When Final Fantasy XIII was released, the fans' reactions were very mixed. The reception was generally negative, however, and I see it as the Japanese version of Dragon Age II, except, you know, FFXIII came out first. Anyway, for that reason, it is a bit confusing as to why Square Enix would make a sequel to such a hated game. Despite the general dislike, I actually enjoyed XIII and picked myself up a copy of XIII-2. Needless to say, they have been listening to complaints, and XIII-2 delievers on most levels. Gameplay: Read my XIII review for most of the gameplay, because it remains largely unchanged. However, there are a few changes. First of all, instead of six party members, there are only two. The third slot in your party is filled by a monster that you can catch. There are many different monsters, each representing a specific role in the paradigm deck. Another change is that the game is very open now. There is hardly any linearity as you travel between different time periods. (More on that later.) There is one last change that I loved. In XIII, no matter how you leveled up, your ending characters would always look the same. Hope would have 18000 HP and Fang would have 2000 strength no matter how you built them. In XIII-2, this is not the case. You can go for a strength build, magic build, or HP build. This makes the game feel much more in your control. Art Style: I was actually kind of disappointed in the art style. Does this game still hold some of the best visuals on the market? Yes, it does. However, they don't look all that special compared to XIII's graphics. The CGI cutscenes have also been removed so the Xbox only has to use one disk. Story: Right after the events of XIII, Lightning goes missing. Snow leaves Serah to look for her, and Serah recieves visions in her sleep. It turns out that Lightning is fighting a man named Caius in a plane called Valhalla, and she needs Serah's help. She sends a boy named Noel from the future to bring Serah to her. However, he doesn't know how to get back there. Something called a time gate appears in Serah's home town, and Noel and Serah travel through it to an area called the Historia Crux, allowing them to travel to different time periods. I won't go any further, but the important thing is that this story gets terrible after this. Lasting Appeal: The story is significantly shorter than the story in XIII. However, opposed to 64 side quests, there are now 120. They vary from fetch quests to killing monsters, and even changing the past around. You can also train your monsters, eventually leading to them surpassing Serah and Noel in combat. Gameplay: 8.75/10 Square Enix really listened to people's complaints, and as a result, the combat is near perfect. In XIII, there was, for the most part, a single strategy that could defeat a boss. In XIII-2, however, there are several ways to go about things. Your success also depends on your build, because although the game is easy, it can become a nightmare with a bad build. (Hint: Strength/Magic>HP) Art Style: 8.5/10 While this game is still one of the best looking games out there, it doesn't hold a candle to its predecessor. The enviornments are very varied, however, and they all look excellent. I especially like the snowy enviornments. Story: 5/10 This is a story about time travel. While this may seem like a cool concept, your interest will quickly vanish when the characters throw around the word "paradox" like it means nothing. Also, there is a saying in the game: "If you change the future, you change the past." That has to be one of the dumbest things I have ever heard. Lasting Appeal: 8/10 Remember when I said this game has 120 side quests? Well, half of those are fetch quests, which are boring. However, the epic boss fights in the other side quests make up for it, especially the boss battles in the Archylte Steppe: ??? AF. Training your monsters is also a blast, but remember: A jack of all trades is a master of none. Overall: 8/10 I feel like Square Enix did a great job refining the XIII experience. If you didn't like XIII, you probably won't like this game either. If you liked XIII, however, you'll love this. I just ask that in XIII-3, they bring back the good graphics, good story, and party members. I liked the monsters, but SE should try to find a middle ground, because I like my party members with personality. If they do this, they could end up with one of the best RPGs of all time.
Heh heh heh...you all knew this would come along at some point. I realise nearly everyone on this site and their brother has played this game. I just thought I would share why it is my third favorite game off all time. With its large world, decent story, and huge amount of content and freedom, you cannot miss this title. Judging by the site you are on, you probably haven't. Gameplay: Allow me to start by saying that this is what the sandbox style is all about. The world is moderately large, probably taking a half an hour to walk from one end to the other. Of course, once you visit an area, you can fast travel there any time, so don't worry about tediousness. There are hundreds of different quests you can access, and you will find yourself recieving new quests faster than you can complete them. Don't even worry about running out; this game randomly generates quests. Yes, you read that correctly. IT ENDLESSLY GIVES YOU QUESTS. This means the game has nearly unlimited replay value. You may have noticed I haven't talked about the combat. That's because there isn't much to it. You hit a creature with your sword, and it does damage. There isn't a complex math system involved, and there isn't a wide variety of sword attacks. While this is a very simple combat system, it fits with the open world feel well, as it allows for seamless transitions between combat and exploring. Art Style: The land of Skyrim is in the north, so it makes sense that the enviornments are similar to what you would find in Canada or Scandinavia. In the northern area of the map, you have tundra and arctic areas. In the south, you have forests. While the game goes for a realistic approach, I cannot deny that the game can look very beautiful at times. Story: You are about to be executed for being in the wrong place at the wrong time, when a dragon attacks. You escape, and alert the countryside about the dragon attack. The Jarl, a sort of mayor, of the nearby city of Whiterun pairs you up with some soldiers to investigate another dragon attack site. When you get there and kill the dragon, you absorb its soul, and you realise that you are the Dragonborn. You are called by a group called the Greybeards, and they take you in and tell you of your destiny: To defeat Alduin, the World-Eater. On top of this, there is a civil war taking place in Skyrim that is sure to get in your way. Can the chosen one overcome all odds and save the world once and for all? Lasting Appeal: This game has a huge amout of content. When I finished the main story, I went and participated in the civil war. After that, I finished every guild quest. After that, I collected all of the Daedric Artifacts. Even then, there was still more stuff to do, and that isn't even counting the randomly generated quests. If you run out of quests, just explore. You'll find something worth doing. You will get tired of the game before you do everything, though. It doesn't stay fresh forever. Gameplay: 9/10 This game has one strength, and that is its open world structure. However, it's done so well that to give anything less than a 9 would be insulting. The first time you play the game, your mind will be racing with the possibilities. Art Style: 8/10 It's nice, but it's nothing we haven't seen before. Unlike games like Dragon Age: Origins, the game's atmosphere isn't very dark, and therefore doesn't need a realistic approach. Some of the enviornments can be very pretty, though. Expect to look around a lot when wandering from place to place. Story: 7/10 The story is okay and will keep you playing, but it's nothing special. Considering this is an RPG, a deep story should be taken for granted, and this game just barely delivers in that department. Lasting Appeal: 9.5/10 Where do I start? There is so much content in this game that can keep you entertained for a long time. With the endlessly generating quests, the content is limitless. You can make choices, which warrents other playthroughs. The only thing holding this back is the combat. I like the combat, and it fits with the game, but it can get repetitive after a while. With combat being the bread and butter of video games as a whole, this is what will get you to move on to another game. Overall: 9/10 You may have noticed that my top three favorite games all have the same review score. That's because they are so close in quality. This is my third favorite title of all time. If you have even ounce of RPG blood in you, you will probably love this title, and should buy it. Oh, what am I saying? You probably already have.
An evil army is attempting to destroy the land, and it's up to you to stop it! While your first reaction may be, "Wow, how generic," Bioware puts its own twist into this Forgotten Realms tribute. What you are left with is an epic adventure that does a great job of defining what gaming is all about. Gameplay: Dragon Age Origins mixes turn based and real time combat together. You have four members of your party, and there are two ways to play. You can control one party member and switch every once in a while, playing it like a standard Action RPG. Your other choice, which is more efficient, is to pause the game, issue commands to each party member, unpause, and watch the battle play out. You have a choice of three classes. Warriors can take a lot of hits and are a reliable source of damage. Rogues can pick locks and disarm traps, but their combat skills leave something to be desired. Mages are rather "squishy," but they deal HUGE amounts of damage and large AOE attacks. Many consider them overpowered. Art Style: The game goes for a realistic feel, which I usually don't like. However, I feel it suits the game, as the overall mood is meant to be dark, with tension in the air as Ferelden awaits for its incoming doom. The wide range of enviornments means the color pallette is rather varied, and character models fit right in with the enviornments. However, I REALLY don't like the look of the lips of the females in this game. I don't know what it is. It doesn't happen with males; only with females. Story: You can choose from several prologues for your character's backstory. They all end the same way: You have lost everything and are joining the Grey Wardens, dedicated to fighting Darkspawn. Darkspawn wander underground, looking for an "Old God." When they find one, they use their corruption to turn it into an Archdemon, who leads them in an assault on the land called a "Blight." When you join the Wardens, there is a big battle at Ostagar Fortress. You may have won, but Loghain, one of the King's generals, pulls out the reinforcements in an act of betrayal. The King, who was fighting with the Wardens, along with the entire army, dies at the battle. That is, except for you and your friend Alistair, who were sent off the battlefield to signal the reinforcements. You are surrounded by Darkspawn, but are saved by a forest witch named Flemeth and her daughter Morrigan. After you and Alistair recover, you begin your long journey. You, Alistair, and Morrigan must bring the four corners of Ferelden into an alliance to fight off this Blight, and maybe get revenge on Loghain in the process. Lasting Appeal: As with many WRPGs this generation, you can make choices. Some are good, such as curing a werewolf curse. Some are evil, such as killing the werewolves. Some are grey, such as recruiting the werewolves to your cause without curing them. There are many choices in this game, and this warrents many playthroughs. The game is around forty hours long if you complete around half of the sidequests along with the main story. As with most Bioware games, you can romance characters. You get four romances in this game, two being Alistair and Morrigan. That adds replay value as well, because while the other two romances are bisexual, Alistair and Morrigan are not, so you should play through as both a male and female. Gameplay: 8.75/10 I enjoyed playing the game like a standard Action RPG, but the "Pause and Play" method was tedious. I enjoyed seeing what kind of strategies I could come up with, as this game gives you a lot of freedom in how you play. You unlock three warriors, including Alistair, two rogues, two mages, including Morrigan, and a dog. This gives you many combinations of characters, as they each have a lot of personality and you may make your selection off of whose banter you like the best. Art Style: 8/10 While the visuals aren't very original, I enjoyed the wide variety of enviornments. With the incoming Blight, it would be hard to imagine this game with any other art style. Story: 9.75/10 While the story may sound generic, Bioware puts its own spin on this classic "hero saves world" tale. The story is rather deep, and it will make you laugh, cry, and even feel paranoid at certain points. You may find yourself seriously considering the consequences of your actions. Lasting Appeal: 10/10 This is a long game. Some people have sunk 100+ hours into it. The game also gives you a lot of choices that warrent many playthroughs. I have done all that, have my platinum, and this game still isn't old. Overall: 9/10 This is my favorite game ever. The story and gameplay are very deep, and the game has loads of replay value. I beg of you, if you call yourself an RPG fan, and you probably are, considering the site you're on, then please, you must experience this title.
Shadow of the Colossus is considered a perfect example of video games being "art." SotC was made by a company called TeamIco. It was their second game. What was their first game? You have three guesses...it's Ico! While not quite as mind-blowing as SotC, this game still makes it into my top ten games of all time. Gameplay: This game blends platforming and puzzle solving. This is a giant castle, after all. You have to escort a girl named Yorda. KEEP HER WITH YOU AT ALL TIMES. There are demons that come after Yorda on a regular basis. If they catch her and drag her into the abyss they create, you die. The world is semi-open, as you can backtrack, but you really won't be exploring unless necessary. There are a variety of weapons, but the only ones I can reveal without spoiling are the 2x4 and the sword. You can defeat the demons by mindlessly swinging at them, which is a sloppy combat system, but this is 2001. What do you expect? Speaking of expecting, expect a lot of frustration with Yorda's AI. She mindlessly wanders and often does not answer your calls to her. She is supposed to be the helpless "Damsel in Distress," but this is taking it too far. As for the core gameplay, it works well for the game's age. There is your basic jumping from platform to broken platform of the crumbling castle, as well as using your enviornment in a variety of puzzles. At one point, you must jump on a chandelier, detaching it and crumbling the bridge below, slanting it down and creating a ramp to the lower level. Other puzzles like this occur throughout the game, and it keeps you thinking. With the demons keeping you on your toes, this adds a sense of urgency and requires you to use your brain in an efficient manner. Art Style: This game has a cartoony art style. The entire game takes place in one castle, and while the castle has several different areas, the enviornment never changes all that much. However, you still may take the time to enjoy the enviornment. Well, you know, if you don't have demons chasing you. Story: You are a boy named Ico. His village has sent him to be imprisoned in a castle as a punishment for his curse of growing horns. Due to a timely earthquake, Ico escapes his chains and tries to find a way out. He meets a girl named Yorda, who is also trapped, and Ico finds that shadow demons try to capture her. He teams up with her and begin exploring. He finds the front gate right when it begins closing. He would have made it, if Yorda didn't trip. When the gate closes, a woman steps out of shadows, claiming Yorda is her daughter. She tells Ico to not even try to escape, then humors him by vanishing again. Ignoring her, Ico and Yorda begin to work together to figure out how to open the gate. Along the way, they learn the sinister intent of this castle, its prisoners, and the woman of the shadows. Lasting Appeal: This game is only about six hours long. If you have the American version, that's it. If you have the European, Japanese, or HD version, there is a bit more to dig into. You unlock a New Game+, which gives you co-op, an alternate ending, translation of Yorda's strange language, and even a lightsaber, if you know where to look. This is actually one of those games that you only play a couple of times, but it will be fond in your memory. Gameplay: 8/10 For its age, Ico is amazing. The platforming isn't too easy, but isn't too hard. The puzzles will have you scratching your head. Yorda's AI is terrible, but for a game in 2001, there isn't much they could have done about that. Art Style: 8/10 The art style definitely shows some age. Its creative, but it doesn't stand up to the games of today with a similar intent in visuals. Still, the enviornments are beautiful, even if they do get a bit repetitive. Story: 9.5/10 This game is about friendship, but it doesn't make it cheesy. The game manages to be both touching and epic at the same time, and like SotC, the end could be interpreted as good or bad. The only bad thing is that the alternate ending is almost the same thing, with a slightly different cutscene at the end. If you play SotC, playing this first will make SotC's ending a lot less confusing. Lasting Appeal: 6/10 This isn't a terribly long game, but it will stick with you forever. The American release suffers from no extra features. The European, Japanese, and HD releases all warrent a second playthrough. The HD release has trophies, but only one requires any effort, and that one is just tedious. Beat the game within two HOURS? To Youtube! Overall: 8/10 As I said, this is one of my favorite games ever. There is a difference between a game that I like and a good game. This is an above average game, but I love it. It touched me, and if you buy it, I hope it touches you too. Although you may buy the Ico and Shadow of the Colossus Collection for SotC only, there is no reason not to play this game as well.
Are video games art? This is an argument that has been going on in the media for some time now. When the non-believers ask for an example, there is one game we all point to: Shadow of the Colossus. I owned a Gamecube during the 6th generation, so I wasn't able to experience this title the first time around. I bought the HD version last October, and I wasn't sure what to expect. To make a long story short: it's now my second favorite game of all time. Gameplay: There are only sixteen enemies in this entire game. They are all boss battles. While this may not seem like much, each boss could take up to an hour if you don't know its weakness. You are dropped into an open world known as the Forbidden Lands, and you have to seek out each Colossus. You have a magical sword that shows you the way. When you find a colossus, you have to examine your enviornment. What here can help me? What can I climb up? One thing is essential, though. You can scan the Colossus with your magical sword to see its weak point. That's a good place to start so you can learn where to climb. Unlike most games involving climbing, you have a stamina meter. When it runs out, you let go and fall to the ground, likely losing a good chunk of health and opening yourself up to attack. As the game goes on, your health and stamina increase. This RPG element doesn't make it easier, though, as the bosses require more climbing as the game goes on. Art Style: This game, while looking more realistic than Ico, still retains an artistic art style. Green is a dominating color here, but the Forbidden Lands has a variety of enviornments with many different colors, such as deserts, lakes, and even city ruins. Story: Wander's lover, Mono, has somehow died. He steals the sword from the village Shaman and heads for the Forbidden Lands, where legends say people can be resurrected. Upon entering through the Shrine of Worship, he meets Dormin, a spirit who tells him he must kill the sixteen colossi to resurrect Mono. Wander travels to all four corners of the map, killing the colossi, one at a time. As he does so, he begins to wonder if what he is doing is really righteous. Is the life of one woman worth the deaths of sixteen colossi? Lasting Appeal: The story is about twelve hours long. After that, you unlock Time Attack Mode, which can earn you some cool weapons and armor for your New Game+, which lets you keep your upgraded health and stamina so you dominate the colossi. You also unlock Hard Mode, which warrents a whole new playthrough. After you beat Hard Mode, you unlock Hard Time Attack Mode, which will have you going insane in frustration. After beating all hard time attacks, you get the ultimate weapon. I won't spoil it, but it references Ico. After all that, there are over one hundred lizards to collect, which increase stamina. There are also over one hundred fruits to collect, which increase health. After you complete all of this, there is still a secret area for you to find. Hint: It has to do with the Shrine of Worship. Gameplay: 9/10 This game really takes the cake in its combat. While having only boss battles may not work for you, I felt it added a sense of loneliness. This game has the excitement of an action game while having the thinking of a puzzle game, and it blends almost flawlessly. I hear there are a few framerate issues, but I played this on Ps3, and therefore didn't encounter them. Art Style: 9.5/10 Remember that this is a Ps2 game. It was agreed to have the best visuals back then. In its HD release, it still holds its own in being one of the best looking games to date. Story: 8.5/10 The story is a bit vague, but the feeling you get when you kill colossi who weren't even attacking you in the first place gives you a feeling of regret. (There are two that don't attack you on sight, by the way.) I loved the ending that ties it all together, as I wasn't sure whether to consider it happy or sad. It leaves a lot of room for interpretation, though. If you played Ico first, like I did, you will get much more out of the ending. Lasting Appeal: 8.5/10 While technically there is a lot of stuff, collecting fruits and lizards isn't my idea of "fun." Although this is an open world game, there really isn't much to explore. The time attacks and hard playthroughs are awesome, though. There is also the goal of reaching the "secret area" I mentioned earlier. Another hint: It requires a LOT of stamina. Overall: 9/10 This is my second favorite game ever. Although I felt the world wasn't quite big enough, everything else seemed almost perfect in my eyes. I only rated the story eight points because I think its vagueness would turn off some players. (*cough* Traaginen *cough*) For a Ps2 game, this is a must buy. Even if you own a Ps3, I would buy this. This is something every gamer should experience.
Ah yes, my first Ps3 game. This game will always have a fond place in my heart. I got it when I was very into "sandbox" games. While this game has many flaws, it also has many advantages over other open world games. I liked this game; what else needs saying? Gameplay: You are a man with electric powers in an open world setting. The combat plays out like a third-person shooter. Your "ammo" is at the top, in the form of electric orbs. As you use your powers, the orbs are drained, and can be recharged by draining electricity from cars, streetlamps, and even people. If you are a good person, draining people may not be in your best interest, as there is a morality meter. It ranges from "Hero" to "Infamous," and it determines your powers, your appearance, and how people treat you. Back to your powers, your selection is more or less pretty generic. There are powers that imitate grenades, rocket launchers, sniper rifles, and even riot shields. However, this is in no way a bad thing. The selection of powers is actually fairly large and you feel like a one man army. An xp system, which allows you to unlock and upgrade your powers, rewards you for being creative in your kills. There is one issue, and that is glitches. They shouldn't be an issue most of the time, but expect to fall through the floor, lose clipping, and randomly be thrown into the ocean, which will kill you thanks to your electric powers. Art Style: It's rather average. While the character models of the main characters, such as Cole, look good, the overall appearance is very brown and muddy looking. As it says in gameplay, there are many glitches, and this carries over to art style, too. Overall, though, the art style isn't good or bad, just average. Don't worry, this game wasn't meant to be beautiful. Story: As a bike messenger, you have delievered an electric nuke by accident, and it went off in your hands. When you come to, the city is in ruins, and you have electric powers. Gangs now rule your quarantined city, and you must put an end to their rule, as well as finding the terrorist who gave you the bomb. Lasting Appeal: Well, being a choice based game, you can have 2 playthroughs right there. There's also a bunch of side missions, which allow you to take territory from the gangs. You can also collect blast shards, which increase your max "ammo." To top it all off, you can collect satellite messages that give you some backstory. Gameplay: 8/10 If not for the glitches, this would be a 9. However, the glitches hold the game back. An 8 is still nothing to scoff at, though. The game makes you feel like a bad*** who can take on anything. Art Style: 6/10 Not good, not bad. Although it doesn't hold the game back, you probably won't stop to admire the atmosphere. Story: 8/10 This game is more of a gameplay driven game, but the story, if you follow it, will still keep you on your toes. It plays out like a comic book. However, it starts out slow, and the ending is kind of silly. Lasting Appeal: 8/10 There are a lot of collectables, side missions, and 2 playthroughs. Some of the missions can only be done if you're good or evil. The dead drops are also worth collecting. However, the blast shards are boring to collect, and if you want the platinum, expect a LONG grind that will leave you extremely sick of the game. Overall: 8/10 inFamous is a good game that every Ps3 owner should play. It's a moderately glitchy title, and that holds the game back from greatness, but it should keep you entertained for a very fun couple of months.
As you may have known, the PSN was hacked mid 2011. It was down for a month or so, but when it came back up, PSN users got 2 free games as part of a "Welcome Back" package. I took the games Wipeout HD and Dead Nation. I didn't like Wipeout HD. It just wasn't my style. Dead Nation was a game I had a bit more luck with. Gameplay: This is a pretty generic top-down zombie shooter. There is a shop at every checkpoint where you can buy new guns, ammo, and equipment such as land mines and flares. You can upgrade weapons you have purchased, and you can equip gear you have found on your journey. The game mechanics are nothing we haven't seen before, but they are used well. There are many different kinds of zombies besides the generic type. Skinless die in 1 hit but don't give you money for the kill. They appear in groups. Bombies are morbidly obese zombies that run toward you and explode. Cutters have blades for hands, and can kill you in one hit on the harder difficulties. There are many other types of zombies as well. You have to be quick on your feet and be a good strategist to survive. Art Style: Terrible. The screen is littered with "realistic" colors. In case you like your games realistic, there is the issue that it is a very dark game, even with max brightness. This makes some of the zombies incredibly difficult to see. This doesn't make the game harder, it only makes it more frustrating. Story: You (and perhaps a partner of the opposite gender if playing co-op) are a survivor to the zombie outbreak 1 year ago. You are immune to the plague. You are running out of supplies and need to get to the gas station. After stocking up, you hear a message on the truck radio, but it's not clear. You make your way to the highest building and finally hear the message. I won't spoil anything, but I'll tell you it's rather cliche. Lasting Appeal: This is a PSN game, so it will obviously not last as long as a retail game, and for a PSN game, this actually has a lot of stuff. There are 5 difficulty levels, 10 half hour long stages, 15 different armor pieces, and a leaderboards system. Gameplay: 7/10 Fun, but nothing we haven't seen before. You get a lot of freedom in how you choose to fight. Art Style: 2/10 It tries to be realistic and ends up being boring. The darkness levels cause some frustration, and not in a good way. Story: 4/10 The story is cliched, bland, and the ending is terrible. At least it's easy to follow and gives you a clear goal. Zombie games like this tend to have zany stories, but this one tries to be serious and falls flat. Lasting Appeal: 9/10 As a PSN game, this has lots of content to keep you playing. If you get bored, there is a DLC pack that adds a survival mode. I don't have it, but it sounds fun. Overall: 6/10 I'm glad I got this game for free, because I did get some fun out of it. However, it's generic and can be frustrating. Although it's okay for a PSN game, you're better off spending your money on another downloadable zombie shooter. That is, if you're not sick of the zombie craze yet.
So, I finished platinuming Skyrim a couple months ago, and wanted a cheap RPG game I could move on to. I decided to give the FF XIII-2 demo a try, and enjoyed it, so I picked up the first game. While it is flawed and I see why people don't like it, I feel I got my $20 worth out of it. Gameplay: This is a party-based RPG, and you have different classes to choose from. Commando is damage, Ravager is building chains so Commandos can do more damage, Medics are healing, Sentinels are tanks, Synergists are buffs, and Saboteurs are debuffs. Each party member has 3 classes they can use, and you can have 3 members in your party. You set up paradigms, which are combinations of what each character is, and you switch between them in the middle of battle, depending on the situation. While every party member eventually can use all six classes, they all specialize in one. The game is completely linear for the first 20+ hours of the game, but it opens up near the end. Art Style: This is the closest to "graphics" I'm going to get. Graphics judge how realistic a game looks, while art style judges how creative the game looks, as well as the color palette it uses. This is probably the best looking game I've ever seen. So much detail and color, the enviornments are beautiful to look at. Also, while in many JRPGs the guys look like girls, the guys actually look like guys in FFXIII. Story: This is a story about the Fal'cie, which are the equivelant of gods. When they need to complete a task, they brand a human as a L'cie. They are given magic abilities, but if they don't complete their task in time, they turn into a zombie. If they do complete it in time, they are encased in crystal. I know, it's not much of a choice. There are 2 types of Fal'cie: Cocoon and Pulse. They are direct enemies, and rule over their own parts of the world. The main character, Lightning, is branded a Pulse L'cie, along with Sazh, Snow, Hope, and Vanille. Their only clue of their focus was a vision of a monster, and one word: Ragnarok. Together, they must figure out what this means and decide whether to attempt it or not. Some characters are good, such as Sazh, who is meant to be comic relief. Others, like Hope, fall flat and end up being annoying. Lasting Appeal: This game took me about 2 weeks to beat the main story, with around 3 hours of gameplay a day. After that, you still have a lot a sidequests, as well as trophies/achievements to collect. However, when all of that is done, there is NOTHING left to do. It lasted me about a month, and I don't think I'll pick it up again. Gameplay: 7/10 It's original, but it gets repetitive after a while. In the boss battles, there isn't much choice in your strategy. Art Style: 10/10 This is honestly the best looking game I've ever played. Story: 8/10 Many people hated the story, but I found it very interesting and captivating. I felt a pang of sadness when the credits rolled. Lasting Appeal: 6.5/10 Unless you are a trophy collector, you will play through the story, then play through the side missions, then never play this game again. Overall: 7.5/10 Is it one of my favorite games? No, it's not even close. However, for today's price of $20, this game is more than worth your money. If you walk in with an open mind and can get past the linearity, this is a game worth checking out, especially if you like party-based combat.
