Actually pressing X to win will only help you toward the start. Weren't battles more complicated later on? Did you even get that far yourself?
"AXEL ON STAAAAGE!"
"All you ever do is walk from one point to another or kill one enemy after another. When you finally get your non-linear segment where you can do sidequests, all the sidequests are nothing more than "go kill this enemy.""
I think this adequately explains every single game that involves killing things.
I didn't get very far in the game because the beginning was so gosh darn boring and linear.
We're everything brighter than even the sun
I've got to disagree with "The characters are too one-dimensional. (Sazh of all people, the black dude with an afro, is surprisingly the best character in the game. :-) While the game does a surprisingly good job of managing not to get on your nerves with that, you can still feel it."
And I feel it's on something of a objective basis. All of the characters have character arcs and change at least one major goal of their adventure for actual personal reasons, all of which requires at the very least two dimensions.
Unless of course you're being one dimensional and only looking at visual appearance :D, in which case I have news for you. Most people who have afros are actually black
_yet this doesn't actually have any bearing on their character!_
So I feel the burden of evidence is on you. Summarise the characters is one word.
There seems to be a "linear is bad" thing going on these days.
Well, it's perhaps it's just not my kind of game. All I did was press X and enemies died, which while they were the beginning enemies, I feel like there should be a better way to start off a game.
We're everything brighter than even the sun
^That's... how pretty much every single turn based role-playing game starts like.
Linear is not necessarily bad, and it is definitely not good either. It is impossible to have any elements of exploration in a game that is linear both geographically and sequentially (by that I mean there is one sequence of events that must occur in a precise order, e.g. always find the blue key to open the blue door). You cannot explore a hallway, you can only traverse it. Generally, developers make up for this by adding in setpieces to make it the most entertaining hallway imaginable. Setpieces often work better in strictly linear games (they can work in nonlinear games as well but they might not be executed as effectively). Some games can pull off linearity, many can't. I haven't played enough of FFXIII to judge.
It is perfectly valid to criticize a game for being too linear. If the hallway is not entertaining enough to make up for the inhibition of player freedom, then something tangible is lost from the experience and the game will suffer for it.
I don't own a PS 3 so I'm not one to judge how good or bad the game itself is, but the story, setting, and characters are enough to put me off. The story makes little to no coherant sense, the world is beautiful but uninteresting, and the characters...yeah, Szahz is the best one, though I'm okay with Lightning too.
how is sazj being black relevant?
"I think this adequately explains every single game that involves killing things."
Zelda has you ride horses to places, jump around on rooftops, tether around on walls, swim and glide. They had sidequests involving finding lost pets, completing athletic courses, winning races, fishing, archery contests, deliver these items, not besides ones where you would just go kill this enemy!
Golden Sun involves grappling across gaps, clearing road obstructions for civilians, altering the wetlands, growing plants, starting fires, operating machinery. They had side quests where you would guide lost people, identify suspects, jump off the edge of the world and make your way back, play multiple token games, break into houses and sneak around fortresses besides defeating enemies in side quests.
I could go on.
Modified Ura-nage, Torture RackLeave a Comment:
All Style, No Substance
Here's the nutshell of FFXIII:
Audiovisuals
- The graphics are very pretty.
- The music sounds nice, but the magic isn't there. When I listen, I think "Sounds cool but what does it have to do with the setting?" It just doesn't draw you into the world.
- They eschewed traditional FF leitmotifs, except for the Chocobo theme. No nostalgic value here.
- There are loads and loads of cutscenes which do a pretty good job of making sure you feel like the story is still going on.
- Voice acting is fine, except Vanille: You'll want to stab her in the face whenever she opens her mouth... She's the narrator.
Overall: Probably the biggest reason you will want to play this game (aside from the fact it's FF) and manage to stick with it.Story and Setting
- The story makes no real sense and you gotta read the datalogs to understand it. You should never have to read supplementary material to understand the core plot.
- The ending is absolutely terrible. Reminded me of every bad Hollywood movie I've seen.
- The characters are too one-dimensional. (Sazh of all people, the black dude with an afro, is surprisingly the best character in the game. :-) While the game does a surprisingly good job of managing not to get on your nerves with that, you can still feel it.
- Antagonists don't make sense.
- Small cast.
Overall: Pretty crappy.Gameplay
- Combat is just not that enjoyable. Press X to win will handle most combat for you. To make the game harder, there are some bosses you will be too weak to fight. Grind some enemies, then come back later and consider using some shrouds.
- There is nothing to interact with aside from enemies, save points, treasure chests, and on rare occasion, bystanders. (You shop from save points.) This helps make the experience feel that much duller.
- All you ever do is walk from one point to another or kill one enemy after another. When you finally get your non-linear segment where you can do sidequests, all the sidequests are nothing more than "go kill this enemy."
Overall: A giant bore.Verdict: The cutscenes and graphics are the only reason this game will manage to hold your interest if you play it. I recommend staying away from this game.