Posts Tagged ‘Final Fantasy’

This time the Japanese androgynous hero is actually a girl, called Lightening.

Through a series of fortuitous events I found myself with a copy of the Final Fantasy XIII demo (FFXIII) which was recently packaged with Final Fantasy Advent Children Complete – Trail Version BluRay. It is a strange curio, as essentially it’s a marketing tool which they charged the customer a thousand yen extra for the privilege of playing. But this is Japan, where Final Fantasy’s cultural significance could be likened to that of Star Wars for the loyalty and fanatical nature of its followers. I therefore consider myself lucky to have gotten my hands on a copy of this to be able to bring you my opinion without having to spring for the six thousand yen price tag.

Square-Enix (S-E), or more specifically the FF teams, have always been able to squeeze a little extra of out hardwares graphical power. With this, the first of their flagship series to be created for the current console generation, they have pulled out all the stops. The five years of development is evident as you watch the variety of sumptuous environments promised in the opening movie but it is only when the introduction cinemas stop that you truly realise how impressive the in-game engine is and the full extent of their achievements. The demo is set outside an underground city during what looks like a civil war. It takes place on a bridge which enables action to erupt all around your character. Above and below ships are exploding as you move your way along the bridge set in the sprawling cavern. It manages to place you in the middle of a war, and while it leads you through a very narrow tunnel during this introduction, it is none the less an awesome sight.

These are the only combat options available in the demo.

The game play itself is less impressive, or at least more predictable. The reason so many people were eager for this and willing to pay the premium S-E slapped on the Trial Edition bundle was to try out the new battle system. I am going to do my best here to explain the new system, but while I have played some of the previous games the most recent was FFVIII. Thus my knowledge of the subsequent game mechanics is limited, if some elements of my explanations seem a little dry therefore I apologise. From what the demo shows however the game has not progressed too much.

Notably in the demo you only control a single character from the squads you find yourself in. Presumably this is because this is a game still in production, and a mere slice of it. As a way to introduce you to the system it works well. It enabled me to learn to navigate the sparse menus you would expect in an opening level. You start with three tabs (action/ability, dark magic and light magic). Confusingly selecting any of these opens a menu with the same set of five actions. Each character has three action points and each of these five actions consumes an allotted number of these points. In the demo there are three single point moves (attack, launch and a weak magic) and two three point magics (a cure and an attack). So, a player could link three one point moves together into a combo (for example launch-launch-attack) or choose to use all the points on a single more powerful move. After using action points you have to wait for them to recharge while remaining prone to attack (apparently this is called an ‘active battle system’). It leaves only a few options for attack, but functions as a good introduction and hints at considerable depth.

The battles look as good as cut scenes, except for the rather invasive inclusion of HUD and stats.

Exacerbating the lack of attack options is the fact that you only control one member of a squad. Luckily in the short experience on the disk (about ninety minutes) you do find yourself controlling two separate characters (the imaginatively named Lightening and Snow) which does manage to add a little variety. As you fight the rest of the squad acts primarily as support, contributing little to the attack, but healing you whenever necessary. While this is helpful, as it allows you to wail mercilessly on every enemy you find, it removes any need for tactics or skill.

The simplicity is highlighted still further by the funnelled nature of the demo. Contained by the natural boundaries of the bridges you find yourself you running from fight to fight. At least now encounters aren’t random. Groups of enemies are visible as they advance, and if you are careful can be avoided. Unfortunately I was unable to alter the starting conditions of fights using strategic positioning. This resulted in combat starting with the screen dissolving and the game resetting all the fighter’s positions. During these sections of play the characters move more fluidly around the environment but you have no control over that movement, further reducing any depth to the tactical play.

The demo offers few clues as to where it fits in the story of the full game.

It is not the demo I was expecting. It has raised more questions than it answered, contrary to what I assumed S-E would be trying to do. Foremost among these questions is where this section fits in to the chronology of the story. If this level represents the start of the game it launches you in quite unceremoniously in to situations with no attachment to characters you have to sympathise with. If it is snippet from later in the game however, the question has to be asked how much the combat options were restricted for the purpose of making the demo accessible. Squads will surely become available to control, but what other tactical options will be there that weren’t seen in the demo? More tactical movement options? A wider array of combat actions (many Famitsu screen shots say yes; V-slice anyone)?

All these questions will have to wait until winter this year as this (the demo reminds us) is when the game will be released in Japan on the PS3. In truth I didn’t think this was a game I would have the time to invest myself in. Playing even this tiny chunk of the game did tickle something. Maybe I have just been away from the genre for too long but while limited the combat was enjoyable though it remains to be seen if it will hold up through out the sixty hours plus of game. So I guess demo did its job, I am defiantly more interested than I was before and eager to see the scope world S-E have created.

It seems that the online gaming community in the West is suffering from a feeling of entitlement. A belief that Japanese developers should be striving for simultaneous worldwide releases of their top tier games (most recently Final Fantasy XIII). This desire is completely self motivated and while it’s a sentiment I understand but one I can no longer sympathise with.

Living out here very quickly you come to realise that the West does little to support the Japanese gamer. Numerous top titles take months before they get an Eastern release, if they ever come here. Grand Theft Auto IV had to wait six months before it got a Japanese release (by Capcom not Take 2,) Gears of War 2 is still waiting for a confirmed release date. Even downloadable titles suffer from the same delays with Pain (on PSN) finally coming out this month.

These are just a few examples to demonstrate that staggered releases go two ways. It can be easy to forget when you are eager to your hands on a big title that every region is guilty of prioritising releases of their titles. Indeed Japanese companies tend to do a far better job pushing their titles through to the West. Back in the PS2 days, Metal Gear Solid 3 and Tekken 4 were both released in the US before Japan because that is traditionally where the game sold best.

Final Fantasy XIII will sell well in other regions but it is in Japan that it will be a national phenomenon. Blizzard announced Star Craft 2 first in Korea because it was where it would have the most impact. It’s the same thing for the FF series in Japan. Square Enix loses nothing by releasing it in Japan first, it make more sense for them to spend their time and resources on getting a game out where it will be a cultural event. They will worry about the world market later, possibly when the exchange rate swings in their favor.

Until they decide they are ready to translate their game for an audience outside Japan, stop feeling so damn self entitled. It’s unbecoming.

On time and ready to go. In an attempt not to walk in the footsteps of giants we decided to abandon the original discussion of reviews and scores at the last minute and instead focus on the recent Japanese top selling games and Final Fantasy 13 news as seen in Famitsu. I say ‘seen in Famitsu’ because I can’t read most of it so it’s more an impressions piece than a factual commentary.

As always we also discuss some recent news and dip into ‘Darren’s Old Games’. This podcast Darren reminisces about hours spent floating around lost in Elite on the Amiga, and I reminisce about watching him floating around lost in Elite.

We also invent the Wii game name generator, so if you come up with one please post it in the comments. The format is simple;
Job > Name > Event > Game genre > Event > Generic game word
The results sound worryingly like next years best selling game as long as you attach ‘for Wii’ and ‘by Nintendo’ to the box art. Enjoy.

 

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