The Long-Awaited Epic RPG Final Fantasy XIII Now Available

Final Fantasy XIII​ is a console role-playing game developed and published by Square Enix and is the thirteenth installment in the Final Fantasy series. It was released for the PlayStation 3 in Japan on December 17, 2009 and is due for release very soon in North America and PAL regions on March 9, 2010 for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. Final Fantasy XIII is the flagship title of the Fabula Nova Crystallis collection of Final Fantasy games and is the first game to utilize Square-Enix’s Crystal Tools engine. The game features both futuristic and natural elements; it is set between a land of wilderness and the high-tech world above it. Following the story of Lightning, Square-Enix describes the theme of the game as “those who resist the world.”

The game sold in excess of one million units on its first day of sale in Japan, and had sold 1,698,256 copies there at the end of 2009. Universal praise was given to the technical milestone for the series achieved by the game’s graphics and presentation. Electronic Theatre remarked that “there are very few moments when the visual and aural superiority fails to astound”, and Edge Magazine felt that Cocoon in particular was an “inspired setting […] blessed with a vibrancy and vivid color that often leaves you open-mouthed”. Art design also added to the positive reception of the graphics, being described as “magnificent”. Further praise was given to the CGI cutscenes, and the almost seamless transition of visual quality between these and the realtime gameplay. Many also appreciated the game’s soundtrack, with Masashi Hamauzu providing “a score with catchy hooks and blood-pumping battle melodies”

The game’s new battle system also received near-universal praise. The increased pace of battles was appreciated, several reviews describing it as “thrilling”; Edge Magazine’s description of the battle system summarized it as “among the genre’s finest”. The roles provided by the Paradigm Shift feature also added depth to the battle system and contributed to the fast pace, and having the AI automate the other two party members’ actions meant battles in the game “may be the most involving the series has ever seen”. The story, characters and voice acting were mostly received well. Wired remarked that the story was “a little more human and less esoteric than in previous games”. 1UP felt that the story was “hardly world-class writing”, but that the writers clearly knew the medium well and had attempted to avoid clichés.

Characters

Lightning – Former sergeant of the Guardian Corps, Lightning sought the Pulse fal’Cie, Anima, in order to ask it to save her sister Serah, whom the fal’Cie had turned into a l’Cie. However, much to her dismay, Lightning was turned into a l’Cie herself. Her l’Cie mark is in the center of her chest. Lightning has long pink hair and is 171 cm tall (5’7″). Originally named Éclair Farron, she discarded her birth name after her parents died in an attempt to emotionally reinforce herself so that she could protect Serah, although this only caused tensions to rise between them. Lightning is very independent and determined, but she is also shown to have a compassionate side. Lightning’s visual design was influenced by Cloud Strife from Final Fantasy VII, as Tetsuya Nomura was asked to design a female version of him to be the protagonist of Final Fantasy XIII. However, Yoshinori Kitase has contradicted this, saying the only similarities between the two are their pasts as soldiers, as Lightning has a more fragile side to her that Cloud does not.

Lightning wields a weapon called the Blaze Edge which is a combination of a gun and a sword (one collapsing into the other), similar to the gunblade wielded by Squall in Final Fantasy VIII. She can also manipulate gravity with a device on her thumb (though due to Sazh’s interference, this device becomes damaged). In battle, Lightning is very agile and uses acrobatic moves. As a l’Cie, she can summon the Eidolon Odin to fight by her side in battle, who can assume a horse-like form that she can ride on. While riding, Lightning dual wields Odin’s detachable sword. Her strongest unique special attack is called Scene Drive in the Japanese version and Army of One in the North American version.

Snow Villiers – Prior to becoming a l’Cie, Snow is the head of Team Nora, a resistance group fighting against the government of Cocoon. Standing at a massive 200 cm (6’5″), Snow is a large character and is capable of running full speed while carrying two people at once. He has light blonde hair and wears a black bandanna. He was nicknamed “Mr. 33 cm” by the development team of Final Fantasy XIII as a nod to his shoe size. He uses his fists to take down opponents, focusing on brute force compared to the fast and agile Lightning. Snow bears the mark of the l’Cie on his lower left arm, through which he has the power to summon the twin Shiva Sister Eidolons, Nix and Stiria, who can combine into a motorcycle form for Snow to ride while toting a large gun. Unlike most grapplers, Snow changes his runes on his coat rather than buying new gloves.

Oerba Dia Vanille – Vanille is a mysterious but upbeat young girl with red-brown hair worn in pigtails. Originally residing from Oerba Village located on Gran Pulse, Vanille is among those being exiled from Cocoon at the start of the game and is subsequently rescued by Team Nora. She has a childlike innocence and is shown to be very compassionate, but at times she can also be very stubborn. Vanille also serves as the game’s narrator. Her weapon is a form of foldable fishing rod with multiple lines that can be reeled and used to attack enemies. She has been a l’Cie for a long time, one of two l’Cie given the Focus to summon the Eidolon Ragnarok, and her l’Cie mark is located on her upper left thigh. In battle, Vanille excels at using magic based attacks from a distance. Her Eidolon is Hecatoncheir, a multiple-limbed, earth-elemental summon who can transform into a bipedal mech armed with machine guns that she can pilot.

Sazh Katzroy – A former airship pilot of the Military, Sazh wields dual pistols (which can be combined to form a collapsible rifle), and his strong point is striking enemies from a distance. His l’Cie mark is at the base of his neck. He has a six-year-old son named Dajh with whom he is very close. When Dajh inadvertently became a l’Cie and was taken by Sanctum, saving him became Sazh’s main motivation. Sazh has a pet baby chocobo that lives inside his afro. Sazh is described as having good judgment and moral discernment. He has a gentle personality and is easily moved to tears, and joins the party early in the game. His Eidolon is Brynhildr, a female fire-elemental knight who can transform into a race car. Tetsuya Nomura based Sazh’s appearance on Lionel Richie.

Hope Estheim – Hope is a fourteen-year-old boy with silvery-blonde hair and orange, yellow, and green clothing. He uses collapsible boomerangs in battle. During the Purge, his mother offers to help Snow and Team Nora fight off PSICOM. She dies during the battle, and though Snow honors her final request to protect her son, Hope nonetheless hates Snow in a grief-induced rage for his connection to his mother’s death. His Eidolon is the holy-elemental summon Alexander, which transforms into a fortress in Gestalt Mode, and is able to blast enemies from afar with multiple cannons.

Oerba Yun Fang – A raven-haired woman who comes from Oerba Village, donning clothing resembling the traditional Indian Sari adorned with tribal accessories, and bearing the mark of a l’Cie on her right shoulder. Though she is a l’Cie from Pulse, she originally works for the Cocoon Sanctum under Cid. It later turns out she is one of the two l’Cie given the focus to summon Ragnarok. She wields a spear that can transform into a sansetsukon in battle, and her Eidolon is Bahamut, who can take flight in his Gestalt-mode. As revealed by Tetsuya Nomura in an interview, during the early stages of development she was originally scripted to be a male character.

Combat

In battle, the player can only control one character at a time out of a party of up to three.

Multiple commands can be stacked into slots per turn and released at the same time to form a combo. The number of command slots increases as the characters grow in strength.These commands include series staples such as Attack, Fire, Blizzard and Cure, as well as new ones such as Ruin, Ruinaga, and Radial Strike. The difference between XIII’s battle system and the ATB gauge is that these commands can still be placed in the slots even though the bar has run out, and the actions will be executed once the required slots are filled up. The game does not make use of MP but introduces “cost points” for each command, which determine how many times the commands can be used per turn. Because magic cannot be used outside of battle, the Hit Point (HP) of the party is completely restored after each battle.

When engaging an enemy, the camera moves to another position and the battle menu appears, making the battle transitions nearly seamless. The after-battle victory screen in XIII holds information such as the time it took to finish the battle, the highest number of combos executed, the number of break attacks and the quality of battle which is determined by a ranking of one to five stars. The party will be able to purchase new weapons in the game for use in battle.

A “Break State” is one of the new features of the Final Fantasy XIII battle system. The breaks refer to the times an enemy enters a state of reduced retaliation. This occurs when a chain combo has been maintained for a certain period of time on an enemy, filling a bar to maximum. When a high level combo has been achieved, the enemy will glow red and enter this state, during which the player will be able to inflict high amounts of damage and knock some enemies high into the air. The chain bar will gradually deplete during this period; when it becomes empty, the break state ends.

The “Role” system exists in order to control what abilities are available to characters in battle. Rather than having all abilities available to characters as they are learned, abilities are restricted to certain Roles, similar to the Job system of previous installments. The Japanese version’s Roles are Attacker, Blaster, Defender, Enhancer, Jammer, and Healer, while the English localization calls them Commando, Ravager, Sentinel, Synergist, Saboteur and Medic, respectively. Commandos strike with physical, non-elemental attacks; Ravagers use elemental abilities like Frost Blow and Thundaga; Sentinels provoke and absorb enemy attacks, and dish out counterattacks; Synergists use buffs like Shell and Brave, while Saboteurs use debuffs like DeShell and Bio; and Medics exclusively heal, using abilities like Cura, Raise, and Esuna. Roles, with a specific purpose in mind for each, are the only means by which to direct ally AI.

Each character may only take on one role at a time, and each combination of three Roles for a given party is called a “Paradigm” (“Optima” in Japan). Up to six Paradigm combinations may be stored at any one time. During battle, players may switch between them on-the-fly, called a “Paradigm Shift” (“Optima Change” in Japan). Timing Paradigm Shifts correctly can fill the ATB gauges, making switching frequently in battle an advantage.

Story

The plot of Final Fantasy XIII takes place in a world known as Pulse and revolves around the story of the fal’Cie, mechanical beings with godlike power created by a being called the Marker. Each fal’Cie has crystals residing inside them. People who are marked by the fal’Cie are called l’Cie. Each l’Cie has a Focus, a goal the fal’Cie wants him or her to fulfill within a certain amount of time; however, the fal’Cie do not explicitly say what the goal is: l’Cie learn what their Focus is by interpreting visions that are given to them. L’Cie gain the ability to summon Eidolons (monsters who fight with the l’Cie), but this ability comes with a price: if a l’Cie dies before completing his or her Focus, fails to tame his or her Eidolon, or fails to complete his or her Focus within a set period of time, he or she becomes a monster known as a Cie’th. If a l’Cie does complete his or her Focus, the reward is not much better: permanent transformation into a crystal. For this reason, being chosen as a l’Cie is seen as a curse.

Some 1,300 years ago, a fal’Cie named Orphan constructed a paradise for humanity: the shell-like city of Cocoon, which floats high above the surface of Pulse. Then Orphan created life forms and machines for Cocoon’s inhabitants to use, and humanity flourished. A war was fought between the Pulse and Cocoon, and Cocoon prevailed. However, fear lingered in the hearts of the people of Cocoon, for the day another invasion might come from the world beneath again.

Although most Cocoon citizens have never seen Pulse with their own eyes, they have been told that it is a dangerous place that has strange effects on those who venture down to its surface. Consequently, anyone who is discovered to have visited Pulse is immediately subjected to quarantine and exile by the theocratic government of Cocoon, known as the Sanctum. The Sanctum enforces this policy with its strongest military branch, PSICOM.

As Snow leads the resistance group, Team Nora, in an attempt to stop the purging of civilians, the mysterious Lightning fights her way past PSICOM soldiers with the aid of Sazh to find a Pulse fal’Cie, Anima, who turned her sister, Serah (who is also Snow’s fiancée), into a l’Cie. Through a chain of events, these three, along with two exiles, Vanille and Hope, are forced by the fal’Cie of Pulse to become l’Cie, and with that became enemies of humanity with the Focus of bringing about the downfall of Orphan and Cocoon.

Leveling & Summons

The leveling system for the game is called the Crystarium System which resembles the Sphere Grid in Final Fantasy X. Instead of gaining experience points after winning a battle, characters gain CP (Crystal Points) which can then be spent in order to unlock abilities and increase attributes such as maximum HP. Every character has a Crystarium, and within it, different sections corresponding to each Role the character has available. The Crystarium is not initially available within the game, and only becomes available through story sequences. After that point, levels in the Crystarium become unlocked as the story progresses, essentially capping the amount of growth that can be achieved in the middle of the game. Every character initially specializes in up to three Roles, and the other Roles are not even available in their Crystariums until much later in the game.

The classic summoned creatures called Eidolons (as they were in Final Fantasy IV DS and Final Fantasy IX) return in Final Fantasy XIII. Each character possesses only one Eidolon that is summoned from a crystal that sprouts from the character’s mark of l’Cie. The Eidolons include series staples Odin, Shiva, Alexander, and Bahamut, and newcomers Hecatoncheir and Brynhildr. When summoned, the Eidolon stay in battle while the characters accompanying the summoner leaves the party. There is also a new feature called “Gestalt Mode” (known as “Driving Mode” in Japan), which when activated joins the summoned and its summoner; Snow can ride and steer the combined Shiva Sisters which is a motorcycle, Vanille’s Hecatoncheir can transform into a bipedal mech with machine gun turrets in which she can control, and Sazh can ride and steer Brynhildr as a race car. This changes the pace of the combat significantly. But not all summons turn into mechanical vehicles; Odin’s Gestalt Mode changes him into a horse for Lightning to ride on, Bahamut’s Gestalt Mode is a flight mode for Fang to ride on, while Alexander’s Gestalt Mode changes him into a large castle which surrounds the enemy and fires lasers at them from all sides. The summons play a major role in the game’s storyline as well, much like Final Fantasy VI, Final Fantasy VIII, Final Fantasy IX and Final Fantasy X.