Dart894655d ago

Umm do i have to play the first one in order to understand the story to this??

rabidpancakeburglar4655d ago

Yes probably, I hope that this will also be the European release date.

FACTUAL evidence4655d ago

We are never going to see FF13vs.....Like I said, just make vs13 ff15...

bakasora4655d ago

There must be reasons why so many people hate FF13. And I'm one of them.

gaffyh4655d ago

Even though FF13 wasn't that great, I still enjoyed playing it, and I'm glad to see that this one is coming pretty soon. But I really really would prefer Versus 13 at this point.

sinncross4655d ago

Presumably yes... its a direct sequel and understanding past events could be pivotal to fully understanding this game.

but then again, you could always look at FF13 as a prequel and play that afterwards if you want.

RedDead4655d ago (Edited 4655d ago )

You have to read the databook of the first one. Shit game

Also, there will be camoes and stuff that you might not understand and jokes and crap, a prequel really is a prequel and sequel is a sequel. If you want to force your way through it like yeah go ahead.

"it's really simple to follow if you read the datalog".

Tis a game, not a book

Good news anyway, Summer FF versus, take ma word for it

FAGOL4655d ago

Exactly! I have no idea why they couldn't tell the story through gameplay or cutscenes. Most of the time you hear Hope whining or something. My question is why? I know charecter development is important but for god sake get your priorities straight.

After completing the game I went on the FF13 wiki and guess what? They explained the story better than the damn creators. The story itself is quite good but it was just told terribly.

Ddouble4655d ago

I understood most of it without the datalog. The datalog to me is there in case you take a long break from the game. It gets you back up to speed when you load the game up.

Also in the beginning when all the new words like Fal'cie L'cie etc is been used it can get confusing so the datalog is useful in that aspect.

maniacmayhem4655d ago

Good luck understanding the first story.

Redempteur4655d ago

it's not that hard to understand teh story if you pay attention ( something many haven't)

femshep4655d ago

its really simple to follow if you read the datalog

maniacmayhem4655d ago

Well Redempteur, you got me there cause i didn't pay attention. The story was convoluted and a lot of the cut scenes were drawn out and boring.

And no i didnt read the datalogs.

I never had a problem with any of the other FF's except this one. Too boring.

WhiteLightning4655d ago

Why should someone have to read the datalogs to understand the story.

Would a game like Uncharted get all those great reviews if you had to keep looking at a Datalog to understand whats going on.

rabidpancakeburglar4655d ago (Edited 4655d ago )

WhiteLightning

You don't have to look at the data logs to understand it, it actually becomes very clear as the story goes on. The data logs just help with things you may have missed.

maniac

I don't think that someone who says that they didn't pay attention has any right to judge a story.

MrSpace

Are you being serious? Nobody said it was a good FF title but I did like it. "convincing every one else with common sense" That's a funny statement.

MrSpace4655d ago

Wow there are a lot of obsessed FF fans on here convincing every one else with common sense that FF13 was a good FF title.

Sorry but it was crap...end of.

karl4655d ago

it wasnt the best FF thats for sure . but it wasnt crap.

many people wont settle for nothing but extraordinary

really annoying

DaTruth4655d ago

It still amazes me how many people enter topics they think are crap and aren't interested in, just to say its crap and they're not interested... or disagree with the genuinely interested, troll and de-bubble them!

I would almost expect every positive comment about a topic to have more agrees, seeing that mostly people interested in the topic should be there, but apparently many spend lots of time reading about stuff they hate!

Mottsy4655d ago

I enjoyed the story. bummer you guys didnt. But if so then why are you checking the release date for the second?? anyways im more then stoked for this.

+ Show (6) more repliesLast reply 4655d ago
Troll-without-Bridge4655d ago

Nope, the team is making the game in a way you dont need to know what happened in the first.

Peaceful_Jelly4655d ago (Edited 4655d ago )

true that, I read it in an old interview with Toriyama. The game's not a continuation of the first game and beside, the first game was about saving Serah and they did it by killing the Orphan. The sequel is supposed to inquire more into the background story that was hidden in the datalogs of the first game but it still has a main premise which is "find out what happened to Lighting".

Sprudling4655d ago

They did say that, but it would have been very stupid from a PR perspective to say otherwise. In any case, it surely doesn't hurt to have played through the first one.

MrSpace4655d ago (Edited 4655d ago )

"Umm do i have to play the first one in order to understand the story to this?? "

Yup

That's why it's really only for the people who liked FF13 and completed it. Don't see why they exaggerated the "improvments" they've done when it's not going to change a thing since most people didn't like or even finish FF13

Troll-without-Bridge4655d ago

Thats not true. you'd know that if you were actually following the development.

FFXIII-2 is based mostly on the Episode 1 novel, which is separated from FFXIII and will release in the west this year.

MoveTheGlow4655d ago (Edited 4655d ago )

Troll is right, although playing FF13 would help: http://www.andriasang.com/e...
They also fan-translated the Japanese version of the novella: http://dilly-shilly.blogspo...

There, now we don't have an excuse to ignore important stuff, do we?

showtimefolks4655d ago

that FF 13-2 is coming out in early 2012 and ff13 versus will launch around fall 2012?

hopefully and i hope that ff13-2 has improved upon what dd13 did right and fixed whatever ff13 did wrong

Vortex3D4655d ago (Edited 4655d ago )

Yes but you can download all the FF XIII cutscenes that tell you the entire story anyway.

http://finalfantasy-xiii.ne...

You can choose to download the English or Japanese voice version. The person who captured the English version has more cutscenes. Japanese version mostly just the pre-rendered cutscenes but there are a lot of in-game cutscenes that are important.

I think it's around 7+ hours long like a season of anime. A few missing cutscenes from the crystal side quests but they don't really add much to the main story.

I like JRPG but one thing that I wish JPRG does better is integrate the battle system with the story. Playing most JPRG games is like the battles appear disconnected from the cutscenes or the battles often like an excuse to turn the anime into a game.

hintonmj4655d ago

You shouldn't have to play the first one to enjoy this game. Square is using the Noel character as the clueless character that needs everything explained to him, so it may actually detract from those who played the first and don't need all it reiterated, but I think this game will be enjoyable to many more people than the first.

Bolts4655d ago

I played the first and I'm still not completely sure WTF happpened.

specialguest4655d ago (Edited 4655d ago )

Just watch one of the many walk-throughs on youtube.

Hozi894655d ago

Hmm, I might play it just to quench my thirst until I get Versus 13.

@Dart, No. You can just watch all the cutscenes on youtube. it will feel like a movie and you'll get the gist of whats going on.

Anderson84655d ago

no they run through a corridor for 20 hours then make it to a field the run through some more corridors.. and they're fugitives thats all the story you need 2 know

Disccordia4655d ago

My advise is play FF13 anyway despite all the negatives here. It's incredibly cheap to pick up now so there's no real excuse. If you don't like it, then you can read the plot synopsis on wikipedia to get you up to speed on the sequel.

MTEC84655d ago

First FF that I didn't want to finish. Repetitive as hell, Fal'cie that L'cie this and it goes on and on and on. Just STFU and tell a proper story, makes me want to play FFX everytime I pop in FF13. FFX was so much better! Not picking this up, don't know enough about VS so can't comment. Just bring on FF15 already.

HINDERIZATION4655d ago

In a previous article from a few weeks ago, Square Enix said that you didn't need to play the last game to know the story in this one.

+ Show (13) more repliesLast reply 4655d ago
MaideninBlack4655d ago

Good. The sooner they get this out the door the sooner I'll be playing Versus!

Inception4655d ago

Don't forget SE side projects like KH 3D and other shit that make versus development get any longer.

MaideninBlack4655d ago

If KH 3D interfers w/Versus development then I'm flying over there to Japan and slapping those fools.

Mario0074655d ago

Yeah except KH 3D is developed by a team in Osaka and Versus by a team in Tokyo...it'd be nice if people got their facts about SE studios right when talking about versus/ff/kh

thugbob4655d ago (Edited 4655d ago )

@ mario

Isn't Noruma the director of both KH and Versus 13?

Grip4655d ago (Edited 4655d ago )

@thugbob
yes he is, and the team Behind KH I,II.. will make FFV13 but that does not mean they made every spin off KH Series..

RedDevils4655d ago

same here I'm not bother about this game anyway, I be waiting for VS :)

+ Show (2) more repliesLast reply 4655d ago
Vortex3D4655d ago

So far, everything shown on vs XIII are just hypes. How do you even know vs XIII is going to be any better than XIII?

Capt-FuzzyPants4655d ago

What do you mean " just hypes" gameplay trailers and cinematic trailers are what every single game does. So you can also say everything on elder scrolls and every other game not released yet is just hyping it up

Deadman_Senji4655d ago

How do I even know you're not a moron?

Cyb3r4655d ago

What about the European release date?

FAGOL4655d ago

It's probably 3 days after the US release date as always.

Mystickay864655d ago

Awesome. But yeah, hoping XIII Versus soon.

DigitalRaptor4655d ago (Edited 4655d ago )

The fact that this comes out before Versus XIII is shocking!

The problem and what I predict will happen is that Versus XIII will not be received as it should be. It deserves as large a marketing campaign as FFXIII received. I know many gamers who don't even know what Versus XIII is, even after 6 years.

That is a problem. Not for me of course, I will be buying that unequivocally awesome game. Square do need to tread very carefully. Right now they only show stuff behind closed doors and slip out limited info now and again. Now, that's because the game is not in a ready state to show much, and they are currently promoting XIII-2, but nearer the time of release they'd better promote the heck out of Versus!

On a side note: I wonder if the 360-only guys who liked XIII will buy a PS3 for Versus because we all know it's going to be all kinds of awesome. There's no denying that!

iWishTifaWasReal4655d ago

i know it makes me cry

a game that didnt really receive postive criticism from the fans is getting a sequel

i just dont get it :| sure some people liked this game but its not the type of "like" where you want to beg Square Enix to make a sequel. -,-

RAmar1014655d ago

il get this pre owned later on, to many titles in the meantime to get

Show all comments (100)
280°

The Final Fantasy XIII Trilogy Deserves a Remaster

Final Fantasy 13 was first introduced to us back in 2009, almost four years after Final Fantasy 12 was released, and fans had been eagerly anticipating the next installment. But when it finally arrived, there were mixed reactions, including complaints about its linearity, the lack of towns and NPCs, and the limited control over the characters. At the time, Square Enix kept its game production behind closed doors and didn't take in a lot of feedback — especially from Western fans.

The game has been revisited by many different Final Fantasy fans since then, and some, like myself, have come to love it again. Almost all staple entries in the series have found their way to modern consoles, so it's about time that the FF13 trilogy gets a remaster

Read Full Story >>
dualshockers.com
shinoff2183320d ago

I've been thinking about this. I agree. While I really disliked it at first I never played it again. After hating ff15 so damn much I just think it can't be worse then 15 and if I'm not mistaken atleast it's turn based. I need more of that in my life.

nitus10320d ago

I actually finished FFXIII and on the second playthrough found I actually liked the game.

Actually I have liked most of the FF games (I have not played FFIX unfortunately) and I do agree with you with regards to FFXV. Graphically IMHO FFXV is excelent but for some reason I just could not get enthusiastic in playing it.

As for "turn-based", I prefer active and real time although to be fair "turn-based" is a real plus especially when confronting a difficult protagonist. I found this to be especially the case when playing FFXXII where you could switch rapidly between "turn" and "active" although having a resonable knowledge of simple Boolean Algebra is IMHO essential when playing this game.

319d ago
Levii_92319d ago

Ridiculous comment, first of all i think you should replay 15, second of all that game is 10 times better than the XIII games especially the royal edition. And third .. turn based combat is a dying (almost dead) style of gameplay and i personally wont miss it at all so don’t act like that is some sort of big plus because XIII has it.. it is not.

jambola319d ago

Somebody needs to learn about subjective taste

shinoff2183319d ago

Ff15

Sucked imo. I don't need to give it another try. Last time was the 3rd time and I had 34 hours into it. It just wasn't good imo

Chriswynnetbh319d ago

How is turn based dying or almost dead? Pokémon is one of the biggest RPGs in the world and is and has always been turn based. To some it is a plus especially when it comes to FF since the first 10 of them all are and are arguably better games than any FF to come after

CDbiggen319d ago

XV was rubbish, but understandable given the development hell. That overworld for me is the biggest example, so strangely designed and empty. And parts of the story awkwardly cut for DLC, most egregious being that prompto part where he's like "I'm a clone", or whatever he was (it was that forgettable), and the other guys basically shrugging it off.

Tapani319d ago (Edited 319d ago )

Turn-based is alive and well: Pokemon, Dragon Quest, XCom, Civilization, Homeworld, Age of Wonders, Total War, Original Sin, Baldur's Gate, Warhammer, Yu-Gi-Oh, Company of Heroes, Wasteland, Pathfinder, Disco Elysium, Octopath Traveler, Chained Echoes and many, many more great games, both new and old, franchises and new IPs are selling well, reviewing well and sequels are coming.

If you don't play the game, maybe the turn-based has just died in/for you, but certainly the genre has never been so alive as in 2023! Plus, when you look at Final Fantasy franchise, it started going down in quality when it left turn-based combat behind. FFXVI may redeem some of the glory (and FFXIV was great), but the turn-based games were higher rated and deeper in terms of gameplay and had more interesting things to do in the world.

DarXyde319d ago

I'd say Persona 5 is one of the best of the best games in a couple of decades.

I don't think you manage that with a dying gameplay format.

shinoff2183319d ago (Edited 319d ago )

Levii92

Turn based is way funner imo then just some hack n slash rpg. I like both but prefer turn based.

Far as dying I doubt it. It's also kinda funny cause the best final fantasy have been turn based. Ff still to this day can't top ff6 through ff9. Interesting.

Far as someone who brought up persona 5. I dislike the art style so I've yet to play it but I'd throw dq11 in there. Best jrpg I've played in fkin years. Over a decade.

Last I was a bit iffy on chained echoes because of the sp and no traditional leveling system. I recently bought it. Looks gorgeous, story is fantastic so far, but I cannot for the life of me get over how much I truly hate the leveling system. It's just flat out whack to me. I'm still going to finish it cause unlike ff15 atleast chained echoes doesn't feel like a chore

goldwyncq319d ago

The XIII series (especially Lightning Returns) has far better combat than XV, and you don't need to watch an anime and a movie to make sense of the story.

FinalFantasyFanatic318d ago (Edited 318d ago )

15 was only fun for derping about in the wilderness, at least FF13 had a better story and was more coherent overall (plot, characters, gameplay, world, ect...).

15 was just beautify garbage, so much wasted potential, the Duke Nukem Forever of the FF franchise.

I really loved Persona 5, can't wait for P6 to be announced, I'd love ports of the first few games (we already have P3P/P4G/P5R available on almost everything now).

+ Show (6) more repliesLast reply 318d ago
sadraiden318d ago

People act like XV killed one of their family members. It wasn't the best FF ever, but it certainly wasn't a bad game. You "hated it so damn much"? Chill.

FinalFantasyFanatic318d ago

I agree, FF13 is better than FF15, but I don't think I can play through that trilogy again, I'd rather play one of the older games.

+ Show (2) more repliesLast reply 318d ago
-Foxtrot320d ago

Not really

Let them move on and focus on good FF games

Hofstaderman319d ago (Edited 319d ago )

Thank you. A ton of FFXIII articles recently. Most of the people who like this game are not old enough to have played 4 to 9. Even 10 and 12 are vastly superior to this game. That being said a remaster would then make all the FF titles available on the PS platform.

jambola319d ago

Citation needed
Do you have some kind of official survey of ff 13 fans ages?
Would love a link
Also, all games are available on multiple systems, re released many times
"Not old enough" doesn't even make much sense

shinoff2183319d ago (Edited 319d ago )

That was part of what I was trying to say. I've gave 15 3 try ff13 deserves atleast a second. And like I said I could use some turn based in my life

I've also played through or played all of the ff games starting with ff1 way way way back.

goldwyncq319d ago

"Good" is subjective. I love FFIX but I know many fans who don't like it for the art style and the slow combat.

I_am_Batman319d ago (Edited 319d ago )

Recently replayed them and I agree a remaster would be great. The complaints about linearity are fair, but they only really apply to the first half of the first game and while I agree that it would've been nice to have proper towns, minigames and subquests, it didn't detract from the intriguing story, interesting characters, tactical gameplay and amazing soundtrack in my opinion.

XIII-2 fixes a lot of the issues of XIII and expands on the story in interesting ways. The combat and progression builds on top of the systems of XIII and the nonlinearity and discoverability of secrets is a big inprovement over the original game. It's easily the best game of the trilogy.

Lightning Returns was probably a bit too experimental for it's own good. It tried to reinvent the wheel for no reason. The solo party for most of the game and the outfit based combat felt like a downgrade over XIII-2 combat system. It does have a unique vibe, but the plot kinda goes off the rails and many of the story beats didn't land as much for me as they did in the first two games. The race against time aspect was an interesting idea, but it never felt like it mattered, because it wasn't much of a challenge to manage the remaining time even while doing all the subquests.

Eonjay319d ago

XIII-2 is one of the greatest games ever.

Snookies12319d ago (Edited 319d ago )

XIII-2 is by far the best of the trilogy. Went out of my way to get the Platinum trophy on it. Which is actually a fun one to go for. Didn't take too long, only about 70-80 hours to accomplish. Loved every second of it though.

Youngindy21319d ago

I don't think linearity is a fair critique, when every FF up until that point was fairly linear esp. in the first half of the game. People herald FF VII(including the remake), but it is just as linear as FFXIII was. The linearity complaints came at a time when open-world games were just starting to become a thing and people thought every game should be open-world, but now that every game is, people now want more linear experiences. Go Figure.

shinoff2183319d ago

Ff10 was pretty linear to. Haven't played through all of 13 but 10 was linear as fk until the end

I_am_Batman319d ago

Totally agree. I never fully understood why 10 was so universally praised when it had many of the same design philosophies xiii is criticized for.

CDbiggen319d ago (Edited 319d ago )

I felt the same for the most part except the LR combat system. I thought it was an upgrade on the party of three system the previous two games had as now you had more control over your moves with different sets being an L1/R1 click away, and could move the single character around in battle and attack limbs or tails of certain enemies, or reduce the distance between you and an enemy you're after saving ATB.

I_am_Batman319d ago

LR combat certainly has it's merits. I would've preferred it if it wasn't tied to the costumes which can make Lightning look quite ridiculous and out of place sometimes though.

But mainly I would've preferred to see an evolution of XIII-2 systems. Since they are so different it's obviously just a preference. Can't really compare them objectively.

CDbiggen319d ago

Yeah I get ya, and I can totally see why the costume part got to people. I'm someone that doesn't care what the character looks like as long as I'm happy with the stats (looking at Xenoblade). LR to me is just one of those odd games that I can't help respect for mixing things up, even if the outcome wasn't the best lol. But yeah too different to compare.

sadraiden318d ago

Why would a remaster be great? They exist in HD, on a console that is still compatible with modern televisions, and you just replayed it.

I_am_Batman318d ago

I replayed them on my PS3. I just think it would make sense for those games to be more accessible to Playstation gamers, which is where the majority of the modern FF fanbase is (due to the exclusivity deals of VII Re and XVI).

+ Show (3) more repliesLast reply 318d ago
gold_drake319d ago

yes.
remaster collection.

not sure why the hell we never got one.

sadraiden318d ago

Just dying to give SE money for nothing eh?

gold_drake318d ago

i enjoyed the games.
so it wouldn't be for "nothing".

Show all comments (75)
170°

Why The Final Fantasy XIII Trilogy Has Some of The Best Music In The Series

As we celebrate Final Fantasy’s 35th anniversary, let’s look back at the underrated soundtracks of the Final Fantasy XIII trilogy.

Read Full Story >>
game-grooves.com
goldwyncq477d ago

It really does. Caius’ theme is still one of the best villain themes ever.

SeTTriP476d ago

Barthandelus is a great boss theme to.

Snookies12477d ago

Come on... Even haters of Final Fantasy XIII have to admit the soundtrack really was great. There are some parts of the OST that stand out among even Nobuo's work.

CrimsonWing69476d ago

The battle themes are pretty amazing, man.

gold_drake476d ago

sat what you want about the games, but the soundtrack has always been good.

MehmetAlperTR476d ago

Agreed... Legendary Nobuo Uematsu was not involved with FF13.. So that has got terrible musics.

jambola476d ago

so any game without no Uematsu has terrible music?

MehmetAlperTR476d ago (Edited 476d ago )

@Jambola nope... But in PS1 era we played FF7-8-9 and in a PS2 era FF10... They were all involved with Uematsu San. We grove up with him and his musics.. SO FF means, him and his music to us.

+ Show (2) more repliesLast reply 476d ago
-Foxtrot477d ago

It's alright but I mean with so many other FF games it's not even in the top 10 for me

You just can't beat IX, VII, X and my personal favourite VIII when it comes to music

Even the theme song sucks, instead of just having an English version of the Japanese theme they got X Factors Leona Lewis to do the song which didn't sound like FF theme song.

FinalFantasyFanatic476d ago

Yeah, that ending song was terrible, I'll never be able to fathom why that was chosen, it feels so out of place with that game.

RedDevils476d ago

Lol is was my wtf moment.

SoulWarrior477d ago

I agree, regardless of the general consensus of the game itself, FF rarely lets down when it comes to the music at least.

porkChop477d ago

Nah. VIII has the best music in the series. IX is a close second.

Hofstaderman477d ago

Yes; eyes one me, man with the machine gun, waltz to the moon, the oath, maybe I’m a lion…FF8 has the best music in the series by far. I have the original OST, the orchestra arrangement, the piano arrangement, the Black Mages tracks and a few other albums. My four disc original OST is my pride and joy.

ManMarmalade477d ago

I agree on VIII. I've started growing really fond of X's lately.

GoodGuy09477d ago

Music was pretty good yes. Pretty much all FFs do even the crappy ones lol.

Show all comments (40)
130°

Final Fantasy XIII-2 gets a 4.7GB AI-enhanced HD Texture Pack

Modder 'MJB' has released an AI-enhanced HD Texture Pack for Final Fantasy XIII-2.

Read Full Story >>
dsogaming.com