300°

Final Fantasy “failasy” 13 – How Square Enix Dropped The Ball

I love the Final Fantasy series, I credit Final Fantasy 6 as the game that really truly and seriously got into gaming. The story, the graphics, the characters; everything sucked me into the games intricately crafted world. I wish Final Fantasy 13 did the same thing, I really do. But it doesn’t, in fact it’s a down right terrible game.

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LordMarius5141d ago

lol
"So when I heard Final Fantasy 13 was finally being released on the Xbox 360 I was rather excited."
yet you failed to realize this is were SE dropped the ball

knightdarkbox5141d ago ShowReplies(1)
rockleex5140d ago (Edited 5140d ago )

When they started ignoring their own target audience and tried to go after the western audience that only cares about shooters and space marines.

If they wanted to experiment, they should have created a new IP instead of changing XIII into the EXACT opposite of what FF fans want.

If they wanted to open up the FF series to more westerners, they should have kept all the great things about FF... but simply introduce more western mechanics.

I can't even think of anything that I enjoyed doing in the game. The game takes you 60 hours to complete the story. Yet the story only takes place within a couple days in-game.

Not only that, the story mainly consisted of dialogue between the 6 main characters reminiscent of soap operas. Nothing much actually happened in the story.

Don't even get me started on the gameplay.

Wada has proven to us this generation that he's lost touch with what his audience wants.

FF fans: "S-E, we want FF7 remake!"
Wada: "I agree, we must westernize!"

jadenkorri5140d ago

and i hope it stays that way, FF13 was horrible, if you liked it, you tolerated it for being FF... As for FF7, if square soft was doing it, i would be all for it, since its square-enix, i hope they stay far from the idea. IF you can't make a simple town, which many rpgs have shown in HD, don't attempt or fathom the idea and ruin ff7.

Nugundam00795140d ago

Couldnt agree more putting FF on a console where the consistent game sales are shooters...that was a huge mistake.

Rocket Sauce5140d ago

I'm not gonna defend this game, because it looks REALLY stupid, but every Final Fantasy has soap opera dialog.

SOAD5140d ago

Yeah, because it was Wada himself who wrote the story and the characters and the dialogue and it was Wada who designed the combat mechanics and the game map and the pacing and the music.

Let's all blame the guy at the top. Obviously it was him who was behind it all. Him and MS, of course. /s

Montrealien5140d ago (Edited 5140d ago )

once again, 25 people think a game that sold millions and got Generally favorable reviews, is a failure. Internet opinion at is best here folks.

/on topic

I don' t think they dropped the ball, they did a good game that had insane expectations.

SaiyanFury5139d ago (Edited 5139d ago )

I'll be honest, I'd love an HD remake of Final Fantasy 7. That said, these days it would have live up to scrutiny. There are too many expectations of RPGs these days to "innovate". Unfortunately, most innovations in JRPGs these days remove the tried and true single menu-fed turn-base system for characters. Most people call it outdated, yet most of us JRPG enthusiasts call for it. I don't think a new incarnation of FF7 would survive the modern revolution. It would be subject to the modern expectations of gamers and would ultimately suffer for it. While I would love an HD version of the legendary game, it wouldn't be the same experience as the original. Just personal opinion here.

rockleex5139d ago (Edited 5139d ago )

I was talking about SE in general, the mentioning of Wada at the end was to emphasize that HE'S the one that enforced this change within SE.

Favorable reviews? Sure if you don't consider the fact that this is one of the lowest scoring titles in the main FF series. Sales? Nowhere was sales mentioned in my comment. I was merely mentioning how they dropped the ball on their own fanbase.

"SE dropped the ball...
When they started ignoring their own target audience and tried to go after the western audience that only cares about shooters and space marines."

When I say soap opera dialogue, I'm talking of how their dialogues rarely has any importance to the story. Its all drama talk.

Just a bunch of people complaining about each other and how they got into that mess... for 60 hours!!!

Sure, that might have happened a couple times in other FF's, but it was only in a couple scenes per game max. While FFXIII's story revolves around that whole concept of pointless drama chit-chat!!!

If you guys weren't so focused on trolling my comment, you would have actually been able to provide smart counterpoints instead of FUD.

+ Show (4) more repliesLast reply 5139d ago
redDevil875140d ago (Edited 5140d ago )

Marius you have the most random avatars lol

On topic: They dropped the ball when they didn't add towns and an airship.

mikeslemonade5140d ago

People seem to forget that it's not Square Enix's fault. It's Microsoft's fault. If Final Fantasy 13 was exclusive it would be a contender for game of the year.

SOAD5140d ago

Stop drinking motor oil.

If the only thing that matters for GOTY contenders is visuals, then yeah, FF13 may have been a contender if it didn't go multiplat.

The game was going to suck anyway.

R6ex5139d ago

FFXIII didn't even come to Asia for the Xbox 360!

Damn!!!

Been waiting for it ever since & SE screwed us at the very last moment.

iamtehpwn5140d ago

I'm sure the other whole game that was cut from FFXIII because of 360 was great....

edgeofblade5140d ago

Blaming the decision on making a poorly paced, linear piece of junk to play on 360... that was also a poorly paced, linear piece of much prettier junk on the PS3?

Sure, that makes a lot of sense. Let's blame an eskimo taking a wizz on the ice for the ice caps melting. I'm sure it's easier.

In my opinion, SquareEnix has lost their touch. This is a widely held opinion, and you might not agree with it, but lets not blame anything except the game. It's their own damn fault they released it the way they did.

darthv725140d ago

we can speculate all we want and say it was the 360 that caused SE to make this game the way it is. However, we really dont know if the game was the way it is because that was the idea from the beginning. Long before the 360 version was even announced, the ps3 version was in development and yet we were all excited about it and didnt pay attention to whether or not the game was turing out like it has.

Blame the 360 or blame SE but it seems obvious that we dont want to accept that maybe...just maybe...this was the original design/idea for this game.

Would this same kind of public backlash be present had there not been a 360 version and the game still came out the way it is? That is just hypothetical and yet we will never know nor would we even take the word of the developer if they came out and said this was the design from the get go.

That part is just human nature to be skeptical about things we think we have an understanding of.

sikbeta5140d ago (Edited 5140d ago )

Sorry, But SE DROPPED The Ball since the Beginning of This Gen, Failed after Failed Game, trying to westernize their Franchises, Don't Supporting they Fans, FF13 was just a Fail-Limit reached...

Better SE don't F*ck FFvs13...

AAACE55140d ago

I can't help but wonder, if FFXIII had have stayed exclusive to Ps3 and released exactly the way it is now. Wwould it have been considered as bad as it is, or would fans just accept it as the growing pains of trying to breath new life into an old franchise.

Alot of people believe that FFXII sucked, but because it was still exclusive to Ps2, they just accepted it as a growing pain.

Now that there is talk of FFXIII versus possibly coming to 360, people are starting to downplay the game. Even though, these are the same people who said it would be alot better than FFXIII. And the same people who said FFXIII would be the greatest game this gen before it was announced as a multiplat.

CLOUD19835139d ago

wtf r u saying man? most of the ppl believe that FFXII sucks including me, if a game suck it just suck and ppl will say it how is it possible to say that u like a game just because it have FF on its name and it's exclusive that's bullsh1t..

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Godmars2905141d ago

After hearing that Square doesn't consider story important in making a JRPG, apparently haven't for years, Have to say they dropped the ball long before XIII.

Really worry for vsXIII.

Bodyboarder_VGamer5140d ago

I trust Nomura, Kingdom Hearts story was nice. I like convoluted stories because it makes me find them intriguing with many points to argue with other people over the forums.

edgeofblade5140d ago (Edited 5140d ago )

Last Square game that genuinely enthralled me was, ironically, also the first to do so. Chrono Trigger.

@Below: I was... in my pre-teens.

Yeah, I know that. CT wasn't exactly "cinematic", but it was certainly deep enough, gameplay-wise, and the story was developed at least as well as a decent anime. But I can say that, having replayed the DS version, the same has still aged very well.

Montrealien5140d ago

I am curious edge of blade, how old where you when you first played Chrono Trigger? And keeping that in mind, imagine you where 12 kid, and you where picking up FF13 as your first square soft game, would you be so critical on it as many seem to be today?

We have to stop comparing current games to our first games we fell in love with, no game will ever be better then those games. ever.

DaTruth5140d ago

My friend's 16 yr old daughter was flipping out over FF13.

Incognegro5140d ago

I'm sorry...but that's about one of the dumbest things I've heard in a while.

Of course people are going to compare the games this generation with their predecessors. They have that right. And if games can't turn out better than what they were in the past then something is wrong. The industry is supposed to move forward, not backwards.

I really don't care how kids look at games this generation. If they think that it's the best thing since slice bread, more power to them, but I can't hold their opinion to a higher regard since their tastes in games haven't spanned across generations. So it makes more sense to me to hear someone say why a game that pushes more power but still fall flat when compare to another game that's roughly 2 to 3 generations old. Yea, there may be some bias there, but if it's apparent that some things weren't done correctly in a new attempt, what's wrong with bringing up something older that seemed to hit on almost all cylinders?

I apologize if I seem to have taken a shot at you, but I just can't agree with that notion what so ever... Doesn't make any sense to me at all.

VersusEM5141d ago

Final Fantasy XIII to me was pretty badass, I beat it first in March, and I'm still playing it, great characters(except for Vanille & Hope at the beginning but not in the middle when he man's up) The graphics were good, so was the battle system which is kinda hard to get used to at first but with a couple of battles anyone can easily learn it. The story was good(not as good as VI) but still good.

Most people say it's bad because either it's "not as good as VII" or its "linarity" but get this, VII had linarity too, and most people think 13 was good according to the sales.

ClownBelt5140d ago (Edited 5140d ago )

I agree. Here's a bubble

Bodyboarder_VGamer5140d ago

Many people bought the game because they are fans of the series not because it was a good or bad game. I bought the game, beat it and it was a disappointment.

I was always bashing XII because of the story that was too much into politics and very little drama but after playing XIII things changed. XII at least had a huge world with many side quests, weapons, espers and challenges. You say that you're still playing FFXIII after beating it but I don't believe because Pulse it's empty. Pulse doesn't has anything else to offers beside 60(something) repetitive missions and the rest of the game is just a boring corridor.

OutgoingSquall5140d ago (Edited 5140d ago )

I liked ff13 it's not my favorite ff but I enjoyed it but yeah ff12 was so so so so much better ff 12 Is a massive game with a fishing mini game cool hunts I killed yiazmat man that game is awesome I still turn it on to this day to look at my hot weapons.

darthdevidem015140d ago

I agree its my 2nd fav game of the gen

MGS4 > ALL though

BeaArthur5140d ago

Agreed, I enjoyed it. People just don't like to accept change.

TheStorm5140d ago

Not all change is good. I've been playing Square games since the NES days, and sometimes "if it aint broke don't fix it" you can evolve it but not completely gut it.

Super Mario Galaxy 2 is a great example of evolving but keeping to the roots and knowing if it works than keep doing it. FFXIII was too simple, and just bare to the bones. It left behind the most important aspects of a FF game. If change means cutting out everything from the game then yes count me out of liking change.

To me I don't have a problem if people liked this game, hell I bought it. But like the author said, they should have just called it something else instead of using the FF name to give it sales.

But honestly SE have been just going downwards. I use to buy their games because I wanted a JRPG. Now that's not the case, they are trying to be like everyone else in a very over saturated market. And its problematic. What's worse is SE does not seem to care, they just think they know best. And they understand the fans.

Whether or not one likes it most can agree it has had quite a negative vibe about it. People are getting tired of them running away from what makes the game. It's cool if they want to make FF games with different kind of mechanics Mario does it. But the problem still remains that SE put this game in the main area of the FF franchise which it should never have been. I think reviewers would have been more honest and less hyped about it if so. But it would be like taking a typical Super Mario game and taking out all the platforming elements and giving it an automatic jump system and just watching it unfold.

Change does not=good. Especially when that change is taking out all the core aspects of the game that made it so popular for 20 years.

BeaArthur5139d ago

Again, people don't like change. Your opinion on the matter is subjective (just like mine). The game is not actually good or bad, it's just our perception of the game. I know for a fact that a lot of people ragging on it didn't even play it. They saw that it was different and started hating on it.

dgroundwater5140d ago

I have a feeling I'm gonna agree with you guys. From what I've seen it looks cool. It's not a traditional JRPG and that's the simple truth.

rexus123455140d ago

agree
I enjoyed the game a lot, especially its fast-paced combat (contributed by removing towns and some other traditional RPG elements)
I think only Final Fantasy or JRPG "purist" don't like this game because it changed so much.

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moho-foe5140d ago (Edited 5140d ago )

Other FF games could not put down, this one I could not pick up. Just sold it for Red Dead FTW...

Oh the games flaws are SE fault not the Xbox I will probably not buy another game from them.

JD_Shadow5140d ago

It was MS's fault because SE really, REALLY wanted to make the game fit on just three DVD9 discs and cut and compress stuff so that could happen. This didn't happen until AFTER (AFTER!) the multiplatform announcement. We didn't hear anything about the no towns, linear gameplay, or the whole thing about things being cut from the game until after the shoulder tap.

It's SE's fault, though, for allowing themselves to get into bed with MS to begin with.

So, in reality, it's good to blame BOTH of them, not just one or the other, for the game not being AS good as it could've been.

Thing is, we see all of this, and then some people STILL wonder why people were squeamish from that mess that Wada's gaff made last week (go ahead, GoFanboy, and make another article whining about how people are saying something about THAT possibility that you don't want to hear).

pat_11_55140d ago

The game it's self seemed ridiculously flawed design wise. It has little to do with the fact that the game was on Xbox at all.

Bodyboarder_VGamer5140d ago (Edited 5140d ago )

But the truth is that we'll never know... The pace and linearity aspects of the game were way too convinient for the X360 version, Square did not took advantage of blu-ray. We had the entire game on a single disc but we couldn't return to prior areas not even by menu and Pulse (open-world) was conveniently placed at the end (3rd disc of the X360 version).

FFXIII was a huge disappointment for the fans. This was a game made for casuals and people that aren't fans of Jrpg. Westernisation? Probably.

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70°

The 7 Best Final Fantasy Characters: Unveiling the Legends

While FFVII ranks highly, there's more to the series than one game. Here's Chit Hot's picks for the seven best Final Fantasy characters.

220°

The older it gets, the more I respect Final Fantasy XIII

Alex Donaldson: "Hindsight is a hell of a thing, however, and in the years since Final Fantasy XIII, my respect for the decisions its developers made has skyrocketed. In the two Final Fantasy titles since we see both the brilliance and the folly in alternative approaches - and in Final Fantasy VII Remake, we get a more nuanced understanding of what FF13 was trying to accomplish from many of the same development leads."

Einhander1972183d ago

FFXIII is actually one of the best Final Fantasy games.

I also sort of was disappointed at the time, never as much as the bandwagon. But really all the fantastic 3D rendered cutscenes and I actually liked the characters and the story though convoluted was actually fantastic and the ending was extremely emotional. So much budget and time were put into that game Square had such big plans, I actually have always felt kind of bad for how things played out.

I have been thinking for years how great it would be to get all three games on one disk for PS4 or 5.

Nyxus183d ago

I always liked this game, and I agree, a rerelease for current gen would be nice.

Shane Kim181d ago (Edited 181d ago )

Gotta take off the nostalgia glasses. It's the worst FF. Shiva as a bike, I mean come on.

Elda181d ago

Shiva as a bike is strange but saying FFXIII is the worst FF is not at all a fact, that's simply your opinion.

Terry_B181d ago

*One of the 3 equally bad FF's

DivineHand125181d ago (Edited 181d ago )

When I got my series X a year ago, I bought FF13 for nostalgia reasons but ended up being disappointed. When I first played it around the time it launched, I didn't have a lot of experience with final fantasy games, so I enjoyed it. Fast forward to when I played it again, I found that the game had many unnecessary filler moments instead of just giving us meaningful content.

The game is also very linear and a quote on the article said it best. "It is like a sewage pipe that leads to the ocean until it opens up on Grand Pulse."

The story didn't make much sense either and I believe it is my mistake as I played the FF7 remake on PS5 prior which is a night and day difference in terms of pacing, storytelling and likeable characters even though cloud is aloof.

FinalFantasyFanatic181d ago (Edited 181d ago )

Probably was a mistake to play any of the golden era FFs first (e.g. FF6 through FF10), it makes it harder to enjoy some of the FFs that aren't as good. I think FF12 was where major issues with the series started becoming apparent, and it just got worse from there.

FinalFantasyFanatic181d ago (Edited 181d ago )

I didn't really care for it that much, the only saving grace was that it had a better story than 15 (overall it was better than 15) and possibly 12, and even then, you had to read some of it through primers, like reading a book. Plus the battle system was reasonably fun for what it was, even if it was more the spectacle that was exciting for me (e.g. summoning). And to be fair, the 13 trilogy got better with every games, I still don't like Snow though.

Gamingsince1981181d ago

Ff13 is only good if you haven't played a ff before, or any other games that are decent for that matter.

-Foxtrot181d ago

It is in fact no way the best Final Fantasy game, it's one of the worst

Linear corridors, Cutscene, Fight, Cutscene...rinse and repeat

Dialogue and characters are pretty bad, especially Lightning as the main FF hero, they literally said they tried to make a "Female Cloud" and they failed.

Story was pretty awful

I could go on

I think the only alright thing that came from the game was the music.

Elda180d ago

That's not a fact that's your personal opinion. The game sold 11 million copies between its 2009 release up until 2014 including critically reviewed as an 8 out of 10 or an 80 out of 100. The game does have some issues but it's not at all a fact as one of the worst FF games.

-Foxtrot180d ago

Elda

Not just mine mate

A large majority

So….

Traecy180d ago

N4G commenters such as yourself aren't the majority. The game was well received.

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gold_drake183d ago (Edited 183d ago )

i liked the game alot but i didnt like how they handled the terminology.

i dont mind reading data logs but it had soo many.

but i always loved the music and how it looked. the battle system wasnt too bad either.

but i like 13-2 more :)

i still dont understand why we never got a remaster of the trilogy

Eonjay181d ago

Xbox kinda did. Besides the video files of course which are still best on PS3 due to bluray.

Snookies12183d ago

XIII is a pretty solid game, but XIII-2 is WAY better. XIII-2 was one of the few games I decided to go for a Platinum trophy in, early on. Had so much fun the entire way through getting it too!

Eonjay181d ago

Totally agree. FF 13 was okay but 13-2 is my favorite FF game ever.

shinoff2183183d ago (Edited 183d ago )

I hated this to when it released. I haven't much liked a ff game since ff10 as much , aside from ff7remake. I decided to give it another shot on my series x since it's not on a current ps and was liking it quite a bit(just takes me some time to get over things ) until star ocean 2 remake came out I was all over that.

Square should definitely remaster it or something for ps4 ps5

KillerB181d ago

my favorite jrpg trilogy ever

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70°

Interview: Making music with Masashi Hamauzu

Square Enix Blog: "How do you compose iconic songs that help define a legacy? We speak to legendary composer Masashi Hamauzu about his work on Final Fantasy X, Final Fantasy XIII, and Final Fantasy VII Remake, and how to make unforgettable music."

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