cj_iwakura
Member
That's how I feel. I liked XIII-2, just not as much(way too easy).
Is LR actually difficult again?
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Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII |OT| Toriyama's Bizarre Adventure
- Thread starter Kagari
- Start date
That's how I feel. I liked XIII-2, just not as much(way too easy).
Is LR actually difficult again?
From what I read, the staff itself advices players to begin in EASY mode, because the NORMAL one can be pretty challenging right off the bat (HARD mode can be unlocked after completing the game once). So I guess that the game is hard again.
Perfo
Thirteen flew over the cuckoo's nest
Credits at the end are way shorter than XIII-2 you think? It'll be interesting to actually know how many people exactly worked on this.
cj_iwakura
Member
Excellent.
CrimsonCrescendo
Banned
Not far enough in to give a good impression of the difficulty.
cj_iwakura
Member
I find it oddly amusing that the yandere hell thread has gotten more attention in terms of views.
Well it was what spurred me to make the comment that was put into my tag. The quality of the game does not match what is expected of a FF game, though it is more than serviceable. The HD upgrade of X and X-2 look far more polished.
Perfo
Thirteen flew over the cuckoo's nest
Still with this random comparisons with the HD remake? Toth, I expect better from you. Also don't think this game is made by 50 people, this is S-E we're talking about and a Final Fantasy. It'll be similar or little less than XIII-2 with some outsourcing here and there. Plus it does look better than many PSP/DS titles they published so I can't see all these shortcomings people are implying being there. Unless they're comparing a spin-off with FFXV. But it wouldn't make any sense. This is more like a Crisis Core or Dirge of Cerberus type of entry. The game looks very beautiful at times, the Ark for example and its sky is really pretty.
CrimsonCrescendo
Banned
That's not exactly a compliment when we are referring to a end-of-gen PS3 title.
Perfo
Thirteen flew over the cuckoo's nest
Japanese games in this gen do suck when it comes to graphics, dark souls II is no different. I don't think you discovered this now in 2014 haven't you? The game is still pretty, mostly because of its artstyle of course, because you'll never listen me saying that the background of the city inside the tutorial area is graphically awesome! But taken for the whole, at times LR: FFXIII is definitely beautiful. Other times definitely less. But for a no-main entry I think is unfair underlining every little shortcomings knowing even big games in Japan do look ugly compared to western games. I mean... it's too much sometimes. It's also a topic that doesn't enthusiasm me much, I'm a style over graphics type of person afterall.
One of the best things in Lightning Returns probably, and in the entire trilogy:
Masashi Hamauzu + Nobuo <3:
http://kotaku.com/lightning-returns-has-a-lot-of-fun-playing-around-with-1475358152
Masashi Hamauzu + Nobuo <3:
http://kotaku.com/lightning-returns-has-a-lot-of-fun-playing-around-with-1475358152
Awesome! I can't wait to play this!
CrimsonCrescendo
Banned
I'm fine with style over graphics. And I'm also fine with bad graphics. Saints Row 4 looks like utter ass but I don't mind since it's fun to play. Here's the thing: It consistently looks like ass. From the poorly painted on window textures to the uncanny valley, plastic looking character models. After a while I stop noticing how badly it looks. Same goes for Dark Souls 2. Is it the best looking game of all time? No. Is it consistent? Yes. The problem with Lightning Returns is that it oscillates wildly between "hey, that's pretty good" and "What in the hell were they thinking?" It's jarring, makes it look rushed, and it's hard not to notice, especially when some of these good and poor textures are right next to each other.
PshycoNinja
Member
That's what I try to convey.
Like Drakengard 3 isn't the prettiest game but it's consistent. I don't buy into the excuse of "well Japanese games aren't that pretty anyways". I disagree with that sentiment whole heartily. As many problems as XIII had, graphics wasn't one of them. With how LR is, it's very clear the game was thrown together in a haphazard way.
For me, personally, graphical fidelity can be overlooked if the rest of the game - including the story - is fantastic.
CrimsonCrescendo
Banned
Same for me. Of course I would like some eye candy, it is hardly a requisite. Though I do have to say: I am a stickler for consistency, even if it means consistently looking bad (like Saints Row IV or Sengoku Basara 3). Lightning Returns is like Dishonored for me: Parts look pretty good, but then when you look around you find really bad textures all over the place that are mixed with the good ones. I still enjoyed Dishonored quite a bit, but it was just really jarring for me, which is why I value consistency.
I saw a stack of copies at gamestop. Cracked an obvious joke about buying one early and the GS clerk lost the smile and didn't really say anything for the rest of the transaction.
FFXIII stigma...?
No way, everyone loves Lightning. They wouldn't put her in everything if they didn't!
jk. i dunno. I guess he thought I was joking-but-not (....maybe he's right) or that he actually gets harassed about that a lot when customers see new releases not available for sale yet.
CrimsonCrescendo
Banned
For me, that depends. If it's a game like Devil May Cry where story is obviously secondary then yeah, I'll overlook it. For a game like Final Fantasy where they have hours upon hours of cutscenes or the Last of Us where story is just as important (if not more important at times) than gameplay, then I can't overlook it since it's such a large part of the game. Story is something I "grade" on a game by game basis. It all depends on what I feel the game is going for.
Perfo
Thirteen flew over the cuckoo's nest
The funny thing is that I never noticed anything ugly in that game. It was actually a very beautiful game with a supreme art direction. Textures were an highlight for the game, using a tech that delivered "painted" textures instead of the usual fake plastic things I see in more hyped acclaimed games. That game had an amazing art direction and graphics that by supporting it approched the original artworks. A game that looks as good as Dishonored in this industry is such a rarity...
CrimsonCrescendo
Banned
Maybe it was my PC. It was around the time that my PC died that I played the game, so maybe that was a symptom. But even on the High setting the game had very poor textures.
Perfo
Thirteen flew over the cuckoo's nest
I played it on PS3 and I think you're confusing the the resolution of a classic texture with the trick they used to make textures look like water-colored on a painting.
CrimsonCrescendo
Banned
Maybe so.
CrimsonCrescendo
Banned
I understand what happened and why, I just think it was horribly executed and some of the "explanations" were simply stupid.
RPGCrazied
Member
Wish Amazon would leak early, but they never break street dates.
PshycoNinja
Member
Three decent characters were born (Noel, Yuel and Caius) and the horrible XIII story kept trucking along with a few Deus ex machina's thrown in for good measure and Toriyama trying to redefine the concept of time.
Change the Future, change the past is the most ridiculous idea ever.
It turned out to be a better game that XIII, that's what happened!
I'm down for Lightning Returns because I need to see how this trainwreck of a series ends and I've never NOT gotten a FF game day one.
No... the story is the worst part.
silver.tongue
Member
I'll play it... But 5 years from now I think I'll just convince myself that XIII-2 and LR didnt exist and XIII was a standalone game.
Just like I do with FFX.
Just like I do with FFX.
The Last One
Member
If you make 100% of the FF XIII-2 what changes in the ending cinematic?
Glad to see the FF13's lineage is alive and well.
Thanks for responding. Guess its back to waiting for Ps4 FF14
CrimsonCrescendo
Banned
Caius trolls the fuck out of you and tells you everything went according to his plan.
Eh if you hated XIII-2's plot (which was all kinds of stupid but still kind of entertaining for its silliness), I don't know what you're going to think about this one. From what I've seen all the characters (which were never great to begin with) are shells of their former selves. They look like Lightning, Noel, Snow, Hope etc, but mostly it's just for fanservice purposes, they could very well be different characters altogether. And the subquests dialogues, oh my god what were they thinking. There's a level of "bad" that I've come to except from a Toriyama's game plot. And then there's this...thing. And it's so much worse.
djplaeskool
Member
RPGCrazied
Member
Kinda feel sorry for Ciaus. lol
Nothing much:
Caius taunts you, revealing that he is alive and well, that his plan is fulfilled, and that despite all your efforts everything you did was meaningless.
So... Kagari, I have to ask, even if I really fear the answer at that point: how badly is FFXIII-LR cringeworthy compared to the only game that I decided to give up mid-way because I just couldn't deal with its stupidity anymore, "Star Ocean 4: The Last Hope"?
djplaeskool
Member
Seriously though, Caius is one of those characters for whom I completely understand their actions.
The Last One
Member
Thanks guys, I thought it'd be something really important to the Lightning Returns, but I guess everyone already know
he's alive just by the trailer of the game.
I would watch this, but I'm afraid to run into some spoilers for the Lightning Returns while searching.
They're both pretty bad. LR's writing is something you might expect from a typical fanfiction written by someone who never leaves the basement.
RPGCrazied
Member
Can't catch a break!
Now that this game is done, are the people that worked on this going to work on Final Fantasy XV next? Surely not another XIII game. All they said its the end of lightning's story though.