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About Final Fantasy XIII's Linearity Issue

Scan most reviews of Final Fantasy XIII and you'll find a single accusation binding most of them: That Square Enix's action-roleplaying game is stiflingly linear, undeviating for too long, and restrictive to a fault.

knifefight5907d ago

In some cases it's simply stated as a fact but interprited by *readers* as a fault. Just saying "It's linear" isn't saying "it's linear and therefore bad!" Yeah there are many complaining about it, but it should be noted it's not nearly everyone.

(I am not criticizing nor defending the game. Just stating the situation.)

Noctis Aftermath5907d ago

The problem is that this game is showing us where square want to take the franchise and it's not a good place, because by the looks of things they want to transform the franchise from an RPG into a fantasy action adventure game and the majority of fans do NOT want that.

You stated "Instead of killing time poking around lifeless villages with zombie-dumb citizens and generic shops, I was hurtling along at warp speed, grappling with increasingly elaborate battle tactics, no two enemy encounters alike."

Your exaggerations aside, i'd like to ask, how is that a good thing?(and yes enemy encounters are alike) other final fantasys have been about both exploration and the story, this final fantasy is only about the story.

SullyDrake5906d ago (Edited 5906d ago )

The story and combat are absolutely stellar and make up for the linearity. FFXIII is extremely focused and not afraid to be.

I'm not letting any reviews or opinions sway my own. I bought the game, and I love it.

People are making this issue into something far bigger than it should be. FFX was linear, and many consider it to be the best in the series (besides the subpar voice acting). Really, FFX was a step in the wrong direction if you wanna go from that angle. FFXIII is no less linear than Gears Of War or Uncharted. Why should linearity be the mark of a bad game?

Like I said earlier, the story and combat are stellar, the visuals on the PS3 version are superb, the characters are interesting, the music is solid, and the voice acting is the best in any JRPG. I can't wait until I hit the 25 hour mark and get to explore a bit, but until then I'll be savoring every moment of the story and gameplay instead of complaining about linearity, something that has been a part of games long before FFXIII and hasn't been complained about.

LiquifiedArt5907d ago

but at a fault.

The game was based on certain foundations. Those foundations defined the franchise and those SAME foundations is what led it to sell so massively well across its history.

They have done nothing more then a disservice to the fans and a "one glove size fits all" adventure game. Its aimed at a more casual demographic, (this is no questionable) and its a series that has lost its vision, its purpose to be.

I am a RPG and Final Fantasy Collector, but This will be the first Final Fantasy Game I am passing on and unless they come out with a "Deluxe Edition" with all the cut content (from jamming it onto XBOX-LastGen-DVDs) then I won't even reconsider this.

sorry Square, I can no longer support where you've fallen. I will not fund these products that I once loved and now have a residual Hate/Dissapointment toward.

Until next time... Maybe you'll return to your roots and maybe...dare i say, "Create COMPELLING and UNIQUE characters!" Instead of cookie-cutter blonde hair/blue eyes, Mainstream palatable nonsense.

Bea Arthur5906d ago

Well then you are missing out because it is good so far.

120°

Final Fantasy and SaGa series veteran Kazuyuki Shindo leaves Square Enix after 27 years

Kazuyuki Shindo, who worked on games including Legend of Mana, Final Fantasy XIII, and SaGa: Emerald Beyond, has left Square Enix.

Read Full Story >>
automaton-media.com
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."

Einhander1972871d 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.

Nyxus871d ago

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

Shane Kim870d ago (Edited 870d ago )

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

Elda870d 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_B869d ago

*One of the 3 equally bad FF's

DivineHand125870d ago (Edited 870d 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.

FinalFantasyFanatic869d ago (Edited 869d 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.

FinalFantasyFanatic869d ago (Edited 869d 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.

Gamingsince1981869d ago

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

-Foxtrot869d 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.

Elda869d 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.

-Foxtrot869d ago

Elda

Not just mine mate

A large majority

So….

Traecy869d ago

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

+ Show (1) more replyLast reply 869d ago
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gold_drake871d ago (Edited 871d 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

Eonjay869d ago

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

Snookies12871d 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!

Eonjay869d ago

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

shinoff2183871d ago (Edited 871d 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

KillerB870d ago

my favorite jrpg trilogy ever

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