Final Fantasy XIII-2 Review

The beautiful and the damned

Posted by Brendan Griffiths on May 21, 2012 - 1:57am EST

Like the combat, levelling up is also very linear. You can choose which class to focus on, but skills must be unlocked in a set order, giving you crap you don’t want to get to the skills you do. It would be useful if the game would at least level up your health/strength/magic automatically as it’s a slow process dipping back into the menus.

Shops and item crates now feature proper weapons rather than XIII’s ridiculously vague modding system. Hidden items can be found using your Moogle character too. Yes, the Moogles are something of a Final Fantasy icon and many fans blasted their absence in the last game, but with me not being an eight year old girl, I can’t say I missed the little freaks. Ending every sentence with ‘Kupo’, is not cute or endearing, it’s annoying. The Moogle can be thrown to pick up far away items, but unfortunately there’s no option to rip its wings off before booting it into the nearest abyss.

It’s telling how good the story is that I couldn’t put the game down for 30+ hours. Multiple endings are a surprising feature and perhaps inappropriate considering the exasperating experience of actually playing the game. Which is a real shame as the environments are the sort of next-gen visions that I’ve always wanted from the series and are what the Final Fantasy brand should be smashing the competition with. And look at Noel, how the hell have they managed to make that generic Japanese RPG clone-a-tron interesting? Well, they’ve done it. Stupid name though.

Sadly, despite being at the mercy of the games visuals and plot, there’s no denying the game plays poorly. Yes, improvements have been made over the linear predecessor, but the lifeless combat and skill levelling make the game feel like a great film with the same terrible adverts breaking in every few minutes. If Square-Enix can rejuvenate the action next time, they clearly have the skills elsewhere to create an absolute classic. Sadly this generation’s hardware is still waiting.

Prev 1 2 3

Our ratings for Final Fantasy XIII-2 on PlayStation 3 out of 100 (Ratings FAQ)

Presentation

One of the best-looking titles you�ll see on this generation�s consoles. Beautiful characters and enchanting landscapes are abundant.

Gameplay

Better than FFXIII, but still a real bore on the battlefield thanks to never letting the player get properly involved.

Single Player

Being able to freely explore the game feels like a great improvement, although the stipulations for unlocking some areas of the timeline are woefully vague. The story will reward those dedicated enough to see it through though.

Multiplayer

None

Performance

Never drops a frame throughout and the cutscenes are so intense they should make your console roar with effort. Slightly long loading screens from the Historia Crux let it down a little.

Overall

The game leaves me in a strange place. I was constantly engaged with the characters and story and found the visuals for Pulse�s world and its inhabitants to be amongst the very finest gaming has to offer. Sadly, playing the game quickly became boring with uninvolving combat, repetitive missions, a vague sense of direction and a platforming section towards the end that seemed created solely to punish anyone wanting to see the end. It�s a game you�ll want to love, but it just won�t let you.