LIGHTNING RETURNS: How are you enjoying it?

[King.Mickey 359]

So...I know absolutely nothing about the FFXIII games apart from the trailers/gameplay footage. I haven't even played them at all.

 

For anyone who has this new one, is it worth playing the first two games? I'm considering it, but the first two got so much hate so I'm kind of wary at this point. Is it a must-have?

[Danex Darkfire + 1,712]

I love the final fantasy 13 series. I seriously recommended playing them, especially since the first two games are only 10 and 13 dollars. The first two are similar and are quite entertaining, but the third one is a step above the other two. While keeping aspects from the first two games, lightning returns has remarkable new features. Overall, it's a pretty fun series

Edited February 15, 2014 by Danex Darkfire

[Ben G 166]

What he said lol

 

FFXIII got so much undeserved hate for some reason

[Ultimus Grid 546]

You get more garbs and weapons from beating the first two.  FF13 is a good series to watch, but actually fun to play. 

 

Regarding LR, except for the whole "13 days till the end of the world" time limit, the game is great.

[Sora96 17,256]

What he said lolFFXIII got so much undeserved hate for some reason

 

Only fair criticism someone can give it is how linear it was. But that actually helped me enjoy it.

 

Loving LIGHTNING RETURNS though, only problem is the Doomsday Clock. I'd prefer it have the 13 days already there and only the one ending.

[Ruby Rose 8,591]

SOLDIER 1st Class outfit rocks

[Ben G 166]

SOLDIER 1st Class outfit rocks

I like how wearing that outfit when you finish a battle plays the FFVII victory music

[Ruby Rose 8,591]

I like how wearing that outfit when you finish a battle plays the FFVII victory music

It's pretty cool

[Ben G 166]

It's pretty cool

I think this is the first FF game to not have levels

[Ruby Rose 8,591]

I think this is the first FF game to not have levels

Yeah it's a really interesting system! :oAt least I don't have to farm CP to level up like in XIII

[Ben G 166]

Yeah it's a really interesting system! :oAt least I don't have to farm CP to level up like in XIII

Yeah but I kinda like the Crystarium lol reminded me of the Sphere Grid but with Exp

[Ruby Rose 8,591]

Yeah but I kinda like the Crystarium lol reminded me of the Sphere Grid but with Exp

I loved the Crystarium- I farm EXP and the like constantly in games I play so having a limit as to how strong I could get was awesome- that keep farming once the Cystarium expanded! ^~^

[Ven983 490]

I would say the whole XIII series is either a hit or a miss for everyone.  The are many, like myself, who enjoyed everything that XIII has done and think they are on the better end of FF.  Then there are those who think it is a blasphemy to the series and that all of them were a huge mistake.  I would say give the first one a shot, if you like that one, the second one is very similar and will be just as enjoyable.  LR is quite different and is even a hit or miss for series fans.  I absolutely hated the battle system at first, but it grew on me.  Story wise, the first two are top notch.  I haven't finished LR yet so I can't give a full answer story wise, but the story could have been as good as the first two, but the way it is presented is not the best, but still a great story overall.  All the hatred you hear is just bitter fans who keep using the same complaints over and over.

[ZOBLIVION 13]

The first FFXIII game wasn't all that great. Average, if I had to rate it. XIII-2 though... It took all that was good in XIII, and brought it in and open world, and added some nice new features like side quests and monsters that you can get in your party. They also made the leveling system better.

[Hero of Winds 2,576]

My problem is the not being able to go back in time. I hate feeling the pressure of the Clock, even when I focus on all things aside from it. Reversing time would really ease it for me. I also hate feeling as if I must rush myself through the story, and Chronostasis doesn't even last as long as it should. It's fun to try and work with the time, but it also takes a lot of my commitment to exploration and collection away. There are only 5 main quests and I finished 2 in less than an hour today. 

 

Other than my clock problem, the game is absolutely beautiful.

[Velvet Scarlatina 607]

I'm kinda in the same boat as you, King Mickey, except slightly different; the first Final Fantasy XIII was just a long hallway with little to no exploration, and the gameplay was awful. All you had to do was occasionally switch between fighting styles with certain enemies, and the game would just play itself. Once you get Lightning's "One Man Army", you can breeze through the game easily with no trouble from then on. No challenge at all, unless you completely had no idea what to do. The story is confusing as hell, too; if you don't get something, then I hope you like reading through random catalogs, cuz the game doesn't explain anything otherwise. You're expected to read all of it, which is poor story-telling if it can't explain itself.

 

I have no idea how much XIII-2 or Lightning Returns improved, so I can't really say if they're good or bad, but I'm kinda skeptical in buying them both.