Widescreen Gaming Forum

Every time "general gaming" is lit up I get excited, but then it's always this thread.

SV seems to want General Gaming Discussions... so...

Anyone else played FF13 yet? What do you think of it?

Having seen the 360 and PS3 versions (although not side by side) I'd say the PS3 version is a lot more polished. It's higher res, too.

I'm not too far in yet (Chapter 3, I've been too busy to play) so I can't say much except for:

Not keen on 'leave battle fully healed' mechanic.
Hope is a whiny little goit. Strongly dislike him.
The Crystarium confuses me. Come back, Sphere Grid, all is forgiven!
Enjoying the story, love the little Chocobo chick!

[quote]Every time "general gaming" is lit up I get excited, but then it's always this thread.

SV seems to want General Gaming Discussions... so...

Yay!

I am wondering if this is worth buying a PS3 for. I bought a PS1 for FF7 and a PS2 for FF10, mostly because I loved the SNES ones as a kid. I think I am over it, but I'm interested on some level.

Honestly, there are about five games I'd buy a PS3 for.

Final Fantasy XIII
Disgaea 3
Star Ocean: The Last Hope: International
Metal Gear Solid 4
Cross Edge

There are a few more that I think are good, but wouldn't make me buy the console if I didn't have it already.

Heavy Rain is good, but doesn't really warrant more than renting it if I'm brutally honest. Not seeing a whole lot of replay value in that one. White Knight Chronicles is a half-arsed RPG that tries to be an MMO while at the same time not being an MMO.

FFXIII is a bit too different from previous games. I like it, don't get me wrong - and the 360 version is not worth buying - but I think once I've completed 13 I'll just go back to 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 8 again. And Dragon Quest 8.

Honestly I don't like Japanese games much at all outside Final Fantasy and the old platformers. I have never once completed a JRPG without the FF name on it other than Secret of Mana, and that was just for the coop.

If I get a PS3 it will be for FF13 and maybe some of the other RPG/Shooter exclusives, like Demon's Souls, Killzone and Uncharted, but honestly I hate playing shooters with analog sticks so much it's almost like those don't exist.

I've made it to about chapter 10.

Hope gets better, it takes a while but it does get better.
What is confusing about the crystarium, it's linear except for a few branches. This lets you choose between some stats or some abilities first.
Grind Grind Grind. You don't need to, but I did.
I like healing after battle, its something I would have to do manually otherwise. And since there is a major Gil shortage in this game (unless you sell items) you can't really buy items to heal out of battle anyway. Also in previous games you could use healing magic out of battle, but since there is no MP this wouldn't really possible.
PUSH X TO WIN THE FIGHT. I both like and dislike this.

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EVGA GeForce GTX 970 SC ACX 2.0 3.5GB | 3 X LG Flatron 24EA53VQ in Nvidia Surround | Optoma HD20

SV - Disgaea is awesome. Strategy RPGs are just... amazing. Cross Edge appeals to me mostly because it's a huge crossover of other games I like. I, too, hate shooters on consoles. I suck at analog sticks...

Mobster - Crystarium spins around as you change levels - just makes me motion sick, which is weird. Disorienting. I've come to the conclusion that the game was going to be seriously Gil limited already. I've not needed to grind so far - as long as you pick the right Paradigms for the different characters, it's almost impossible to fail a battle. At least so far for me. I don't think Lightning has even been below 50% health yet.

My big compaint is the battle system (and the auto-heal thing) just seem to feel "dumbed down"... it doesn't make me think about what I'm going to do, how I'm going to attack, when I can only control one character.

Actually, on that front, I think I'm gonna go play FF2 again...

You definitely don't have to grind yet, but did because I like having my characters maxed out the second new abilities and stats are available. Also around chapter 10 those things get way more expensive, so the grinding I did before definitely paid off. I'm on the fence about being able to only control the leader of the party as well, but one thing that can be said about that is that it makes more sense because you are playing the leader of the party and the NPCs are actually NPCs.

I do miss the sphere grid, I loved it so much! Honestly, I think this is pretty close to that and it's the closest we'll ever get again.

<#3 Afro Chocobo

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EVGA GeForce GTX 970 SC ACX 2.0 3.5GB | 3 X LG Flatron 24EA53VQ in Nvidia Surround | Optoma HD20

SV - Disgaea is awesome. Strategy RPGs are just... amazing.

Is it like FF Tactics? I loved that game.

A PS3 sequel to that would get me to buy the system REAL fast.

Velvet, haven't you mentioned you have an X360? It's also being released on that.

I'm pretty cheesed that no PC version was released.

Mobster - yes, I do have a tendency to grind, I've got all the Crystarium grids completed for all characters right now. No sign of any extensions for the grid yet, so... *shrug*

The Sphere grid was something I was so dubious about when I first got FFX, but by the time I was ten hours in, I restarted so I could use the expert grid. It was a great idea by Square. :)

SV - yes, Disgaea is like Final Fantasy Tactics, but better. It can be argued that Disgaea is essentially impossible to complete, as items have randomly generated dungeons in them. The story can be completed by characters around level 100-150, but the maximum level is 9999. The storylines are humorous while at the same time having an element of seriousness to them. 'Normal' items have a 30-level dungeon, 'Rare' items have a 60 level dungeon and 'Legend' items have a 100 level dungeon in them. Disgaea 1 and 2 are available on the PS2, and have remakes available on the PSP. They're all awesome. I admit, for characters and storyline, Disgaea 1 is my favourite, but 2 and 3 are not exactly shabby either. :D

Abram - I doubt we'll see a PC version, although I suppose it's possible. I loved FF7 and FF8 on the PC, but Square are rather slow to port stuff at the best of times.