Final Fantasy XIII-2

 PlayStation 3
User Score
6.8

Mixed or average reviews- based on 848 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 457 out of 848
  2. Mixed: 218 out of 848
  3. Negative: 173 out of 848
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  1. Kurty
    Apr 3, 2012
    7
    Many people hated Final Fantasy XIII, mostly because it was too linear, and there wasn't much to do outside the main story. No town, no NPC to talk to, pretty much nothing at all. I didn't hate that game, but I didn't like it too much either. The game looked really great, the battle system was dynamic and pretty fun, and the story was ok, but I gotta say I didn't feel like playing aroundMany people hated Final Fantasy XIII, mostly because it was too linear, and there wasn't much to do outside the main story. No town, no NPC to talk to, pretty much nothing at all. I didn't hate that game, but I didn't like it too much either. The game looked really great, the battle system was dynamic and pretty fun, and the story was ok, but I gotta say I didn't feel like playing around much after finishing the game.

    Now, SquareEnix released a direct sequel to FFXIII. They wanted to fix the problems that players reported about the first episode, and I guess they did. You now have NPCs to talk to, quests to complete and dozens of things to do. The new game isn't as linear, mostly thanks to the "Time Travel" feature which offers interesting possibilities. The scenario revolves around that system too, requiring you to go back and forth in time in order to solve paradoxes and ultimately save the future, although some things in the story didn't really make sense to me.

    They kept the same battle system, hardly changing anything, except the fact that you may now recruit monsters after defeating them. Those monsters take the place of the 3rd party member and can evolve on their own Crystarium if you give them the right items. Apart from that, the battle system is pretty similar, with the same Active Time Battle gauge, the same jobs (roles - Commando, Ravager, etc), the same strategies (Paradigm Shift), etc. Why change a winning team, anyway? The battles were pretty fun in the first game, and here too.

    The graphics also look as good as before, there's not much to say about them. The environments are however a bit limited : You will be visiting the same zones in different time periods, but ultimately they're the same zones. I also found that the soundtrack wasn't great. The music in some areas (with lyrics) kinda reminded me of NieR, but they were not nearly as good (NieR's soundtrack is exceptionally good though). I gotta say that the "Crazy Chocobo" song is really funny and surprising.

    I'll conclude by saying that this second Final Fantasy XIII is a much better game than its predecessor. It's a pretty fun and interesting game. However, the "To Be Continued..." ending somehow feels like a "rip-off" (I hate DLCs), as Square Enix sold us an obviously unfinished game.    … Expand
  2. LiquidGamer
    Apr 3, 2012
    7
    Even though I am lost in the story throughout the time I played it, I liked it more than XIII. Say what you will but it is hard to give a FF game a bad score since the graphics far surpass most titles out there. I wish it was not a '-2' title, it is good if not better than its predesessor. I like the changes made and the game was worth playing just to see the story through to the end.
  3. ShunOugarden
    Mar 2, 2020
    5
    Well... beatifull with possibility to time-travel.... but this kind of fight is not for me. You choose your action, you WAITING AND then you play it... no !.... a better way is you waiting to play AND THEN you choose your action !!
  4. CiloH
    Nov 26, 2013
    7
    Improvements were made in FF-XIII-2 compared to it's predecessor.

    Improvements: - Not as linear story and arguable better overall - New monster-pet mechanic - Cut-scene prompts/choices - Increased difficulty - Larger areas/worlds The same: - Beautiful CG, character models, and world. - The Soundtrack still good - The combat mechanics still terrible (The dreaded "Auto-battle")    Improvements were made in FF-XIII-2 compared to it's predecessor.

    Improvements:
    - Not as linear story and arguable better overall
    - New monster-pet mechanic
    - Cut-scene prompts/choices
    - Increased difficulty
    - Larger areas/worlds

    The same:
    - Beautiful CG, character models, and world.
    - The Soundtrack still good
    - The combat mechanics still terrible (The dreaded "Auto-battle")
    - Game items are still lackluster. e.g. weapons (just a change in color...seriously?)

    Regressions:
    - Frame-rate drops (especially noticeable during cut-scene prompts)    … Expand
  5. kaizidokiller
    Feb 11, 2014
    7
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. XIII-2 address the issues of XIII, mainly the linear gameplay, but does that make it a better game? Sadly, no. I still love the fast-paced and more action-oriented battle system, it makes every battle more thrilling. The graphics is a technical marvel for seventh gen consoles. FF is known for it's strong story but sadly, the confusing story almost overshadows every good part of the game. All the time travelling nonsense doesn't even make sense. About halfway into the game, I was completely lost. I didn't know what was going on in the story and because of that, I didn't care about any of the characters. I just rushed through the game so that I can get the game's easy, but long, Platinum (because I did so in the first game) but in the end I didn't care that, and I didn't know how, Serah died. I like this game, but it's only worth a rental as I will never play this game again. For fans, you'll get much more enjoyment. For the uninitiated, give the PS1 and 2 FF a go before FFXIII. It's epic!… Expand
  6. AriseAndBe
    Aug 5, 2015
    7
    I like Lightning a lot more than Sarah so of course I'm not going to like this game as much. Noel is one of the blandest characters I've seen in a while so I can't really say much about him, and Hope and his assistant are nothing if not annoying. However, Yeul and Caius I thought were amazing. The story behind them is pretty much what drove me to finish them game.
    It's easy to tell    I like Lightning a lot more than Sarah so of course I'm not going to like this game as much. Noel is one of the blandest characters I've seen in a while so I can't really say much about him, and Hope and his assistant are nothing if not annoying. However, Yeul and Caius I thought were amazing. The story behind them is pretty much what drove me to finish them game.
    It's easy to tell that the budget for this game was less than that of XIII as the presentation is less spectacular, but only by a little bit.
    It was nice to be able to explore a lot more in this game and it was an interesting idea to be able to see the same place during different times.
    The most disappointing thing about this game I reckon was the battle system which felt like a step backwards from the first game. I found that I barely needed to use Sentinel as the battles were a lot easier for the most part. The whole monster capture thing was okay but I would have preferred a third character that you could battle with.    … Expand
  7. ThecriticGoD
    Mar 15, 2016
    3
    When you think Square-enix couldn't do any worse with their Final Fantasy saga they make this game... FFXIII was very average, probably even bad, but this just surpases any limit.
  8. Burretploof
    Dec 5, 2016
    7
    I think quite a few people didn't even touch Final Fantasy XIII-2 after the disappointment that XIII was. They probably don't know that the entirely linear gameplay of XIII is gone and has been replaced with a more 'freeform' style of play.

    The game lets you travel through time and allows you to visit several different locations in different time periods. Each area has a number of small    I think quite a few people didn't even touch Final Fantasy XIII-2 after the disappointment that XIII was. They probably don't know that the entirely linear gameplay of XIII is gone and has been replaced with a more 'freeform' style of play.

    The game lets you travel through time and allows you to visit several different locations in different time periods. Each area has a number of small sidequests and most of them even tell a short story, enriching the game's lore.

    Combat and leveling up characters is largely unchanged. You still get to work with Paradigms, Auto-Attack, the Chrystarium and such but Monsters have been added to your team which play different roles. E.g. One monster heals you while another might attack the enemy.

    Unfortunately, the story is 'alright' at best and 'meh' at worst, offering few twists and turns, most of which are rather predictable.

    Still, the game can keep you busy for quite a while and since it's so ridiculously cheap (it's like $5 for a used copy on console), I consider this a must-have if you like JRPGs.    … Expand
  9. BlitZeR_95
    Apr 29, 2018
    6
    There was no need for a sequel since I think the ending of the previous game was a good way to end it. This game time travel can confuse you very easily and through half the game you have no idea what's going on. Again, another game you have to play multiple times to completely understand the story.
  10. Th3StartButton
    Jun 4, 2019
    7
    My first Finak fantasy guess you can't trust my score but like yeah I enjoyed the combat was crisp m8 like yeah really enjoyable
  11. Gamepro3093
    May 9, 2022
    0
    Awful game. Somehow, Square Enix managed to make a game more excruciatingly awful than 13 with it’s confounding and incomprehensible time travel plot, dialogue that is even more boring to listen to where characters stand around and mostly babble about nonsense like paradoxes and other nonsense that’s difficult to understand, cutscenes that are even more dull and interminable to sitAwful game. Somehow, Square Enix managed to make a game more excruciatingly awful than 13 with it’s confounding and incomprehensible time travel plot, dialogue that is even more boring to listen to where characters stand around and mostly babble about nonsense like paradoxes and other nonsense that’s difficult to understand, cutscenes that are even more dull and interminable to sit through, annoying puzzles that will often waste your time as they’re badly designed and often are based on luck than skill, the soundtrack is even worse than 13’s and mostly just recycles 13’s soundtrack when it doesn’t use it’s own soundtrack, the level design is even worse in 13-2 with locations often just recycled from 13 and multiple variations of the same location exist with different weather effects and lighting, the characters are even more annoying, the battle system is improved but you’re only given 2 actual characters to play as and have a pokemon style monster assisting you for the 3rd member. Square Enix should feel ashamed they ever let their flagship series sink as low as it did with the 13 games. Do yourself a favor and skip all 3 13 games.… Expand
  12. chrisdan23
    Jun 9, 2022
    7
    Nach viel Kritik an ihrem Reboot des Final Fantasy Franchises auf der PS3, hat Square sich durchaus bemüht beim zweiten Ableger im Nova Crystallis Universum alles besser zu machen. Und in vielem ist ihnen das auch hervorragend gelungen. Spannend ist, dass Square sogar so mutig war, das grundlegende Konzept, nämlich das einer zusammenhängenden räumlichen Welt, komplett über den Haufen zuNach viel Kritik an ihrem Reboot des Final Fantasy Franchises auf der PS3, hat Square sich durchaus bemüht beim zweiten Ableger im Nova Crystallis Universum alles besser zu machen. Und in vielem ist ihnen das auch hervorragend gelungen. Spannend ist, dass Square sogar so mutig war, das grundlegende Konzept, nämlich das einer zusammenhängenden räumlichen Welt, komplett über den Haufen zu werfen und einen völlig neuartigen Versuch startet, ihrem RPG Universum Struktur zu geben. Und zwar organisiert sich Final Fantasy XIII-2 nun nicht mehr über Raum, sondern über Zeit. Wir finden in FFXIII-2 also keine typische Worldmap mehr vor, auf der wir uns bewegen können, sondern vielmehr eine Map verschiedener Zeitlinien, verschiedener Events, die in unterschiedlichen Epochen spielen und die ein völlig neues Spielekonzept ermöglichen, das meines Erachtens letztlich auch sehr viel besser zu Setting und Erzählstruktur des hochkomplexen Final Fantasy XIII Universums passt.

    Letztlich steht hinter jedem Event, den wir auf unserer Zeitmap auswählen und bereisen können, ein eigenständiges Level mit einem eigenständigen Areal. Diese Level können nun Städte sein, in denen wir NPCs begegnen und die Story vorantreiben können, oder auch Dungeons, in welchen wir Main-Quests, aber auch Nebenaufgaben angehen. Das spannende an dieser Gameplaymechanik ist, dass wir die selben Schauplätze auch in unterschiedlichen Epochen besuchen können. Beispielsweise in einem post-apokalyptischen Setting und einem friedlichen, wo die Welt noch in Ordnung ist. Der Clou ist nun, dass eine Wechselwirkung zwischen den verschiedene Epochen stattfinden kann. So muss man manchmal erst in einer früheren Zeitlinie Dinge verändern, damit man in einer späteren weiter kommt. Das Spiel funktioniert aber auch umgekehrt. So können wir mit Informationen aus der Zukunft, die wir in der Vergangenheit einsetzen, ganze Zeitlinien gar komplett auslöschen, was wiederum ganz neue Level freischalten kann, mit neuen Inhalten, die uns vielleicht auch näher an unser eigentliches Ziel führen.

    Diese Mechanik ist so einfach wie genial und kommt nicht nur in so ziemlich allen Nebenquests zum Einsatz, sondern ist auch prägendes Instrument um die Geschichte als solche voranzutreiben. Die Möglichkeit der Zeitreise, die uns als Protagonist der Geschichte gegeben ist, wird so nämlich zur grundlegenden Mechanik unserer Kampagne. Letztlich geht es bei FF XIII-2 nämlich darum, die Zeitlinien so zu verändern, dass es gelingt, die nahende Apokalypse, das Grundthema der gesamten Nova Crystallis Trilogie, von Cocoon und Grand Pulse abzuwenden. So weit so spannend.

    Leider kränkelt das an sich durchaus geniale Spielprinzip aber an der Charakterwahl, und auch einigen daraus resultierenden Veränderungen im Kampfsystem. So hat Square die überaus nervige Heulsuse Serah zum Hauptcharakter ihrer Erzählung erkoren, was nur deshalb Sinn ergibt, weil ihre wesentlich coolere Schwester Lightning, Heldin des ersten Teils, in Gestalt einer Art Wächtergöttin eine wesentliche, nur leider nicht spielbare Rolle in der äußerst komplexen Erzählung von FF XIII-2 einnimmt. Serah zur Seite gestellt wird lediglich ein Möchtegernheld namens Noel, der leider aber über das ganze Spiel irgendwie deplatziert wirkt. Dieser und dessen Antagonist Caius, der letztlich auch als Bösewicht des Plots herhalten muss, fungieren ein wenig als der Versuch einer Personalisierung des Apokalypse Themas, das allerdings auf recht vielen Ebenen hantiert, und so beispielsweise auch durch die Interessen der gottähnlichen Fal'Cie und anderer, überzeitlicher Götterwesen bestimmt wird.

    Das Problem ist vor allem, dass die Reduktion auf nunmehr zwei Charaktere das Kampfsystem, das man fast unverändert aus dem Vorgänger übernommen hat, merklich konterkariert und einschränkt. Dessen Stärke war es eigentlich nämlich, die speziellen Fähigkeiten mehrerer Partymitglieder durch geschickte Kombination in Form von Paradigmen Wechseln taktisch ins Spiel zu bringen. Da hilft es auch kaum, dass man Ni No Kuni like nun Monstern einfangen, upgraden und als dritte Streiter in die Party integrieren kann. Mit einer so beschränkten Charakterauswahl spielt sich FFXIII-2 leider lange nicht so abwechslungsreich und taktisch herausfordernd, wie dies noch im ersten Teil der Nova Crystallis Trilogie der Fall war. Alles wirkt einseitiger, aber auch hektischer und weniger berechenbar. Doof.

    Dennoch, mit Final Fantasy XIII-2 hat Square sich wirklich etwas getraut und sicherlich den komplexesten, innovativsten und mit Abstand auch besten Final Fantasy Ableger der PS3 Ära geschaffen. Das tolle Zeitreise-Rollenspiel mit den doofen Charakteren sei daher und trotzdessen, nicht nur Fans des Franchises, sondern jedem Action RPG und JRPG Fan wärmstens empfohlen.    … Expand
  13. storygamer
    Sep 3, 2020
    7
    Final Fantasy XIII-2 is a double-edged sword. I liked it, because I´m a Final Fantasy fan since the PlayStation era and I haven´t ever played a really bad FF. And with this game, you get some beautiful old-school aspects. Nice visuals, classic gameplay and a lot of content. But I miss the challenge of the old games a bit. FF XIII-2 is very good but not great!
  14. BeeSting1
    Jan 1, 2021
    7
    Its a short FF game, but I did not want it to go any longer by the end. The story did not pull me in at all.

    Cons: (Minor con) - Environments such as plants and objects do not interact with your character properly. Small plants do not get bent when you pass by them, instead, there is like an invisible barrier around these objects such that you cannot even touch it. (Moderate con)    Its a short FF game, but I did not want it to go any longer by the end. The story did not pull me in at all.

    Cons:
    (Minor con)
    - Environments such as plants and objects do not interact with your character properly. Small plants do not get bent when you pass by them, instead, there is like an invisible barrier around these objects such that you cannot even touch it.

    (Moderate con)
    - The game speaks of paradoxes and timeline contradictions, but the puzzles the games gives you to solve that will "correct" these anomalies have nothing to do with a paradox. The puzzles are out of place with the story.

    (Major con)
    - Puzzles can get a bit repetitive. One puzzle called "hands of time" requires pen and paper, unless you have phenomenal memory. On top of that, the clock puzzles are more work than actual fun.

    (Major con)
    - Farming is needed for some materials in order to upgrade your monster. You also have to look for the locations, there are no indications of what monsters will drop what materials. You have to remember what the certain type of material the monster dropped, then go back to that area before and farm.

    (Moderate con)
    - Not enough engagement with Final Fantasy 13 old characters.

    (Major con)
    - Loading time when entering different worlds are too long. This loading time kills the incentive to hunt for items in previous worlds. When the game requires you to hunt, it becomes very annoying.

    Pros:
    (Major pro)
    - Graphics are amazing.

    (Major pro)
    - Random monster encounters are well implemented.

    (Major pro)
    - Battle system is quick pace and exciting. This only applies if you enjoyed FF13's battle system.

    (Major pro)
    - Monsters are fun to find and collect, since you are able to upgrade them and have them fight with you.    … Expand
  15. Tidu
    May 23, 2022
    7
    Time travel is almost always a plus for me. The story was more interesting than in XIII and so were the characters. But still it's "just ok". But still a bit better than the first one.
  16. Ardalan1
    Jan 26, 2023
    10
    A very fun game. I wish all FF XIII characters were in this game but only a few of them are here. The story is very interesting and the music is fantastic. Gameplay is engaging
  17. hector_bcn98
    Nov 10, 2022
    7
    Ni hacia falta una secuela del Final Fantasy menos interesante de toda la saga (siendo un gran juego!), pero aquí la tuvimos. Con una protagonista insulsa como el pan sin tomate, no pude completarlo. Por algún motivo, me quedé encallado en un momento de la historia con el mundo abierto y nunca pude salir de ahí. Guías, videos... nada. Pasé, y de Lightning Returns ya ni comprarlo.
  18. aeroslimshady
    Jul 28, 2022
    8
    Not as good as XIII or Lightning Returns, but still a very fun game. The soundtrack in this particular entry absolutely slaps and being able to recruit monsters from the previous game is some nice fan service.
  19. THOUSANDEYEKAii
    May 5, 2023
    7
    A decent game I had fun with. Though I feel it shouldn't exist and slightly ruins the story of 13.
  20. XenobladeFan007
    Jun 10, 2022
    10
    I discovered the series with this FF 13 is the magic and very present, The graphics are simply sumptuous, the charm of the game is partly due to its magical environments and wonderfully
    and has an extremely successful scenario with endearing characters with a crazy back ground all right away I think of (sazh, noel, lightning, hope and vanilla) this game is only good memories: heart: I    I discovered the series with this FF 13 is the magic and very present, The graphics are simply sumptuous, the charm of the game is partly due to its magical environments and wonderfully
    and has an extremely successful scenario with endearing characters with a crazy back ground all right away I think of (sazh, noel, lightning, hope and vanilla) this game is only good memories: heart: I would like if he released the trilogy on switch/ps4 that would be cool.    … Expand
  21. Sequn
    Aug 2, 2022
    1
    Retarded garbage game, that try hard to copy pokémon and fail miserably.
    This sh#t game was created with a terrible and aggressive copy and paste from all the assets of the first game.
    The only thing changed was the gameplay, unfortunately it's still sh#t. And they menage to make the already trash story even more trash, with time travel sh#t and multiple useless endings. (since the only    Retarded garbage game, that try hard to copy pokémon and fail miserably.
    This sh#t game was created with a terrible and aggressive copy and paste from all the assets of the first game.
    The only thing changed was the gameplay, unfortunately it's still sh#t. And they menage to make the already trash story even more trash, with time travel sh#t and multiple useless endings.
    (since the only true ending was selled as pay DLC)    … Expand
  22. IMGODD
    Jun 23, 2023
    9
    If you were a fan of xiii you will like this just as much or more the combat is improved it has an amazing soundtrack a really interesting villain who is in my opinion one of the best ff villains and a really good story
  23. Vhofa
    Dec 31, 2022
    0
    A bad game, and literally the worst Final Fantasy sequel game ever made.
    Yes, this garbage is able to be even worse than FFX-2, especially in the plot aspect.
    Forgettable, bland and boring.
  24. Yased
    Jan 15, 2023
    0
    Worst "sequel" ever made for a mainline game of the franchise.
    If you think of how many recyclable elements they have used to even think to produce this sh*t, you can see that this xiii-2 is just a 90% copy and pasted xiii.
    So, the monsters design is still trash, the ost is still forgettable, and with the gameplay they have done another pitiful copy and paste failure, and the plot is even worse.
  25. Vocox
    Feb 4, 2023
    1
    The plot is nonsense trash, the gameplay sucks, and the characters are just badly written.
    Avoid this boring mess
  26. LastResource
    Jan 14, 2023
    10
    worth it and glad to play this game again. so much memories and nostalgia within this thirteenth game in the series.
  27. aaronnmp96
    Jan 31, 2023
    7
    The gameplay is very good, but it is very slow to start it, and there are few characters
  28. Jesol
    Jun 3, 2023
    0
    When the sequel of a game menage to be worse than an already horrendous first game, you obtain this sh!t
  29. Nivhu
    Jun 26, 2023
    0
    Worst sequel ever for the worst Final Fantasy game
    If you are looking for a copy and paste cheap and sad sequel... Well there it is
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Awards & Rankings

52
#52 Best PS3 Game of 2012
9
#9 Most Discussed PS3 Game of 2012
10
#10 Most Shared PS3 Game of 2012

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
79

Generally favorable reviews - based on 53 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 48 out of 53
  2. Mixed: 5 out of 53
  3. Negative: 0 out of 53
  1. Armchair Empire
    May 4, 2012
    75
    All in all, I enjoyed Final Fantasy XIII-2 – it was a fun RPG game to play, looked spectacular and ate up a significant amount of my free time. It didn't give me everything I wanted out of the experience, but I still had fun.
    Read full review
  2. Worth Playing
    Mar 15, 2012
    88
    FFXIII-2 earns its score with aplomb, and I'd go so far to call it a sleeper hit. It's a genuinely great-playing game with an imperfect story, though to its credit, it eventually engages and justifies the wait. Its greatest battle now is escaping from the shadow and stigma of its big brother, but you should ignore the anti-hype, take a leap of faith and give it a chance.
    Read full review
  3. Playstation Official Magazine Australia
    Mar 4, 2012
    80
    Has made some really solid steps forward in combat but needs a more readily digestible plot to entice newcomers. [March 2012, p68]
See all critic reviews »