DLC: Lightning: Requiem of the Goddess (SPOILERS AHEAD!)

Well, now that they have released the "final" DLC packs, as they are saying, for the game, we can now assume that this DLC pack featuring Lightning's final clash with Caius is the supposed "real ending" everyone was expecting.

So what do you think of this ending? Did you enjoy it? Was it what you had hoped for? Most importantly, if you watch past the credits, did anyone else end up wondering if this little extra at the end was meant to suggest a Final Fantasy XIII-3 is on the way? Or was it just to leave open the possibility of that? If you ask me, I'll bet they release a sequel (perhaps not necessarily called XIII-3) and make it a PS Vita exclusive. They like to do this with their top selling titles to push sales of the other system, which really boils my blood. I'd have loved to play Crisis Core if it was ported to PS2 or 3, where the stunning cutscenes can be enjoyed on a large screen as they should be, not a tiny handheld device. Oh well. I never had any reason to buy a PSP. I'd have bought most of the FF games they released to it if they'd have put them on a home console, but I guess that's their money loss and their poor strategy. (I mean seriously, they'd make more money selling me a 40-60 dollar disc than they do off of getting more people to buy a new gaming system that cost quite a bit of money to actually produce).

I'm veering off point, but that does seem like a possibility for this series. More importantly, what did you think of this ending for FFXIII-2? It didn't really change the initial ending at all, it just showed a different perspective and gave a little hope that Lightning may be the last hope left for the world to not be permanently undone by chaos.

I did find the battle system very fast paced and fun, and the scenes just after the fight were very touching and hit hard emotionally. I think overall they did very well with it, especially for a 4.99 price. I felt like I got my money's worth. My only complaint is that I wish it had offered a more conclusive ending. That and playing the same battle over and over was a little redundant. They could have made it a string of similar battles with different strategies to mix it up a bit. So I'd probably rate it 8 out of 10.

What are your thoughts on all this?

I liked the DLC. It ended up being fun although I was I was at first not very thrilled with the idea of having to fight the same battle over and over again. But then I started demolishing him with new skills and roles and then he transformed... I was thankful for the progression because if there wasn't any I would have been miffed. As for the ending, I am a bit disappointed. I hate to say this but I wish there was some exposition in this game that spells out everything instead of having to piece together info from shards and from character dialogue. I guess I am assuming that Lightning became crystal (and as she informs us) is indestructible and by doing that, keeping Serah's memories and in effect preserving the timeline. She is a remnant in the chaos. It's kind of a cool concept I guess.

Were you expecting this to change the ending? It's been called "Lightning's Story" since it was announced, that's what I expected, and that's what it was. I would've been mad if it was an alternate ending.

Also on the possibility of a XIII-3 being a Vita exclusive, I seriously doubt it. Sudden hand held entries in their franchises are always stand alone spin-offs with their own unique gameplay style, not to mention that one of the things that makes FFXIII-2 and FFXIII-3 feasible is the fact that they can recycle things from the previous games like character models, environments, animations etc. which they would have to change for an inferior system like the Vita.

There better be a XIII-3.

I've moved on from this game and probably won't be coming back unless the DLC blows people away. From what I'm reading, it doesn't do that.

I'll also probably pass on FFXIII-3 unless I get it for free somehow. I'm sick of the FFXIII world and XIII-2's story was such a pile of dung that I'm not willing to take another ride.

I liked it. It was very moving, kind of a bummer actually.

I'm just disappointed that it didn't actually conclude the thing. Sure it explained why (SPOILER)Lightning was crystallized on the throne but it didn't actually tell us the fate of the world. It may as well have said (SPOILER)"to be continued..." just like the other ending because it left us at the exact same spot with no more of a conclusion.

As much as I'd welcome a Final Fantasy XIII-3, I honestly don't think it's going to happen. I suspect the story is going to just stay as it is and we'll never get a real conclusion.

I hope like hell I'm wrong though. I love the FFXIII universe and Lightning's character, and would love to see Lightning and the others get proper closure.