Odds are if you’re a Final Fantasy fan you’ve already played the demo and have been dazzled by the beautiful visuals of Lightnings finale. Story wise alone, the game does seem to have an interesting focus should the rest of the game continue as intensely as the demo did. From what we’ve heard so far, it seems the games main focus centers around the end of the world, and giving Lightning the chance to save characters involved rather than the world itself. This concept, along with the developers desire to create a deeply emotional cast that is realistically dealing with the impending doomsday in their own ways seems to be the core of the games story. Read on for more and the trailer.
This installment of the Final Fantasy XIII saga features more action based combat as well as Lightning swapping outfits to take on different skills. From the demo you were able to switch between three outfits which allowed for virtually continuous attacks. Naturally not all enemies can be taken down quickly this way and others require more tactical approaches. Interestingly the game runs on a timer. Every hour of real time equals one in-game day. The timer starts at seven days, but can appropriately be extended to thirteen. The timer does stop during battles, cut scenes and conversations however. Also it seems there is a way for Lightning to pause time as well.
Naturally there is a new game+ option. I’m not sure if that means after your seven to thirteen days are up you can just start fresh, sort of like a Majora’s Mask reset sort of feel in a way, or if you’re expected to carry out your quest and slow time to complete the game. It seems likely that replaying is the main concept here which will allow you to branch out into new quests. Which is important to focus on it seems, since completing quests themselves are what boost Lightning’s stats. It’s definitely a unique take on the series overall and holds a lot of promise. Lets take a look at the trailer. Lightning Returns is available today in stores and online for both Playstation 3 and Xbox 360.
