Gordana - For You

The Bad
• Exceedingly linear
exploration and character
progression
• Vanille will get on
your nerves in a big
way.
The Good
• A diverse and mostly
excellent cast of characters
• A great original world,
fleshed out by a compelling
story
• Fun combat system
keeps you on your toes
• Magnificent production
values.
Acocky selfproclaimed
hero with a
charming sneer and
a heart of gold. A
sultry, no-nonsense
ally you can rely
on for a sly quip and a warm
hug. These characters sound like
standard role-playing stereotypes,
but to Final Fantasy XIII's credit,
they transcend formula and wriggle
into your heart. Like many other Final
Fantasy ensemble casts, the misfits at the
center of this tale feel like old friends, and
like old friends, they will excite your spirit, move
your heart, and sometimes exasperate you. Their
story is grand and compelling--as absorbing as you
could hope for in a long role-playing game. That's just as
well, given the fun but flawed game woven around this
excellent tale. This is an intensely focused, exceptionally
linear adventure that offers a few illusions of choice but
never makes good on them. Fortunately, the battle system
is fun and engaging once all of its elements fall into place,
and it will keep you pushing forward even when the story
lulls in the second half.
As you make your way across airships and through
crystal caverns, the journey's
narrow focus will be almost as
striking as the pretty environments.
Some games in the
series have been markedly linear,
but Final Fantasy XIII is
even more conspicuous in this
regard than its predecessors.
While there are some exceptions,
such as in the previously
mentioned primeval grassland,
you are generally moving in one
direction: forward. If you feel
outmatched in battle, you can
backtrack to take advantage of
responding enemies and grow a
bit stronger before moving on,
but you'll rarely need to do so.
The linearity is even more pronounced
because the walkways
and corridors you follow are
usually rather narrow, and there
are few extraneous tasks to provide
variety--no mini games to
complete, no puzzles to solve,
and aside from a few key
moments, no populated towns to
investigate.
It's all quite fun and
engaging, particularly during
boss fights. Several of these
fights are difficult and will
require a few tries, a few different
party member combinations, and a few
different paradigm layouts before you triumph.
Much of the joy of combat comes
from the way characters like Fang and
Snow speed about, beating up on imps and
wyverns. It also comes from the way the
camera moves around, framing the flashy
moves while letting you take in important
visual feedback like the name of a boss's
spell or the countdown timer that appears
over your head when doom is cast.
Although controlling only a single character
at a time sounds limiting, don't assume battles
are hands-off affairs. While you can let
the game choose a default set of actions
on your behalf, some late-game battles
benefit from a bit of skill micromanagement
on top of the usual paradigm fiddling.
There will be smart challenges waiting for
you once you overcome the ease of the
early hours.
There are some elements that keep
Final Fantasy XIII from being everything it
could have been. Even so, it is still a legitimately
great game for its stunning beauty,
fantastic story, and enjoyable battles, which
means it has a lot in common with the Final
Fantasy games that came before it.