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[robot]

The fight with

Spoiler

Barthandelus

at the end of Chapter 11 was insanely intense...at least in my house. Things were going pretty well until he cast Death on me - a good 20 minutes into the battle, and right when I was getting comfortable.

Fast forward to around 15 seconds on the Death Clock™.

All of the sudden, Hope gets killed since I shifted to Relentless Assault and he was pretty vulnerable with a stack of red icons next to his name. I had no time to shift to a Medic to bring him back, plus Snow and I were just about in the red. At this point I'm sweating, hanging on the edge of my bed while my wife is shaking her head behind me - no doubt thinking "Why did I marry such a dork." She was partially right, but I've been playing for a few hours and really didn't want to end this session a complete loser.

So I frantically run through my inventory, say fuck it and use an Elixir, with about 7 seconds to go and what looked like single pixel line of health left on both us and the boss. Then a curveball - I get silenced and am just standing there staring at his huge ass face. Snow then turns to me, and with his glistening smile, gives one last meaty pound to

Spoiler

Barthandelus

's face, killing him with probably 1.5 seconds left.

It was so close I couldn't tell if we won or if the death clock ran out. This game is awesome.

 

[Choopy]

The fight with

Spoiler

Barthandelus

at the end of Chapter 11 was insanely intense...at least in my house. Things were going pretty well until he cast Death on me - a good 20 minutes into the battle, and right when I was getting comfortable.

Fast forward to around 15 seconds on the Death Clock™.

All of the sudden, Hope gets killed since I shifted to Relentless Assault and he was pretty vulnerable with a stack of red icons next to his name. I had no time to shift to a Medic to bring him back, plus Snow and I were just about in the red. At this point I'm sweating, hanging on the edge of my bed while my wife is shaking her head behind me - no doubt thinking "Why did I marry such a dork." She was partially right, but I've been playing for a few hours and really didn't want to end this session a complete loser.

So I frantically run through my inventory, say fuck it and use an Elixir, with about 7 seconds to go and what looked like single pixel line of health left on both us and the boss. Then a curveball - I get silenced and am just standing there staring at his huge ass face. Snow then turns to me, and with his glistening smile, gives one last meaty pound to

Spoiler

Barthandelus

's face, killing him with probably 1.5 seconds left.

It was so close I couldn't tell if we won or if the death clock ran out. This game is awesome.

Glorious.

 

[careful]

The fight with

Spoiler

Barthandelus

at the end of Chapter 11 was insanely intense...at least in my house. Things were going pretty well until he cast Death on me - a good 20 minutes into the battle, and right when I was getting comfortable.

Fast forward to around 15 seconds on the Death Clock™.

All of the sudden, Hope gets killed since I shifted to Relentless Assault and he was pretty vulnerable with a stack of red icons next to his name. I had no time to shift to a Medic to bring him back, plus Snow and I were just about in the red. At this point I'm sweating, hanging on the edge of my bed while my wife is shaking her head behind me - no doubt thinking "Why did I marry such a dork." She was partially right, but I've been playing for a few hours and really didn't want to end this session a complete loser.

So I frantically run through my inventory, say fuck it and use an Elixir, with about 7 seconds to go and what looked like single pixel line of health left on both us and the boss. Then a curveball - I get silenced and am just standing there staring at his huge ass face. Snow then turns to me, and with his glistening smile, gives one last meaty pound to

Spoiler

Barthandelus

's face, killing him with probably 1.5 seconds left.

It was so close I couldn't tell if we won or if the death clock ran out. This game is awesome.

Epic.

 

[Big Papa Husker]

I just started

Spoiler

Chapter 13

. How much more do I have to go? An hour, 2 hours?

 

[Thoraxes]

I just started

Spoiler

Chapter 13

. How much more do I have to go? An hour, 2 hours?

A couple hours.
A lot of it depends on if you run through it all, or actually explore and get all the items.
There's a lot of good stuff up there too.

 

[ZephyrFate]

I just started

Spoiler

Chapter 13

. How much more do I have to go? An hour, 2 hours?

There's some pretty good CP to be found there, but the enemies are tough. At least, the enemies right up to the final boss.

 

[Gamer @ Heart]

DO missions 63 and 64 unlock after i beat all the rest? Because i cant find them.

 

[brb]

DO missions 63 and 64 unlock after i beat all the rest? Because i cant find them.

63 is in

Spoiler

Suyyla Springs

(sp?) and 64 is in

Spoiler

oerba

and no you don't have to finish the rest for them to become active... although you do have to do some.

In other news I finally got Treasure Hunter trophy (hold every weapon/accessory) damn that took awhile but it's finally over! so I can continue to enjoy the game without any more component/gil grinding

 

[User 10639]

The divide between people who only love FFXII and people who only love FFXIII (not both) is quite amusingly large. But it also speaks clearly to the type of things those gamers value in their titles. It's easy to see who aligns with your own taste and who doesn't when it comes to jRPGs based entirely on what they choose there.

What if I kind of liked them both? 'Love' seems like a bit too strong a word here. They both have their problems, some of which are related to the core design issue you're implying (open vs. linear) and some of which are completely unrelated. I don't think it says much of anything about the type of things I value in games, honestly.

 

[mr stroke]

anyone that finished the game-

about how much HP did you have once you finished the game?

 

[RadioHeadAche]

Well, I just beat the

Spoiler

Shiva sisters, and then Snow rode them like a pro

. What a trooper.

 

[grumble]

What if I kind of liked them both? 'Love' seems like a bit too strong a word here. They both have their problems, some of which are related to the core design issue you're implying (open vs. linear) and some of which are completely unrelated. I don't think it says much of anything about the type of things I value in games, honestly.

Agreed. Both games have significant flaws.

 

[Boss Man]

infos

Thank you.


I definitely hated FFXII, but enjoy FFXIII. Comparing the two games, I really have no idea why. I thought 12 wasn't open enough...

 

[RadioHeadAche]

After playing a bit more, I'm finding the battle system to be more fun. However, I still hate everything else. I don't know if I want to spend sixty hours on this thing.

 

[marathonfool]

The fight with

Spoiler

Barthandelus

at the end of Chapter 11 was insanely intense...at least in my house. Things were going pretty well until he cast Death on me - a good 20 minutes into the battle, and right when I was getting comfortable.

Fast forward to around 15 seconds on the Death Clock™.

All of the sudden, Hope gets killed since I shifted to Relentless Assault and he was pretty vulnerable with a stack of red icons next to his name. I had no time to shift to a Medic to bring him back, plus Snow and I were just about in the red. At this point I'm sweating, hanging on the edge of my bed while my wife is shaking her head behind me - no doubt thinking "Why did I marry such a dork." She was partially right, but I've been playing for a few hours and really didn't want to end this session a complete loser.

So I frantically run through my inventory, say fuck it and use an Elixir, with about 7 seconds to go and what looked like single pixel line of health left on both us and the boss. Then a curveball - I get silenced and am just standing there staring at his huge ass face. Snow then turns to me, and with his glistening smile, gives one last meaty pound to

Spoiler

Barthandelus

's face, killing him with probably 1.5 seconds left.

It was so close I couldn't tell if we won or if the death clock ran out. This game is awesome.

Really enjoyed your story. Every Eidolon fight was like this for me. Spamming that square button.

anyone that finished the game-

about how much HP did you have once you finished the game?

Snow had 9000, Fang 7000, and Hope 6000

 

[Revengeance]

Just

Spoiler

beat Cid

in Chapter 10; how much more of this damn dungeon do I have?

 

[Crash Station]

I wonder if genre preference plays a major part in the split between XII and XIII. JRPG-only fans seem to absolutely hate XII with a few exceptions. At least that's what my experience has mostly been with friends and acquaintances. I also know people that love the game yet can't stand the rest of the series and doesn't understand why anyone would enjoy slow, turn-based gameplay. Love it or hate it, the one thing they all seem to agree on is "FFXII does not feel like a Final Fantasy game".

XIII on the other hand is polarizing for fans of both genres. WRPG-only people wouldn't touch it with a 10-ft pole and JRPG fans are disappointed in the lack

Spoiler

of the illusion

of exploration and mini-games/towns. However, it still "feels like a Final Fantasy" in terms of atmosphere, story and to some extent, gameplay. For some, that's reason enough to put it above XII for many people. I would say I fit into that category but there's definitely more to it than that.

 

[Firestorm]

Just

Spoiler

beat Cid

in Chapter 10; how much more of this damn dungeon do I have?

Skip every battle after him in Chapter 10. They take too long for the little CP they give. You're about halfway through.

 

[Revengeance]

Skip every battle after him in Chapter 10. They take too long for the little CP they give. You're about halfway through.

Ok, thanks. I was already starting to feel that way about the enemies before the fight (e.g. Great Behemoths, for 300 something CP).

 

[harriet the spy]

I hate to do drive-by posting, but I don't want to read the thread too much - don't want to be spoiled...

Finished chapter 2. Don't hate it so far. I don't hate Vanille yet, and Snow is just normally irritating, but I would do anything to kill off that little Hope bitch. Please someone tells me he starts being less annoying soon.

 

[Dresden]

I hate to do drive-by posting, but I don't want to read the thread too much - don't want to be spoiled...

Finished chapter 2. Don't hate it so far. I don't hate Vanille yet, and Snow is just normally irritating, but I would do anything to kill off that little Hope bitch. Please someone tells me he starts being less annoying soon.

There's a timeskip in chapter 7 where Hope grows up and is seventeen. He then smexes up Lightning.

 

[Firestorm]

Ok, thanks. I was already starting to feel that way about the enemies before the fight (e.g. Great Behemoths, for 300 something CP).

Yeah. Some are pretty much unavoidable, but skip what you can. The first few enemies I fought in Chapter 11 gave me ~960 cp and I killed them in about a minute.

 

[Revengeance]

Yeah. Some are pretty much unavoidable, but skip what you can. The first few enemies I fought in Chapter 11 gave me ~960 cp and I killed them in about a minute.

THE PROMISED LAND AWAITS!

 

[Crash Station]

I hate to do drive-by posting, but I don't want to read the thread too much - don't want to be spoiled...

Finished chapter 2. Don't hate it so far. I don't hate Vanille yet, and Snow is just normally irritating, but I would do anything to kill off that little Hope bitch. Please someone tells me he starts being less annoying soon.

He definitely grows a pair but he isn't reborn as a badass or anything like Simon from Gurren Lagann. I would honestly say his character develops the most throughout the game but if you don't like him by the end of chapter 7, you never will.

 

[mr stroke]

Really enjoyed your story. Every Eidolon fight was like this for me. Spamming that square button.



Snow had 9000, Fang 7000, and Hope 6000

wow

how many hours for that much hp?

 

[7Th]

I wonder if genre preference plays a major part in the split between XII and XIII. JRPG-only fans seem to absolutely hate XII with a few exceptions. At least that's what my experience has mostly been with friends and acquaintances. I also know people that love the game yet can't stand the rest of the series and doesn't understand why anyone would enjoy slow, turn-based gameplay. Love it or hate it, the one thing they all seem to agree on is "FFXII does not feel like a Final Fantasy game".

XIII on the other hand is polarizing for fans of both genres. WRPG-only people wouldn't touch it with a 10-ft pole and JRPG fans are disappointed in the lack

Spoiler

of the illusion

of exploration and mini-games/towns. However, it still "feels like a Final Fantasy" in terms of atmosphere, story and to some extent, gameplay. For some, that's reason enough to put it above XII for many people. I would say I fit into that category but there's definitely more to it than that.

I think they're both deeply flawed, I just enjoy XIII more because the battle system is a lot more fun and exciting.

 

[User 10639]

Just beat the game. I barely understood the motives/actions of certain characters near the end of the game. Any story guide out there? Wikipedia has nothing.

There's a spoiler thread floating around somewhere, and I'm sure 7TH could explain the plot to you. At some point we realized that nobody really cares enough to post in a separate thread and that marking things in spoiler tags is perfectly adequate, though.

Finished chapter 2. Don't hate it so far. I don't hate Vanille yet, and Snow is just normally irritating, but I would do anything to kill off that little Hope bitch. Please someone tells me he starts being less annoying soon.

It takes until, like, chapter 11 for him to get tolerable. And even then he's still a reject from the Tidus/Vaan school of design, so in that respect he's annoying all the way until the ending.

I definitely hated FFXII, but enjoy FFXIII. Comparing the two games, I really have no idea why. I thought 12 wasn't open enough...

Well, 12 was plenty open, but for the most part exploration was unsatisfying because it didn't lead to anything interesting other than a few random chests lying around. And that after soooo much walking.

 

[marathonfool]

wow

how many hours for that much hp?

To be accurate, Snow and Hope are wearing bangles. Hope is actually wearing a diamond bangle, his base HP is 5500. Snow's base is 8700. Fang is still 7000.

Each character has different HP potential. Snow > Sazh > Fang > Light > Vanille > Hope in terms of HP.

I think I had close to 53 hours.

 

[Crash Station]

I think they're both deeply flawed, I just enjoy XIII more because the battle system is a lot more fun and exciting.

Well I'm mostly just talking about genre expectations rather than flaws but I agree. Of course XII is my least favorite in the series so I'm a bit biased.

 

[Dresden]

I liked FFXII more in the end, but XIII was a good game. Final Fantasy games haven't hit that 'great' or 'epic' status in quite a while, anyways. I enjoyed it for what it was and that's that.

And for those who've beaten the game, go check out Resonance of Fate or Strange Journey.

 

[Zeliard]

I wonder if genre preference plays a major part in the split between XII and XIII. JRPG-only fans seem to absolutely hate XII with a few exceptions. At least that's what my experience has mostly been with friends and acquaintances. I also know people that love the game yet can't stand the rest of the series and doesn't understand why anyone would enjoy slow, turn-based gameplay. Love it or hate it, the one thing they all seem to agree on is "FFXII does not feel like a Final Fantasy game".

XIII on the other hand is polarizing for fans of both genres. WRPG-only people wouldn't touch it with a 10-ft pole and JRPG fans are disappointed in the lack

Spoiler

of the illusion

of exploration and mini-games/towns. However, it still "feels like a Final Fantasy" in terms of atmosphere, story and to some extent, gameplay. For some, that's reason enough to put it above XII for many people. I would say I fit into that category but there's definitely more to it than that.

The biggest problem with XIII's linearity is that it's exacerbated much further by the agonizing drip-feeding of the tutorials and battle customization. The linearity would still be pretty bad, but it wouldn't be nearly as bad if the first several chapters weren't a complete mindless trudge gameplay-wise.

I've rarely played a game that has put so little trust in a player - it's disappointing. At least they have the tech down and have created a solid battle system (when you finally get to it). Next time around, maybe they can try putting an actual game around it.

 

[Fun Factor]

I liked FFXII more in the end, but XIII was a good game. Final Fantasy games haven't hit that 'great' or 'epic' status in quite a while, anyways. I enjoyed it for what it was and that's that.

And for those who've beaten the game, go check out Resonance of Fate or Strange Journey.

 

[User 10639]

And for those who've beaten the game, go check out Resonance of Fate or Strange Journey.

One has intolerably ugly art and the other is on a handheld. Oh teh noez, I can't pick!

Spoiler

picked up Strange Journey (and Devil Survivor, which I assume is also full of win) and now I just have to find a DS to play it on :lol

 

[Rpgmonkey]

To be accurate, Snow and Hope are wearing bangles. Hope is actually wearing a diamond bangle, his base HP is 5500. Snow's base is 8700. Fang is still 7000.

Each character has different HP potential. Snow > Sazh > Fang > Light > Vanille > Hope in terms of HP.

I think I had close to 53 hours.

Actually, though the game never really implies it until you've maxed out a couple roles (which kinda ruins the point admittedly), Vanille ends up having a higher base HP than Lightning (nothing huge, like 21,000 vs. 20,000).

Caught me by surprise. She's arguably a better Sentinel than Light too.

 

[Dresden]

One has intolerably ugly art and the other is on a handheld. Oh teh noez, I can't pick!

Spoiler

picked up Strange Journey (and Devil Survivor, which I assume is also full of win) and now I just have to find a DS to play it on :lol

I have both, just playing RoF right now though. Not sure how it's intolerably ugly, unless you're joking? If so, it flew right over me.

If you really need a DS, you can always hit up an elementary school and mug some little kid playing Pokemon.

http://tizona.files.wordpress.com/2009/11/bear-how-about-no-wj9.jpg[/IMG]

 

[Papercuts]

Got to the

Spoiler

Suyyla Springs

in chapter 11 and noticed that the multiple groups of enemies here are giving 4-5K each and are extremely easy, awesome. Am I still a ways off from another Crystarium expansion?

 

[Rpgmonkey]

Got to the

Spoiler

Suyyla Springs

in chapter 11 and noticed that the multiple grounds of enemies here are giving 4-5K each and are extremely easy, awesome. Am I still a ways off from another Crystarium expansion?

You've got a dungeon and two bosses left to go.

 

[Crash Station]

The biggest problem with XIII's linearity is that it's exacerbated much further by the agonizing drip-feeding of the tutorials and battle customization. The linearity would still be pretty bad, but it wouldn't be nearly as bad if the first several chapters weren't a complete mindless trudge gameplay-wise.

I've rarely played a game that has put so little trust in a player - it's disappointing. At least they have the tech down and have created a solid battle system (when you finally get to it). Next time around, maybe they can try putting an actual game around it.

I still think this whole tutorial talk has been blown way out of proportion. After the first 2 hours, there's what, a tutorial every 5 hours? After the introduction of the paradigms, I rarely felt like the game was holding my hand. Of course I would expect the game to explain

Spoiler

how to pilot a mech

or

Spoiler

how an interesting weather system works

and I never thought it detracted from the experience.

 

[Dresden]

I still think this whole tutorial talk has been blown way out of proportion. After the first 2 hours, there's what, a tutorial every 5 hours? After the introduction of the paradigms, I rarely felt like the game was holding my hand. Of course I would expect the game to explain

Spoiler

how to pilot a mech

or

Spoiler

how an interesting weather system works

and I never thought it detracted from the experience.

I thought the Odin fight early on was tough enough that the 'tutorial' was effectively over.

Strangely enough, earlier fights are actually tougher than later chapters, at least for me.

 

[User 10639]

The biggest problem with XIII's linearity is that it's exacerbated much further by the agonizing drip-feeding of the tutorials and battle customization. The linearity would still be pretty bad, but it wouldn't be nearly as bad if the first several chapters weren't a complete mindless trudge gameplay-wise.

I've rarely played a game that has put so little trust in a player - it's disappointing. At least they have the tech down and have created a solid battle system (when you finally get to it). Next time around, maybe they can try putting an actual game around it.

It's not just that, but the fact that the levels themselves are really dull design-wise to the point where they basically serve as little more than pretty, tubular scenery to walk through. If they're not going to design a proper dungeon with mazes and puzzles and the like, then they might as well have just said "fuck it" and used the SRPG format of battle -> cutscene -> battle.

I have both, just playing RoF right now though. Not sure how it's intolerably ugly, unless you're joking? If so, it flew right over me.

Nah, I just have an irrational bias against tri-Ace and the color brown.

 

[Papercuts]

You've got a dungeon and two bosses left to go.

Holy shit chapter 11 is long. :lol

I'll probably farm a bunch of CP here, seems like a good spot.

 

[lupin23rd]

Any tips on the final boss? Specifically,

Spoiler

the first form

?

Also where I should be at in terms of characters / weapon upgrades?

I get to about 30-40% HP left to go and it goes downhill from there.

 

[Community Forum]

So I'm done with the story, and now I want to go back and do missions and upgrade my weapons.

Can someone point me in the right direction for a "weapons upgrade" guide or something? I really just want to know which weapons to upgrade (the best) and I am scared to death of making some mistake that will prevent me from doing that.

I have not upgraded a single thing yet or used any component parts for anything.

 

[samus4ever]

Any tips on the final boss? Specifically,

Spoiler

the first form

?

Also where I should be at in terms of characters / weapon upgrades?

I get to about 30-40% HP left to go and it goes downhill from there.

Use Sabotage or more specifically

Spoiler

Poison him a lot with Vanille, I had trouble with him 4 times and when I took control of her he went down with one stagger pretty much

 

[Cep]

I think they're both deeply flawed, I just enjoy XIII more because the battle system is a lot more fun and exciting.

Same and reversed for me. Both flawed, but I liked FF12's world, and general design more (actual dungeons, many of which did not suck).

Not that it really matters, because at the end of the day, FF X-2 makes both of them its bitch.

I dunno, they are definitely two of the best JRPGs released this gen. RoF is better than most and SJ is up there with the greats (though lowest on that list, the main combat needed more work).

Nah, I just have an irrational bias against tri-Ace and the color brown.

The former I can definitely understand, but the latter?

How can you say no to steam-punk? How?

 

[jiggle]

I really just want to know which weapons to upgrade (the best) and I am scared to death of making some mistake that will prevent me from doing that.

I have not upgraded a single thing yet or used any component parts for anything.

lighting
axis blade - faster atb
lion hearts - random instant stagger, higher str/mag stats

fang
taming pole - high str, no stagger

hope
hawkeye - highest mag stat
vidohunir - good mag stat, bonus def

vanille
pearlwing - highest mag stat
belladona - good mag stat, bonus enfeeb


not too sure about snow and sazh

 

[robot]

lighting
axis blade - faster atb
lion hearts - random instant stagger, higher str/mag stats

fang
taming pole - high str, no stagger

hope
hawkeye - highest mag stat
vidohunir - good mag stat, bonus def

vanille
pearlwing - highest mag stat
belladona - good mag stat, bonus enfeeb


not too sure about snow and sazh

I just found Lion Heart in Chapter 12 and am thinking of ditching my level 56 Helter Skelter for it. Just need to find out what element upgrades it and if I have enough cash.

 

[ZephyrFate]

Strange Journey would make you its bitch. Great game.

 

[Rpgmonkey]

Personally, I liked XII more, but I'm pretty sure would have liked XIII more if it felt like the game were designed more for what the player wants to do, as opposed to what the game wants to do.

It's not even the linearity specifically (though I do think the level design and story do nothing to justify their decision to design the game like this), it reaches into several other aspects of the game. I think there's guiding the player and pacing the game mechanics, and then there's what FFXIII did, and what FFXIII does takes things further than they should have ever gone.

Plus FFXIII feels like this game where everyone that worked on it felt some desire to "experiment" and try out something new, but almost none of these ideas get fleshed out and refined, resulting in the final product being one big mash-up of several people all trying to do something "unique" at once.

Maybe FF does this a lot, but XIII took it up a notch to me.

Holy shit chapter 11 is long. :lol

I'll probably farm a bunch of CP here, seems like a good spot.

Yeah Ch. 11 is very long-winded.

Personally I preferred the cave, everything in there is pretty easy with a good team of Ravagers/Commandos, and they give decent CP.

 

[User 10639]

Same and reversed for me. Both flawed, but I liked FF12's world, and general design more (actual dungeons, many of which did not suck).

Not that it really matters, because at the end of the day, FF X-2 makes both of them its bitch.

I actually feel that the battle system of 13 with elements of 12 (specifically, some amount of AI control) and 10-2 (character progression/leveling that is fun and doesn't suck) grafted on to it would be the greatest thing since... well, something way better than sliced bread. But yeah, 10-2 is still the most fun of them all by far. And that includes pre-PS2 FFs.

The former I can definitely understand, but the latter?

How can you say no to steam-punk? How?

I like steampunk, who doesn't, but monochrome brown is my least favorite color scheme other than possibly monochrome grey (hey there, Fallout 3!) And I don't see how a steampunk setting means the color scheme should be limited to brown anyway, so there.