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[Thrakier]

Seph just use this guide, remember to get the multiplier to 3x with organic parts (36 Sturdy Bones = instant 3x) before using mechanical parts.

also, you'd be better off upgrading Lightning's Lionheart to a maxed Ultima Weapon (not Omega) and equip one Speed/Energy sash, thank me later.

What's a speed/energy sash?

 

[Cornbread78]

Random question of the day.... Pounce at will!

Does the story get any better after chapter 4? Please say yes! Seriously,

Spoiler

Hope is a weenie, Vanille sounds like she is in a constant state of orgasm, Lightning is playing the quiet, unsettled, loner...umm Cloud?, Snow well...he almost seems gender confused

Anyhow Does it get better? I've been a Square S/Square E and FF gamer for about 20 years now and I'm hoping for so much more.

 

[Ikkarus]

Are there any ultimate weapons that should be chosen above all others for each character?

I know some depend on playing style but for example Vanille's Belladonna Wand is worth it due to the improved debuffing which in turn improves the chances of Death.

Are there any for anyone else?

 

[Lince]

What's a speed/energy sash?

accessories... one helps keeping the ATB filled during combat the other helps with racking tactical points, anyway, if you equip one them while using Lightning's Ultima weapon you'll enable the "random instant-stagger" skill, that's all you want to know.

 

[Choopy]

accessories... one helps keeping the ATB filled during combat the other helps with racking tactical points, anyway, if you equip one them while using Lightning's Ultima weapon you'll enable the "random instant-stagger" skill, that's all you want to know.

Why do you need one of these accessories to enable that skill?
I thought only the weapon was neccessary for it?

I'm confused.

 

[Lince]

Why do you need one of these accessories to enable that skill?
I thought only the weapon was neccessary for it?

I'm confused.

they're synthesized abilities, Seph was asking about Lightning, but a lot of weapons have the random instant stagger skill when equipping certain accessories at the same time.

check this

weapons: Hauteclaire, Durandal, Lionheart, Ultima Weapon, Rigels, Polaris Specials, Procyons, Betelgeuse Customs, Unsetting Sun, Midnight Sun, Alicanto, Caladrius, Heavenly Axis, Abraxas, Taming Pole, Venus Gospel

accessories: Survivalist Catalog, Hunter’s Friend, Speed Sash, Energy Sash, Champion’s Badge

2 – 3 items = Random: Instant Chain. 4 – 5 items = Gestalt/TP Boost"

So anybody's Stagger Lock weapon (everyone's got at least one), an additional weapon apiece for Lightning and Sahz, and the accessories listed. You only want 2-3 items from that category, though, equipping 4-5 changes it into a different ability.

 

[firehawk12]

Are there any ultimate weapons that should be chosen above all others for each character?

I know some depend on playing style but for example Vanille's Belladonna Wand is worth it due to the improved debuffing which in turn improves the chances of Death.

Are there any for anyone else?

Ultimate weapons don't improve the ability of a tier 2 weapon - they just have better stats when upgraded.

I only used Fang and Lightning extensively and with them I went with the upgraded Dragon Lance (for max strength) and Lionheart (for faster stagger). Some people think she's better with the Axis Blade, since it's part of the group of items that speeds up your ATB bar.

 

[Choopy]

they're synthesized abilities, Seph was asking about Lightning, but a lot of weapons have the random instant stagger skill when equipping certain accessories at the same time.

check this

Interesting... So according to this, stagger lock weapons can gain the random instant stagger ability? Does it just totally ignore the stagger lock or something? Unless I'm looking into this the wrong way :lol

 

[Dresden]

Well I didn't mean to point out that it has poor storytelling (that much is obvious) - more that there's a ridiculous amount of parallels to LOST. Oh, that and my personal opinion - since this is a discussion forum. But, going back and reading some 16,000 posts isn't exactly something I enjoy doing in my free time, so I have no idea if this was ever posted.

I didn't mean for my post to be biting, I thought it was pretty interesting. Most of it did go over my head though, since I'm not familiar with LOST at all.

 

[firehawk12]

Interesting... So according to this, stagger lock weapons can gain the random instant stagger ability? Does it just totally ignore the stagger lock or something? Unless I'm looking into this the wrong way :lol

Yeah, the enemy will just enter stagger randomly. It makes up for the disadvantage of stagger lock, but you lose an accessory slot and of course it doesn't always happen.

That said, people use it to exploit various mission bosses.

 

[Kai Dracon]

But that's false though. In FFXII, I have the option of participating in every part of battle... both in and out of it. In FFXIII, I simply don't. The game has no options to do this.

FFXII is slower, true, but I'd take a more methodical battle system to a speedy, detached one where I feel like I basically do nothing to change the outcome of battles but stare glazed-eyed as the mediocre A.I. does its thing.

FFXII's system is always misrepresented by folks who think that hitting "attack" or the exact same spell from a menu in each battle once you've learned how to defeat that enemy is any different from programming a gambit after you've fought the same number of battles to refine your strategy.

What's more, the way FFXII is designed to only give you gambits at certain points in the game highlights what the designers were thinking: play manually until you should have had a chance to figure out a set of strategies, then be rewarded with the gambits required to refine your AI with what you've learned. FFXII is the furthest thing from being automatic, playing for you, or holding your hand.

Besides, as you've noted, you can jump in any time - and that's not really just an option. It is /required/ when dealing with chaotic combination of enemies, bosses, some hidden bosses, or really tough hunting marks that are one-off special circumstances.

Edit: besides, one other aspect of FFXII that XIII carries over but dumbs down is enemy mob management and encounters on the field. XII is quite sophisticated in this, with intent and aggro markers, far more of an ecosystem and detail on enemies interacting with one another, and the chain system of ensuring you don't aggro the wrong mob. Here's the secret: manual interactive player agency in XII is shifted away from jabbing the X button to attack over and over, and onto a much more dynamic play mechanic. That being exploring, navigating mobs, manipulating where they spawn and respawn, and choosing how and where to aggro. Your fingers are quite busy with the stick movements and button presses required for all that

 

[H_Prestige]

FFXIII has more advantages over FFXII than just speed.
FFXII’s combat system was as much autopiloting as is FFXIII, even more. You programmed your AI in such way that you didn’t have to press a single button to win a battle. You could keep some actions manually but doing so only gave you a disadvantage because of the input delay.
FFXIII on the other hand is tailored around and forces you to do ‘something’ in-battle like switching paradigms, selecting the target and initiate a set of multiple attack commando’s while still avoiding the tediousness of unnecessarily button pressing like in previous FF-games. Because of this, you still have the feeling that the battle itself ‘matters’ because it requires attention to become victorious. It’s a satisfaction FFXII lacked because battle was nothing more than an evaluation of your gambit setup. The outcome of the battle was already determined before it began. As the player, you just watched it unfold.

Another thing I give credits for is the difficulty level of regular fights. They are way more challenging than in any other FF game. This is largely thanks to auto-regen and the dumping of MP. FFXII also had MP regen but still made me walk around in circles to recover MP between fights.
In the end, both systems are different ways to achieve the same thing: managing realtime battle with multiple characters. While they have their own intrinsic pro’s and con’s, they both succeeded cum laude imo.

Can you even say FFXII has AI controlled party members? Outside of guest characters like Larsa, no party member will EVER do anything you didn't tell him to, either beforehand through gambits, or on the spot with a menu command. Well, I guess your other party members will run on their own when following you.

In FFXIII it feels more like playing as the magus sisters in FFX. The computer pretty much does what it wants.

 

[140.85]

I love it when people try to convince others their experiences are false. Funny stuff.

I'm with M°°nblade. If anything, the AI constantly surprises me at how good it is. Even in "high level" battles.

 

[Joei]

Question: Is there a weaker cast in any Final Fantasy? The only character I like is Vanille. Otherwise, I find this group of characters downright horrible.

 

[Dresden]

Question: Is there a weaker cast in any Final Fantasy? The only character I like is Vanille. Otherwise, I find this group of characters downright horrible.

Whoa there.

XIII's cast is infinitely superior to FFI, for example. LOL RED MAGE. What a terrible character. Had no development at all. And white mage was a slut.

 

[Green Mamba]

I love it when people try to convince others their experiences are false. Funny stuff.

I'm with M°°nblade. If anything, the AI constantly surprises me at how good it is. Even in "high level" battles.

So... are you attempting to tell me that my numerous experiences with shitastic AI in this game are false?

If anything, I've been consistently surprised at how awful it is at times. If a Medic is on an Esuna binge, they won't stop. Not even to heal. Synergists will bother to waste time with Veil on Neochu, despite the fact that the Neochu always Screeches before a Pollen (which Dispels you of most buffs), rendering the Veil completely useless--Protect and Bravery/Faith would be a bit more helpful here, but I don't have a choice on the order!

I'm still trying to figure out how people have come to the conclusion that less choice is somehow better than more.

 

[Fimbulvetr]

It's like -- Tactics > 12 > Fuck it

These stories need more vagrants.

Best FF ever.

Whoa there.

XIII's cast is infinitely superior to FFI, for example. LOL RED MAGE. What a terrible character. Had no development at all. And white mage was a slut.

And thief was such a racist caricature.

Oh what, the only non-white party member steals stuff? Fuck you square.

 

[Amir0x]

I love it when people try to convince others their experiences are false. Funny stuff.

I'm with M°°nblade. If anything, the AI constantly surprises me at how good it is. Even in "high level" battles.

It is false. These problems are factual. If you went into battle and tested these things in a variety of situations, these problems would always factually show up. If you said they didn't, you would be lying. Straight up, no need to beat around the bush.

The test is whether these problems are big enough to impact your opinion of the A.I. It certainly is big enough to impact my feelings, specifically because there is no way around it. You have to deal with the mediocre A.I. since you can never take control of the other party members.

 

[Fimbulvetr]

Random question of the day.... Pounce at will!

Does the story get any better after chapter 4? Please say yes! Seriously,

Spoiler

Hope is a weenie, Vanille sounds like she is in a constant state of orgasm, Lightning is playing the quiet, unsettled, loner...umm Cloud?, Snow well...he almost seems gender confused

Anyhow Does it get better? I've been a Square S/Square E and FF gamer for about 20 years now and I'm hoping for so much more.

:lol

 

[140.85]

So... are you attempting to tell me that my numerous experiences with shitastic AI in this game are false?

Nah, it's cool if you didn't like it.

If anything, I've been consistently surprised at how awful it is at times. If a Medic is on an Esuna binge, they won't stop. Not even to heal. Synergists will bother to waste time with Veil on Neochu, despite the fact that the Neochu always Screeches before a Pollen (which Dispels you of most buffs), rendering the Veil completely useless--Protect and Bravery/Faith would be a bit more helpful here, but I don't have a choice on the order!

You use one of the hardest high-level fights as an example? :lol Umm, that's what makes Neochu one of the most challenging fights in the game. You have to find a way to survive his debuff+debilitate combo.

I'm still trying to figure out how people have come to the conclusion that less choice is somehow better than more.

Because sometimes streamlining is successful in creating a more satisfying experience and I think XIII is no exception.

 

[radiantdreamer]

I rather play FFXIII for the rest of my life then more Tri Ace crap.

And I'm sure if RoF was actually a big deal it would get a level of hate.

Anyway I rank them:

X>XII>XIII>IX>VII>VI>IV>VIII>XI>II>I
I haven't played III or V

Sad to hear, because unlike Star Ocean, RoF is actually good.

PS: 12 (Ivalice works) > all FF's; simple.

THIS.

 

[Kagari]

Question: Is there a weaker cast in any Final Fantasy? The only character I like is Vanille. Otherwise, I find this group of characters downright horrible.

It's the weakest of the post VI games.

 

[Thrakier]

accessories... one helps keeping the ATB filled during combat the other helps with racking tactical points, anyway, if you equip one them while using Lightning's Ultima weapon you'll enable the "random instant-stagger" skill, that's all you want to know.

Where do I get those accessories?

 

[140.85]

It is false. These problems are factual.

I disagree. I'm just gonna leave it that.

 

[MoxManiac]

I wish Matsuno hadn't had a meltdown, FFXII would have been even better!

 

["God's Beard!"]

It is false. These problems are factual. If you went into battle and tested these things in a variety of situations, these problems would always factually show up. If you said they didn't, you would be lying. Straight up, no need to beat around the bush.

The test is whether these problems are big enough to impact your opinion of the A.I. It certainly is big enough to impact my feelings, specifically because there is no way around it. You have to deal with the mediocre A.I. since you can never take control of the other party members.

That's how I feel. In XII, it was never autoplay because even the AI was something you put time to consider, and winning battles without hitting buttons was gratifying because it validated your strategy decisions. You could also move your party into better positioning, load up spells before battle, etc. In FFXIII I don't get any satisfaction from watching my AI partners do random shit while I mash auto-battle. There's no feedback, it's the same as watching a really shitty cutscene. Why bother having so many enemies if the battles can end in literally 5 seconds without any sort of decision making from me? It's like loading up Street Fighter and watching the AI fight each other, whereas FFXII was like the AI trainer in Virtua Fighter 4.

 

[Ploid 3.0]

More control is more satisfying, and a hard fight that's not hard because of lack of control is more respectable. I hate how in some final fantasy games they give you all these awesome abilities that are only useful on very low level monsters, while they make things harder by making them resist every thing. FFXI handled it good, have normal spells tied to a element and monsters that are just strong against said element are just resistant to said spells. However the higher the level of the monster the more enfeebles would get resisted no matter what you did, classic FF (unless you was a bard).

More control definitely makes for a better game. They should just allow the user the ability to pause the action to correct other characters, or if the user is awesome enough let them control everything he see's wrong on the fly like FF12. Also it wouldn't be game breaking to have gambits in ff13. It would allow them to make the game even more harder and satisfying, instead of cheap difficulty.

 

[Amir0x]

I disagree. I'm just gonna leave it that.

HOW can you disagree?

If you do the things I say, the problems always show up. It's not like something that picks and chooses to show up - it is A.I. problems that are consistently re-creatable under similar conditions!

I mean, I can respect if you disagree that these problems make the A.I. bad or mediocre. I cannot, however, understand how you can disagree with flaws the A.I. factually has. It's not like everyone is making these things up. They always occur. There are not different versions of FFXIII :lol

 

[Cep]

HOW can you disagree?

If you do the things I say, the problems always show up. It's not like something that picks and chooses to show up - it is A.I. problems that are consistently re-creatable under similar conditions!

I mean, I can respect if you disagree that these problems make the A.I. bad or mediocre. I cannot, however, understand how you can disagree with flaws the A.I. factually has. It's not like everyone is making these things up. They always occur. There are not different versions of FFXIII :lol

I have my doubts about this.

 

[Lince]

Where do I get those accessories?

here

Speed Sash (reward, mission 58) also, you can buy it at Moogleworks for 10k

Energy Sash (reward, mission 59) also, upgraded Speed Sash + Mnar Stone = Energy Sash

 

[140.85]

HOW can you disagree?

If you do the things I say, the problems always show up. It's not like something that picks and chooses to show up - it is A.I. problems that are consistently re-creatable under similar conditions!

I mean, I can respect if you disagree that these problems make the A.I. bad or mediocre. I cannot, however, understand how you can disagree with flaws the A.I. factually has. It's not like everyone is making these things up. They always occur. There are not different versions of FFXIII :lol

Like I said, I have yet to have these "problems" with the A.I. even at high levels. Inevitably the A.I. doesn't always do precisely what I wish it would. But it's a blessing in this case and good design because it forces you to either plan ahead or change your strategy.

No offense, but your comments about ease of difficulty/not having to pay attention/getting 5 stars just going auto through chapter 10 are highly suspect. That's extremely hard to believe.

I've simply had a different experience. I inexplicably feel like I am in more control of battles in this game. I feel constantly engaged and involved. I love the feeling of constantly having to stay on my toes and strategize. It's the most intense, satisfying ATB system I've experienced yet in a FF.

 

[Agent Icebeezy]

I need some strategy for the elementals. I'm trying to tame the first one with Snow and I'm not getting anywhere with him. Any pointers?

 

[Amir0x]

Like I said, I have yet to have these "problems" with the A.I. even at high levels. Inevitably the A.I. doesn't always do precisely what I wish it would. But it's a blessing in this case and good design because it forces you to either plan ahead or change your strategy.

No offense, but your comments about ease of difficulty/not having to pay attention/getting 5 stars just going auto through chapter 10 are highly suspect. That's extremely hard to believe.

I've simply had a different experience. I inexplicably feel like I am in more control of battles in this game. I feel constantly engaged and involved. I love the feeling of constantly having to stay on my toes and strategize. It's the most intense, satisfying ATB system I've experienced yet in a FF.

Strategize what? Most enemies are taken down the exact same way all the time!

You're right, we do have different experiences. But I'm not calling your experience suspect merely because we had a different experience. I filmed the A.I. not using Esuna on my character when they were crippled by various status effects, instead opting to heal, and I'll upload it some time for you. Them stopping to heal instead of Esuna was the difference between four stars and five. And when you're trying to get certain items to drop, that's REALLY annoying.

But yes, I literally did nothing but autobattle and shuttle between the same two or three paradigms for the entirety of the first ten chapters. Nearly every battle ended in five stars, and I had one death from Shiva. That is all.

If you do not believe such a thing is possible, since it's so easy to do, just restart a game and try it. Don't avoid fights so you get to the CP limit each chp, and then that's it.

Once you get the hang of ATB canceling as well, things are so effortless that it's silly.

I just would like to know when I was supposed to be strategizing.

Strategies limited to...

Hey, my health is low! I guess I should switch to something that heals people.
Hey, he's going for a big attack! I guess I should switch to my Defender.
Hey, I want to stagger him! I guess I should switch to my aggressive paradigm.

That's it for the entire game. Mix and match for buffs/debuffs at the beginning of certain bosses, and that's the amount of variety we have.

 

[Thrakier]

here

lolz, do you really think I'll play that shitty game till mission 58? XD

 

[Thrakier]

Strategies limited to...

Hey, my health is low! I guess I should switch to something that heals people.
Hey, he's going for a big attack! I guess I should switch to my Defender.
Hey, I want to stagger him! I guess I should switch to my aggressive paradigm.

That's it for the entire game. Mix and match for buffs/debuffs at the beginning of certain bosses, and that's the amount of variety we have.

100% correct and that's one of the points why the game is so boring and annoying. Even in FFX many of the bigger fights or against new enemies were like puzzles which I liked. Not to talk about Shin Megami here...

In FFXIII you feel completly disconnected from what happens in the battles. That's one of the reasons why I don't give a SHIT if I find a new weapon or get a new skill like a stronger fire magic. Heck, most of the time I don't even notice if I do less or more damage because there are so many numbers popping up at the same time. I just "wait", "heal" and see if I win or not. And then I go through the next pretty corridor and do the same. FFXIII = disapointment of the year. Oh, and I can't wait for Demons Souls 2.

 

[ElFly]

I don't get the complaints about FF13 battle system.

The game makes sure the battles in the main quest are balanced (with the exception of the eidolons, who are super annoying) and the AI does super well in that area. I never had a complaint about the AI in the main quest.

Now, when you get to Gran Pulse all goes to hell because you suddenly can get destroyed by a creature you are not supposed to fight at your level (mainly the turtles, but if you are not careful also the bahamuts and the flying thingies), but if you are lucky with the eidolon battles you can mostly keep going in your way to the main storyline.

Once I finished the game I didn't try to go battle and grind stuff in Gran Pulse because:

-I don't want to grind for crystarium points until I could tackle on the bigger enemies cause that's boring.

-I know that the AI will fall apart once it has to fight harder enemies and I don't want to deal with that frustation.

-Gran Pulse is pretty, but come on, it's not that big or interesting to look at for a long while.

-The mission system is stupid in limiting you to take only one mission at a time; I don't want to walk back and forth through Gran Pulse that much.


So, if you are telling me that you played the game for 25 hours until you got to the "good part" where you were able to grind for another 25 hours and now you are complaining about the problems on the grinding part? Fuck off, you just happily played the game for 50 hours. You loved the game, stop whining.

 

[Amir0x]

lolz, do you really think I'll play that shitty game till mission 58? XD

You can get these accessories waaaay before mission 58 iirc. I forgot how I get them, but I am pretty sure I have them before I left chp 11.

I'm pretty sure. I haven't played FFXIII since Chp12 went on forever, but I recall it being in my inventory in Chp11.

So, if you are telling me that you played the game for 25 hours until you got to the "good part" where you were able to grind for another 25 hours and now you are complaining about the problems on the grinding part? Fuck off, you just happily played the game for 50 hours. You loved the game, stop whining.

People are complaining about the A.I., not the grinding. People are complaint about substantive problems with the gameplay and are exhaustively and extensively detailing them.

If we did not play to this part, we'd have people saying our opinions are invalid because we didn't give the game a chance to flower. If we play up to this part, we have people like you saying "you played X hours, you fucking LOVED the game. ADMIT IT OR DIE BEFORE KING HENRY THE VII!"

The truth is as simple as what we say it is. There is no ulterior motive.

 

[Joei]

It's the weakest of the post VI games.

I laughed at some of the other replies. And with this one, I'd have to say if it wasn't for V, this would be the weakest group since FFIV. Unfortunately, I never played any prior to IV, except for a little of I. For a game where story progression was the focus and they wanted a heavy, story driven game, it's a damn shame that the characters just suck ass and the dialog looks like it was written by a group of seveth graders.

 

[B-Rad Lascelle]

Once I finished the game I didn't try to go battle and grind stuff in Gran Pulse because:

-I don't want to grind for crystarium points until I could tackle on the bigger enemies cause that's boring.

I just finished earning my Platinum trophy and made a point of never grinding once "solely" for Crystarium Points. Because, you're right... that WOULD be boring.

I did grind Mission 7 for Sprint Shoes.
I did grind turtles for Platinum Ingots for weapon & accessory upgrades.

But all in all, I found the game structure to be really balanced by tackling most of the push for 5-star missions and item upgrades in Chapter 11.

I beat the game on Tuesday. Finished off the last mission on Thursday. Earned Treasure Hunter, took out the Long Gui and maxed out my character levels this morning within 15 minutes of each other.

 

[ULTROS!]

Is the CGI director of XIII different from Versus XIII?

I just watched Advent Children an hour ago and the CGI cutscenes are well... Much more understandable compared to FFXIII's

Spoiler

Chapter 11 of what happened in the racing scene

.

 

[Lince]

You can get these accessories waaaay before mission 58 iirc. I forgot how I get them, but I am pretty sure I have them before I left chp 11.

you're right, I had those accessories too way before I beat those missions (and never bought anything until post-game) but I don't remember how I got them, rare drop maybe?

ffs Seph just Google it or whatever... you don't seem that interested anyway you lazy Azerbaijan elephant :lol

 

[Rahxephon91]

Well for me the battle system is probably the best battle system I've played. And I never had any problems with the ai. It was fun battles required different setups, so it felt deeper then other FF's. So I don't understand peoples complaints about it other then they wish they had complete control.

Its kind of stupid to argue this because the people who don't like it are going to stick to their guns and say the AI sucks, or that its all auto battle, and that its super easy. Whatever, I don't really agree with that myself.

 

[ElFly]

People are complaining about the A.I., not the grinding. People are complaint about substantive problems with the gameplay and are exhaustively and extensively detailing them.

If we did not play to this part, we'd have people saying our opinions are invalid because we didn't give the game a chance to flower. If we play up to this part, we have people like you saying "you played X hours, you fucking LOVED the game. ADMIT IT OR DIE BEFORE KING HENRY THE VII!"

The truth is as simple as what we say it is. There is no ulterior motive.

25 hours to let the game "flower" is ridiculous. Period. Unless you are a game reviewer/tester and it's your job to do it, you should have stopped playing looooong before that if you didn't like the game. Therefore, complaints about how the main quest is bad but Gran Pulse is good are silly.

If you are noticing such terrible problems with the AI, which in a game designed like FF13 are basically game breaking, just stop playing it. Don't complaint and then keep grinding and playing you've beat all the missions.

 

[Widge]

I've found the AI to be fine. Stick Sazh on Syn and he sticks Haste on himself immediately so he can quickly do the same across all other members, bar/en-elementals as appropriate. Also like the way the Ravagers spam all elementals at the beginning of a fight against an unknown to see what not to use against them.

Been enjoying the last couple of days playthrough on Pulse, I just randomly stumbled across some areas that I hadn't noticed before and have had a great old fight in the process. Now at some place (Falseworks I think it is called) where I am taking an Outrun path through some challenging fights. The Ochu is a right bastard but fun to take on. Figured the strategy for him now though.

I'm having the best of both worlds, I've had the FFX style story focussed aspect that I craved when playing (and eventually fizzling out of) FFXII, but it has the big "as you wish" part of XII that I like. Also I know that I can rejoin a story that I'm actually involved in at any point during this. Everything that I liked from the PS2 iterations delivered in a sparkly PS3 edition. Quite pleased with this as I was starting to lose my way with FF games (X-2 retreading the same ground I'd pounded so much in X and repeatedly for 5 Chapters, XII having the least interesting party and story), I'm going to be playing this one until 100%.

I would place XIII above all the PS2 iterations but I'd have to go back and re-play the PSone games again now before deciding how it ranks with them. I'll always love VII as it was my first one and what an experience it was, however my currently play through is somewhat going through the motions, physical attacking my way through each fight, pushing the story on. Now that is an X mash autobattle for you. VIII has THAT Draw grind (but I love the story) and I can't wait for IX to appear on PSN. I've got a PAL version but I want a full speed NTSC one. I used to be quite critical of old IX but a 2nd playthrough some years back I managed to see some delights in there that I didn't appreciate the first time through (great scripting and NPCs, lovely animation, plus the defined job roles).

Anyway, that is a bit of an emo splurge so I should stop now.

 

[Korey]

Finally finished the game. May or may not post impressions later.

Chapter 13, was hilarious when

Spoiler

Fang's like "Where's this end?" and Sahz is all "If there is one, I can't see it."

:lol

The ending wasn't that satisfying.

 

[Pimpbaa]

Question: Is there a weaker cast in any Final Fantasy? The only character I like is Vanille. Otherwise, I find this group of characters downright horrible.

FFX had a way weaker cast. Hell, it has a better cast than most FFs since FFVI.

 

[Amir0x]

25 hours to let the game "flower" is ridiculous. Period. Unless you are a game reviewer/tester and it's your job to do it, you should have stopped playing looooong before that if you didn't like the game. Therefore, complaints about how the main quest is bad but Gran Pulse is good are silly.

Because of the difference in design flow, the fact that Gran Pulse feels almost like a different game level design wise, I wanted to see if it had the spark that the rest of the game lacked.

But, thanks for informing me what I should have done. It is good to know that as always with GAF, you are damned if you do and damned if you don't.

If you are noticing such terrible problems with the AI, which in a game designed like FF13 are basically game breaking, just stop playing it. Don't complaint and then keep grinding and playing you've beat all the missions.

Thanks so... I can't complain if I keep playing. I get it. The act of playing apparently removes my right to complain about flaws.

 

[Widge]

FFX had a way weaker cast. Hell, it has a better cast than most FFs since FFVI.

I'd say XII, Basch, Vaan, Penelo...

 

[Zeliard]

25 hours to let the game "flower" is ridiculous. Period. Unless you are a game reviewer/tester and it's your job to do it, you should have stopped playing looooong before that if you didn't like the game. Therefore, complaints about how the main quest is bad but Gran Pulse is good are silly.

Why? Gran Pulse is where there becomes an actual game to play. Can't blame anyone for wanting to trudge through the first several chapters to get to the good stuff and at least get some enjoyment out of their purchase.

 

[Widge]

At the end of the day, people are going to dislike the game, people are going to like the game. Some people are agog when I go ahead and state that KOTOR is one of the worst games I have ever played. It obviously is "good", it got great player praise and great critical praise but CHRIST my entire playthrough of it was through gritted teeth. Got to a point where I realised that the only reason I was playing was because it had lightsabers in it, so pretty much went FUCK THIS and traded it in. Just wasn't for me.