Impressions on Final Fantasy XIII...?

[PrinceOfSpace]

We're about eight and a half hours in-just got Odin-and so far..........eh. I am disappointed in some stuff, like I thought I'd be, but at least it's pretty and the storyline isn't totally ridiculous and stupid. So far, anyway.

And at least, though Shiva is still a motorcycle (sigh), they seem to be making the summon system worth it to use.

What gets me, though, is the battle system. I knew I'd be disappointed in it, but I had no idea that they were going to go that far with it. I mean...the paradigm thing makes it at least somewhat tactical, and a bit different. ....But I can only play as one guy the whole time, while the other two are AI controlled?? Excuse me?? Look, I know the battle system and battles are quick, and you have to keep up with them...but come on. Did the game makers just not think people could handle having to control all three characters and their actions in battle?? Because if they staggered it out, and had me start out by controlling one character and then two and then all three...I'm pretty sure I could handle the quickness of the battles. I'm a seasoned Final Fantasy player, and I think if you staggered it out even people unfamiliar with Final Fantasies or other RPGs would eventually get the hang of it.

Otherwise, though, I'm pretty satisfied with the game so far. Some stuff to disappoint, of course, but I was already expecting that. And with the $50 gift card from Christmas and the $10 gift card you got from Target free with purchase, we paid tax on the new Final Fantasy. So that makes it definitely worth it. 

Anyone else have thoughts, comments, etc. on the new Final Fantasy so far?? No spoilers, please!!!!!! (And I know about the other thread on this board about FFXIII. I just wondered if anyone else has first thoughts/impressions.)

[Compound]

(Got my copy via Gamefly, so no moola exchanged for it.)

5 hours in. Great visuals. Don't mind the story or the characters. (Although the story really needed some "Show, don't put it in the datalogs" moments in the first part. And Vanille reminds me a lot of Lymmie, m'kay?)

The gameplay? Not impressed so far. The dungeons are even more linear than described. The term "Murder Tubes!" has gotten tossed around on some other forums and it's pretty accurate. I mean look, Mass Effect 2 had fairly linear areas as well.  (On a mission, you start on one side of the building and need to get to the elevator on the other side. The main choices are do you go to the left boxes in the room or the right?) But it doesn't feel that way when you're playing. But I'm feeling it in  FF XIII.

For combat, yeah, big minus so far. I've heard some proclaim it to be the best RPG combat system ever! I don't concur. I don't mind the AI control. Heck, 90% of the time, that's how I played in ME2 and Star Ocean 4. And I've heard it gets better around the 8 hour mark. (sigh) But in the early game, there's a disturbing lack of input. The ability to, say, move my character so that I could avoid attacks, would be appreciated.

Look, over the past few weeks, I've been playing ME, Star Ocean 4 (on the PS3 this time), Dante's Inferno, WoW, LoTRO, CoH, STO, FFT and Plants vs. Zombies. Okay, the last two don't really fit, but otherwise, that's a lot of games with heavily interactive combats. And right now, hitting "A" with the occasional visit to "Y" to interrupt the chain or to "Items", well that's just not scratching my combat itch.

The pacing's pretty bad too. Two hours before a new ability? And next to no item drops during that time? (Okay, I got some potions, two iron bangles and a weapon that I couldn't equip.) That's just bad design. You're feeding the player no reward. In practically every other current RPG, MMORPG or even action game, you get a nice steady drip of abilities and stuff.  Two hours into WoW, and you'd be ~ lvl 10 and going after Hogger. Lotro? You'd be past the intro and prologue and around level 8 and would have done a couple of dozen quests in Middle Earth. Batman: AA? A couple new moves and probably either fighting a Titan or maybe in the Scarecrow scenes. Borderlands? A  few quests down with a constant stream of new guns, the car and some power points. ME2? Probably grabbing the first recruit. CoD: MW2? Well, you'd be a third of the way through the game. GoW 3? Who knows yet, but you'd have killed several hundred things by that point.  Pokemon? First trainer battle. But FFXIII? Oh, here's how to spend XP. We'll add Paradigms in an few.

I'm still going to play it. I haven't gotten annoyed enough to stop playing yet. (As a point of comparison, I did stop playing Magna Carta 2 at around this point two weeks ago.) But it's likely to be a frustrating crawl for me. It's supposed to get better on the second disc. (Knock on wood.)

[PrinceOfSpace]

The pacing's pretty bad too. Two hours before a new ability? And next to no item drops during that time? (Okay, I got some potions, two iron bangles and a weapon that I couldn't equip.) That's just bad design. You're feeding the player no reward. In practically every other current RPG, MMORPG or even action game, you get a nice steady drip of abilities and stuff.  Two hours into WoW, and you'd be ~ lvl 10 and going after Hogger. Lotro? You'd be past the intro and prologue and around level 8 and would have done a couple of dozen quests in Middle Earth. Batman: AA? A couple new moves and probably either fighting a Titan or maybe in the Scarecrow scenes. Borderlands? A  few quests down with a constant stream of new guns, the car and some power points. ME2? Probably grabbing the first recruit. CoD: MW2? Well, you'd be a third of the way through the game. GoW 3? Who knows yet, but you'd have killed several hundred things by that point.  Pokemon? First trainer battle. But FFXIII? Oh, here's how to spend XP. We'll add Paradigms in an few.

Yes, and I'd agree that the pacing is pretty slow. But I am very used to that with Final Fantasy. Final Fantasies don't really start off with a bang as far as gamplaying action. There are many cinemas and other actiony things going on, but normally you're stuck fighting insects and tiny rodents for the first eight hours of a Final Fantasy. I count a few of the enemies we've seen so far as a plus. But I do agree that they could've done a bit more with the pacing. I think it's actually kind of funny that, with every Final Fantasy that comes out, they treat you like this is your first Final Fantasy and/or your first RPG ever played, ever. I think about 90% of people that play Final Fantasies are just nerds like me who've played the majority of them and don't need to be told what an Eidolon is or how to advance your character on a sphere-grid system.

The gameplay? Not impressed so far. The dungeons are even more linear than described.

Yeah, I've been noticing that, as well. But, again, I'm used to that in a Final Fantasy. Just like I'm used to 85% of the offshoots leading to totally nothing. When that happens, my husband and I always chorus out, "Thanks, Square." They're notorious for having one offshoot in a level, and having that lead you nowhere.

I've heard some proclaim it to be the best RPG combat system ever! I don't concur.

.....Eww, for real?? I don't concur with that, either. It's an OKAY battle system, but it's got nothing that would make it the best battle system ever. Nothing new, nothing exciting, nothing super tactical. Even the timing system in Lost Odyssey had more to it than what they brought to the table in FF XIII.

...Yeah, it's a pretty good game so far. Like I said, it's got some disappointments. But I'm trying my hardest to just let all of my expectations go, and play it as an RPG and not as a Final Fantasy. It's working, so far.

[Vent]

I'm about 30 minutes into it and my interest in continuing it has already been sapped.  Maybe I'm just not enough of a japanophile to withstand the relentless onslaught of cheesyness.  Final Fantasy characters were much more charming when they spoke in text boxes.

[PrinceOfSpace]

I'm about 30 minutes into it and my interest in continuing it has already been sapped.  Maybe I'm just not enough of a japanophile to withstand the relentless onslaught of cheesyness.  Final Fantasy characters were much more charming when they spoke in text boxes.

Haha....you're right there!!!! But I'd actually agree to that with pretty much every video game that's been continued over the years. I actually preferred Link when he didn't go "hup!" "yip!" "ha!" every time he moves or rolls or does anything. And apparently they're giving Samus a voice on this next Metroid game. Which does NOT sit well with me. Part of what I think charmed a lot of us in those games was being able to come up with your own voices for the characters. It's....kind of like an audiobook, or a movie based on a book. You've got the way YOU see them and listen to them when you read, but when it's made into an audiobook or a movie it becomes a little more like those people or voices in your mind. That almost always happens to me, which is part of the reason I hate watching movies made into books. Or listening to books told in first person as an audiobook. It...takes away from the imagination.