[Len swann]

Unnofficial Final Fantasy and JRPG Thread IV

1. This thread is for discussion about JRPG's (with a bit more emphasis on the Final Fantasy series). If you are not a fan of JRPG's or the Final Fantasy series this is not the place for you

2. Use Spoiler tags when necessary. Although some games you talk about may be a bit older other people may not have played them yet

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http://na.square-enix.com/ffxiii-2/

http://www.finalfantasyxiv.com/

And for all your Final Fantasy needs

http://finalfantasy.wikia.com/wiki/Final_Fantasy_Wiki

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http://www.gamesas.com/bgsforums/index.php?showtopic=1069104

http://www.gamesas.com/index.php?/topic/1080659-unnofficial-final-fantasy-thread-ii/page__p__15737160&#entry15737160

http://www.gamesas.com/index.php?/topic/1086247-unnofficial-final-fantasy-thread-iii/

A couple of new Final Fantasy XIII-2 screenshots popped up today confirming Serah and Noel as playable characters. I suppose they could be considered spoilers, but nothing too serious.

http://cache.gawker.com/assets/images/comment/9/2011/06/ae59cbd312b603cd7c0827116c39c5a0/original.jpg
http://cache.gawker.com/assets/images/comment/9/2011/06/5bed88bf7ecc53e48d43331f013bb44d/original.jpg

Really digging Noel's design.

Serah as a playable character!?

:wub:

[Far'ed K.G.h.m]

Serah as a playable character!?

:wub:

It looks like Noel is coming to her rescue in that scene, so she might not end up being a permanent fixture (i.e. the Beatrix/Steiner battle segment in IX). Then again, it'd be kinda silly not to keep her playable if she's gonna be on this quest to find Lightning.

They need to take a note from Final Fantasy VI and give us huge casts of playable characters.

[The Time Car]

It looks like XIII-2 is going to have the same battle system as it's predecessor. Why they ever moved away from XII's perfect battling system is beyond me. I'll definitely have to read reviews before I get XIII-2 because the way it looks right now it's going to end up like X-2, a game that could've had great potential but they screwed it up.

[Casey]

It looks like Noel is coming to her rescue in that scene, so she might not end up being a permanent fixture (i.e. the Beatrix/Steiner battle segment in IX). Then again, it'd be kinda silly not to keep her playable if she's gonna be on this quest to find Lightning.

The only question is: Where's Snow? :shifty:

It looks like XIII-2 is going to have the same battle system as it's predecessor. Why they ever moved away from XII's perfect battling system is beyond me. I'll definitely have to read reviews before I get XIII-2 because the way it looks right now it's going to end up like X-2, a game that could've had great potential but they screwed it up.

They've already said that they weren't going to go in the same direction as FFX-2. This will be darker and have a more serious tone.

IMO the battle system in FFXII was far from perfect. I found FFXIII's to be much better and more traditional to the Final Fantasy series while adding a few new elements to it. The fast pace made battles fun and more difficult.

[Vera Maslar]

They've already said that they weren't going to go in the same direction as FFX-2. This will be darker and have a more serious tone.

IMO the battle system in FFXII was far from perfect. I found FFXIII's to be much better and more traditional to the Final Fantasy series while adding a few new elements to it. The fast pace made battles fun and more difficult.

13's battle system is ok but not great. It's a good battle system I just prefer 12's system. I loved that battle system, it was a lot of fun to play although I do agree it was far from what you expect in a Final Fantasy.

Hopefully 13-2 is not as linear, has real towns/stores, and I have an opportunity to grind with all the characters early on instead of at the 3/4 marker.

[Brandon Wilson]

I'm most excited for Versus XIII. That game looks promising. Do we know how XIII-2 will actually differ from XIII, yet? The gameworld's linear design is a must-solve, for me. Do we know ANYTHING about Kingdom Hearts III, yet?

[Crystal Clarke]

I remember the days when Final Fantasy didn't svck. When graphics svcked and gameplay rocked. Not when graphics rocked and gameplay svcked.

As far as i'm concerned, I hope they do the same thing to FFXIII-2 as they did to FFXIII. Maybe then the FF franchise can finally die in peace. I'm almost heartbroken watching my childhood series grow into an abomination of such epic proportions, that video-game reviews actually became well known for reviewing just a single game from the FF series.

R.I.P FF [1-9], I salute you.

[Nicole Kraus]

I remember the days when Final Fantasy didn't svck. When graphics svcked and gameplay rocked. Not when graphics rocked and gameplay svcked.

As far as i'm concerned, I hope they do the same thing to FFXIII-2 as they did to FFXIII. Maybe then the FF franchise can finally die in peace. I'm almost heartbroken watching my childhood series grow into an abomination of such epic proportions, that video-game reviews actually became well known for reviewing just a single game from the FF series.

R.I.P FF [1-9], I salute you.

Yeah I have to agree 1-12 were pretty good but 13 really put a sour taste in my mouth. I love the characters especially Lightning but the linear gameplay and inferior battle system is a huge turnoff. Heck I haven't completed a 2nd playthrough of FF13 yet for that reason it's too linear.

[SiLa]

I'm probably gonna be picking up both Versus and -2. I still have yet to beat XIII though, I gotta get around to that sometime. I think the game is fun, but it's just not as Final Fantasy as I want it to be I suppose. Hopefully -2 and versus are a bit more open worlded like previous incarnations.

[Romy Welsch]

I've just started playing through VI, about an hour in. I absolutely adored VII, didn't like IX that much. I heard VI was meant to be brilliant and have one of the most epic moments in gaming (hard to beat VII's you know what moment). But hey, i'm gonna enjoy this game i think.

[luis ortiz]

Yeah I have to agree 1-12 were pretty good but 13 really put a sour taste in my mouth. I love the characters especially Lightning but the linear gameplay and inferior battle system is a huge turnoff. Heck I haven't completed a 2nd playthrough of FF13 yet for that reason it's too linear.

For me it died at X. While I think the story to VIII was one of the worst, it was still a decent game by FF standards for being the second fully rendered game in the series. But X was just bad. The combat system was really well done, but it lacked for skill development [spheregrid was stupid. gave the illusion of making your characters unique], and the story was pretty standard.

XII I will admit was nicely done for what they attempted. It's got some awesome characters as well.

XIII ended the franchise entirely for me. The combat was [censored] STUPID, the characters were STUPID. The only GOOD character [censored] DIES in the game. Seriously? You kill of the ONLY character most people even liked?
I don't even REMEMBER what the story was anymore, which is bad considering a game for me revolves entirely around story. I can recite stories from 1995 videogames. This killed it.

I've just started playing through VI, about an hour in. I absolutely adored VII, didn't like IX that much. I heard VI was meant to be brilliant and have one of the most epic moments in gaming (hard to beat VII's you know what moment). But hey, i'm gonna enjoy this game i think.

For me, the Story wasn't to good. It was awesome up until a certain point. But it all falls together in a cluster with most every other common RPG plot ever. The characters, combat system and general exploration factor of the game, however, made it one of the best for me. To this day I still play FFVII up until disk 3, then I stop, because the rest of the game was kind of lazily done. I still love it though.

VI has an all around good story. I think I know the 'epic moment' in gaming that it's referring to, but I won't spoil it.

[Hella Beast]

XII is the only Final Fantasy that I genuinely dislike. While I'm no fan of the combat, I'd probably be singing a different tune had the story been decent. Unfortunately I thought it was terrible, handily beaten by even much simpler plots from most SNES-era RPGs. I'd like to think that had Matsuno stayed on things would have turned out much better.

I'd actually call XIII a huge step in the right direction after XII. The combat needs some tweaking and a bit more depth, storytelling (not the actual story itself) needs some work and they have to address the linearity. I don't necessarily mean turning it into The Elder Scrolls, because I feel that that level of freedom actually hampers the game, but more open areas, some winding paths, etc. would be nice.

Now that I think about XIII's combat, my main complaint was Staggering. It wasn't a mechanic I cared for. Interestingly enough, http://www.ff-xiii.net/images/media/4de7bf8a_FF132.jpg. Perhaps they've scrapped the Stagger system?

Anyway, Versus XIII looks to me like it'll be the game that gets the series back on its feet. Well, maybe not. For some reason people have sworn off the entire series rather than judge each game by its own merit. We can deduce quite a few things from the Versus XIII TGS 2010 trailer:

-While it doesn't appear that you can issue commands to your party members, you can http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YiIx9VJWSl8&feature=player_detailpage#t=285s.
-There is, at the very least, more exploration than XIII. On multiple occasions you can see Noctis http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YiIx9VJWSl8&feature=player_detailpage#t=285s in large open areas.

Regarding the fields, it's not a completely open world. It's like the 2D FF games but in 3D. Players will find a big world map with vast fields where the they will be able to explore as far as the eye can reach except the mountains. Terrain diversity is much more detailed and vast than in Final Fantasy XIII.

Not to mention Kingdom Hearts' combat is awesome, and the game has a slick style.

[Matthew Barrows]

XII is the only Final Fantasy that I genuinely dislike. While I'm no fan of the combat, I'd probably be singing a different tune had the story been decent. Unfortunately I thought it was terrible, handily beaten by even much simpler plots from most SNES-era RPGs. I'd like to think that had Matsuno stayed on things would have turned out much better.

They would. They really, really would. Even the gameplay was changed in his absence, after a year and a few months of high pressure. Yeah, not being able to do what you want and know can be right, instead forced to tread the old paths again and again and again, just because some white collars above you think that this is right, and the people you actually want to deliver to don't... I see how that can make you physically sick.


I lay my trust in Versus XIII - even though that is just a spin-off. After all, the best thing with FF in its title is still a spin-off, that being Tactics.

[Mashystar]

Yeah I rather liked the combat of XIII, challenging but not too challenging. I didn't mind XII's combat to be honest, although my favorite is probably X's. Even if the main point of it was unusable because you overpowered everything (besides when you first learn about the combat and the special monsters)..I liked being able to see when who's turn would come up..it let me plan ahead.

[keri seymour]

XII is the only Final Fantasy that I genuinely dislike. While I'm no fan of the combat, I'd probably be singing a different tune had the story been decent. Unfortunately I thought it was terrible, handily beaten by even much simpler plots from most SNES-era RPGs. I'd like to think that had Matsuno stayed on things would have turned out much better.

I'd actually call XIII a huge step in the right direction after XII. The combat needs some tweaking and a bit more depth, storytelling (not the actual story itself) needs some work and they have to address the linearity. I don't necessarily mean turning it into The Elder Scrolls, because I feel that that level of freedom actually hampers the game, but more open areas, some winding paths, etc. would be nice.

Now that I think about XIII's combat, my main complaint was Staggering. It wasn't a mechanic I cared for. Interestingly enough, http://www.ff-xiii.net/images/media/4de7bf8a_FF132.jpg. Perhaps they've scrapped the Stagger system?

Anyway, Versus XIII looks to me like it'll be the game that gets the series back on its feet. Well, maybe not. For some reason people have sworn off the entire series rather than judge each game by its own merit. We can deduce quite a few things from the Versus XIII TGS 2010 trailer:

-While it doesn't appear that you can issue commands to your party members, you can http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YiIx9VJWSl8&feature=player_detailpage#t=285s.
-There is, at the very least, more exploration than XIII. On multiple occasions you can see Noctis http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YiIx9VJWSl8&feature=player_detailpage#t=285s in large open areas.



Not to mention Kingdom Hearts' combat is awesome, and the game has a slick style.

Most games, old and new, boil down to being the exact same thing story wise. So not sure I fully agree with your complaint about XII's story.

And not sure why you think XIII is a step in the right direction? It took away all open-world exploration that Final Fantasy was known for. Character customization is non-existent.. it's an even worse version of X's spheregrid. And again, combat and story go way to off course.

I don't judge this series based on one game. I judge them on a game-by-game basis, but i'v about had it with the downhill route the series has taken. They've been sacrificing the heart and soul of what FF games were to try to make 'improvements which meet next gen quality', which ends up being 'AWESOME GRAPHICS, NO STORY LUL'

[Beulah Bell]

And not sure why you think XIII is a step in the right direction? It took away all open-world exploration that Final Fantasy was known for. Character customization is non-existent.. it's an even worse version of X's spheregrid. And again, combat and story go way to off course.

In terms of story, characters, setting, development and combat, I felt that it was better than XII, and, as such, a step in the right direction. I suppose "huge" step was a bit of an exaggeration, as these elements still fell far short of the post-PlayStation titles, but it indicated a possible return to styles and themes that I much preferred to XII.

I simply didn't care for XII's ADB battle system, and the License Board was essentially a much, much more annoying Sphere Grid. It was the single worst concept for growing characters' abilities that I've ever seen. I'd rather have completely automated development than be forced to suffer through something like that again. And character "customization" has been near non-existent the entire series, typically involving picking which equipment and abilities/spells to use and learn. Materia, Junction, IX's equipment-based system, Sphere Grid, etc. all have something in common. That is, while allowing more experienced players the chance to really beef up their characters, there isn't a massive amount of depth to any of them.

Besides, I'm not excusing XIII's shortcomings, merely that at its core, it has a lot of good things going for it. Plus, I did say in my post that all of these things need improvement. In all honesty, if they could simply drop Stagger from combat while re-introducing MP management, retain character design, take XII's level design (its greatest strength), and hire a few editors, I'd have nary a complaint about the direction Final Fantasy is taking.

[Siobhan Wallis-McRobert]

In terms of story, characters, setting, development and combat, I felt that it was better than XII, and, as such, a step in the right direction. I suppose "huge" step was a bit of an exaggeration, as these elements still fell far short of the post-PlayStation titles, but it indicated a possible return to styles and themes that I much preferred to XII.

I simply didn't care for XII's ADB battle system, and the License Board was essentially a much, much more annoying Sphere Grid. It was the single worst concept for growing characters' abilities that I've ever seen. I'd rather have completely automated development than be forced to suffer through something like that again. And character "customization" has been near non-existent the entire series, typically involving picking which equipment and abilities/spells to use and learn. Materia, Junction, IX's equipment-based system, Sphere Grid, etc. all have something in common. That is, while allowing more experienced players the chance to really beef up their characters, there isn't a massive amount of depth to any of them.

Besides, I'm not excusing XIII's shortcomings, merely that at its core, it has a lot of good things going for it. Plus, I did say in my post that all of these things need improvement. In all honesty, if they could simply drop Stagger from combat while re-introducing MP management, retain character design, take XII's level design (its greatest strength), and hire a few editors, I'd have nary a complaint about the direction Final Fantasy is taking.

I disagree with you about XII's battle system, I don't really see any problems with it but I do agree with you about the license board, that was a joke. I hope 13-2 is less linear, more open worlded, actual towns/stores this time around, and a better battle system.

[SexyPimpAss]

I disagree with you about XII's battle system, I don't really see any problems with it but I do agree with you about the license board, that was a joke. I hope 13-2 is less linear, more open worlded, actual towns/stores this time around, and a better battle system.

The actual combat wasn't a bad system by any stretch of the imagination, but it wasn't what I was looking for in a JRPG. I had also spent nearly five years at this point playing Final Fantasy XI, which features a combat system that was essentially XII's, only online. It worked well online, communicating with other players rather than using Gambits, and it just lost the appeal in the offline space. In fact, XII in general had this MMO-esque aer about it that was a turnoff for me.

Who knows, maybe if I'd never played XI I would have liked XII's combat more.

I lay my trust in Versus XIII - even though that is just a spin-off. After all, the best thing with FF in its title is still a spin-off, that being Tactics.

It may be a spin-off, but not in the traditional sense. It's arguably being treated as a main entry even more so than XIII was. XIII was always a good looking game, but from that TGS trailer Versus just looks so polished across the board, and Square seems to be giving it all the time in the world (much like all of Nomura's projects). I have a feeling that it'll end up being the "true" Final Fantasy XIII, so to speak.

However, I don't necessarily like Nomura having such pull in Square. I love Kingdom Hearts and he's a talented man, but I think he and Kitase contribute quite a bit to Square's internal strife. They have such lofty goals and get way ahead of themselves, fumbling resources and forcing every one of their games into what I can only imagine is development hell. I hope they realize this and learn to focus their resources on fewer, but more well-rounded projects in the future.

[Donald Richards]

I think FFXII was a huge step in the right direction after FFX and FFXI (didn't really care about those two at all). There are things I didn't like with the game though, like Vaan or the License Board, but overall I think it was superb. Then FFXIII and FFXIV arrived and removed all that progress to the extreme.

[Sasha Brown]

I dunno about you guys but FFX followed by X-2 pretty much killed my interest in the series. I would have gone out of my way to keep my PS2 and PS3 otherwise.

Other than that, I love the plots, oft plots-within-plots, prevalent in games preceding FFX, and a simple, laid-back semi-linear style of play.

[LuBiE LoU]

Erm.... I noticed this on IGN's E3 schedule:

Super Secret Game #1 | 5:20pm
Super Secret Remake | 5:40pm
Super Secret Game #2 | 6:00pm

Final Fantasy VII remake anyone? Finally announced?

[Annick Charron]

Erm.... I noticed this on IGN's E3 schedule:

Super Secret Game #1 | 5:20pm
Super Secret Remake | 5:40pm
Super Secret Game #2 | 6:00pm

Final Fantasy VII remake anyone? Finally announced?

Final Fantasy VI 3DS.

[aisha jamil]

However, I don't necessarily like Nomura having such pull in Square. I love Kingdom Hearts and he's a talented man, but I think he and Kitase contribute quite a bit to Square's internal strife. They have such lofty goals and get way ahead of themselves, fumbling resources and forcing every one of their games into what I can only imagine is development hell. I hope they realize this and learn to focus their resources on fewer, but more well-rounded projects in the future.

You might find that those two, in Japan, are handled much in the same way as Peter Molyneux is in the West. ^_^

[x a million...]

I see the similarities, now that you mention it.

I'd be interested/slightly afraid to see what a union of Molyneux and Square would produce.

[Peter P Canning]

Erm.... I noticed this on IGN's E3 schedule:

Super Secret Game #1 | 5:20pm
Super Secret Remake | 5:40pm
Super Secret Game #2 | 6:00pm

Final Fantasy VII remake anyone? Finally announced?

That would be awesome and I would be speechless. Newburn has to do the voice of Sephiroth or I'll choke a Chocobo.

Final Fantasy VI 3DS.

That too would be awesome and it's definitely a game that needs to be remade.