• Review: Final Fantasy XIII-2 (360)

    by
    Chris "WildCardCorsair" Garcia
    Published on 02-20-2012 11:57 PM
    1 Comment Comments


    Final Fantasy XIII-2

    Developer: Square Enix
    Publisher: Square Enix
    Platform: Xbox 360, PlayStation 3
    Genre: Role-playing
    Rating: Teen
    Release Date: January 31st, 2012

    The sequel to Square Enix's latest entry into the Final Fantasy series is here in the form of Final Fantasy XIII-2. Whereas XIII was criticized for being too linear, XIII-2 already has one thing working against it: time travel. Whether ensnared by the cruel trappings of this tricky plot devise or not, XIII-2 certainly aims to learn from the mistakes of its own past, and provide rich gameplay and story telling the Final Fantasy series is known for.

    Presentation
    It has been three years since the events of Final Fantasy XIII and a lot has changed. Now living on the pulse settlement of New Bodhum, Serah Farron has a lot on her mind. Everyone tells her that Lightning is gone, having turned herself into a crystal pillar to prevent Cocoon from falling into Gran Pulse. But that isn't right and Serah seems to be the only person who remembers it differently. Her fiancée Snow Villiers seems to be the only one who believes her. Not wanting to be married without Lightning in attendance, Snow vows to find her and journeys to parts unknown. Meanwhile, in her dreams, Lightning is a knight, kneeling before an empty throne and commanding armies of monsters to defend the grand hall of Valhalla from a man named Caius. She believes these to be just dreams, until a man claiming to have been sent by Lightning appears before her in the midst of an unusual attack on New Bodhum. Together with Noel Kriess, Serah must find out why temporal paradoxes are developing, threatening the very fabric of time while trying to find Lightning and prevent the world she knows from becoming a memory only she can recall.

    Graphics
    As always, graphics are a strong point for Square Enix's Final Fantasy team. The movie sequences are amazingly detailed and stunning in HD. The graphics themselves do not disappoint either. Many of the environments in the game are reminiscent of areas visited in Final Fantasy XIII but with major differences that display the ravages of time. Character animations during battle are no less gorgeous. Characters constantly move and attack in a way that makes battle sequences as fun to look at as to play.

    Another interesting inclusion in this title is the use of cutscenes to recount the story when continuing your game. After loading your save data you will be treated to brief snippets of cutscenes based on the last few things you did in the game. These scenes play at a noticeably reduced quality unfortunately, but they are fun to watch to remind you of your progress in the game. I think they’re far more fun and interesting than FFXIII's chapter summaries.

    On a minor note, occasionally I ran into a few cutscene glitches. One instance in the beginning of the game showed an NPC walking right through Serah. I've heard no reports (so far) of these errors taking place on the PlayStation 3, so this may be a problem native to the Xbox 360 version of this title.

    Sound/Music
    All the talented voice actors are back in FFXIII-2, reprising their roles from the first game, and all of them do an excellent job once again. The same can be said for the voices of the new characters as well, with great voice talents portraying Caius, Noel, Yuel, and even Mog. If your heart doesn't melt with each little "Kupo~po~po!" frankly you aren't human.

    Music however is a slightly different story. The composers created a wealth of new music for the title that is not bad, but in some situations is horribly out of place/mood. From the get-go, in the village of New Bodhum, you would expect a nice calm, perhaps even tropical sounding village theme, was instead filled with blaring rock music. Later, the infamous "Crazy Chocobo" song plays uncharacteristically in the background of not a battle, but while simply traversing the map. There are no problems with the music itself, but it truly seems as if the placement of the tracks in this game was left to the spin of a wheel.

    Gameplay
    When it comes time for gameplay, FFXIII-2 remains mostly unchanged from XIII. The Paradigm system returns as the combat system complete with Paradigm Shifts, and each of the previous game's jobs unchanged. They did however do a lot to streamline the experience, drawing from its flaws and making a richer gameplay experience, while maintaining familiarity. While it appears Noel and Serah are the only party members you gain control over (guest characters notwithstanding), you do have many other characters to add to your party by the way of monster crystals. In fighting other monsters there is a chance they will crystallize and be added to your collection. Monsters crystallized this way can be added to your Paradigm Pack, which allows them to use their roles and abilities as the third member of your team. Customizing your paradigms allows you to select which monster comes out at what time, and monsters of all roles can be found. In addition each of the monsters can be named, wear vanity accessories called adornments, gain abilities through their own Crystarium, and even infuse other monsters. Monsters, and the ways they can be customized, add a unique method for customizing your play experience. Each monster also has its own Feral Link which is basically an overdrive/limit break attacks that your tamed monsters can use.

    The Crystarium returns, (as you may have guessed by me mentioning it in the last paragraph) though it has seen a very heavy overhaul for the better. While FFXIII's Crystarium was "leveling on rails" XIII-2's Crystarium makes the experience what it always should have been. There is now one path only, and activating a node will give you the option for what role it will embody. Abilities are learned once a certain number of nodes have been activated for that role, as opposed to certain fixed locations. For instance, "Steelguard" is learned by activating a third node for the Sentinel role. Activating my first three nodes and selecting SEN, means I will learn Steelguard on my third node. However, if I activate my first node as a Commando, then the following three as SEN, I will learn Steelguard on my 4th node. I love this fact because no ability is ever lost to you, but in picking and choosing you can develop stats unique to each character, customizing their play style to your liking. Though Serah comes with Commando, Sentinel, and Ravager, I began activating nodes for Ravager, Saboteur and Medic, making sure her magic stat would develop at a faster rate than her physical stat. Paying close attention to which nodes are activated for which job can really flesh out a unique and highly specialized character, an aspect sorely missed in the last installment. When you reach the “end” of the current path you can unlock a bonus of your choice then head to the next path to further unlock new stats and abilities.

    Equipment also gets a reduex this time around. Instead of throwing endless amounts of items at your weapons and accessories to "level them up" this time around weapons and accessories are fixed. This will probably be received better than before as a lot of complaints were voiced about the very unorthodox handling of weapons and items in a Final Fantasy title (the lack of a defined ultimate weapon). Weapons can be purchased from Chocolina, or synthesized by her; given you have the right materials, with more powerful weapons becoming available as the game progresses.

    Because Final Fantasy XIII-2 is a game that is centered around time travel, there are many time inspired elements that show up in gameplay. Different Time Gates can be opened leading your team to new and exciting places in the future. Areas tend to be smaller, but far less linear doing away with the "hallway" effect that received much criticism in Final Fantasy XIII. Time Gates allow you to choose which time to head to, which is up to the player for the most part. In fact at times it is impossible to complete certain areas as is, without completing an objective in a different time. Many areas even feature towns and NPCs that can give quests or simply lines of dialogue. Quests do not have to be completed immediately, though I imagine some may become unavailable after making certain choices in certain timelines. This is enough to make you shout “1.21 GIGAWATTS” and run madly around your living room, but is an aspect of this game I truly enjoyed.

    While in any area, random battles make a return of sorts. Enemies suddenly appear on the screen as if thrust violently into the current time. This is where the Moogle Clock comes in. The Moogle Clock moves clock wise and measures the time until battle is no longer avoidable. While the indicator is still showing green you can successfully run away from the monster, or attack them to initiate the battle with a preemptive strike. Preemptive strikes are still possible when the clock hand is showing yellow, but the monster is now more aware of you and its surroundings and will actively seek you out as well. When the hand shows red the screen will also flash meaning in a few short moments you will be thrust into battle regardless of having attacked the enemy or even come into contact with them. The retry battle option is locked during battle if time runs out completely. Normally I would have no problem with this. It’s pretty easy to get preemptive strikes on most enemies but the thing that is the most tedious about this is there is no guarantee where the monsters will show up initially. Having to swivel the camera around quickly when the enemy materializes behind you is annoying and worse yet, seems to happen quite often. I felt like I could have done without this particular nuance, though I rather enjoy the random battle feel itself. Mog the Moogle can also contribute to the game in a less annoying way than the Moogle Clock. Moogle hunt can be used to pull items or people from different times. You can also throw your Moogle to reach out of the way treasure orbs and important fragments.

    On a final, far more whimsical note, the mini-games that have been absent from recent Final Fantasys are back! Serendipity, the floating timeless casino is host to a few games that can help you waste time and Gil. There are slot machines reminiscent of the Golden Saucer, and Chocobo races. Sans breeding, you can enter your captured Chocobos in races for prizes and possibly quite a bit of winnings by betting as well. Chocobo racing is by far the most fun of the two, and certainly stole far too much of this reviewer's time. Card games, although alluded to by the NPCs, are not actually available "yet", leading me to believe they will be some form of DLC release. This discovery was pretty disheartening, and made me feel like I was playing a "Free to play" game that MSRPs for $60. I have no problem with planned DLC, but I believe DLC should always be optional, and your play experience should never be made to feel incomplete without it. This is an unfortunate example of why gamers complain about DLC in the first place.

    Lasting Appeal
    The game itself can provide a very admirable 40 hours to complete the story mode. While this is nothing compared to "old school" RPGs, it's a very welcome addition in a sea of 5-10 hour campaigns. After the game is done though, the fun doesn't have to end. After completing the game, you receive an item that allows you to go back and fight on even terms with a few of the games more notorious critters. Also via gate seals you can reset time lines you've visited, allowing you to "take a different path" and possibly unlock one of the game's elusive paradox endings.

    Conclusion
    The bottom line is that FFXIII-2 bears many many improvements over the previous title. Whereas I have said many times, that FFXIII is a good game, just not a good Final Fantasy, I can genuinely say I enjoyed playing XIII-2. From the overhauled level progression system, to monster taming, to the reintroduction of mini-games, I think the many changes make for a far more entertaining experience. Unfortunately, there are also a few small mistakes I think drastically take away from the game as a whole. The feeling that at times the game is incomplete is a serious buzz killer, and the game's ending will be sure to incite many a fan-boy riot. The game's difficulty is a bit on the easy side and that might also arouse ire, but the challenging side missions and optional bosses can make up for that. All things considered, Final Fantasy XIII-2 represents one important thing; Square Enix listened to, and acted on the criticism of their previous release. The result of which, is a game experience that is by no means perfect, but is enjoyable enough to bring players around to this title.

    Score:
    8.0/10
    Comments 1 Comment
    1. Bradly Collins's Avatar
      Bradly Collins - 02-21-2012
      For a second I thought it was 8/100 I was about to agree. I kid I kid, great review.

  • Review Scale

    Score 10- Flawless Victory: A score not handed out to every game. Games earning this rare score sit at the very pinnacle of excellence. These games act as the examples for which all others should be measured with. They are instant classics from the beginning. These games not only deliver what was expected of it, but also exceed the player’s expectations. The game’s features are innovative and original. No game is without its absolute flaws, but the finished product you bring home surpasses the anticipation the game has formed. A day one buy is a must. The game you hold in your hands with this score is a video game jackpot.

    Score 9 - 9.5- Outstanding: Games earning scores such as these absolutely must be played. Games that achieve this high ranking do so because they define the genres that they are in. Flaws are few and barely noticeable. Features seen in the game have been renovated to provide something new and fresh. The story, gameplay, graphics, and lasting appeal are all fantastic and is reason enough to bring the game home and to enjoy with family and friends. Every penny you spend on the game is so worth it.

    Score 8 - 8.5- Great: Any flaw the game may possess is overshadowed by its fun factor. These games would be great for gamers to play. These great games appeal to gamers more and more outside its normal player base because of what it brings to the table.

    Score 7 - 7.5- Good: Flaws do exist in these games, but the positive features of the game can counterbalance the flaws. Additionally, players who are predisposed to liking a game of a particular series or genre with this score should enjoy the game. These are in no way bad games, and much fun can be had with them. An overall good game is worth taking a look at, whether you are willing to buy the game or rent it first. That or you can also wait for the game to reach a good price.

    Score 6 - 6.5- Decent: Games falling into this category may suffer from numerous flaws (for example, graphics or gameplay), but are still worth playing. Granted, the player should be aware that a game with these scores may not guarantee them full satisfaction.

    Score 5 - 5.5- Average: An average game is one in which a game’s features are neither good nor completely terrible. Instead, the finished product is manageable. Little has been done to hold the player’s interest. If anything, rent this game before you consider buying it so that you can at least get a feel for the game’s overall experience.

    Score 4 - 4.5- Poor: Games falling into this category may only keep gamers entertained for a short while. While the game may seem enjoyable for moments at a time, it can quickly grow old and may never be revisited again. The game’s overall function is lacking in quality and may not hold the player’s attention for long. The game leaves little or nothing else to return back to.

    Score 3 - 3.5- Bad: If any positive qualities about a game in this category exist, it is not enough to redeem the game for its shortcomings. Sure you may find yourself playing it, but for how long? You will wind up not giving the game a second glance.

    Score 2 - 2.5- Horrible: Games such as these may not be totally unplayable, they nearly are. Additionally, they may lack, or greatly suffer in, the fundamental functionality of the software as a whole. The game simply does not come close to meeting industry standards at the time of its release.

    Score 1 - 1.5- Appalling: Gamers should avoid this game at all costs. The game was clearly not ready to make its way to store shelves in its status. Save your money and find something else. See it in the bargain bin? No! Stay away! Keep moving and look for something else.