Lightning Returns: With a Whimper

Originally Posted by Jinx

It came out in 2009 and 2010, but development began in 2004.

I didn't know when they started development, thank you.

It's hard to believe it took them as long as the development of skyrim and gta5 to make a hallway with random encounters.

Yeah it's like they should have had a trophy for it.

Considering how much work went into it I do believe that. There was even an own program for Lightning's legs. And Final Fantasy XV also needs much time.

Square Enix Shipped Far Fewer Copies Of Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII - Siliconera

Obviously they'll take this to mean they should get started on spin-offs for all the other characters straight away.

I'm thinking why that is is the spoilers and the spoiling news that SE kept making. Since people know what to expect or having a hunch, they decided not to buy it. Of course, other reasons would include financial issues like I didn't get enough money or I need to take care of the rent and bills (I'll be most likely in that situation all thanks to the economic crisis still lurking in the US).
On a positive note, earning small sales is better than not selling a single game at all. We had to wait what the profits will make when February comes around. Nevertheless, I'm sure SE will make a satifiable conclusion of FFXIII and the fans will like it.

To be fair, they released it about a month before Christmas. It's possible in the following weeks that we could see more people buying the game.

Considering that Lightning Returns outsold Super Mario 3D World (which came out the same day) three times over, I'd say this has more to do with Japanese game sales being in a slump altogether, not the fact that it's an FFXIII game.

Maybe people save their money for a PS4.

I hope more peple buy it, they miss something, it is definitely worth a try. Of all three I like it the most.

whoops I said the same thing twice; I'll just edit this post and say this: I might play Lightning Returns, just for the sake of seeing exactly why it's so under-appreciated.
Or I could just watch someone else play it on youtube.

• The Sales could increase during Christmas time, as people may be waiting to hold off buying the game till the Christmas Season
• Still Europe/ 'MERICA ! Sales to go
• And good
• So
• Tried
• And
• Sick
• Of
• Lightning
• And
• Square- Enix
• Forcing
• Her
• Down
• Our
• Throats
• au revoir and don't come back hun

>>> Totally expected, XIII is a bad number no matter what you do. (I still love Lightning though).

I feel like this is bad news for XV too, after all that game used to be linked to XIII (FF Versus XIII)..

Originally Posted by DMKA

Considering that Lightning Returns outsold Super Mario 3D World (which came out the same day) three times over, I'd say this has more to do with Japanese game sales being in a slump altogether, not the fact that it's an FFXIII game.

Interesting. What about other games out that week? Did it top the charts, or...?

Originally Posted by Loony BoB

Originally Posted by DMKA

Considering that Lightning Returns outsold Super Mario 3D World (which came out the same day) three times over, I'd say this has more to do with Japanese game sales being in a slump altogether, not the fact that it's an FFXIII game.

Interesting. What about other games out that week? Did it top the charts, or...?

Mario games do not sell QUICKLY. However, they have have consistent sales which allow them to make millions in the long run. For instance, Super Mario Galaxy, a phenomenally successful game only sold 260k (Mario Sunshine 160k) in its first week in Japan but went to be a multi-million seller. Final Fantasy, and many other franchises, sell a lot in the first week, and their first week sales are usually indicative of how well the game will sale in the long run.... but that is not the case for Mario or other Nintendo franchises.

However, PS3 sales in Japan are actually very weak this year yet they are still robust in NA/EU (probably because of The Last of Us, Beyond: Two Souls, God of War: Ascension, and other Sony exclusives that came out this year...)

I am sure it will sell fine. All do, just not always in comparison.

This is what happens when you make a game and the title of it is named after the main character. This is also what happens when you make 3 games one right after the other and try make the games and the entire company itself revolve around that one character -.- and the fact that Lightning gets compared to the likes of Cloud is just laughable. Of course using the same ideas over and over again is going to get boring and stale, hopefully this is the last time square enix do this. Time to move on

Originally Posted by CarvingUp360

... and the fact that Lightning gets compared to the likes of Cloud is just laughable. ...

Which likes of Cloud? Cloud are the only comparable main characters when it comes to a long story and a power to even match god-like entities. I won't spoil here.

Cloud never fought any gods. The only thing resembling a god in VII would be Omega Weapon and that's Chaos Vincent's territory.

But it doesn't matter. Power is quite irrelevant. Cloud is nothing like Lightning and he never has been. They just want to try and make Lightning "iconic" and the only way the dunderheads at Square can think to achieve this is to shove her in our faces as much as they can.

Cloud became more famous than Lightning with just one gme. Why? Because his game was actually good.

Originally Posted by Forsaken Lover

Cloud never fought any gods. The only thing resembling a god in VII would be Omega Weapon and that's Chaos Vincent's territory.

But it doesn't matter. Power is quite irrelevant. Cloud is nothing like Lightning and he never has been. They just want to try and make Lightning "iconic" and the only way the dunderheads at Square can think to achieve this is to shove her in our faces as much as they can.

Considering how powerful Sephiroth has become, is officially stated as the most powerful, absorbed the Ancient's knowledge, can partially control the lifestream, has an indestructable and unbeatable will and all, Cloud fought a god. And Sephiroth is nothing else than Omega. He is a collective of lifestream power plus his own power, Omega+ if you want. If people consider Kefka being a god or anything else with supernatural power, then he is, too. Plus, you forgot Minerva. She is an actual "goddess" when it comes to the entity.

You seem pretty mad but the "they want to try it" and "Cloud's game has been good" is nothing but your opinion because based on what exists, they have not just tried but succeeded and that it is good think many people. It is okay to not like her or Final Fantasy XIII but such mad comments are unnecessary.

People call Kefka a god because he absorbed the power of three goddesses.

And Minerva is an unknown. We know what Omega is - he is the sum total of all the power gathered in the Lifestream. He IS the Planet while Sephiroth's ultimate ambition, which he failed at, was to become that kind of being. Omega is what Sephiroth wanted to be.