Poll: What is everyone's problem with XIII?

[Bobipine]

I tried to play it, then I got a gameover due to dumb luck (I'm at full health, somewhat beginning, I was in the ice/crystal area, 3 random enemies attack lightning at the same time, gameover.....) and never tried again. Sure, I still "played" the game by just watching my friend playing, only difference I didn't spent my time pressing A/X. Oh, and since I don't know anyone who finished it? Please tell me Vanille die or something....

I also thought about the FPS game XIII at first.

 

[D_987]

I don't understand why I saw threads asking for advice when playing FFXIII and smart arses kept coming into the thread with smarmy comments.
I understand it's not everyone's cup of tea, but there's no need to obsess over showing your hate for it.

I played the game for over 100 hours. I was extremely hyped for the game. Just because I don't like the game doesn't mean I can't express / discuss my opinion of it with other people; this game is an interesting case because it took so long, because it was such a big budget title trying to appeal to multiple regions and because it turned out so bad...

Note: I'm taking the comments you make in the above quote as an attack against myself for posting so frequently in this thread.

 

[BENZOOKA]

I dislike the whole FF series. I can't stand it at all. I really don't like any of it.

 

[D_987]

Oh, and since I don't know anyone who finished it? Please tell me Vanille die or something....

Spoiler

She doesn't die, but she does get crystallized eternally [or it would appear so] so it's close enough...

 

[Wicky_42]

do you mean this game?

I haven't met anyone who had a problem with it, it was a great game

It was, wasn't it? I forgot just how varied it was, then just started thinking and came up with half a dozen completely different mental images of levels, from giant subs to garden mazes to underground dungeons, military bases, a bank... geeze, that game was HUGE! Puts CoD to shame...

 

[Shadowninja100]

I enjoyed it quite a bit, it's not my favorite FF but it's certainly not the worst.

 

[Nexus424]

That battle system...I really just can't stand that battle system and that's bad because that's the entire game right there.

 

[Kuriko]

I really, really enjoy Final Fantasy XIII.

I honestly don't see what everyone's problem is.

Yeah it's a bit linear, but it gets so much better when you get to Gran Pulse and there's a crap load of stuff for you to do.

Oh, and the battle system, mmm, so quick it actually requires some intelligence to beat stuff.

Example: No matter how far you are on the Crystarium, some mobs actually take a proper strategy to kill.

Some people will think differently, and well I'll let them, but this is just my opinion. xP

 

[Kuriko]

Edit: Lagged and double posted, sorry. <_<;

 

[That's Funny]

I am one of those people who think FF VII is over-rated, but let me explain why I disliked XIII as a whole, it's because I felt it was a huge step backwards from what had come before, now don't get me wrong XII's combat wasn't perfect, but I could kinda see what Square were trying to do with the franchise by updating it, that is something I can admire. The main problem with XIII's combat was that it was just dull, it wasn't fast paced nor did it give you a proper sense of control over your party (something I like from JRPGs), this to me was a huge misstep, that and the fact that you can survive most battles repeatedy tapping one button over and over again.

I still think VI (or III if you are American) is the best FF game to date, I do hope that the franchise can redeem itself after this backfire, but after the way XIV went, that won't happen any time soon.

Edited to fit with the times.

 

[SuperSuperSuperGuy]

I liked it. It's not the best game in the world, but it was enjoyable...

 

[EeveeElectro]

I don't understand why I saw threads asking for advice when playing FFXIII and smart arses kept coming into the thread with smarmy comments.
I understand it's not everyone's cup of tea, but there's no need to obsess over showing your hate for it.

I played the game for over 100 hours. I was extremely hyped for the game. Just because I don't like the game doesn't mean I can't express / discuss my opinion of it with other people; this game is an interesting case because it took so long, because it was such a big budget title trying to appeal to multiple regions and because it turned out so bad...

Note: I'm taking the comments you make in the above quote as an attack against myself for posting so frequently in this thread.

Of course I don't mind people's opinions on it, but I remember a couple of people taking every opportunity to trash talk the game. Like, any mention of the game and they'd be straight in, insulting it. I don't see the need in repeating your opinion, but that's just me. I'm sure they must have been searching for threads to ***** on at one point.

Also, were you grinding a lot? I finished the game in about 50 hours I think. I wanted to grind, but the normal enemies were so hard. o__O

 

[Jason Danger Keyes]

I found most of the characters and gameplay annoying, but the thing that really tipped the boat for me was Vanille. Never have I seen such a loathesome creature, every sinle thing that came out of her mouth was complete shit. I hated her with every fibre of my being, but all the other characters loved her, and I even saw her described as 'endearing' once.

Long story short, the game was boring, but I had to stop playing because Vanille is the worst character ever.

 

[Psychemaster]

Oh, and the battle system, mmm, so quick it actually requires some intelligence to beat stuff.

Example: No matter how far you are on the Crystarium, some mobs actually take a proper strategy to kill.

I suppose that's part of the problem - the battle system of FFXIII was specifically designed to allow Squeenix to make combat more difficult (that's why you heal after fights), and yet in the vast majority of cases that effort is completely nullified by Auto-Battle.

I mean, sure, you can manually stack commands (and if you run the slow ATB gauge you'll have plenty of time to do so) but, as someone stated earlier, mashing Auto-Battle will win the fight with an acceptable rank about 90% of the time.

Having said that, I do still enjoy battles - once you break into the endgame and experience the fights that actually do require a little strategy, being able to consistently get it right pays off for me.

feelsgoodman.jpg

 

[Stormpigeon]

FF 13 was for me the single greatest let-down in gaming ever.
What made 7, 8, 9 and 10 great? Decent plot, by and large-great music-easy to grasp combat mechanics. But what drives them all is their story-the characters, their development, a bit of humour every now and then and all wrapped in gameplay that is addictive, reasonably simple and fun.

13 lacks all of these. Can't fault it for looking good, but it feels like that's the only thing they were going for. The writing is TERRIBLE. Beyond description. All the characters are boring and one-dimensional except Sazh, who is under-used, but suffers the problem of having to remind the player at regular intervals that 'Pulse L'cie' are enemies of cocoon. To the point where it should be/is his catchphrase. Vanille is the most annoying person on the planet. Hope is the second. Fang is pointless. Lightning is boring. Snow is a moron. And now that they've moved away from text blocks for speech and can no longer express emotions with "!", ALL the characters make ridiculously over-loud gasping noises to express EVERY emotion, to the extent that if you closed your eyes over certain sections you'd think you were watching porn.

On top of that, the story makes no god-damned sense. What the hell is cocoon? What's a fal-cie? Why should we care? The idea of 'slow-release-of-information' means that for hours into the game you have no real idea whats happening, and the "why should I care" is never answered. I never cared. I was almost always bored.

Other criticisms-since you can customise your weapons and make them ridiculously powerful, theres literally no point ever changing weapon. You get so many attacks in a round it's hard to see how much damage you're actually doing. The crystarium is the sphere grid without the freedom, and it pointlessly makes up words like "Crystogenesis" to explain the process by which you advance along the grid. As if ANYONE CARES!! ITS A LEVEL-UP MECHANIC!. No side quests, except that stupid massive endless plain where you can hunt, like it literally says "welcome to token side-quest area. Enjoy". Not being able to control your party was a terrible idea, because they're stupid. For the first paradigm shift PER BATTLE making everyone do a silly little pose WITHOUT PAUSING THE ENEMY. Making it so that if the character you control dies, you lose-who is usually the first person the enemy all attack at once, since they're in the front.

Put short, I would never have bought the game if I'd known how bad it was. I would never have bought the game if it wasn't Final Fantasy, the latest in a line of what have largely been fantastic games, and the biggest gap between the great game I expected and the sheer pile of crap one I got. I sold it without finishing it. I do not care how it ends, and that is the greatest failure a story-driven game can have.

Worst game EVER.

 

[Kuriko]

Also, were you grinding a lot? I finished the game in about 50 hours I think. I wanted to grind, but the normal enemies were so hard. o__O

I didn't really need to grind a lot to be honest. Not until I got to Eden. Was at about 60 hours or so when I [after a long time without an xbox] completed it.

And does anyone else notice that the bosses are mostly really easy yet the normal mobs are so hard? @__@ I'd shred some of the bosses yet I'd get stomped on by a Behemoth King or something.

I suppose that's part of the problem - the battle system of FFXIII was specifically designed to allow Squeenix to make combat more difficult (that's why you heal after fights), and yet in the vast majority of cases that effort is completely nullified by Auto-Battle.

I mean, sure, you can manually stack commands (and if you run the slow ATB gauge you'll have plenty of time to do so) but, as someone stated earlier, mashing Auto-Battle will win the fight with an acceptable rank about 90% of the time.

Having said that, I do still enjoy battles - once you break into the endgame and experience the fights that actually do require a little strategy, being able to consistently get it right pays off for me.

feelsgoodman.jpg

Yeah, especially when you get to Attacus and he kicks your ass unless you actually think through a decent strategy.

 

[D_987]

Of course I don't mind people's opinions on it, but I remember a couple of people taking every opportunity to trash talk the game. Like, any mention of the game and they'd be straight in, insulting it. I don't see the need in repeating your opinion, but that's just me. I'm sure they must have been searching for threads to ***** on at one point.

Maybe so, I've rarely seen something like that bar on the FFXIII board on GameFaqs.

Also, were you grinding a lot? I finished the game in about 50 hours I think. I wanted to grind, but the normal enemies were so hard. o__O

I found a good grinding spot and after unlocking crystalirium level 10 maxed out all roles with all characters. I also 5 starred every "side-mission" bar the final two [whom I beat but am yet to 5 star] so when I say 100 hours I mean I've seen everything the game has to offer, not just the main story.

 

[Kuriko]

I'll be honest, and this is JUST my opinion here, but I enjoyed FFXIII a lot more than FFXII or FFIX. <_<

 

[AzrealMaximillion]

Seriously i see more and more "omg ff13 is shit" rants everyday. Although i dont rank it as the best ff it was far from the worst and in some cases like the battle system improved on prevoious titles.

So I ask you was XIII a dissapointment for you? And if so why?

I found it a disappointment because it's just a really badly designed game; I cannot be bothered to type out a long rant explaining why so here is the bullet-point venison:

- Way to linear - no exploration, no feeling of progression.

- Terrible writing - "Moms are tough", "Seraph!!!" [Every 5 seconds] and all the other corny melo-drama in the game.

- Horrible characterization - Primarily thanks to the above.

- Massive plot holes that make no sense / Deus Ex Machinas - See Anima, see the ending, see Cid Raines.

- Pointless characters - the game only has a few named characters and yet at least 5 of them are completely irrelevant...

- Battle system plays itself - there is no thought or focus to playing that system, just mash auto-attack and you'll win 90% of the time.

- Items are useless because the game is very easy.

- Elevator music doesn't match the areas - gives the plot a childish feel.

- Lack of things to do after main game.

- Melo-drama for the sake of it - the game trying to trick you Sazh killed himself when within the context of the scene it makes no sense. Insults the players intelligence.

- Horrible voice acting - again thanks to terrible writing.

- Lack of progression when leveling - you never feel particularly powerful, even during the end-game and maxed out...

- Game hides the poorly thought out story in the data-log - player has no idea what's really occurring for the first half of the game.

I could go on if I wanted to...

I'd also like to add:

- Dull as Dirt - It felt like the worst parts of an MMO, without the freedom to just look the fuck around.

Two more:

- It took 20 hours to get any enjoyment out of it- Seriously the game didn't get fun until you got to Grand Pulse and even then it wasn't all that fun because of the next point.

-No Towns Seriously no communities of people at all? That's total BS.

 

[The Rockerfly]

It was, wasn't it? I forgot just how varied it was, then just started thinking and came up with half a dozen completely different mental images of levels, from giant subs to garden mazes to underground dungeons, military bases, a bank... geeze, that game was HUGE! Puts CoD to shame...

Yeah me too, I wish they would remake it or make a sequel. Kind of reminds me of a duke nukem game
*sigh* Why did I sell my ps2?