OXCGN – Breathing Life Into Gaming

Slow starting, but does it finally get going?

by ChiefJimbolaya

© 2010 Aaron Klein

Final Fantasy XIII is a loooooooooong game that is best experienced in large chunks of play. Before you purchase it—and you will not be able to complete it during a rental period—be sure to speak with your loved ones and pre-explain your social disengagement for a couple of weeks. [Ed:- Which is why OXCGN likes to do their reviews over time - as it requires effort, not speed to give a 'good' review.

The original Final Fantasy came out in 1987. It was released by Square while on the verge of bankruptcy, which explains the title. But it wasn’t Square’s “final fantasy,” after all. The game became the oft-replicated genre-defining role-playing game, and the franchise went on to release 13 core games and even more spin-offs over the past 23 years, selling more than 92 million copies worldwide.

During that time, the Final Fantasy franchise has developed some devoted fans, not all of whom will be pleased with the changes in the latest iteration.

First, and most critical is Final Fantasy XIII linearity. For the grand majority of the game, progress is limited to furthering the story, with no stops for the side quests and mini games that have long defined the franchise. It is not until you reach the 11th of 13th chapters that the game opens up to something that more resembles a traditional Final Fantasy title.

But the re-vamped battle system is what carries Final Fantasy XIII. If you haven’t played a Final Fantasy game for a while because you tired of the turn-based, slow and random fighting sequences, now is the time to pick up the controller again.

First, enemies appear on the map. Battles are no longer random events. This means you can sneak up on enemies to gain an advantage in the battle.

Second, battles move at a much quicker pace. While moves are still queued up in a turn-based style, the player controls only the party leader leading to less micromanagement.

Last, and most important, is the introduction of the “paradigm system.” Each character can play a specific role (read paradigm) in the party, such as the healing Medic, the damage-sponge Sentinel and the spell-casting Ravager. As battle conditions change, the player can switch his party’s roles to best suit the situation.

This system introduces a lot of strategy to even seemingly mundane enemy encounters. Normal enemies will provide a large challenge if you don’t vigilantly monitor the battle and switch paradigms as needed. Every battle is rated based on your speed and efficiency, and higher ratings yield more experience points to spend on leveling your characters.

Each game in the Final Fantasy franchise is set in a self-contained world and stands on its own feet. So newcomers need not be dissuaded by the “XIII” in the title. Indeed this may be the most newcomer friendly title yet. New gameplay elements are introduced gradually to ensure the gamer is never overwhelmed.

The game might develop a little too slowly, however. The first three hours are less of a game and more of an mindless exercise in pushing up and the A button. It wasn’t until the fourth hour, when the paradigm system is introduced, that combat became more layered, complex and ultimately… fun.

Final Fantasy XIII takes a while to develop, but when it does, the game becomes something truly special. The story is akin to a long fantasy novel. It is initially overburdened by its own lore, but early narrative investment in the world’s history pays back with interest as you find yourself deeply immersed in the setting and characters.

Characters are developed through Lost-style flashbacks, which slowly reveal mysteries and answers behind their motivations and the events that led them to their fate. The tactic works well, resulting in a story that gets more interesting as the layers are peeled away.

The environments and visuals are spectacular. Loading times are brief, which is especially important in a game that often switches between battle sequences, cut scenes and map exploration.

For the first three hours of playing, I was pretty sure that Final Fantasy XIII was less of a game and more of an interactive movie. I was ready to give it a horrible review. However, as I got deeper, that feeling of boredom dissipated at the arrival of the strategy-driven battles and development of an intriguing story that touches on multiple themes such as fear, paranoia, fate, forgiveness and redemption.

Note: Aaron Klein is a U.S.-based freelance video game writer. Read more of his reviews at cornfedgamer.com.

“9/10

© 2010 Aaron Klein

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