When I think back to my time spent with Final Fantasy X on Playstation 2, remembering all of the joy and goodness that I garnered from that experience and compare it to the awful memories of the dull and lacklustre Final Fantasy X-2 (the franchises first ever direct sequel), there was a world of difference between the two. This previous disappointing experience has stayed with me and as such, it was in the same spirit and mindset that had me approach Final Fantasy XIII-2 with a great deal of trepidation. Now after playing through Final Fantasy XIII-2, the verdict is in. Was the wary approach really warranted? Let's find out.
Final Fantasy XIII-2 sees players inhabit the body of Lightning's (Final Fantasy XIII's main protagonist) sister, Serah in her very own narrative that spans a range of familiar and not so familiar places for XIII veterans. The l'Cie crew have disbanded following the events of the previous game and Lightning has disappeared without trace. After Serah has a premonition about her sister alive and in conflict, a meteor coincidentally appears in the night sky bringing with it monsters, time distortions and Noel, a mysterious stranger from the end of days. Noel delivers an SOS message from Lightning prompting Serah to set out on an epic journey through time to find her sister and to bring her home.
In making a comparison to Final Fantasy XIII, Final Fantasy XIII-2 makes a number of refinements to the gameplay in order to provide players with something that is new, yet strikingly familiar. In response to many of the criticisms laid against its predecessor, the rigidly linear gameplay has been replaced by several, smaller game worlds that feel much more open and explorable, there are multiple 'town' hubs from which players can pick up side quests, talk to random NPCs or buy goods, multiple difficulty levels to cater for beginners or those who get stuck on one of the games tougher bosses, and additionally players can now save the game at any time from the main menu, which means no more waiting for those accursed save points! These enhancements are all excellent additions to the game and would arguably have made Final Fantasy XIII a much more enjoyable experience.
Rather than having a large ensemble cast of characters to support the central narrative, the latest title focuses solely on the travels and developing friendship between Serah and Noel as they navigate different time periods and alternate universes. Whilst there is the occasional cameo from the original game's heroes, the overall result is a shorter and somewhat weaker story than the previous title, but one that still shapes gameplay well and keeps players interested in moving forward.
Also making an appearance in Final Fantasy XIII-2 is a moogle, named Mog who attaches itself to the main duo and provides a number of functions. Mog can detect and reveal invisible objects in the immediate area and can also be thrown by either party member to obtain out of reach treasure chests. It is also responsible for the moogle clock, and on-screen meter which activates when enemies spawn and counts down. If players are able to strike an enemy before time runs out, the party will perform a pre-emptive attack and start the battle with a good number of buffs active – always a plus!
Fans of the series know that one of the most crucial elements of any Final Fantasy game is the game's combat system. Final Fantasy XIII-2 features the same style of live action combat as experienced in XIII albeit with a number of improvements. Due to the game only featuring two main characters, the game makes the interesting move to allow players to recruit vanquished monsters to join their party in an attempt to balance the odds. As with the original, characters can take on one of six different roles during combat, whether it be the melee heavy Commando, the magic-welding Ravager, the damage sponge that is the sentinel, the buffers (Synergist) and debuffers (Saboteur) or the self-explanatory Medic. Each role has its own strengths, weaknesses and unique abilities that play a part in the games combat.
The true tactical aspect of the games combat lies in the paradigm system. Paradigms are groups consisting of three characters, each inhabiting one or more of the aforementioned roles. The game encourages players to experiment by mixing and matching the various roles to create and customise the perfect set ups for different situations. As players can store up to six paradigms at once, it is possible to shift during battle to respond to unfolding circumstances. It is a great system and although it polarised many fans in Final Fantasy XIII (and likely will again), it is extremely entertaining to watch and does its job admirably.
Perhaps the greatest departure from Final Fantasy XIII is the presence of the Historia Crux, which is essentially a level select menu that allows players to view, choose and revisit various locations and timelines that have become available as the game progresses. Players are also able to reset each of the different locations they have previously completed in order to allow them to replay some of those memorable boss battles and story sequences. To supplement the core story locations, with a little exploration players can also find and unlock many additional realms to navigate in the Historia Crux by collecting fragments, making certain story choices or by completing various side-missions.
In addition to the 25 hour campaign Final Fantasy XIII-2 features a number of side-missions that help to keep things fresh and interesting throughout. The game features a much more streamlined approach to the levelling system which makes level progression feel more player involved, some unique puzzle rooms that break up the flow of the game nicely, the occasional well implemented quicktime events (QTEs), a conversation mechanic and an Alan Wake style story recap when players load up their saved game. As with any J-RPG worth talking about, Final fantasy XIII-2 also boasts a tonne of end-game content to have players stick around well after they take down the final boss.
The presentation of the game exudes polish and as fans have come to expect from any Final Fantasy title the graphics are superb, with finely detailed character and enemy models, beautiful surroundings to explore, fantastic battle effects and those top shelf CGI videos that are sprinkled liberally throughout the storyline that players can't help but salivate over a little. By comparison, the aural side of things is a bit of a mixed bag. Whilst the voice acting is quite good, the music is a little questionable. With a soundtrack featuring an abundance of J-pop and scream-saturated metal numbers, many of the stalwart Final fantasy tunes are either missing all together or butchered almost beyond recognition, which is a bit of a shame.
There are a few negatives to run through though as final fantasy XIII-2 is by no means a perfect game. Firstly for a J-RPG it is fairly short, clocking in at 20 – 25 hours, it also has a terribly confusing story and although it has some fantastic moments, leaves players hanging with a 'to be continued...' at the end. The music choice was also not what you would expect from a Final Fantasy game and at times it just doesn't gel with the on-screen shenanigans. In addition, whilst the time travel was implemented quite well, some areas are revisited up to four times in different time periods and the lay of the land remained mostly unchanged each time with just the odd change to weather patterns, resulting in a feeling of repetition. Perhaps if the title featured a fewer number of repeated areas and instead created a couple of more unique regions, the game would have been a little more enjoyable.
Final Fantasy XIII-2 is a great game and is arguably the best J-RPG title Square-Enix has produced in the last few years. With this game, they have improved upon just about every aspect of Final Fantasy XIII. The game feels more open, the combat feels more refined, the crystarium and levelling process feels more involved and the recruitable monsters made an interesting addition to proceedings. Unfortunately though, whilst being an extremely polished and enjoyable experience it is let down by a confusing, somewhat underwhelming story that may have the worst ending of any game in Final Fantasy history. Overall, Final Fantasy XIII-2 is a massive improvement over its predecessor and with more than 25 hours of gameplay and countless more if players feel inclined to track down all of those pesky shards, collect the best weapons and down all the end-game bosses, it is certainly a title with some immense staying power. After Final Fantasy XIII, Final Fantasy XIII-2 is definitely a step in the right direction and I personally can't wait to see where Square Enix decides to take the series next.
Story: 7/10 – The story has some memorable moments, but the majority is confusing, silly and just can't hold a candle to some of Final Fantasy's previous games.
Gameplay: 9/10 – The paradigm battle system is back, more refined and better than ever. The addition of recruitable monsters adds another dimension to battles, whilst the non-linear story progression, presence of minigames and side-quests are all welcome additions.
Graphics: 9.5/10 – As with any Final Fantasy game, the characters design is excellent, the detail in the various environments is excellent and the CGI cut-scenes are stunning as always.
Audio: 8/10 – the voice acting is well done along with most of the music, however some of the background tracks are a little on the cringe-worthy side.
Overall:
