Final Fantasy XIII Impressions: Or, "Write a thing on that site I pay for"
Alex FraioliNo spoilers! Just a lot of bitching!
A friend of mine recommended this “Final Fantastic” series. It’s some kind of Japanese role-playing video-game. I didn’t know what to expect, but yesterday I took the dive and purchased the thing on a whim. ¥8300 and seven hours later, I have a decent idea of what players can expect. This was all covered on this week’s brand new Snatchcast (to be released on Monday!), but here’s a sneak preview in text!;)
Basic Instinct XIIINo, hang on. I don’t want to detail the battles, the Optima system, or the Crystarium stat-building menu. You’re likely familiar with them! Rather, let’s get into some good-natured complaining. On the whole, I’m very impressed with the game and am enjoying it immensely. But Jesus.
The character of Hope. Every Final Fantasy game needs an effeminate whiner, and Hope has reached and surpassed that quotient for the next three installments. I’m not sure that this maudlin, kerchiefed character has actually spoken any dialogue so much as cried it. “Waaah! Fighting! Waaah! My mom! Waaah! Puberty is tough!”
Second, Kitase and Toriyama are base-deep in each other’s fists trying to “reinvent the RPG.” Nope! Nuh-uh! Not yet! Look, I’m only seven hours in, but it’s all dungeons. I know how eager they are to cast off the JRPG cycle of town-dungeon-town, but replacing that with dungeon-dungeon-dungeon is not an upgrade. They’re throwing out the baby with the bath water and then pouring in more bath water and making fun of the baby.;)
DERP DERP DERPIt’s weird, is what I mean. I’m a big Dragon Quest guy. I need towns, and shops, and townspeople. Accessing shops from a save point is kind of missing the point of RPGs. It was weird at the end of FFVIII. It’s not something I want to see for a whole game. I want to talk to NPCs, I want to go to the bar, I want to smash pots, I want to find out that I can’t afford the new sword that the big burly armsmaster sells and have to grind for it. I guess I should be playing Dragon Quest!
So I did. I took a break tonight and played a few hours of DQIX. It filled that hole. The reason I play FF games, apparently, is to fill that part of my life that requires teen melodrama. It’s got tons! FFXIII has all of the classic JRPG archetypes. The solemn girl! The giggly girl! The emo kid! The black guy! Why am I playing this!
It all comes down to the battle system. It melts my balls. If FFXIII is doing anything, it’s pumping new life into JRPG battles. And really, isn’t that why we play them? What, were you playing them for the story?
Encounters are Chrono Cross-style. You see enemies as you explore, and touching one throws you into battle. Sorry that I have to liken it to a decade-old PSone game, but this is my first PS3 RPG. Commands are executed once the battle gauge fills, meaning that you have time to cancel a command and reenter one if you like, or change Optima, or slow down and choose a sound strategy within a reasonable time limit with zero penalty. “Breaking” an enemy via relentless pummeling is not only advantageous, but oftentimes necessary. As you progress, it becomes more enjoyable to create and tweak Optimas for future use. Upgrading stats via the Crystarium also becomes important, but I’m not talking about that.;)
This is the better game! But you’re better off waiting for the English version!I can’t tell you to buy or not buy this game because I’m only seven hours in. But these seven hours have been amazing fun for the part of my brain that enjoys numbers and elemental affinities; an affront to the part that values storytelling and an engaging narrative. If you don’t know Japanese, I encourage you to import! You’ll be able to enjoy the full extent of the smooth new battle system while at the same time enjoying an immunity from the screeching storyline and teen drama! Waiting for the English version will only make the game grate that much more on your nerves.
Do the right thing! Import FFXIII! And stay tuned for part two, where I’ll probably bitch about Vanilla’s collapsible deer antler whip!
View Printer Friendly Version
Reader Comments (5)
I'll be playing it in a few days, my copy is currently in transit. You could say that I'm so excited I may burst out with an explosion of Hope.
If you're into the FF thing, more power to you. If you truly love the series as much as I love DQ, your panties will be overcome in a thick mist.
I bitch about the drama only because I believe that the series takes itself too seriously on the narrative side. Honestly, my favorite parts of the story are the inter-party convos and light-hearted banter, something I believe DQ does best. FFXIII has something for every JRPG fan; for me, it's the tightly-woven battle system.
I can see where you're coming from with the teen melodrama complaint. FF VIII is still my favorite iteration of the series, but it worked for me because I was not particularly fairly removed from my teenage years (I was basically in my early 20s, slogging through college). Quite frankly, I don't think I'd have the patience for it these days, because I've grown up considerably since then, and in my limited yet hard earned wisdom, I've come to realize that nobody wants to hear people whine, whether they're real people you can't avoid (tee hee) or virtual ones.
I think I might have to do something that I've only done once or twice in the past: actually set the audio receiver to play audio from a different source. It was the only way I managed to survive my half hearted playthrough of Xenosaga in early 03 (has it been that long? good lord), as opposed to bashing my skull in from the overload of stupid. Here'
Sadly, being that I will have to wait for the X-Box release, I don't think I can avoid contact with the inevitably wretched English translation (unless videogame companies suddenly wise up and include multi language track - but I doubt it).