait this out when it's under 30. Loved the combat from XIII and this seems right up there but the rest just seems horrible.
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Same boat here; what really kills it for me is the (apparent?) lack of any ending or satisfying conclusion and already announced DLC. I'll wait until there's some sort of GOTY edition (or whatever they call it), and if they don't do one I'll just wait until it's $20 to compensate for DLC costs. The next few months are super heavy with ME3, Witcher 2 (360) and Xenoblade for me anyway.
 
AngelSoldier said:
PlayStation LifeStyle's 5/10 Review:
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Are you really taking as a reference the really only negative review out there? Let's take as a reference also a bit of Metacritic's most meaningful quotes then:

Machinima Recommending Final Fantasy XIII-2 is an interesting proposition. If you don't like menus and cutscenes, Final Fantasy XIII-2 won't change your world view, because they're still there. However if you, like me, have been waiting for a reason to like Final Fantasy again, this is it.

X360 Magazine UK The level of customisation, freedom of choice and unending list of things to do makes this one of the most worthy and substantial sequels ever created. [Issue#81, p.79]

Official Xbox Magazine FFXIII-2 repairs almost every problem with Final Fantasy XIII, delivering an experience that feels like what that original game should have been. If your faith in Final Fantasy has been damaged by past disappointment, playing FFXIII-2 will restore your excitement for the franchise's future.

G4 TV Square Enix set out to correct the issues fans had with the first game, and they have succeeded across the board. With improvements to combat, exploration, and storytelling, it feels like this is the game that XIII should have been. But it isn't just a sequel, as it carves out its own tale to stand among the Final Fantasy pantheon.

GameTrailers Unequivocally better than the original in almost every single way, XIII-2 presents a rehabilitated spin on one of the most polarizing Square-Enix releases in recent years, as well as a promising way forward for the franchise. It may not be enough to undo what's already been done, but for what it's worth, XIII-2 may just change your mind about the future.

Destructoid What really made Final Fantasy XIII-2 an enjoyable game was that Square Enix brought the fun back. They brought back some the inventiveness, creativity, humor and uniqueness that we sorely missed in Final Fantasy XIII. Maybe this game tries to do a bit too much, and it's probably too late to dig this story out of the hole that it's in, but it was made with a heaping dollop of that undeniable charm that we loved in the older series games, and that goes a long way towards making it enjoyable.

Playstation Official Magazine FF XIII-2's reliance on recycling locations and reluctance to indicate the next course of action hold it back from scoring as highly as XIII, despite its improvements – but its grand ideas, bigger monsters, and bigger still haircuts make it an adventure worth getting lost in time for. Lightning can strike twice after all.

Eurogamer Italy Although it could have been much better than it actually is, Final Fantasy XIII-2 proves to be a well-crafted product that compensates for gamers' disappointment over Final Fantasy XIII.

IGN Final Fantasy XIII-2 proves itself the better game, but it lacks the same focused storytelling employed in the original. It benefits from an improved battle system, open environments, and an overall level of polish that deserves a nod of respect.

Play Not the vastly different experience we might have expected, but no less welcome as a result. FFIII-2 comes recommended for those who didn't get enough from the last game - however, those who were unconvinced are going to remain just that.

Playstation: The Official Magazine (US) Beneath the emotional tale and a superb cast of characters lies an abundance of shallow filler content with no real purpose It's disappointing to see a game with so much heart struggle under the burden of artificial mechanics.

Game Informer Progression is player-driven, combat is even more entertaining, and an array of other adjustments makes it one of my favorite RPGs from a mechanical perspective. I just want all of that integrated with a story that isn't laughable and borderline insulting, and that's where Final Fantasy XIII-2 falters.

1UP As a whole, the package doesn't come together nearly as well as FFXIII did. It's a mishmash of interesting systems and bold ideas that never quite gel.

GameSpot Just remember to keep your expectations in check: Final Fantasy XIII-2 isn't a timeless adventure in the grand tradition of the beloved series. But if you're curious to see the next stage in this ongoing tale, there's no reason you shouldn't chase after Lightning. After all, she can't defeat Caius without you.

Joystiq 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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Thoraxes said:
He's just purposefully giving it a different classification so you can't judge it against other games fairly.
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Is that so? Am I wrong saying that people – like definitely me – buy games like Final Fantasy also because of the bigger budget behind it? And am I also wrong in saying that Final Fantasy is the only real big triple A jRPG in years?
 
Perfo said:
Are you really taking as a reference the really only negative review out there? Let's take as a reference also a bit of Metacritic's most meaningful quotes then:
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Say what ?

1.) I really couldn't care less about review scores for any game, period. I play any and all games and form my own opinions regardless. The same goes for everything for me, from anime to books. Isn't that the way it should be ?

2.) The review is not that negative, but it does offer a more down to earth opinion. In fact you are proving the reviewer right when he says: "It’s a hard game to review, because you’re gonna get sacks of hatemail no matter what. Praise this game and you’re “contributing to the downfall of the series,” slam it and “you just didn’t get it, man.” Millions of people will fall very passionately on both sides of this one."

3.) Put down your sword, you've been white knighting for this game since you started posting in this thread. It's terrible, you look foolish and it's already been pointed out to you quite a bit ...
 
AngelSoldier said:
3.) Put down your sword, you've been white knighting for this game since you started posting in this thread. It's terrible, you look foolish and it's already been pointed out to you quite a bit ...
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I'm no different from others that say that XIII is a shit and Final Fantasy is dead. I'm just at the opposite side. That PlayStation Life review by no taking sides, it's just meaningful – and it's not even written that great, plus the score sounds unfair. There are far more better reviews you could've posted, included the usual two from RPGSite that still remember to score the game for what it is and describing it perfectly in every detail.
 
BocoDragon said:
I think the CE will be rarish, and will hold its value, if not increase.
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My local GameStop is in a small town, but has 35 LE 13-2's in the back.

One of those is mine, so unless 34 other people pre-ordered the LE, I actually don't think it's that rare ...

The LE Guide book on the other hand ...
 
AngelSoldier said:
My local GameStop is in a small town, but has 35 LE 13-2's in the back.

One of those is mine, so unless 34 other people pre-ordered the LE, I actually don't think it's that rare ...

The LE Guide book on the other hand ...
Click to expand...

It's not rare now... but it may be after the first week. It's not getting reprints or any other shipments, as far as I know. That would be enough to have it hold it's value, at least.

I'd put it in the same boat as Skyward Sword. There were tons of LEs available, but because it never got a second shipment, and it's such a massively mainstream title, they quickly disappeared.

But we'll see. We all know about the CEs that sat around on store shelves for years... but recently, LEs really have been limited to the first shipment, and that does count for something.
 
BocoDragon said:
It's not rare now... but it may be after the first week. It's not getting reprints or any other shipments, as far as I know. That would be enough to have it hold it's value, at least.

I'd put it in the same boat as Skyward Sword. There were tons of LEs available, but because it never got a second shipment, and it's such a massively mainstream title, they quickly disappeared.

But we'll see. We all know about the CEs that sat around on store shelves for years... but recently, LEs really have been limited to the first shipment, and that does count for something.
Click to expand...

Ah yes, Good point ! I don't really care, because I never sell or trade my games, but it'd be nice if you end up right !
 
Perfo said:
Is that so? Am I wrong saying that people – like definitely me – buy games like Final Fantasy also because of the bigger budget behind it? And am I also wrong in saying that Final Fantasy is the only real big triple A jRPG in years?
Click to expand...
I compare all games to all games in a genre. I don't not compare/buy FF games to other games like Nier, Xenoblade, ToX, or Star Ocean 4 just because they have a lower budget. I think and buy based on what's out on the market and what else can I play on this box of chips that I bought. I would easily consider something like Xenoblade to be a AAA RPG as far as quality and content goes.

I mean sure, people buying it because it's AAA is fine, but to exclude criticism because other games may not be AAA games is a little absurd.

You used the words "triple A budget" as an argument; How are you defining AAA? Is it by funding, advertising, game scope, development time, assets, gameplay systems, story, critical acclaim (or lack thereof), or something else?
 
Did they say how many copies of the CE they'd be making? The FFXII CE wasn't exactly that hard to find months after FFXII came out.
 
Toki767 said:
Did they say how many copies of the CE they'd be making? The FFXII CE wasn't exactly that hard to find months after FFXII came out.
Click to expand...

I can only go by this announcement page:

http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=451624

Note the text at the bottom:

EDIT2: According to Joystiq, this LE will "Only be available in "limited quantities" "

If they have stuck to that plan, I imagine that means "one shipment". But who knows.
 
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