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Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII
2014
Developer: Square Enix and tri-Ace
Publisher: Square Enix
Director: Motomu Toriyama
Producer: Yoshinori Kitase
Designer: Yuji Abe
Programmer: Naoki Hamaguchi
Artist: Isamu Kamikokuryo
Writer: Daisuke Watanabe
Composers: Masashi Hamauzu, Naoshi Mizuta and Mitsuto Suzuki
Before I start summarizing the game, I have to say writing the final post was somewhat emotional. I was reliving the intense ending as I was writing. The experience gave me a bit of insight into why writer's write. I hope that intensity was felt by you, the reader, as well.
Lightning Returns is the second sequel to FF13, making a trilogy. It's an interesting path these games took to fruition, because it was probably never intended to be a trilogy, it became one mainly as a response to the lackluster reception and harsh criticisms of FF13's gameplay. The creative team is pretty much the same as the previous games, with the exception being designer Yuji Abe. Since LR has an almost completely new battle and gameplay system than the other two games, I assume these aspects were Abe's main responsibility.
It could be said that Squenix should have got it right the first time with FF13, but I think, oddly enough, FF13's failings gifted us with two very good games in FF13-2 and LR. FF13 has a great story (This is my personal opinion, of course, others clearly disagree), FF13-2 is an excellent gameplay experience, and LR is the total package.
The battle system is completely new, the player controls one character, Lightning, and can switch between three customizable "jobs". This is called the Style-Change Active Time Battle system. I don't know what the obsession with the fancy names for each new battle system is, but I assume it's cultural.
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| Lightning in battle against LR's version of the chocobo eater. Source |
The game is "open world", with a few main quests that can be completed in any order, and a slew of side quests. The quests are how Lightning gains in power, gaining only gold and EP (something like magic points) from monsters. I like how the quests drive your development, it makes them motivating to complete. I prefer getting at least some XP from random monsters though, otherwise fighting is often pointless. The game does incorporate some quest related reasons to fight random monsters, and there's always rare drops, but these just don't motivate me like XP does. If you have to fight 100 skeletons for a quest or item, it's nice to know the path to that goal isn't a waste. It was only a minor drawback, though.
One big change for the better from the previous two games is that you can move in battle! What a revolutionary concept for a 3D game, right? I found it very annoying that many abilities were dependent on where your characters were on the battlefield in FF13 and 13-2, but you couldn't manually move them.
The craziest thing in Lightning Returns is the time limit, especially for an open world game. I think at first, players will find this very scary. I was constantly using the "chronostatis" power which stops the clock for a short time. However, once you get in to the game a bit, you realize there is plenty of time to complete the quests, and the clock becomes less frightening and actually makes some sense. I don't know if I can explain it, but I think because of the way the game is designed, the clock is actually a benefit. Once again, the player doesn't know it to start out, but running out of time is actually smoothly integrated in to gameplay, as the quests reset, but you keep your accumulated powers and items. I think what at first seemed crazy is actually a stroke of genius. Each time you start from the top, new mechanical options are added as well, to hopefully keep the game fresh. As a new player, I think it's important to know you should start on "easy", and that running out of time doesn't mean you have to completely restart. The main criticism I can level, is that these two things aren't obvious from the get go.
Mechanics - I'm a big fan of most things that LR does. It does admittedly have a learning curve, but it's worth it. I still prefer the relaxed exploration and turn-based battles of FF10. 10-2 is on the level with LR, but edges it because there are so many more character options, and more of them are available in any one battle.
1. Final Fantasy 10
2. Final Fantasy 10-2
3. Lightning Returns: FF13
4. Final Fantasy 13-2
5. Final Fantasy 13
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| They did retain the, sometimes depressing, battle scores. |
Storyline - "The game's story was poorly received by most reviewers. Sliva said the narrative was "drenched in uninteresting pathos that failed to give me a reason to care about these characters that I've spent well over 100 hours with." Juba called the story "a joke", saying that there was little development for Lightning as a character, and that the narrative "killed whatever lingering investment [he] had in the universe." VanOrd found the large amount of character dialogue a distracting and jarring feature, while Parkin said that the game's narrative could not fix the issues present in the previous two XIII games, although the side-quests and dialogue helped lighten Lightning's character. Elliot spoke of it as one of the reasons to play the game, terming it a "typically bonkers narrative"." from Wikipedia The story got a lot of negative reviews. I don't get it. I ate it up... To me it's an interesting exploration of the meaning of life, and the power of humanism. The're close, but I'm going to keep 10 on top. There are a lot of similar themes in the two games, as far as fighting against an established religion.
1. Final Fantasy 10
2. Lightning Returns: FF13
2. Lightning Returns: FF13
3. Final Fantasy 10-2
4. Final Fantasy 13
5. Final Fantasy 13-2
Atmosphere - Some of the dialogues were a little long, but in the end, the details of the background and characters did a great job of drawing me in to the world. Once again, not quite enough to topple 10.
Atmosphere - Some of the dialogues were a little long, but in the end, the details of the background and characters did a great job of drawing me in to the world. Once again, not quite enough to topple 10.
1. Final Fantasy 10
2. Lightning Returns: FF13
3. Final Fantasy 13
4. Final Fantasy 13-2
5. Final Fantasy 10-2
End Game - The final dungeons weren't too exciting, BUT, the final battle and ending were so epic to make up for it, and more. It hearkened back to that feeling I got from my favorite FF's. (You know... back when all the great villains had angel wings)
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| Here lies Atomos, one of the Pulse Fal'Cie from the first game. |
1. Lightning Returns: FF13
2. Final Fantasy 10-2
2. Final Fantasy 10-2
3. Final Fantasy 10
4. Final Fantasy 13-2
5. Final Fantasy 13
Difficulty - Like a said, there is a bit of a learning curve to the game, but overall it isn't bad. Even when you're learning the game, it doesn't mow you down like FF13 can do sometimes. I definitely recommend starting on Easy Mode.
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| Is Bhunivelze truly God, or is it simply a self given title? |
1. Final Fantasy 13
2. Final Fantasy 10-2
3. Final Fantasy 13-2
4. Lightning Returns: FF13
4. Lightning Returns: FF13
5. Final Fantasy 10
Balance - It was an appropriately challenging game. I felt 10 was still a little better balanced. LR, like it's predecessors, will still give you a long battle if you can't find the right strategy. However, my longest battle was 15 minutes, which is a huge improvement over my hour long battles in 13-2.
Balance - It was an appropriately challenging game. I felt 10 was still a little better balanced. LR, like it's predecessors, will still give you a long battle if you can't find the right strategy. However, my longest battle was 15 minutes, which is a huge improvement over my hour long battles in 13-2.
1. Final Fantasy 10
2. Lightning Returns: FF13
3. Final Fantasy 10-2
3. Final Fantasy 10-2
4. Final Fantasy 13-2
5. Final Fantasy 13
Music - Just when I wanted to change this category to "soundtrack," this game has made me keep to my original plan, because of how this game uses its music. LR uses the great tunes from the first two games, and adds a number of its own. However, they are tied to small locations, making the tracks seem like the're changing about every 30 seconds. It's pretty jarring.
Music - Just when I wanted to change this category to "soundtrack," this game has made me keep to my original plan, because of how this game uses its music. LR uses the great tunes from the first two games, and adds a number of its own. However, they are tied to small locations, making the tracks seem like the're changing about every 30 seconds. It's pretty jarring.
1. Final Fantasy 13-2
2. Final Fantasy 13
3. Final Fantasy 10-2
4. Final Fantasy 10
5. Lightning Returns: FF13
Art - The execution isn't perfect, there are some rough edges here and there in the textures, probably due to the lower development time and budget than a main series game. The art design in this game is phenomenal, though. I loved all the background details, and how each NPC is unique, with many different looks and the use of adornments to really make them stand out from each other. The final FMV is also of very high quality, hard to separate from reality in its final depiction of Earth.
5. Lightning Returns: FF13
Art - The execution isn't perfect, there are some rough edges here and there in the textures, probably due to the lower development time and budget than a main series game. The art design in this game is phenomenal, though. I loved all the background details, and how each NPC is unique, with many different looks and the use of adornments to really make them stand out from each other. The final FMV is also of very high quality, hard to separate from reality in its final depiction of Earth.
1. Lightning Returns: FF13
2. Final Fantasy 13
2. Final Fantasy 13
3. Final Fantasy 10
4. Final Fantasy 13-2
5. Final Fantasy 10-2
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| One of the many views I had to stop and capture. The Ark in the sky above the Dead Dunes. |
Best Villain - Lumina, she is an ally in a way, but for the most part plays the antagonist. Her wit caught my imagination from her first appearence. She's the type of villain player's love to hate. Her origin story is also unique.
1. Lumina (LR:FF13)
2. Yunalesca (FF10)
2. Yunalesca (FF10)
3. Barthandelus (FF13)
4. Gilgamesh (FF13-2)
5. Shuyin (FF10-2)
Worst Villain - Good for this game, as none of the major villains stand out as being bad. I'm trying to think of some minor quest giver who might have seemed annoying, but nothing's really coming to mind. There is a little boy who steals from you who is kind of annoying, that doesn't seem like the right answer though. So I'm picking Caius, simply because, of the major quests, his motivation to fight Lightning is the most unclear. It seems like he just sort of fights her because that's how video games work. It could be said if he is saved, that will leave Yeul behind, but I didn't get that from what I remember. He's certainly the best of the worst in this case.
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| Not Lumina. Source |
1. Yu Yevon (FF10)
2. Alyssa Zaidelle (FF13-2)
3. Leblanc (FF10-2)
4. Jihl Nabaat (FF13)
5. Caius Ballad (LR:FF13)
Best Ally - This is another category where nobody really stuck out. It's a little weird that the reincarnation of Odin is a chocobo, but otherwise your chocobo companion is pretty cool. You get to feed him, pet him, ride him, fly him, name him, and he even fights by your side! "Chocobodin" is a fun nickname, but he's properly The Angel of Valhalla.
5. Caius Ballad (LR:FF13)
Best Ally - This is another category where nobody really stuck out. It's a little weird that the reincarnation of Odin is a chocobo, but otherwise your chocobo companion is pretty cool. You get to feed him, pet him, ride him, fly him, name him, and he even fights by your side! "Chocobodin" is a fun nickname, but he's properly The Angel of Valhalla.
1. Mog (FF13-2)
2. Auron (FF10)
3. Sazh Katzroy (FF13)
4. Rikku (FF10-2)
5. The Angel of Valhalla (LR:FF13)
Worst Ally - In an almost unimaginable feat, Hope wins again! Although, I'll give him a little space, since he is also possessed by Bhunivelze. "Hope" in this game might as well be called "Captain Obvious", constantly buzzing in on the radio with an explanation of what you already know. He's almost as annoying as Chocolina, but his voice isn't as high pitched, that's the kicker. I mean, he also turns out to be the wanna be destroyer of humanity, that's not cool.
5. The Angel of Valhalla (LR:FF13)
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| If you're feeling lonely, or losing you mind, you can even chat with the Angel. The huts are in the very fun moogle village. |
1. Hope Estheim (FF13)
2. Dona (FF10)
3. Beclam (FF10-2)
4. Chocolina (FF13-2)
5. "Hope Estheim" (LR:FF13)
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| This is a t-shirt, NICE! |
Best Enemy - I'm really tempted to pick "Cactair," however, LR really gets it right with the final enemy, he is the most interesting, epic, and challenging foe in the game.
1. Bhunivelze (LR:FF13)
2. Yojimbo (FF10)
2. Yojimbo (FF10)
3. Dahaka (FF13)
4. Angra Mainyu (FF10-2)
5. Jihl Nabaat (FF13-2)
Worst Enemy - This one was easy, the Meonekton is resistant to both magic and physical attacks which means, they are a pain in the ass. Luckily they only show up during 2 hours of the day. Unluckily, those two hours are before 6AM, which is when you are most likely to be rushing to finish quests before the day ends. They aren't b*s like Gil and Cid, but the Guado and Claret Dragon aren't nearly as annoying.
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| Cactair is pretty rad, too. Source |
1. Gilgamesh (FF13-2)
2. Cid Raines (FF13)
3. Meonekton (LR:FF13)
3. Meonekton (LR:FF13)
4. Guado (FF10)
5. Claret Dragon (FF10-2)
Mini Games - Honestly, I can't really think of any "mini games" in LR. That seems strange for a Final Fantasy game, especially when it is not a problem. The absence was a glaring omission in FF13, but LR, the variety in the quests is so much that you don't really notice. The closest thing I can think of is the sheep quest, a fun little quest where you swing your weapon to scare sheep back into their pen. This still doesn't really fit my definition of a mini-game though, as it uses the main game's mechanics.
Side Quests - So it may seem a bit unfair to give this category to LR since 75% of the game is side quests. There is a such a variety though, they are interesting and fun, that it deserves recognition.
Mini Games - Honestly, I can't really think of any "mini games" in LR. That seems strange for a Final Fantasy game, especially when it is not a problem. The absence was a glaring omission in FF13, but LR, the variety in the quests is so much that you don't really notice. The closest thing I can think of is the sheep quest, a fun little quest where you swing your weapon to scare sheep back into their pen. This still doesn't really fit my definition of a mini-game though, as it uses the main game's mechanics.
Side Quests - So it may seem a bit unfair to give this category to LR since 75% of the game is side quests. There is a such a variety though, they are interesting and fun, that it deserves recognition.
1. Lightning Returns: FF13
2. Final Fantasy 10-2
2. Final Fantasy 10-2
3. Final Fantasy 13-2
4. Final Fantasy 10
5. Final Fantasy 13
Overall - Final Fantasy 10 has been one of my favorite games for a long time, but it has been... a long time. I've played it through about 4 times. Perhaps it's this familiarity that is coloring my choice, but, I want to put Lightning Returns on top. Reviews are what they are, but my experience was fantastic. The game, to me, combined the best aspects of open world games like The Elder Scrolls with the best of Final Fantasy. The ending push tugged at my nostalgia strings, bringing back those wonderful feelings that I longed for, but missed, in the Square offerings of the last... almost decade.
1. Lightning Returns: FF13
2. Final Fantasy 10
2. Final Fantasy 10
3. Final Fantasy 10-2
4. Final Fantasy 13-2
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