Western FFXIII "finally completed"

By Tom Bramwell Published 14 January, 2010

Toriyama talks up enhancements.

Square Enix's Motomu Toriyama has said that work on the "overseas version" of Final Fantasy XIII is "finally completed" and apologised for "the long wait".

Game director Toriyama said that "features which were popular amongst gamers at our survey last summer have been enhanced even further" for the Western release.

"One of those features is characters' facial animations, which work as the core of any human drama. Their movements are completely synchronised with the English lines and, due to this, each scene in the game is truly spectacular.

"Another feature to be mentioned is FFXIII's new strategic battle system, Paradigm Shift. Just like the Japanese version, this system adds elements of real-time actions to the battle, which has been made almost over-the-top, so that the more you use the shift, the more exhilarating the combat becomes."

Toriyama also issued something of a plea to impatient fans. "Don't get distracted," he wrote. "You will see the truth when you hold it in your hands. Please be patient a little longer for the 'day of a battle against the fate'!"

Final Fantasy XIII launched on PS3 in Japan in December and quickly sold a bazillion copies, although our own impressions based on the Japanese version were a little mooted, Square Enix apparently having abandoned the boldness of FFXII in favour of a more conservative approach.

It's nothing if not spectacular though. Check out yesterday's launch trailer if you need convincing of that.

Final Fantasy XIII is due out for PS3 and Xbox 360 in Europe on 9th March.

Picture of Tom.

About Tom Bramwell

Tom is Operations director of Eurogamer Network and Editor-at-Large of Eurogamer.net. He joined the company in February 2000.

Read more articles from Tom by visiting the Tom Bramwell archive page.

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Comments (31) Latest comment 2 years ago

Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • creepylizard #1 2 years ago

    Loads of people seem on such a downer about this game for some reason...

  • Lee_Morris #2 2 years ago

    So they have re-worked all of the cutscenes in the game then? That's impressive if they have.

  • markymark22 #3 2 years ago

    Well i'll still be buying it up for the ps3. Best recent final fantasy was x. Wasn gone on the last couple of games. Time will tell.
    Edited by 1 at 14/01/10 @ 09:03

  • Goodfella #4 2 years ago

    Square Enix apparently having abandoned the shitness of FFXII in favour of a more conservative approach.

    Fixed.

  • Psi #5 2 years ago

    n1 goodfella, i found ffxii to be a little too mmo for my tastes, if i want mmo ill play one online. ff games are all about storyline characters and ever increasing epic battles. grinding should not be involved.

    just my take anyway.

  • McBradders #6 2 years ago

    the voices are just awful :(

  • Kazzahdrane #7 2 years ago

    Glad to hear it's different to Final Fantasy XII Offline. Will happily wait for reviews and the inevitable EG/Digital Foundry comparison between the PS3 and 360 versions before deciding which one to get.

  • Nazo #8 2 years ago

    Personally, I'm really enjoying it so far. Engaging story, good characters, best battle system in ages. I can't argue with any of the criticisms levelled at it because they are all entirely fair but it comes down to what you want from a FF game. For me it ticks the right boxes; I've had more fun playing the first few hours than I did the whole of the unrelenting tedium that was FFXII.

  • Flabio #9 2 years ago

    12 is pretty divisive isn't it? I loved it, and I'm a little disappointed that 13 has gone back to basics.

  • Cid #10 2 years ago

    @creepylizard:

    Because it's a new Final Fantasy game. The fanbase is always negative at first.

    Good to hear the English voices are synchronized. They did this for Dissidia's FMV sequences as well.

  • laharl80 #11 2 years ago

    Grinding is always involved in FF.You aren't likely to stroll up to emerald weapon at level 2.I got XIII on import and just finished the story last night.I've put 90 hours in so far but a fair chunk of that is probably killing adamantoises for an ultra rare drop needed for ultimate weapons.Its a great game and well worth importing.12 was great.no more random battles=good.And balthier was a dude especially when compared to snow who looks like he found a tramp body in a wheely bin and stole his clothes.

  • Goodfella #12 2 years ago

    Its a great game and well worth importing.

    If you speak Japanese.

  • dredd97 #13 2 years ago

    XII was the best in the entire series, shame they've taken a step back for this one...

  • crazyhorse174 #14 2 years ago

    XII was the best in the entire series, shame they've taken a step back for this one...

    Agree completely. I LOVED XII, but there seems to have been a lot of hate for it.

    If only Sony would get off their arses and get the PS2 emulation sorted on the PS3 so I can play it again without having to dig out my PS2.

  • tomkuryakin #15 2 years ago

    I loved XII to start with but the more I played, the less I liked it. Never finished it, which puts it in the same bracket as FFX-2 as the only other FF that I eventually couldn't be bothered with.

    Not sure about XIII. After playing Fallout 3 GOTY since October, I'm not sure if I can go back to traditional JRPG, which is a bit sad but at least if I never play then that 90+ hours of my life that I can use to do something else. It happens once you reach a certain age...

  • kipper #16 2 years ago

    As I have never played FF, I'm afraid the trailer has rather put me off. Far too much emphasis on cut scenes and the little gameplay that was shown had a very complicated looking HUD, and such high speed close up action that it was hard to see exactly what was going on.

    I feel much more comfortable with the Western rpg style.

  • IneptPercy #17 2 years ago

    Still not finished lost oddessy, will get this when its cheap enough.

  • menage #18 2 years ago

    @tom

    90 hours playing other games I'll bet:D

  • monkeywithnoeyes #19 2 years ago

    any game that was once a playstation exclusive is going to get negative feedback from going multiplatform - regardless of if the games been played or not. Thats just how sony fanboys roll.

    All the tears over the 360 delaying the game here.. now sounds like the extra time actually benefitted it.

  • laharl80 #20 2 years ago

    I wouldn't call the removal of half the game due to dvd storage limitations a benefit.And obviously it helps to know a little japanese if you import but theres plenty of cut scene translations,menu translations etc online if you don't.

  • FortysixterUK #21 2 years ago

    I find it hard to believe there's such a "MEH" or semi-disinterested attitude in the game.
    The FF series is a mainstay of quality and entertainment.
    Several negative quotes about FF12 in this forum also, I enjoyed FF12 when no one else seemed too....still didn't it stop it selling massively.

    I think the reason FF12 was often dis-like is that it moved the FF formula forwards ( for the better IMO ) and the died in the wool FF fans really wanted a repeat of FF7.

    Get over it, FF7 was NOT the best FF, it was just the one that broke the series to a wider audience.

    Until FF12 I think FF3 on the SNES was the best one. ( think it's FF3,it went by different numbers around the world, the one where you start with the soldiers in robot walkers escorting a girl who is a their prisoner, who is also in a robot walker )

    I myself am looking forwards to this no end.
    The music seems typically FF as does the love song by a manufactured pop star, who, whilst I will never touch an album of hers, you must admit, has an awesome voice.
    FF13 will be great.

  • seanthejackal #22 2 years ago

    someone please tell, are the ones making ff from 6 onwards only interested in ponys, butterflies, the colour blue and tgirls...surely im not the only one to see is pattern?

  • laharl80 #23 2 years ago

    @seanthejackal
    I think it is just you.Take FFX as an example.The storyline is based around what amounts to human sacrifice.Not many ponies there...Or 7 with its gene splicing and and world ending meteor and death..etc,etc.

  • monkeywithnoeyes #24 2 years ago

    @laharl80, the removal of half the game? step off world ps3 fanboy. You've read a quote translated from an artist who never once mentioned the 360, or disc limitation.. of for that matter that the "content" was anything other than rough idea's on a sketch pad that never came to be.

    Fact is that even if the content was coded it was not vital to the story, and the games still taking up 3 discs worth. Most developers cut out content from their games... some even to sell as dlc throughout the year after release - fallout3, Boarderlands.

  • GamesConnoisseur #25 2 years ago

    Lost Odyssey came on 3 disks and did it no harm, I would still have considered X360 if FFXIII came on 3 disks for X360 but 1 for PS3. Its all depends on how well each version plays the game, I dont believe we would see any Bayonetta difference.

    I m still erring towards PS3 but keeping my mind open!
    Edited by 1 at 14/01/10 @ 19:08

  • laharl80 #26 2 years ago

    @monkeywithnoeyes
    You don't need to be a genius to convert"considerations of game volume" to "dvd storage limitations".
    It doesn't matter if the content was vital to the story or not.An amusement park could well of been XIIIs equivalent of the golden saucer.And of course a square enix employee isn't going to say they crippled the game in order to make both versions identical.
    Stating the obvious doesn't make me a fanboy.

  • Darren #27 2 years ago

    Can't wait for this game. This, BioShock 2, God of War III and Mass Effect 2 are my most wanted games of 2010 so far.

  • VMerken #28 2 years ago

    In my opinion, FFVI to FFVIII were great, then nothing really titillating for a while, then the awesome FFXII came along. Yeah, I'm a fan of Matsuno and Yoshida's work. Sue me. Not being superstitious, I will buy XIII if only for the fact that it's the first FF on the PS3/X360.

    @sigmagoat
    Thanks for reminding me Leona Lewis is in this. Blech. Oh well, I think my stereo has an on/off switch

    @monkeywithnoeyes
    Afaik, the DLC in Fallout 3 has been produced after main game release, they are not material dropped from the main game.
    Edited by 1 at 14/01/10 @ 22:43

  • Kapo! #29 2 years ago

    Out of all the FFs that i've played, I can honestly say that FFX was by far the worst of the bunch. I literally spent more time watching the boring video clips than I did actually playing the game. To date, it is probably the worst video game i've ever played. I genuinely hated it. My favourite is FFVII, followed by IV.

  • Pacman8MyGhostkart #30 2 years ago

    Y 0 Y 0 Y will they not just make me happy for once and have a setting for subtitles. I'm pissed off about Leona Lewis too. It's even worse than the Japanese original theme because I can understand the trite lyrics. Will still buy it though ^_^

  • Jamiesan #31 2 years ago

    Maybe that area had too many alpha effects and it was taken out because the ps3 couldn't handle it. [/sarcasm]
    Edited by 1 at 16/01/10 @ 00:29