REVIEW: Final Fantasy XIII (2010)

Overhyping a game can be one of the worst things a fan of any game or series can do. Why you ask? Well, look at Duke Nukem Forever from 2011. The game was in development for 14 years and it was getting to the breaking point of hype levels. The game then came out and it ended up being one of the worst FPS games of the last generation. So what does all that have to do with today's game? Well, after an initial debut trailer at E3 2006 and 4 years being in development, people were so hyped for it that when it came out, the hype depression hit them almost immediately.

Final Fantasy XIII by Square-Enix. Enough Said.

Final Fantasy XIII is the story of six people: Lightning Farron who's an Ex-Soldier (SEEM FAMILIAR?), Snow Villiers who's the leader of a Rebel Group known as NORA (SEEM FAMILIAR?), Sazh Katzrohy who's just there to be comedic relief, Oreba de Vanille who's suffering from Amnesia but she doesn't know it, Hope Esthiem whose purpose is to do nothing but whine at Snow for about 10 hours and finally Oreba de Fang, a character who was originally going to be male but they changed her to be female on the grounds that they wanted some sex appeal in the game. Stay Classy, Square-Enix. Anyways, these six characters are lobbed together in a place called "The Hanging Edge" (apart from Fang who comes in later to the plot). For the next twenty or so hours of the game, the characters traverse the world of Cocoon trying to find the reasons of why they were being purged by the Sanctum (Cocoon's government). The plot however, is as boring as the game itself is. It's filled with Final Fantasy clichés and tropes, and it's just really unoriginal. Sure, there's a few standout action scenes and flashbacks, but nothing worth really mentioning. The characters are really uninteresting and annoying, except for Sazh who's funny as hell, but that's it. That's actually how to describe this game's entire plot. It's there, that's it. it's an inconsistent mess filled with bad writing and unexplained fantasy thing that you're just supposed to roll with. I hate this plot and everything about it, except for Sazh.

The gameplay of FFXIII is easily it's weakest aspect, and that's really a shame. First of all, this game is the textbook defenition of the word "linear." For about 20-22 hours of the game, you're being led down what is practically an elongated corridor with a few forks in the road, which are dead ends anyways so you have to go back to the corridor. The only part of the game that is somewhat open-world takes place in Chapter 11. E-FUCKING-LEVEN. THIS IS NOT GOOD JRPG GAME DESIGN PEOPLE. This is NOT how a Final Fantasy game should be like! It's horrendous! Surely, the battle system will redeem the whole linearity of the game, won't it?

Wrrrong!

Final Fantasy has always been known as the series that constantly re-invents itself, and XIII tried it's best to distance itself from previous games - and the player - as much as possible. The new Command Synergy System is based around a paradigm deck system. Kind of like jobs, you can assign each of the six characters a specific role to play in battle and switch them on the fly in battle. However, no matter what you do, you'll always resort to the Auto-Battle option at the top of the battle window. This picks the best options for you in battle and always decides the best route to take. It literally is that dumbed down and stupid and I fucking hate it.

One thing I will admit about this game though is just that it is graphically a-m-a-z-i-n-g. Top to bottom, it's absolutely flawless for a console RPG. It's got highly detailed environments, extremely detailed character models and just awe-inspiring, jaw-droppingly beautiful CGI Cutscenes. it is without a doubt, the best looking Final Fantasy game that has been released.

The soundtrack to FF XIII is hit or miss with me. The battle theme, Blinded by Light, is a very good battle theme, but it get's repetitive after a while. Other themes that sick out to me are the beautifully serene title theme, the Sunleth Waterscape and Saber's Edge. Everything else is just kinda meh.

Overall, this was a disappointment from top to bottom. Despite it's pretty visuals, Final Fantasy XIII just fails on pretty much every other aspect. What was once the pinnacle of Japanese RPG's has now been turned into the laughing stock of the sub-genre.

Story: 1

Gameplay: 4

Graphics: 10

Music: 6.5

Personal Enjoyment: 4.5

FINAL SCORE FOR FINAL FANTASY XIII: 5.2/10

REVIEW - Angel Beats! (2010)

Ahhh yes, Key Visual Arts. Otherwise known as the torturer of emotions and destroyer of feelings. Why? Simply because everything they do wrenches the heart so much that if you're not crying by the end, there has to be something wrong with you. It's kinda like the ending of Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots except without manly men.

While certainly flawed, Angel Beats! is no exception.

Angel Beats! takes place in a sort of wacked out limbo, focused on a High School of the Mostly Dead. When somebody dies, but has not fulfilled their purpose in life, they are sent to a school to do one of two things:

1.) Learn how to get into heaven by attending class

2.) Rebel against God himself by joining the Shinda Sekai Sensen (Afterlife War Front)

Students are passed on to the afterlife when they have fulfilled their purpose or have continually attended class for a period of time, becoming a "NPC", or - according to the SSS - a nobody. Angel Beats! is focused on the SSS and it's war on the school council president, who has some really unnatural abilities. The plot's setup is fairly unique and distinct from pretty much every other anime I've seen, but there's not a lot of motivation involved in the whole "rebelling against the God" business, as it's really only one character who wants that. The other characters are in the SSS because they have nowhere else to go, don't see the point in classes or have amnesia and a cute purple haired girl told him to join them. It's lacking to say the least, although I could contribute this to the shows piss poor length. It's only 13 episodes long, plus an OVA which doesn't do ANYTHING to add to the plot. Nobody get's really developed outside of five characters, which is a real shame. Compared to other Key works like Air, Kanon 2006 and ESPECIALLY Clannad, Angel Beats!  is severely lacking.

The characters are not very well thought out, aside from the main four or five. Again, this is due to the show's low episode count, and it just leaves a feeling of dissatisfaction in your mouth after watching all 13 episodes and seeing nothing happening to your favourite character. I'm going to go over the show's main character and my personal favourite (who fortunately does get development)

Yazuru Otanashi 

Fun Fact: Yazuru has the same voice actor as Captain Levi from Shingeki no Kyojin. Now isn't that swell? Anyways, Yazuru is our main protagonist suffering from amnesia. Great. One day, due to an unfortunate train accident, Yazuru is killed and sent to the High School of the Mostly Dead (I will never stop using that pun). It's here where he meets the members of the SSS and realizes that even if you get killed in this world, you'll come back to life in a matter of hours, minutes even. Yazuru makes it his mission - even hough he doesn't really want to - to help the SSS defeat the "Angel" and rebel against God. He is smart and, while not a great tactician, is a formidable marksman and an asset to the Shinda Sekai Sensen (Which sounds way cooler than the Not Yet Dead Battlefront, just saying.). His backstory is - like most Key main characters - very tragic and all depressing and stuff. He's a decent main character, but compared to let's say, Tomoya Okazaki, he isn't that great. He's very entertaining though, and isn't that what you want from a main character?

Yurippe Nakamura

Fun Fact: THERE IS NO FUN FACT.

The definition of a character that can send your emotions on a rollercoaster, Yurippe is only topped by Nagisa Furakawaas Key's saddest female character. Her backstory left me gobsmacked and I had a lump in my throat after watching that episode. Yuri(short for Yurippe) is the unanymous leader of the Shinda Sekai Sensen which is in a constant debate as to what it's name is. She's funny, a bit arrogant and in all fairness the best damn character this show has to offer and since there's only like five real good ones you can't expect me to pick very easily *cough* KANADE FANS *cough*. I love her design and her ability to command.

I can safely say that hands down, Angel Beats! is one of the all time best when it comes to it's animation. It is stunning to say the least. Environments are stunning, the framerate is rock solid and characters are very distinct. The lighting is tip top, and the action scenes are just breathtaking, especially the one at the end of the first episode. It leaves you wanting more...but there isn't more.

Unfortunately, minus three very good songs, the soundtrack of Angel Beats! is completely forgettable. My Soul, Your Beats! by Lia is one of the best anime openings out there, aswell as the cover by LiSA (Known for her work on Crossing Field, Sword Art Online's first opening) and My Song sung by the character Iwasawa are all the show's standouts. I hear that a lot of people like the ending theme, Brave Song, but I really can't see why. It's not memorable or catchy to me.

Overall, Angel Beats! is very VERY hit or miss. It's tragic sometimes and complete shit the next, and this is down to a poor soundtrack, lacklustre minor characters and it's extremely short length. It suffers heavily as a result, and therefore I'd be weary before going in to watch it.

Story: 5
Characters: 6
Animation: 9.5
Sound: 4
Personal Enjoyment: 4.5

FINAL SCORE FOR ANGEL BEATS!: 5.8/10