Final Fantasy

[penguinchilli]

Review just released from CVG ;

http://www.computerandvideogames.com/article.php?id=237078

I think it's restored my faith Took a look on the Japanese amazon website earlier to see how customers over there rated the game and it's averaged it out at 3 out of 5 stars so I was feeling a little worried, especially seeing as I couldn't read a word of it

[Nostromo74]

Another one here:

8 out of 10

http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/final-fantasy-xiii-review

[TheNomadic1]

This just goes to show the state of reviewers these days, the review you linked bviously shows the reviewer  has completed or alt meast played most of the way through the game.

Many reviews i have seen just say linear no side quests, when its linear to a point then there are about 60 hours worth of sidequests..

I Have no doubt this will be an awesome game.

[AidyD]

IGN UK review here -

http://uk.ps3.ign.com/articles/107/1074227p2.html

Some quotes...

Final Fantasy XIII strips away so much of what we've come to expect of a Japanese RPG that it puts forward a strong case for not being considered as one at all. Yes, it's true that the first half of the game funnels players through one long, winding path, but that overarching linearity is just one of many stark design decisions taken by a game that's ruthless in its jettisoning of some of Final Fantasy's most treasured traits.

Towns are gone, non-playable characters all but exterminated and there's nothing in the way of extracurricular activity until beyond that thirty hour mark. The series' has never been truly open-ended, but Final Fantasy XIII's more stubborn than most in its insistence to stick to the script.

But the lack of anything substantial to do beyond fleeing and fighting soon brings the game crashing back to earth, and even when the walls are lifted Final Fantasy XIII’s world can seem strangely lifeless.

As a technical feat the game is a triumph, but it seems a slave to its own spectacle, manacling the gameplay to serve its own bombastic vision and ultimately while the excellent combat and stunning visuals are enough to recommend it, they're not enough to earn it a place amongst the series’ top rank.



It got an 8.3 in the end, fairly respectable but honestly doesnt sound like the sort of rpg I like... Grinding with no break for 90% of the game... Ugh... Like a korean mmo or something.

[thecabbage]

agreed.  I like rpgs because of the exploration and character interaction.  FF10 was lacking in that department for me.  This sounds even more so, like some sort of turn-based action game.  Side quests are side quests, but without towns or interaction that's all they are.  To be honest if I wanted to play a game like that I'd play Borderlands or Baldur's gate Dark Alliance, both of which can be enjoyed in co-op....

[TheTenth]

strange how when you read commentaries you feel 5 or 6 and yet the score is 8 or 9

[AidyD]

Yea I get that feeling too, I think the point they are making in general is - FFXIII does what it does very well. Its just a departure too much from the norm perhaps.