how can anybody likes this game?

[dylamug]

i've played a few hours of FF XIII and i'm really confused.
how is it possible that this game got such good reviews?

the background and world seem pretty interesting. however except for the battles which are not bad, the only thing that makes this game a game (as opposed to a movie) is that you get to walk around a bit between cut-scenes.

and it's always the same thing, you get some bad dialogue followed by "oh no! a monster robot thingy!" followed by a battle and repeat.

please tell me that as someone who liked the FF 7-10 i can look forward to FF XIII-2

[Roto13]

The farther you get, the better the battle system gets, until it's the best battle system in the series. That's basically the game's redeeming quality. That, and the world suddenly opens up and becomes explorable near the end of the game.

The fact that you have to invest so much time to get to the good parts is why this game is just good, and not great like other Final Fantasies.

[Alpha2099]

I haven't played 13, but I watched someone else play it. I get where you're coming from about it feeling more like a movie than a game. It still seemed cool to me, though I have little interest in going out to get it. I'm still jaded from the disappointment of 12 so I stick to the older games.

[Roto13]

If you were disappointed in the masterpiece that was XII, XIII should be just your thing, because the bad things about it are the opposite of what made XII great.

[Sheepy]

XIII really comes into its stride when you unlock the ability to access any class with any character. It's a bit hand holdy for the first few hours, which can be really off-putting, but honestly the battle system is a lot of fun. Then again, I was a fan of X's system, so take that for what it is.

[VeloZer0]

FF13 was an attempt to distill the whole JRPG experience into fighting battles and observing a story. If you want more out of a game you will be left wanting, and if you don't love the two pillars the game is built upon you won't find anything worth playing. Should you love the way both were approached in this game then it will be a home run for you.

[Flying Arrow]

The farther you get, the better the battle system gets, until it's the best battle system in the series. That's basically the game's redeeming quality. That, and the world suddenly opens up and becomes explorable near the end of the game.

To be fair, the world opening up is just a big wide isolated area the characters get to. There's no way to re-explore the already established areas in the game.

The battle system is really smooth and the game has some really great encounters though. It's "tight" in that the leveling system and such make it the least grind-heavy game in the whole series (unless you want it to be). The fact that you can see enemies and avoid them is an improvement over X, IMO.

I found it leaving a little bit to be desired ultimately, but that's really because the game is a battle system and nothing else. I like most of what the battle system does, but I just wish there more to the game than a mostly hands-off battle system.

[Jinx]

XIII really comes into its stride when you unlock the ability to access any class with any character. It's a bit hand holdy for the first few hours, which can be really off-putting, but honestly the battle system is a lot of fun. Then again, I was a fan of X's system, so take that for what it is.

I personally think X had the best battle system in the series, followed by X-2. X's battle system gave you the ability to be strategic and still have control of all of your characters. It wasn't just like "OH HEY LET ME PRESS X JUST ATTACK ALL THE TIME AND SOMETIMES CURE"

[Jessweeee♪]

One of my favorite things about FFX is how it's practical to use magic in random encounters.

Anyway to get back to the topic, FFXIII is one of my favorites in the series! The battle system was super fun, I loved the characters, the story I thought was pretty interesting, and the music was just fantastic. FFXIII-2 is pretty fun too, but the story is kind of silly. If you were okay with hopping to FFX-2 after FFX, you'll probably be okay with FFXIII-2.

Jessweeee♪, double posting is bad! ~ Love, J♪

[Roto13]

Double post.

Ban plz.

[Alpha2099]

Double post.

Ban plz.

Put him in the stocks first. Public ridicule is a good motivator for change.

[Sword]

I love XIII even more with each play through. I understand the story now and it just jives well with me and I get why characters behave the way they do. Character development is great especially regarding Hope and the relationship between Sazh and Vanille. The ending makes perfect sense despite what people say and the lore is as great as it was in FF12.

Battle system is among the best in the series and playing FFXIII-2 made XIII even more enjoyable since there are certain things I learned about the system in the sequel which you can also use in the original.

[Sylvie]

One of my favorite things about FFX is how it's practical to use magic in random encounters.

I felt like I was being spoken to like a retarded 5 year-old the entire time I was playing Final Fantasy X. And then I felt like I was observing a group of retarded adults, and a gothic statue of delicious boobs. It stung me in the side a little. Got a thorn in my grip.

[Jessweeee♪]

"Magic?! Element?!"

Anyway, what I mean by that is, Lulu has a large enough MP pool that she's not useless until you come to a boss fight. Other entries have you saving your MP and hoarding ethers

[Roto13]

"Magic?! Element?!"

Anyway, what I mean by that is, Lulu has a large enough MP pool that she's not useless until you come to a boss fight. Other entries have you saving your MP and hoarding ethers

Her MP pool plus the abundance of MP-restoring save points make magic a lot more practical in X than it was before that. Once you start unlocking quickenings in XII, it's kind of a similar deal (especially with abilities that restore your MP when it gets low, and regenerating MP when you walk.) And of course in XIII spells are free to cast. I like this direction. There's not much point in having spells if you're never going to use them except for during boss fights.

Of course once you get weapons that cut MP cost down to one in X, the game kind of breaks because you can just spam ultima or holy forever. :P