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| Liz Maas |
You might want to avoid if, say, you haven't beaten XIII.
01.29.11 - 8:09 PM
So the other day we talked quite a bit about Final Fantasy XIII-2 with the first details coming from Dengeki and Famitsu. That interview was the first of a few that will come from Famitsu, and already there is a second wave of information on both XIII-2 and the Fabula Nova Crystallis mythology in general.
The game takes a much more different, serious direction than Final Fantasy X-2. Director Motomu Toriyama explains that they wanted to focus on Lightning's character a little while longer, and there was demand from around the world for a sequel. She lost her l'Cie (summoning, magic) abilities in FFXIII, and Toriyama (jokingly) suggested that she just evolved beyond just being a l'Cie. She was also given armor (not to mention is seen in front of a chair of 'great significance' - a throne, maybe?) to emphasize her nobility, and how 'refined' she is. Most importantly, they wanted to make a game that would answer a question raised by many at the end of Final Fantasy XIII: Is Lightning really happy?
Lightning and others are, of course, still in pain and dealing with the aftermath of what happened at the end of Final Fantasy XIII - including some characters having made the ultimate sacrifice. While in the first interview it was already mentioned that some of XIII's cast will return in various forms, there will also be new characters as well aside from Lightning's mysterious male rival. She eventually crosses paths with him while already in the middle of her new mission.
As they mentioned before, Toriyama and the game's staff are listening to feedback from around the world. They are already reworking how players will travel through the game, and promise lots of interaction, making it feel like a more lively world. Perhaps this will pave the way for more towns and exploration, though Toriyama nor producer Yoshinori Kitase have talked about that quite yet. Finally, they're looking into the idea of creating bonuses for those who completed Final Fantasy XIII - so don't delete your save file just yet.
Regarding Fabula Nova Crystallis, the truly alert might have noticed that the mythology's logo is missing something - an XIII. As anyone might have guessed, this is because of Final Fantasy Agito XIII's name being changed to Final Fantasy Type-0. Despite the name change, Type-0 is still very much a part of the mythology, so having an XIII in there would have obviously been a problem.
At The 1st Production Premier event, Square Enix showed a five-minute narrated opening video, with which they wanted to give fans an overall image for the mythology for it to be better understood. They explained that the gods weren't depicted in human form in the trailer, because that would give them a 'fixed' image and couldn't be interpreted to a viewer's own liking. It was also pointed out that the Fabula logo features a god, but Kitase wouldn't identify which one so that fans could decide (or interpret) for themselves.
There are also a couple of really minor additions to the gallery, linked below. (Does anyone else think the Lightning/rival pose would make for a great desktop wallpaper? Just putting it out there.) Final Fantasy XIII-2 will be released in North America next winter.
