FINAL FANTASY XIII - review

By Sam Smith

The thirteenth instalment in the world-famous Japanese role-playing game series has finally hit western shores, to the excitement of fans everywhere. It’s been a long road, with years of development and hype reaching an end, was it worth the wait?

Final Fantasy XII was a polarising game, with some loving the changes it brought to the standard JRPG formula, and others lamenting the loss of the traditions they knew and loved. FFXIII is interesting, in that it tries to please both camps. The game reverts back to many old JPRG tropes and gameplay elements, whilst at the same time blazing a new trail with many new innovations not before seen in the genre. The result is a game that is always interesting, if not always magnificent fun.

The key aspect of any decent RPG is the story, and FFXIII’s is suitably epic and long-winded. Following a group of strangers branded enemies of the state, the plot follows them as they learn of their true destiny and their struggle to save the world, as well as themselves. It is involving enough, though it gains few points for originality. Neither is the story aided by the fact that some of the main characters are just flat out unlikeable. Although most of them grow on you over the course of the story as they grow and mature, it is a long and patient road.

Indeed, so rigidly does the game tell its story, that over the first twenty or so hours of the game, players can do little but run in a straight line, battling whatever lies in their way, and waiting for the next cut-scene. Even choosing which characters are in your party does not become an available option for hours. However, once the game finally opens up, letting you explore and customize to your heart’s content, the feeling of freedom is immense. This was probably a conscious design choice, but the fact it takes so long to get there will put many off.

The best thing about FFXIII is the new battle system. A hybrid of sorts between older Final Fantasy games and the revolutionary FFXII, battles are a blast to play. Although they start off simple, after a few hours in the “paradigm shift” system unlocks, and suddenly a world of depth is available to the player. Players only control one member of a party of three directly, but can assign “paradigms” to the party, which determine the class of each character. Characters can become melee-fighting Commandos, magic-using Ravagers, and healing Medics, among other things. Although early on in the game this seems unnecessary, as battles get harder, constant switching of classes becomes vital to survival.

Enemies have a “stagger” gauge, which is filled up as they get attacked, and balancing the need to fill this with the need to stay alive can be exciting and tense. Knowing what commands to use when, and when to switch paradigms for a quick heal or protect spell, can make all the difference in a battle. Although some old-hands may be put off at the difference from older Final Fantasy titles, FFXIII’s battle system is fantastically accomplished, and becomes more fun the further one gets into the game.

Another divergence from traditional RPGs is that your characters no longer gain specific levels. Instead, successful battles result in points, which can be spent on the “crystarium”. This has similarities to the sphere grid from FFX, although it is more restrictive on customisation. After picking their character and the class they want to enhance, players are taken to an interlocked grid of gems and crystals.

Points can be spent to move along this grid, and each gem that is reached enhances the character in some way, such as giving them a new ability or increasing their health. It’s an interesting system, and “levelling up” manually makes it feel a bit more rewarding. Eventually, every character will be able to learn all six classes, but for a long while, there are restrictions on who can learn what. It is another example of the game taking a very long time to completely open up.

It is worth noting that the game is strikingly beautiful, with some of the best graphics of this generation of games. Final Fantasy has always been known for its amazing graphics, and XIII is no exception.

So, like its predecessor, Final Fantasy XIII is likely to be polarizing. Those who get bored with the story, and the extremely long slog whilst the game slowly unlocks more features for the player to utilise, will likely dismiss it. But those who persevere and learn the depths of the great battle system will find a fantastic looking adventure to enjoy. This is definitely not a game for everyone, but if you are a fan and have the time to invest, Final Fantasy XIII will provide many hours of entertainment.

7/10

Click HERE to go to the official Final Fantasy XIII website.

The dangers of game addiction

Addiction is a key problem in society, and game addiction is just as valid as alcoholism or drug dependency. Massively Multiplayer Online (MMO) games such as World of Warcraft can prove very addictive to certain people, to the extent that game addiction clinics have been set up to help them. Game addiction can ruin lives, friendships, and people's health. Richard, a friend of mine, showed signs of addiction to WoW a few years ago, and he has agreed to answer some questions about it.

Q: How did your addiction start?

Richard: To begin with, I was playing WoW with a group of friends, and we would play a couple of hours a day after college. At the start it was relatively harmless and good fun. It didn’t get in the way of my work and my life was still balanced. However, as some of my friends began to stop playing, I started playing more, staying up late on weeknights, and feeling bad the next day. I just didn’t want to stop playing, it stopped being about fun and started becoming more of a compulsion. I joined a raid guild and started skipping school for days at a time so I could play.

Q: Surely this was a problem with your parents and teachers?

R: Yes, it was, but as I became addicted I also became unsociable and angry in general. I would argue with my parents all day and disregard my teachers when they tried to help me catch up what I had been missing. All I cared about was playing WoW and having fun with my friends online, none of whom I had even met. All my real friends had stopped playing by this point, but the thought seemed inconceivable to me. I would miss college for days at a time and stop going outside. I put on a lot of weight and became generally unhealthier but I just didn’t care. I felt an obligation to be online, and whenever I wasn’t I worried about what I was missing.

Q: How did you break your habit?

R: Eventually my parents took my computer, and cut off the internet connection to the house. I was furious, I ranted and raved and screamed and threw things and generally acted like a child who has had his favourite toy taken away from him. This went on for a few days, but eventually, as I went longer and longer without playing, I began to see how I didn’t need it after all. I felt so stupid and ashamed of how I had acted. I am lucky that my parents were so supportive and forgiving, many others in their situation would not have been. I try to stay away from online video games in general now, especially MMOs. I know the effect they can have on me.

Game addiction is a serious problem, and if you feel you are becoming addicted, do not feel shame in seeking help.

For further help and information, click HERE.

TATSUNOKO VS CAPCOM: ULTIMATE ALL STARS - review

By Sam Smith

A shining example of a niche game if there ever was one, it is a miracle Tatsunoko vs Capcom was ever released outside of Japan.

That said, this is a game deserving of an audience, continuing Capcom's tradition of releasing great 2D fighting-games.

A spiritual successor of sorts to the extremely popular Marvel vs Capcom 2, Tatsunoko vs Capcom Ultimate All Stars will feel immediately similar to fans. The game pits established Capcom characters against characters from Japanese animation studio Tatsunoko.

Whereas the Capcom characters, such as Ryu and Chun-Li from Street Fighter, Frank West from Dead Rising, and Megaman and Zero from the Megaman series, will be instantly familiar to a western audience, most will have no idea who the Tatsunoko characters are.

Whilst this is not really a problem once the player starts enjoying themselves and trying out these new characters, it may put off potential buyers.

Everyone should have a go though, as once you start playing around with the Tatsunoko characters, they are just as fun as those on the Capcom roster.

Some players may recognize Ken the Eagle and Jun the Swan from Gatchaman, which aired in the west under the name Battle of the Planets in the 70s. Otherwise, most of these characters have had no exposure here, but all are interesting to play and worth your time.

The gameplay is similar to that of Marvel vs Capcom 2, which a focus on speed, large combos, and flashy, over-the-top super moves. Characters fight in teams of two, with player having the ability to switch between the two during the match.

The character not in-use can also briefly jump in for an assist attack, or both characters can perform their super combos at the same time to inflict massive damage.

The learning curve is quite forgiving, and the game is easy to pick up for beginners. The game is controlled with four buttons, three of which correspond to weak, medium and heavy attacks, and the fourth calling in your partner.

Basic combos can be performed by hitting the attack buttons in order of strength, and then these can be extended into special and super moves as players learn and gain confidence. The game has plenty of depth for old MvC2 fans to enjoy, such as the "baroque" system, which allows players to sacrifice health in order to extend combos, but crucially is also great fun for new players.

Capcom's decision to release the game on the Wii is a questionable one. This is a game that arguably would have a found a larger audience on the Xbox 360 and Playstation 3, with those consoles traditionally having a userbase of "gamers", as opposed to the casual users commonly associated with the Wii.

Considering this is such a niche title, only releasing it on one console seems an odd business decision by Capcom, but Wii fans who are tired of waving their arms around imitating sports could do a lot worse than TvC.

However, an issue raised by the choice of console is that of control. TvC can be played with a Wii remote held sideways, but this vastly simplifies the controls to the state where the game essentially plays itself.

To get the real experience, the game should be played on a classic controller, a Gamecube controller, or ideally an arcade stick, a range of which have been released to coincide with the game.

Tatsunoko vs Capcom has the usual range of modes for a fighting game, with single-player arcade, survival and time-attack, and the multiplayer versus mode. Online play is also available, but this is patchy at best.

Although some matches can be smooth and lag-free, playing TvC online is normally an exercise in frustration, as lag messes up your combos and timing. For the most fun, play against someone sitting next to you.

Amusingly, the game also has an unlockable mini-game, which plays like an old-school style shoot-em-up. This is an entertaining diversion when taking a break from the fighting, but nothing ground breaking.

Tatsunoko vs Capcom is a great game, and one worth every fighting game fans attention. If it can overcome the unfamiliarity of its roster, and the odd choice of platform, TvC will have a great future ahead of it.

8/10

Click HERE to go to the official Tatsunoko vs Capcom website.