Final Fantasy XIII

The Final Fantasy series has managed to retain the videogame RPG crown for several years. Early sales of Final Fantasy XIII already suggest that the now familiar mix of glossy graphics and extended RPG gameplay will be another huge success for Square Enix.

Existing fans of the series are likely to be more than satisfied, as the HD  graphics on the PS3 are stunning and the game sticks to its traditional practice of ‘connecting’ to characters and gameplay from earlier in the series. Most fans are also likely to be happy with Final Fantasy’s now familiar practice of trying to re-invent the series with each new title.

Changing the gameplay from one Fighting Fantasy title to the next always causes much discussion in the games press and games forums. However, it’s possible to see this as a gradual refinement of the gameplay rather than change for the sake of change.

Final Fantasy XIII certainly goes out of its way to deliver significant changes, with a revised turn-based combat system that strips away some of the micro-management from earlier titles. There’s also the forgivable disappearance of a few RPG staples.

The turn-based combat works well, as players can sequence a wide variety of tasks and combos as the battles get progressively harder. Just remember to organise your party’s ‘paradigms’ before combat or you may find that your team isn’t ‘configured’ to meet particular challenges.

Final Fantasy XIII

The absence of one or two RPG standards is not a problem because the plot, and the worlds of Pulse and Cocoon that players explore, are complete and fully realised. The game’s main characters are also sufficiently ‘filled out’ to win players over. Bright acts as the leading character but you can expect to ‘get under the skin’ of half-a-dozen characters by the end of play.

With great visuals, enjoyable characters, challenging combat and expansive settings Final Fantasy XIII seems to deserve its success. Except for one problem. The gameplay is as linear as a runway. Essentially, the first 30+ hours of gameplay are a series of interconnected set pieces. Choices are few and far between and players don’t even have the option of disappearing off into the usual minigames every now and again.

The closing chapters of the game suddenly present large, open environments for players to explore. These chapters are long but the challenges are all combat orientated. The open-ended play doesn’t even last throughout these chapters, as players are led into an unavoidable and difficult series of final confrontations.

It’s understandable when designers want players to visit all of their content, but that’s no excuse for leading players by the hand through much of the game. The result is a worthwhile, if slightly ‘soapy’ plot, allied to an effective but ultimately predictable combat system. Final Fantasy XIII may have characters, plot and combat but it’s not a true RPG without putting players’ gameplay into players’ hands.

Nevertheless, there’s no doubting the value for money in 60, yes, 60 hours of gameplay. It’s also only fair to emphasise that the PS3 version’s high resolution graphics make for a very enjoyable journey, even if someone else is pretty much telling you where to go.