I will make it known, for the record, that I have played both Final Fantasy XIII and XIII-2. I will be comparing them quite often in this review. You have been warned.

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Graphics - 7

This may appear surprising. I mean, wasn't XIII the most "beautiful" Final Fantasy game ever? You'd think they'd make a little forward progress, but that isn't generally the case with the #-2 series. Look at X and X-2. X wasn't dazzling to look at, but graphically, it looked nicer than X-2. This is one thing I can't give XIII-2. The graphics are pretty standard for this stage of the console's life. I took off a few points for the lack of facial animation. Serah and Hope seemed to have the emotional range of a brick at times, and that's not a compliment. If it weren't for the voice-acting, it'd be hard to convey what the character meant.

Sound - 8

Speaking of voice acting, I like that they got the guys who did the voices of Hope and Serah in the game among others (no spoilers!) back for another go around after XIII. I particularly liked the voice actor who voiced Noel. Easily the best character in the game. But enough about voice actors... I give the game bonus points for having one of the better soundtracks I've heard in a game as of late. (which isn't hard when you consider I've mostly been listening to stock music). All in all, a quality effort in the audio department. About equal to XIII at times.

Addictiveness - 7

I don't know if I'll come back to play it, since I beat it. I'll have to wait a while before the reality sets in. I really wish I could say something but I'll keep it in spoilers for those who really feel inclined to hear what irks me.



Generally though, the gameplay was easy enough to get used to, and fun to get into. For some reason, felt way more responsive than XIII did, though any time you get freedom to jump in an RPG, you have to feel pretty cool. There are a few minor issues, such as the Moogle Clock addition. I like the idea of engaging enemies when you are ready, but often times it's hard to hit much of anything unless it's a stationary enemy. And sometimes, they are just plain too high in the air to hit. It's a first time feature for the Final Fantasy series, so I'll excuse it.

Depth - 9

I had to give it a 9 simply for this one reason. It's not Final Fantasy XIII. A lot of people complained XIII was way too linear. Well... this might not be linear enough. I can probably squeeze 30 more hours of gameplay out of this game if I feel so inclined. There are like 150 Fragments to collect (I have around 60) and a ton of paradox endings to grab... really,a much MUCH bigger game than XIII, which is something we can all enjoy.

Story - 8

Time travel. That's all that needs to be said. Basically, you are Serah Farron. Your sister is Lightning, one of the protagonists of XIII. Well guess what, no one seems to remember she exists except you. So one day a boy comes crashing into your life via meteor, and takes you on a quest to get your sister back (she's not in your dimension!). Along the way you see some familiar faces from XIII, and some new faces, including the dastardly Caius Ballad. You will go on an adventure that spans over 700 years, and through several locales.

Seriously though, it's actually not bad. I had my doubts going in, but I could totally reccommend the story.

Difficulty - 4

When's the last time I rated an RPG above 3? Who cares, this is one of the harder RPGs I've played in the past year. (on normal mode). The final boss in particular took me several tries over an hour and a half to finish, and I can say I had a feeling of accomplishment upon finishing the tale. It will probably be closer to a 6 for anyone who has never played Final Fantasy XIII, as the ATB gauge and 6 roles return to present the bulk of the challenge.

Overall - 7.7

I really can't complain about a game I basically got for free. Even had I paid for it, I couldn't really complain, just because this was a shockingly good game.

I was expecting Final Fantasy 13, part 2, rather than a game that could stand on it's own as a good game. You don't even need to play 13 to get into 13-2, as there is a beginner's primer included on the disc.

If this game gets better graphically, and they work on a few minor holes in the story and character development, and this would almost be a really great game.

My sister want to get this game so badly, but she have no money. The game is fun to play most of the time, but can get a bit boring after a while. Great review on a great game.

A great review for a great game.   FFXIII-2 like all FF games was wonderful.  I think your review is dead on.  Excellent job.