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Final Fantasy XIII: the story on HearLore | HearLore
Final Fantasy XIII
On the 17th of December 2009, the world of Gran Pulse collided with the floating city of Cocoon in a way that would redefine the Final Fantasy series. The game began not with a grand tour of a world, but with a Purge. Citizens of the town of Bodhum were being evicted, branded as enemies of the state simply for existing near a fal'Cie from the world below. Lightning, a former soldier and the game's protagonist, found her sister Serah transformed into a l'Cie, a servant of a god-like being. This event set off a chain reaction that would see Lightning, along with a ragtag group of allies, branded with the same mark. They were given a Focus, a task they had to complete or turn into mindless monsters called Cie'th. The story was one of characters at the mercy of a predetermined, unjust fate, a theme that director Motomu Toriyama wanted to explore deeply. The game's narrative was designed to be a linear journey, a deliberate choice to create a focused story rather than an open world. This decision would later become a point of contention among critics, but it was the core of the game's identity. The game's setting, a futuristic world where Cocoon floated above the surface of Gran Pulse, was a stark departure from the traditional fantasy settings of previous entries. The game's plot was driven by the conflict between the two worlds, with the Sanctum, the theocratic government of Cocoon, using fear of Pulse to maintain power. The story was a complex web of relationships, with characters like Snow, Vanille, Sazh, and Hope each having their own struggles and motivations. The game's narrative was a testament to the team's ambition to create a new kind of Final Fantasy, one that was more like a film than a traditional role-playing game.
The Battle System
The battle system of Final Fantasy XIII was a radical departure from the series' traditional Active Time Battle (ATB) system. Unlike previous games, the player only controlled the lead character while the remaining two characters were controlled by the game's artificial intelligence. This system, known as the Paradigm system, allowed the player to program specific roles for the active party members, such as Commando, Ravager, Medic, Synergist, Saboteur, and Sentinel. The system was designed to make battles fast-paced and strategic, requiring the player to switch Paradigms to keep enemies engaged. The game removed magic points (MP) from the battle system, as the designers felt that the cost of using powerful magic attacks made battles less interesting. Instead, the game used a chain bonus system, where the player's attacks would increase the chain bonus, and when it reached a specific amount, the enemy would be staggered, increasing damage massively. The game also introduced Eidolons, summoned creatures that could be called into battle, such as Odin, Shiva, Alexander, and Bahamut. When summoned, the Eidolon would stay in combat while the characters accompanying the summoner left the party. The game also introduced a feature called Gestalt Mode, in which the Eidolon transformed into a different form and performed different attacks while the summoning character rode them. The battle system was a key part of the game's identity, and it was designed to be a fast-paced, strategic experience. The game's battle system was a testament to the team's ambition to create a new kind of Final Fantasy, one that was more like a film than a traditional role-playing game.
Final Fantasy XIII was released on the 17th of December 2009. The game was initially released for the PlayStation 3 and later for the Xbox 360 and Windows platforms.
Who directed Final Fantasy XIII?
Motomu Toriyama directed Final Fantasy XIII. He previously worked on Final Fantasy X and X-2 and aimed to create a linear journey that felt more like a film than a traditional role-playing game.
What is the setting of Final Fantasy XIII?
The setting of Final Fantasy XIII features the floating city of Cocoon above the world of Gran Pulse. The story involves the conflict between these two worlds and the theocratic government known as the Sanctum.
How does the battle system work in Final Fantasy XIII?
The battle system in Final Fantasy XIII uses the Paradigm system where the player controls one character while the other two are controlled by artificial intelligence. Players switch between roles like Commando, Ravager, and Medic to manage the chain bonus and stagger enemies.
When did development of Final Fantasy XIII begin?
Development of Final Fantasy XIII began in February 2004. The project was initially codenamed Colors World and was intended for the PlayStation 2 before being moved to the PlayStation 3 in May 2005.
Who composed the music for Final Fantasy XIII?
Masashi Hamauzu composed the music for Final Fantasy XIII. This was the first main-series Final Fantasy game to not include any compositions by original series composer Nobuo Uematsu.
The Crystarium was a leveling system that replaced the traditional experience point system of previous Final Fantasy games. The system consisted of six crystals, each representing one of the six roles in the game: Commando, Ravager, Medic, Synergist, Saboteur, and Sentinel. Each crystal was divided into ten levels, and each level contained various nodes that supplied bonuses to health, strength, or magic, or provided new abilities and accessory slots. The nodes were connected by a semi-linear path, and the player could advance down the path by acquiring Crystogen Points, which were awarded after defeating enemies. The full Crystarium was not available to the player at the beginning of the game; at specific points in the game's plot, the player gained access to new crystals or levels. The Crystarium system was designed to be a more focused and strategic way of leveling up, allowing the player to choose which abilities and bonuses to prioritize. The system was a key part of the game's identity, and it was designed to be a more focused and strategic way of leveling up. The game's Crystarium system was a testament to the team's ambition to create a new kind of Final Fantasy, one that was more like a film than a traditional role-playing game.
The Development Journey
Development of Final Fantasy XIII began in February 2004, shortly after the release of Final Fantasy X-2 International + Last Mission in Japan. At the time, the project was internally referred to by the codename Colors World. Over the first year, director Motomu Toriyama and scenario conceptor Kazushige Nojima conceived ideas for the plot. Nojima thought up the crystal mythology that became the basis for the Fabula Nova Crystallis series, including concepts such as the fal'Cie and l'Cie. Toriyama then created a story premised on this mythology. He wanted to portray characters at the mercy of a predetermined, unjust fate who belonged together but collided heavily. In order to achieve this, each of the story's thirteen chapters was made to focus on different protagonists. Chapters seven and eight were to mark a turning point in the interpersonal relationships of the party. In March 2006, when the structural part of the narrative started to come together, lead scenario writer Daisuke Watanabe joined the team. Toriyama gave him a rough outline of the first eight chapters, which included several cornerstone scenes that needed to be kept, like when party members were separated or reunited. He told Watanabe what he wanted to express with the scenario, and asked him to flesh out the story and to strengthen how the points in his outline connected. For example, Toriyama's rudimentary instructions in the document would say Snow and Hope reconcile. Watanabe had to decide about how the scenes with this reconciliation would play out, then write the scenario that way. To emphasize what the story tried to express, Watanabe adjusted the personalities Toriyama had given to each character. For example, he felt that the party should not have a reliable and calm leader type at the beginning of the story, in order to more accurately show the confusion and unease after the protagonists transform into l'Cie. Toriyama has said that one of the storytelling challenges was the despair of the characters and the many points at which they are seemingly cornered. He mentioned the scene where Sazh tries to commit suicide as one such example. Although Toriyama felt it was almost a little too dark, he wanted to include something like it in the game. In contrast, he said that lighthearted elements such as Sazh's Chocobo chick helped maintain a good balance. At the beginning of the development, the game was intended to be released on the PlayStation 2. In May 2005, after the positive reception of the tech demo of Final Fantasy VII, the team decided to move the game to the PlayStation 3 and developed it with the new Crystal Tools engine, a seventh generation multiplatform game engine created by Square Enix for its next generation games. Square Enix believed that developing a new engine would speed up development time later in the project, though it would initially cause a delay in the game's development. However, the delay was longer than originally anticipated as the engine had to accommodate the requirements of several other games in addition to XIII. Another factor in the platform move was the delayed release of Final Fantasy XII, which came out a very short time before the release of the PlayStation 3. A PC port was considered during development, but was decided against due to how Square Enix saw the video game market situation at the time as well as additional complexities that Square Enix did not have experience with related to the PC platform, such as security issues. Final Fantasy XIII was first shown at the 2006 E3 convention. The trailer shown was an artistic concept that did not represent the final concept for the game, since at the time there was no playable form of the game. Announced alongside the game was Final Fantasy Versus XIII, later retitled as Final Fantasy XV, and the PlayStation Portable game Final Fantasy Type-0, originally titled Final Fantasy Agito XIII, the three of which form the Fabula Nova Crystallis Final Fantasy series. Square Enix explained that although all three games are thematically linked, they are not directly related in terms of story. The developers for Final Fantasy XIII were divided into multiple areas, with each developer or team focusing only on a specific task such as developing a specific in-game area or modeling characters. Each physical area of the game was developed separately; after an initial design was approved, teams were assigned to a specific location and filled in details without reusing assets from other areas. Several of the game's developers had worked on previous installments of the series. Director Motomu Toriyama had worked on Final Fantasy X and X-2; producer Yoshinori Kitase had worked on V through VIII and as the producer for X and X-2; main-character designer Tetsuya Nomura had performed the same role for VII, VIII, X, and X-2, and battle-system director Toshiro Tsuchida reprised that role from Final Fantasy X. As XIII was the first Final Fantasy game for the PlayStation 3, the development team's internal goal was for the game to have the same gameplay and craftmanship impact that Final Fantasy VII and X had as the first games of the series on their respective consoles. They aimed to sell five million copies of the game. Toriyama wanted the game to be the ultimate single player RPG. Tsuchida's concept for the battle system was to maintain the strategic nature of command-based battles. The system stemmed from a desire to create battles similar to those found in the film Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children. Magic points (MP), which had been a part of the battle system in previous Final Fantasy titles, were removed in the game's battle system as Tsuchida and the other designers felt that it gave players an incentive to not use their most powerful magic attacks due to the MP cost, in turn making battles less interesting. The Paradigm system was designed early in the battle system's development, with the intent of making battles rely on quickly changing strategies and feel fast-moving. Originally there were only five roles, but the Saboteur was later added as the designers felt that its abilities were missing from the game and did not fit with the other roles. Together with the maximum of three characters in a combat situation, the groupings of enemies were designed to force the player to switch Paradigms to keep them engaged in the battles. Toriyama wanted Lightning to be a new type of female character with an athlete's body and a less feminine nature than some of the previous female characters of the series. His guideline to Nomura was to make her strong and beautiful, and she was intended to be reminiscent of Final Fantasy VIIs Cloud Strife. Fang was initially meant to be a male character, but the gender was changed to coincide with the updated character designs during the latter part of development. The graphics capabilities of the PS3 and Xbox 360 compared to previous consoles allowed Nomura to use more complex elements in the character designs than before, such as Lightning's cape and detailed facial features. This in turn meant that the art team had to do much more work for each character or area than in previous games. Nomura did not take an involved role in the creation of the non-playable characters. Unlike previous games in the series which were more inspired by Asian locations and culture, Final Fantasy XIII was intended by the art team to be reminiscent of the United States. Pulse was based on landscape photographs the team took from across the country, and Cocoon was intended to be a melting pot of different ethnicities. The setting was also given a science fiction aesthetic to make it stand out more in comparison with other entries in the series. Art director Isamu Kamikokuryo revealed that many additional scenarios such as Lightning's home, which were functioning in an unreleased build during development, were left out of the final version due to concerns about the game's length and volume. Kamikokuryo said that the content they cut was, in itself, enough to make another game. According to Toriyama, the cuts were made in various stages of the game's development, and that some of the content was removed just before the game's completion. The game, unlike previous titles in the series, includes no explorable town areas; Toriyama said in an interview that the team was unable to make them as graphically appealing as the rest of the game and chose to eliminate them. Toriyama intended to have a piece of downloadable content available for the game that would include a new area, weapons and quests, but was forced to cut it as well due to quality concerns so late in the project and difficulties with the different systems for extra content on the two gaming consoles. A playable demo of Final Fantasy XIII was included in the Japanese version of Final Fantasy VII Advent Children Complete, released on the 16th of April 2009. Toriyama stated that the release of the demo, which was not in the original development schedule, helped the team recognize a shared vision for what the game should look and feel like, a problem which had been plaguing the development team up until then. It helped the team prioritize the work that still needed to be done, which increased the development speed for the remainder of the project. The game was intended to appeal to both Western and Japanese audiences, and focus groups from both regions were used. The English localization began while development was still in progress to lessen the delay between the Japanese and worldwide releases. The game was initially going to be released solely for the PlayStation 3, but an Xbox 360 version was announced late in the game's development cycle. The Xbox version, due to technical limitations, runs at a lower resolution (720p maximum) than the PlayStation version and is spread across 3 discs.
The Soundtrack
Masashi Hamauzu composed the game's soundtrack, his previous work on the series was as a co-composer for Final Fantasy X and as the main composer for Dirge of Cerberus: Final Fantasy VII. The game was the first main-series Final Fantasy game to not include any compositions by original series composer Nobuo Uematsu. Although Uematsu was originally announced to compose the main theme of the game, this role was taken over by Hamauzu after Uematsu signed on to compose the soundtrack for Final Fantasy XIV. The score features some pieces orchestrated by Yoshihisa Hirano, Toshiyuki Oomori, and Kunihito Shiina, with the Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra. The song My Hands, from British singer Leona Lewis' second album Echo, was chosen to replace Final Fantasy XIII's original theme song, Kimi ga Iru Kara by Sayuri Sugawara, for the game's international release. Square Enix president Yoichi Wada later said that it would have been better if the American branch of the company had produced a theme song from scratch, but a lack of staff led to the decision of licensing an existing song. Music from the game has been released in several albums. Square Enix released the main soundtrack album, Final Fantasy XIII Original Soundtrack, on four Compact Discs in 2010. The album sold 16,000 copies the day of its release. Square Enix released selections from the soundtrack on two gramophone record albums in 2010: W/F: Music from Final Fantasy XIII and W/F: Music from Final Fantasy XIII Gentle Reveries. An album of arranged pieces from the soundtrack, Final Fantasy XIII Original Soundtrack -PLUS-, was also released by Square Enix in the same year, as was an album of piano arrangements. For Life Music published a single of the theme song for the Japanese version of the game, Kimi ga Iru Kara, in 2009.
The Reception
Final Fantasy XIII received generally positive reviews. Review aggregator website Metacritic gave the PlayStation 3 version 83/100 based on 83 reviews, the Xbox 360 version 82/100 based on 54 reviews, and the Windows version 65/100 based on 6 reviews. It was rated 39 out of 40 by the Japanese gaming magazine Famitsu. Dengeki praised the game for the battle system, stating that the battles are by far the most exciting in the series, and concluded that Final Fantasy XIII deserved a score of 120, as 100 would not be enough. Universal praise was given to the technical milestones achieved by the game's graphics and presentation. Edge felt that Cocoon in particular was an inspired setting [...] blessed with a vibrancy and vivid colour that often leaves you open-mouthed. GameSpot called the art design magnificent. Further praise was given to the pre-rendered animation sequences and the almost seamless transition of visual quality between these and the realtime gameplay. Many also appreciated the game's soundtrack, with Masashi Hamauzu providing a score with catchy hooks and blood-pumping battle melodies, according to Wired. The battle system of Final Fantasy XIII received widespread praise. The increased pace of battles was appreciated, with several reviews describing it as thrilling; Edges description of the battle system summarized it as among the genre's finest. 1UP.com said that despite the fact that two-thirds of your party is AI-controlled, FFXIIIs battles may be the most involving the series has ever seen. The story got a mixed reception, with Wired remarking that the plot was a little more human and less esoteric than in previous games. 1UP.com felt that the story was hardly world-class writing, but that the writers clearly knew the medium well and had attempted to avoid clichés. Reviewers felt that the characters worked well together, and that the interactions among them as the game progressed made up for shortcomings in the story. While critics generally praised Square Enix's attempt to revitalize the Final Fantasy series formula, many reacted negatively to the linear nature of the game, especially in the first ten chapters on Cocoon, an issue which many felt was compounded by the large reduction of towns, free-roaming capabilities, and interaction with non-player characters. GamePro described the gameplay as a long hallway toward an orange target symbol on your mini-map that triggers a cutscene, a boss fight, or both, and 1UP.com criticized the linear aspect as the game's biggest shortcoming, and felt the first section was superficial. Edge and others awarded the game especially lower scores as a result of these aspects, with Edge in particular lowering the score they awarded the game to a five out of ten primarily due to the game's linear nature. In contrast, reviewers from GamesRadar and Computer and Video Games appreciated the linear nature; the former opined that the streamlined, focused structure eliminates potential tedium without dumbing anything down, while the latter felt it was a clever move, and kept the player from being bogged down with mundane number crunching, finicky and repetitive leveling-up. Many negatively noted the gradual unfurling of the player's abilities over this first part of the game, from battle gameplay to selecting the party leader. Combined with the game's linear nature, some reviews went as far as to describe these chapters as boring until the world of Gran Pulse was revealed. Edge noted that while it did not do enough to make up for the opening chapters, at Gran Pulse the game hits a sweet spot as the narrative offers hunting side-quests and the simple joy of exploring to see what visual marvel is around the next corner. After release, director Motomu Toriyama felt that the lower-than-expected review scores for a main Final Fantasy series game came from reviewers who approached the game from a Western point of view. These reviewers were used to games in which the player was given an open world to explore, he said, noting that this expectation contrasted with the vision the team set out to create. He noted that it becomes very difficult to tell a compelling story when you're given that much freedom. Yoshinori Kitase said that they didn't really intend to work within the RPG template, but wanted to create a new game, even a new genre. He said that in a lot of senses FFXIII is more like an FPS than an RPG. Toriyama and Kitase later said, in July 2011, that the biggest complaints about the game were that it was too linear and that there was not enough interaction between the player and the world, which they described as a lack of towns and minigames compared to the previous Final Fantasy games. They also named the amount of time it took to access all of the gameplay elements as a common criticism, saying that people interpreted it as a lengthy tutorial. Yoichi Wada, then-president of Square Enix, made his thoughts about the reception of the game known to Gamasutra. He said that some value it highly and some are not very happy with it, also adding: Should Final Fantasy become a new type of game or should Final Fantasy not become a new type of game? The customers have different opinions. It's very difficult to determine which way it should go. Square Enix released a Windows port of the game in October 2014, where it was met with a more negative critical reception than the original versions. PC Gamers Samuel Roberts, when reviewing the port, criticized not only the original gameplay, but heavily criticized the quality of the port itself, decrying the low resolution, limited graphical options and low framerate. He was especially critical of the time taken for the port given that an unofficial patch was produced by modder Peter Thoman within a day of release that fixed many of the issues. Michael McWhertor of Polygon also noted a similar critical response by consumers. A patch was released by Square Enix two months later in December, which was noted by Thoman as adding only the graphical features that his external patch had, with no other additions or performance improvements.