Final Fantasy XIII

Senesnis buld'as man graziau atrode.

How do you think Final Fantasy XIII will affect the Japanese mentality towards RPG design?

Yoshinori Kitase: Japanese RPGs have traditionally always been command-based, and it’s all about really taking your time to strategise and work your way through the battles. That’s really what Final Fantasy has been as a series, but in XIII [there’s] more action. It’s still a command-based RPG at its core, but there’s a lot more speed, a lot more action – this might be the first step for the Final Fantasy series or Japanese RPGs as a whole to move out of the tradition solely command-based system into a more action-based system.

WTF !!!! , Kitase !!! Sis pareiskimas mane labai papiktino. Kokio velnio visi verziasi i action zanra , tai tikrai ne sprendimas padaryti zaidima geresniu, kaip pvz galeciau duoti FFXII , kurio musio sistema turejo daugiau minusu nei pliusu. Faktas, kad vis daugiau rpg igauna action elementu ir si tendencija vis dides , klasikiniu turn-based zaidimu bus vienas kitas ir tai liudina.

GamesCon Info

* The Japanese PS3 version is 90% complete, while the 360 version is around 70% complete. I would gloat about it, but...

 

* Developers are aiming for a simultaneous release for both platforms outside of Japan, around USA-Spring 2010. Which means us PS3 users won't benefit at all from being further advanced in production.

 

* They are aiming to fit the 360 version on as few as 3 DVDs. Hope you like changing discs! Think of it as PS1 nostalgia.

 

* Both versions should be equal, both in terms of content and graphics. At least that's some good news for the Microsoft folks.

* Two new characters will be revealed soon: one is said to be a young, silver haired girl who wears a school outfit, the other will be Sazh's son (who apparently sports an afro, just like his Dad).

 

* A new area demoed: "Lake Bilge - The Waters Stilled" was revealed

 

* A new character play-system was revealed: "Paradigm Shift" lets you change the manner in which your party members act. Unveiled options so far include "Overwhelm", "Peacemaker", and "Aggression".

 

* The "Odin" summon was officially revealed: Lightning rides it while wielding Odin's sword.

 

* The English voice overs will be properly lip synced. Dual language options, however, are unlikely.

Further info was revealed through twitter: Klee Kuo, a North American Square Enix employee, had a lot of interesting things to say during the conference. Here's a few of the more relevant tweets:

 

"Odin summon in FFXIII looks even better than Shiva. Watching the ride transformation in Gestalt mode never gets old"

 

"Just got a sneak peak of two new FFXIII characters! Sazh has a son? And who is this cute new female character?? Interesting..."

 

"Hint: Name of new female character in FFXIII was mentioned in past trailers"

 

"Screenshots of both new characters in FFXIII will be revealed next month! I don't want to spoil their names right now =p"

 

"Who's interested in JP voices for NA/EU versions of FFXIII? It's been a hot topic during the past two days of interviews "

 

"Sweet! English VO for FFXIII is complete"

 

"I am totally blown away by summons in FFXIII. Which one will appear next? Ifrit? Bahamut?"

 

"Expect unique level up system in FFXIII like Sphere Grid in FFX and License Board in FFXII"

 

"Paradigm Shift on top of ATB in battles is going to be interesting. Command based RPG incorporating lots of action and player strategies!"

Na atrodo tikrai super, tiktai tikiuosi kad visuals nebuvo vienintelis aspektas prie kurio taip dirbo kurejai... Kas liečia kovos mechanika, man visai tiko ir ff12. Gambit sistema toli gražu nebuvo didžiausias minusas (man ji apskritai nebuvo minusas) žaidime. Žiovuli keliantis siužetas ir kažkokia politine pasakaite su praktiškai neegzistuojančių character development, va kas privedė iki to, kad tai buvo pirmasis FF kurio aš nebaigiau, nors ir buvau jau praktiškai prie paskutinio boso durų...

Man asmeniškai irgi nelabai patinka, kaip Kitase bando vaikytis vakarų madų :/ Na Blogiausiu atveju lieka dar FF13 Versus, bet naujasis Square-Enix tikrai kolkas atrodo nekaip (Infinite undiscovery ir Last remnant anyone?). Na bent Sega ir Mistwalkers dar nenuklydo i lankas...

Terminology

 

Crystals - Everything boils back down to Crystals. Fal'Cie are created by crystals. Each crystal is unique in the way it draws and exerts power which affects the animals(monsters) differently by giving them different appearances and abilities. Fal'Cie are formed from crystals.

 

Fal'Cie - God-like machines created by a more supreme being formed from the crystals which when formed reside in them. They are worshipped as god's because of the things they offer.

They can brand people with the power of the crystals so they can perform focuses. They can even create large floating cities in the sky.

 

l'Cie - On a mission for the Fal'cie, because of the powers branded from Fal'Cie they can use magic. The brand they have is inside them. They are feared by society and thus are killed/hunted down like dogs. To become an l'Cie is considered a curse.

 

Focus - It is a mission given to l'Cie from Fal'Cie. Time is limited for completing a focus. Failure to complete a focus makes the l'Cie a Cie Corpse.

 

Cie Corpse - The process is that the l'Cie loses all humanity within them and crystals begin to cover and twist their body, the person becomes a crystallized monster/creature.

 

Cocoon - A floating futuristic technological paradise from the monsters that roam Pulse below, made to protect humanity. It could be considered a low hanging moon. The inhabitants live inside the shell. There is a lake below Cocoon which the water has changed into a crystal-like matter, due to an ancient construct falling in it. Order is kept by the Holy Government.

 

Pulse - The world below Cocoon where all the monsters roam freely.

 

Holy Government - A theocracy which rules Cocoon, led by their leader Cid, said to quarantine and exile anyone who was influenced from the outside (Pulse.) The l'Cie are see as enemies to the Holy Government. PSICOM is it's military force.

 

PSICOM - The military force consist of: Soldier's in full body armor, monsters summoned from interdimensional portals, automated machines(robots), and military airships.

 

Characters

 

Team Nora - Resistance group to holy government founded by young people from a village at the outskirts of cocoon that battled the monsters that appeared there. The Holy Government claimed they were affected by Pulse, hence the resistance. Gadot, Lebreau, and Maqui form the team with Snow. Gadot is a man with orange hair and dark olive skin. Lebreau is a black haired woman who has a butterfly tattoo on her shoulder. Maqui is a young man who wears goggles. Gadot and Lebreau are said to be childhood friends of Snow.

 

The l'Cie

 

Snow Villiers - Leader of Team Nora, said to share a common interest with Lightning. Their relationship is to said to be "unique". He is shown to be a strong man able to carry two people while runnning.

His Eidolon is Shiva.

 

Lightning - Former soldier of PSICOM, in terms of personality she is seen as a cold person. Her rank is specified on the shoulder plate on her left arm.. She was chosen by the Fal'Cie to "bring the end of the world" (destroy Cocoon and take down the Holy Government). Her weapon is a combination of a gun and a sword, and she can also manipulate gravity with a device on her thumb.

Her Eidolon is Odin.

Sidenote: she seems to take most of Snow's word's with a grain of salt. I suppose she is more of a person of action rather than words.

 

Oerba Dia Vanille - Said to be of royal descent. The fur sash she wears is apparently from a bear she killed herself. Her personality is that of an optimistic person, who carries a heavy burden in her heart. Her weapon is a fishing rod inspired weapon with multiple hooks at the end to hurt on the reel in.

Her Eidolon is suggested to be Carbuncle.

 

Sazh Katzroy - Friendly, cheerful and quick to banter but also can give a mature perspective on matters. He is described as a middle aged man that carries a small chocobo in his fro (Chocofro). Uses two pistols. Has connections to Lightning's military past.

 

Hope Estheim - Hope is one of the few that were banished from Cocoon to Pulse. He is the youngest of the characters in Final Fantasy XIII, since he is only 14 years old. He has silver hair, and has a hatred for Snow, because his mother fought alongside Snow to protect Hope and died in battle. Uses dual boomerangs.

 

PSICOM Personnel

 

Jihl Nabaat - A Colonel, in charge of daily policy and strategic command of PSICOM soldiers. Jihl graduated first in her class and quickly advanced to her current ranking. Jihl is described/known to be cruel, heartless and intelligent. She has both personal and political reasons for opposing Lightning's group. She views l'Cie as sub-human.

 

Yaag Rosch - A Lieutenant Colonel and Jihl's right hand. He is not as talented as Jihl and had a long and painful time in the military academy. The scar down his forehead is to represent the harsh training and fighting he has undertaken. He was however Lightnings superior during her service. He puts the peace of Cocoon above all else, so Lightning and crew are viewed as threats, he is very passionate about his service to Cocoon. He will often fight front-line leading his forces on the forefront.