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Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII; For: PS3, 360
Topic Started: Aug 31 2012, 08:43 PM (3,450 Views)
Posted ImageHobbes
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Stuffed Tiger / Philosopher

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Square Enix has promised Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII will bring a definitive conclusion to the saga of its titular protagonist, Claire "Lightning" Farron. But the story the FFXIII trilogy tells about Lightning may end up being much less interesting than the one it tells about Square itself.

...

More to the point, though, the title "Lightning Returns" speaks to broader changes to the series. While it looks to be running on a modified Final Fantasy XIII-2 engine, its play mechanics hint at fairly radical changes to the entire concept of Final Fantasy. For starters, Lightning Returns really is Lightning's game. She's not simply the main character, she's the sole playable character. Not unlike Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII and its hero Zack Fair, the entire game revolves around her; she explores on her own, fights combat solo, and singlehandedly bears the burden of saving the world from a looming apocalypse. Surprisingly, the combat system takes an even more action-oriented style than Crisis Core. Square has completely swept away the menu-driven, hands-off system that served so effectively in the first two chapters of FFXIII, pouring its resources instead into a system that allows players to control Lightning directly in single combat against foes.

Menus are out. Instead, players instead can assign four skills or commands to the controller's face buttons and execute them instantly. If this sounds suspiciously similar to Kingdom Hearts, realize the overlap only goes so far. Lightning fights in a far less button-mashy style than Sora and friends, with considerably less air-combo time, and she's not limited to a single use of each power followed by a cooldown period. Instead, her commands run on a Active-Time Battle gauge in the classic Final Fantasy style, and each ability comes with a corresponding ATB cost. This system doesn't employ the same fixed costs as in FFXIII and XIII-2, though, and the meter isn't segmented as it was in those games. The result is a faster-paced battle system than in any previous Final Fantasy, but a far less manic one than in the earlier FFXIII titles. There's far less screen clutter and extraneous information flying about, and the battle camera stays fairly fixed on Lightning rather than cutting to dramatic angles in the heat of combat.

That's an essential design choice, because Lightning Returns drops the classic hands-off style of Final Fantasy combat for something much more focused on timing and reflexes. This is certainly no God of War, but nevertheless the game requires a nimble touch. Players can move Lightning freely about the field during combat, managing relative distance from opponents and dodging or parrying enemy attacks. Previous Final Fantasy games have flirted with the idea of allowing player control in combat, but even in Final Fantasy XI and XII it ultimately amounted to window dressing that had little impact on the action. By dropping the concept of a party and allowing the heroine to fly solo, Lightning Returns brings a genuine real-time mechanic to the series while integrating a touch of Super Mario RPG-style "timed hits."

Many, many more details can be found at the source: http://www.1up.com/previews/lightning-returns-final-fantasy-xiii-first-looks
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XR
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King of Awesomeness
Child of the Sun
Finally what XIII's original trailer promised >_>

Also, Valkyrie Lightning or bust.
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Raxtenko
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The Maleficent

Wait, wait so more of Lightning's thighs?
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Anata
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Almost as good as Lowe ^_^
http://andriasang.com/con2jl/ffxiii_lightning_videos/

Presentation videos...

I may actually get this.
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Se7enSword
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Anata
Aug 31 2012, 10:43 PM
I may actually get this.
If the demo/trailers exceed my expectations I might get it as well. This games announcement also means that if PS All-Stars is getting a FF rep then Lightning's chances exponentially increased.
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PhoenixGundam13x
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The Angel with Charcoal Wings
The first thought that comes to mind is how much I don't like Lighting Returns as a title.

The game does however seem interesting. I will miss the party paradigm shifts though.
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Posted Image Ovan
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ねぷは..自由だ!!!

http://kotaku.com/5991689/final-fantasys-lightning-doesnt-like-sand-its-coarse-and-rough-and-irritating

90% of her outfits in this are just ****ing terrible, but at least this one is SEMI close to her original.
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Also those...strings.
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Homeless One
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Veda Terminal

Even she seems baffled by that trainwreck of a costume.
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Kagato9999
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The Blade that Cuts Injustice
I like the actual desert-looking one since it's, you know... clothes.
Edited by Kagato9999, Mar 21 2013, 07:55 PM.
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Posted Image Ovan
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ねぷは..自由だ!!!

I never did finish the 1st game, since having your party constantly split up was annoying, not to mention it felt so boring as **** all of disk 1 and 2. Didn't help the only character I liked was Lightning herself.

I Bought 2 at best buy for like 15 bucks a year ago, but never actually opened it. >.>

I lost interest when I learned that the lightning in it wasn't THE Lightning from the 1st game.

Though supposedly this one Is said original lightning.

EDIT: I did always like Sara's design and outfit, so might play XIII-2 eventually. Love her sword-bow thing.
Edited by Ovan, Mar 21 2013, 08:02 PM.
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Posted Image Ovan
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ねぷは..自由だ!!!

Looking at the outfits again, haha.
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Posted Image Ovan
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ねぷは..自由だ!!!

http://www.famitsu.com/news/201303/23030609.html
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ZetaStriker
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It's Like You're Carrying the Weight of the World~
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I honestly like the way Tidus looks in the original better than this more realistic remodel of the character. He benefited from look a bit more anime, honestly.
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Posted Image Ovan
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ねぷは..自由だ!!!

E3 game infos out. Lightnings the only character.

Outfits have different attack/guard move sets
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NewtypeS3
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The Rejected Spartan
Magical Photography Studio Tour
What, Lightning stumbled across a dressphere grid?
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Posted Image Ovan
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ねぷは..自由だ!!!

E3 PV


JP cast is awesome. Heard Fukuyama, and a few other familiar ones I cant recall the names of. Sakurai I think
Edited by Ovan, Jun 6 2013, 03:05 PM.
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Kagato9999
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Ovan
Mar 21 2013, 08:01 PM
I never did finish the 1st game, since having your party constantly split up was annoying, not to mention it felt so boring as **** all of disk 1 and 2. Didn't help the only character I liked was Lightning herself.

I Bought 2 at best buy for like 15 bucks a year ago, but never actually opened it. >.>

I lost interest when I learned that the lightning in it wasn't THE Lightning from the 1st game.

Though supposedly this one Is said original lightning.

EDIT: I did always like Sara's design and outfit, so might play XIII-2 eventually. Love her sword-bow thing.
Give XIII-2 a shot when you can. It's a big improvement over XIII. Noel actually isn't bad either. Sure as hell doesn't LOOK like a character with his history, but personality-wise, he's much better than the press before the release indicated.
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BadBoiu
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A Nintendrone living a Lie

Play XIII-2 if only just to see how cool Hope has become.
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XR
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I played FFXIII-2 and finished the Valk Lightning DLC before getting on with TIME PARADOXING past the first two time jumps just so I could get her in my battle party.

Totally worth it.
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Posted Image Ovan
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ねぷは..自由だ!!!

Cool. I'll give it a shot after I'm done with Neptune V and Altelier Ayesha
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Posted Image Ovan
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ねぷは..自由だ!!!

What is this I don't even....
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Kagato9999
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The Blade that Cuts Injustice
Oh my...
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NewtypeS3
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...time to get the rest of FF13's games, then.
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XR
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Mi'Qote Lightning, tie-in with FF14:ARR. All of my need.
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Posted Image Ovan
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ねぷは..自由だ!!!

So that's what it is.

Greatest, tie in, ever.
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