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Tag Archives: Final Fantasy XIII

More FFXIII impressions

I’m not the world’s fastest gamer. At 43 and counting, I doubt I’m the world’s fastest anything. But I have made it about six to 10 hours into FFXIII and I’m still impressed by the 1080p level of detail (thanks, SquareEnix!), the appealing characters and the patient storytelling.

Rather than explain everything up front before things get rolling, FFXIII moves you into some action right away. Sure, it’s not free-roaming exploration until about 15 hours in… so I’m getting there soon… but it is a way to get the player into battling and leveling up right away while doling out the story in smaller, bite-sized doses.

Massive story sequences and long waits between save spots have been a long-standing complaint I’ve had about SquareEnix RPGs, so I’m pleased to see someone listened… especially since I know I’m not the only one with this complaint. It’s practically a Symbol LS2208 among those in the know.

Plus, I have to say I’m overjoyed that, this time out, I am far more involved in the battles than I was when playing Final Fantasy XII on PS2. If I want to see a movie, I’ll see a movie; I play games in order to feel involved in the outcome. Thanks also, SquareEnix, for recognizing that and responding to this not-infrequent complaint in which I’ve not been alone.

Final Fantasy XIII is to Final Fantasy XII what Windows 7 is to Windows Vista…

Final Fantasy XIII is mine!

This weekend, my wife and I decided to get Final Fantasy XIII. It wasn’t an easy decision because there are so many titles we’d love to own on the market right now, including Uncharted 2, White Knight Chonicles, Heavy Rain, and before too long, they’ll be joined by Dragon Age: Awakening and Prince of Persia 2.

That’s a rich selection of titles to choose from, but Final Fantasy XIII was certainly a top priority. And as one of the few games lazy developers have actually gone to the trouble of making in 1080p resolution, Final Fantasy XIII stands out from the crowd with its sheer True HD level of detail and gorgeousness.

Any sales person who tells you that, short of a 50-inch screen, no one can tell the difference between 720p and 1080p needs to start a job search in a new line of work; 1080p shows up in brilliant clarity on our 32-inch screen just fine, thanks.

While I’m too early on in the game to comment much, I will say that I love the new battle system, which is much more involving than the one found in Final Fantasy XII, four years ago.

Final Fantasy XIII is out!

The long long wait is finally over: Final Fantasy XIII is now on store shelves… assuming stores can keep the product well-stocked.

I don’t care whether you play on Xbox 360 or PS3, whether you wear urban clothes or dungarees, this is a great week to be an RPG fan… or heck, a gamer of any stripe.

I don’t know exactly how, but I do want to find a way to get this game, and soon. Time for some budgeting. I’m sure with a nip here and a tuck there, I can figure out a way… I hope. Money’s tight.

Final Fantasy XIII out soon

March 9, 2010. It’s a date many are anticipating with great fervor, because the first Final Fantasy main-series release will be unveiled that day… now only five days away. It took 23 years since the release of the first Final Fantasy, and thirteen titles to reach this day, but is the series finally showing its age?

Nonsense. While SquareEnix has sunk millions into FFXIII’s production, and has even hinted that the series may head in a markedly different direction in the future, the game is as relevant as ever because despite experiments nearly every time out with the character progression system and battle system, the truth is that Final Fantasy has always defined the standard role playing experience on videogame consoles, from the original NES until today.

Sure, some folks will complain that FFXIII is either a sconce too old school, or too new-school for those who loved the previous outings, but Final Fantasy has never really been all that staid; the series has thrived on experimentation.

So, yes, games like Dragon Age: Origins, Oblivion and Fallout 3 may all thrive in open-world settings, but that means little; Final Fantasy has never played follow the leader to someone else’s flute. Don’t expect that to start now.

Wait times between Final Fantasys to get shorter?

SquareEnix will have made fans wait four years since Final Fantasy XII before FFXIII arrives on US shores next year, but the company is promising that they have a goal to deliver installments more quickly going forward. According to an article on 1UP.com:

“For FFXIII there are a lot of firsts, and because it’s a new console that the teams are working on, it took a little time for the team to get used to everything,” said Yoshi Kitase and Motomu Toriyama through a translator. “Now that they have the engine built for it the basics are covered, so the development time for future projects should be shortened.”

Sounds promising, but even at its best, the series has often taken a couple years between installments. Still, that would be a huge improvement. Let’s hope it’s not all a bunch of hot air and horse supplements.

Waiting for Final Fantasy XIII

One game I don’t need trade show displays of to create excitement in me toward playing, once it’s released, is Final Fantasy XIII. From every bit of video footage I’ve seen, the game looks gorgeous and truly deserving to be on the PS3 platform.

While I’m not one to condemn most RPGs for not being on the cutting edge of graphics … after all, one of my favorite publishers of RPGs is NIS America … I can certainly get excitied when a title like this comes along and is on that cutting edge. While I am not sure if it will be released in 2008 or not, I can say that it is already one of my most enthusiastically anticipated games of the year.