Um yeah, I meant expansion content, not fluff :p Good to see memories aren't short lol. I don't know if I can really agree with the Deus Ex example because the intro areas are as pretty as anything else in the game and the linearity isn't just limited to one area, it's almost the entire first half of the game. I mean we could get all philosophical and espouse that the linearity is indicative of the restrictive society of the Coccoon heirarchy, and when you get to Pulse the freedom of exploration is representative of a more open society.... And if you buy that bullshit, I have a great lawnmower for sale. :)

Well, I think alot of the rush had to do with how long XII languished in development hell and I'm sure SE's shareholders did not want a repeat of that especially considering the company lost money last year even with FFXIIIs launch over the winter months. I would love to see a direct sequel as the world they built is pretty amazing, but I hope they build on what they have and not try to reinvent the wheel again.

What I would like to see is them start looking at DLC like Bioware is doing for Dragon Age, expanding and enriching on a world instead of starting from square one every release. I mean there's a fine line between content/value, but if they follow something like Bethesdas expansion model, it could be satisfying for the company financially as well as the fanbase.

front page of this website....

Random thought... Alot of people here claim to love FFXIIIs battle system, yet bitch about XIIs as limiting, even though you have alot more control over your characters in XII due to gambits etc. Interesting to also note that FFXIIs gameplay was pretty much copied without so much as a nod of a hat in Dragon Age. I certainly don't see anyone bitching anywhere near as badly with that as FFXII. As much as I like the paradigm system, they should have kept some form of gambits because the AI in FFXIII makes some dumb choices when your in a pickle, especially with healing.

After reading the article on SE defending FFXIII at GDC, I had to chuckle. After blowing smoke up people's asses about streamlining for the western audience yadda yadda, they finally fessed up and said it was time constraints, and that future entries will have series mainstays. What confuses me is that the most linear and sloppy parts of the game is the beginning, so do they develop in a backwards timeline? I think everyone here will admit the first chapter or so were obviously half baked. Granted I haven't finished the game yet, though getting close to Pulse, and the game is currently playing where it should be in terms of gameplay and storyline. I really hope it doesn't fall back to the slop that was the intro. 

According to the article, seems that distance and direction will be major factors, as well as movement, so it will be interesting to see how that works with their party vs. party concept. SE has a history of coming up with new systems that sound great on paper but are no fun when implemented, so i'll cross my fingers that they keep the fun factor as a priority.

Is it just me or do these classes sound a bit, limited? All your melee seem to be able to tank, and all your casters can nuke and heal. The archer seems to be the only role that doesn't seem to share much with anyone else.  Granted i'm sure its not all the info, but I'd be very dissapointed if this was all the variety you got in the game. Overspecialization is half the fun.

Anyway, has anyone even got into the beta/alpha or whatever, cause other than the press who went to Vana'fest - I haven't seen anyone saying they did.

Hm, that is strange. I wonder if it has something to do with them merging the POL ID's with the SE IDs. Sorry, the only thing I can suggest is to contact their customer service line.

To answer the weak weapon question, sometimes there are special effects tied to weapons that are seen on the right side of the screen when you equip them. Also they usually upgrade more times than lower quality gear.

For money, alot of PSICOM mobs drop credit and incentive chips that can be farmed ( I did this is chapter 10 on the Sanctum Air Fortress).

Currently in chapter 11 beneath Eden and happy to report that the dungeon design opens up more. It's still linear but the areas are much more open and muti-tiered. Probaby won't get much done since I'm working this weekend, but I expect most of you to catch up or blow by me in the interim. The game is getting alot better, after the Primarch encounter you guys will finally feel like your playing an FF game - it's epic!

I think the rest of the game will rock, but they really needed to rethink the first half of the game. Have fun in chapter 10, you'll have your hands full with the battles cause they are rough.

Major tip! Develop Sazh in Synergest fast for Haste, it's uber! Also Lightning is your first Medic to learn Raise so don't ignore that paradigm. Remember each character develops skills differently so look ahead at the Crystarium and plan accordingly, it will save you alot of headache.

Also, could Cid look any mor emo?

Ok hold on, are you trying to put the FFXIV campaign item/beta application code in and failing? You can't C&P the code since it will cut off the last 4 digits off the code because of the spaces. Enter it manually with all caps with no spaces and it should enter.

Remember the FFXIV promo code does not guarantee you entry into the beta, it just puts you in the pool. From what I understand, once you are selected for the beta, you login through the beta site with your Square Enix ID.   I don't know if they have to link your Beta access to your ID, or if there's any code to register with. If so, all that is through the Square Enix account management.

Exactly John, but it does get better - though some parts are better than others. I hear when you get to Pulse it becomes open world - can't wait. Snow's hero monologues don't stop either - though he inherits some emo himself while Lightening... lightens up. Suprisingly I've found that I like how Hope has developed, although awkwardly in the process. You're going to LOVE the foreshadowing when he gets a gift from Lightening - it keeps popping up and you're like "holy shit, this kid is all kinds of crazy..."

I wasn't seeking agreement, I was giving you my opinion - and you prove my point... IF you keep up with the datalogue. I'm sorry but its poor design if the creators of the game couldn't be bothered to integrate the important facets of the world into the game, especially with how sloppy the first chapter is. Handing you a book to read instead is a cop out, having an episode zero that isn't even at part of the game only strengthens my argument.

Regardless, i'm about 12 hours in so far, around chapter 8 or so in Nautilus and the game has improved, but its still got a ways to go. Vanille's secret is out of the bag, and is somewhat underwhelming - the fact that Fang spits it out within minutes of meeting Lightening was a missed opportunity for gravitas. Still, the character building that they go through on their way through PalomPorum er.. I mean Palumpolum (funny name eh?) is great - I also loved the area. Still linear but with enough breaks between teams, changes of scenery and more open areas. I also like the troop avoidance capacity the area brings.

I do retract my earlier comment about same toolset characters. It looks like paradigms develop based on character, so much so that ability/spell growth is very different between characters after a certain point. I'm still locked in as far as team leaders are concerned, but I think that should be opening up soon. The fights from here on out can be very, very challenging if your not prepared for it - so develop the crystarium carefully. Mobs do respawn after a time so you can pad the CP if you want to, but isn't really necessary if you don't avoid everything.


I'm jut waiting for the whole fugitive aspectc of the storyline to be over. Granted its central to the main plot, but its getting a little long in the tooth. I'd like to actually DO something after 12 hours instead of literally running from cutscene to cutscene.  

edit- Protips -

1) DO NOT UPGRADE ANY WEAPONS TILL LATER! It will save you a ton of cash you don't have. Not to mention you gain a new weapon almost every chapter.

2) If you still choose to upgrade (or if you do it later), use the biological stuff in bulk first to max your EXP%, then slam it with engineering parts in bulk. If you do it in small portions the biological bonus doesnt' build, and the engineering exp debuff stacks too quickly.

3) Save your Phoenix Downs. There's not alot of them found after a while, especially since you can hold 99 and on some of those harder fights, you'll need them. They're also hella expensive.

4) Make use of the Retry option in the pause menu if you fuck up a Pre-emptive strike on a particularly vicious mob.

5) On multiple enemy fights where you begin with a pre-emptive strike, use Quake to knock them all over the edge into Stagger. On some later fights, if you don't Stagger the enemy fast, its game over!

6) Ravagers use spells to raise the Stagger Bar fast, but it drains quickly - Commandos raise it slowly, but also slow the Stagger drain considerably. Try to have one of each in every fight - and time it (you should always have the leader as one of them) so that they aren't hitting at the same time - it makes a huge difference in how consistently the Staggers build. Also, when an enemy is staggered Commandos do the most damage bar none - the only exception is if a mob has a particular elemental weakness and you have access to the -ira and above spells.

7) Libra is your friend, but don't waste the TP if you have the items in stock. By knowing the enemy data, it will give your characters (Ravagers particularly) the optimal spell selections for auto-battle. If you don't want to do either, fight enough of the same mob and hit it with enough variations of spells and the data will fill itself out for you, but who has the time for that eh?

And yes, the game is obnoxiously beautiful, though there's some slowdown and a tad of polygon tearing in the PS3 version. Couple of low rez. texture maps here and there. Crystal Tools makes excellent use of the PS3's lighting effects - and the colors pop off the screen, but I've seen better polygon and texture work in UE3 stuff. Music is boss too - camera needs to fucking die though, its almost as bad as Ninja Gaiden 2.

I'm having mixed feeling about the game personally. I just got to the Sunleth Waterscape about 8 hours in- and while the story has been interesting, the linearity and repeat pattern of gameplay (not combat) has really started to drag on me. The Gapra Whitewood was pretty but was entirely too linear, yet entirely too long... There really isn't much exploration so far and the feeling of being pulled through the game by the nose is somewhat obnoxious. The Crystarium is pretty, but perpetuates alot of the problems we see in other FF's which is overgeneralization. Sure you can choose your route, but after most of your characters have access to all the paradigms and the obnoxious amount of CP you get, its almost impossible not to develop your entire party with the same toolset. I don't like the fact that your forced to play different lead characters based on the storyline, even when you have other party members available, you are locked in - at least at this point in the game.

The combat system is pretty cool, but the preemptive strike component completely trivialized alot of the fights. I've only just had one major boss battle (out of about 5-6) that required strategy. I know its still early in the game, but there's just something magical about an FF game that is just lacking for me so far. The entire intro quest before you even meet up with the Pulse fal'Cie was filled with some of the dumbest dialogue and inconsistent pacing I've seen in a while. The fact that they drop you in on the 13th day will leave alot of players completely bewildered and confused. The in-game encyclopdeia is helpful, but its akin to someone trying to play Xenosaga 3 without having played any of the other titles  - it's that convoluted. While you do pick up the general gist, and if you take the time to read the datalogue - it all makes sense, particuarly when you finish up most of the previous 12 days of flashbacks.

I can appreciate what they're trying to do with the game - cutting out alot of the tedium of an RPG actually helps the story's pacing, but the entire package so far seems like some huge genre experiment that started hastily and is only just now starting to blossom. With most gamers having an attention span of a siv, I don't think this was a good thing for SE to do. Sure the beginning is bombastic, but its a complete mess - and the lack of any real breaks in gameplay make alot of the game seem extremely tedious.

Honestly, I think i'm looking forward to RoF on Wed more than ever.

Guys, the registration codes are fine, the problem is you cant C&P it - because it will cut out the last 4 characters because of the spaces. Enter the code without spaces with all caps.

Looks like alpha invites started going out today. Check your emails.