First promotional image
(Looking kinda medieval there, Lightning.)
Final Fantasy XIII Sequel Announced
Lightning returns with some newcomers in this 2011 multiplatform release.
Posted Jan 19, 2011 at 00:12, By Anoop GantayatA Final Fantasy XIII direct sequel was announced today at Square Enix's 1st Production Department Premier event in Roppongi. Square Enix even showed a trailer, which we can confirm was completely free of dance numbers.
Taking a naming hint from Final Fantasy X-2, this latest direct sequel is titled Final Fantasy XIII-2 (pronounced "Thirteen Two"). Square Enix is developing the game simultaneously on PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 for domestic release some time in 2011. For players outside of Japan, the game is due for winter release, suggesting another fast localization.
The short trailer shown at the event began with main character Lightning narrating over what looked like scenes from FFXIII. The trailer then took on a slightly darker tone as we saw Lightning, fully decked out in armor, in a standoff with a new male knight character.
You can view an unofficially captured version of the trailer here. Skip to the 40 second mark to avoid the FFX scenes. If you'd rather wait for an official release, Square Enix says the game's newly opened teaser site will host an HD version of the trailer on the 20th.
As with its predecessor, XIII-2 is being directed by Motomu Toriyama. Following an introduction to the Fabula Nova Crystallis franchise as a whole by producer Yoshinori Kitase, Toriyama took the stage to share a few comments about XIII-2.
"The previous title topped the six million mark worldwide last December," revealed Toriyama. The sequel came about due to demand both from fans and from the staff.
Toriyama admitted that the first Final Fantasy XIII received a variety of opinions from players. With XIII-2, the development staff hopes to respond to many of those opionions.
One of the reasons the game was unveiled in front of Japanese audiences, said Toriyama, was because unlike the rest of the world, which saw a Final Fantasy XIII tour last year, Japan did not get any events related to the game (FFXIII was released to Japan in December 200i).
Japanese audiences may also get some pre-release hands-on time with the game. Toriyama said that if there is a chance, they'd like to have members of the Square Enix Members rewards program play the game and deliver feedback which can be reflected into the final product.
Neither Toriyama nor Kitase would share solid details on the game. Asked by the MCs, Toriyama would admit that Lighthing and the newcomer male character were fighting, but said we'd have to wait to find out why. He also described the male character as being comparative to Lightning.
There was a linked trailer on youtube, but Squeenix Ninjas stealth-killed it. Best wait until the company uploads the real thing on the 20th.
Already all bets are on the new character being named Thunder. I'd like to think SE could be a little cleverer than that. But if I hear the character end his sentences with the Japanese equivalent of "ya know!" I'm going to lose it.
In other Fabula Nova Crystallis news, the game formerly known as Final Fantasy Agito XIII (which was once a cellphone game until it jumped to PSP two years ago) is getting closer to completion and sporting a new name: Final Fantasy Type-0. It will come on 2 UMDs (*!*), probably due to an extraordinary amount of voice work that will be present in the game. It's due to hit Japan some time in the summer. The game's director, Tabata, says that the "0" in the new title reflects that this game is meant to be the start of a Final Fantasy with a new direction (Square-Enix has, along with Type-0, also patented Type-1, Type-2 and Type-3).
There's also news of a new trailer for Final Fantasy Versus XIII, the highlight (as declared by SE) being giving revelers the opportunity to hear main protagonist Noctis speak for the first time (w-wow!). Again, recordings of this trailer exist but Square Enix has threatened hari-kari if Youtube doesn't remove them post-haste. The full HD version will be uploaded some time on the 27th. And, oh yeah, it's STILL only for PS3.
Really hope they don't go fanservice crazy like X-2. That and they add a bunch of bonus dungeons, 13 was kind of a drag without them.
New guy will be dubbed Rain for his somewhat dreary look.
Color me extremely not interested... FFXIII with its horribly linear gameplay, blandly confusing story, hate-able characters, and lackluster combat has left me with no desire for a sequel.
Because X-2 was exactly like X!
Yeah, Hiro - let's see more details before writing it off...maybe they'll throw a curveball and make this one how it should have been!
Well, they're definitely going to address the issues that plagued the first game going by the 'address player opinions' comment. Maybe we'll actually be able to explore towns. (zomg wut!?)
...
I should consider finishing the game some time.
EDIT: Official FFXIII-2 site. The trailer is now online. BE WARNED: don't watch it if you haven't beaten FFXIII, as the first few seconds contains a massive end-game spoiler.
I'm mildly intriqued. I'm hopeful that a lot of improvements will be made but considering just how bad 13 was, I dunno. Hated the lack of towns, hated the irritatingly boring corridor gameplay, especially hated how the characters reacted and how the story was presented (seriously, you have to read a freaking database to understand what the hell is happening???) and I've not got much hope. Lightning does look awesome in that armour though.
Really wish they wouldn't have bothered with this though and just pushed on with actually getting Versus done. Now that's a FF game that actually looks decent.
i love lightening ... that armor she's wearing i seen it before... and i really mean i seen it before.... i cant put my finger on it though. anyway,
i'm all for heroic female characters, i just love the idea of lightening i loved her so much in ff13 and now i cant wait to play her new game this is awsome. and i'm not surprised, she is designed after oscar francois. her character is one of the best anime female characters in history.
XD <drools> i wanted lightening in her own game this is so cool. and her armor makes her more like my oscar. so i'm positive the game will be wonderful.
There has not been a main FF game (I'm including the sequels) that I've enjoyed since FFX so I can't say I'm excited about this, I just wish FF would stop refusing to go back to the style that made Final Fantasy popular.
i didnt feel ff13 was a final fantasy game, it was like pachman said not like rpgs where you can explore places.. but i liked it as a game not thinking it was final fantasy... i understand everyone else's disappointment though.
when i first played ff13 i thought it was like ff7... it had the shinra like autmosphere... i'm sorry it wasnt but glad i liked it anyway.
Yeah FFXIII was not a perfect game, but IT IS a Final Fantasy game more so than XI or XIV will ever be. The whole linear nature of the game is off putting I understand, but that aspect isn't much different than FFX (It is better handeled in X though). Like Mada said though Lightning is a great character and it is great to see her again. Out of the whole FFXIII cast Lightning is by far the best (though I did find some cahrm in Sazh's character, but I may be alone on that one!) What remains to be seen is what Square has in store for Lightning. I hope and pray they don't give her the Yuna treatment, and judging from this brief brief trailer that doesn't seem to be the case. However this game was only just announced so pretty much everything is speculation I mean no one even knows how it's going to play. Square says they're listening to the complaints from the fans (and fans are VARY picky) and I'm going to take them at their word. I'm not to worried about this project tanking though, it has alot going for it even though nothing has been said about it. The new character alone is reason enough to send the FF forums afire.
<hugs> i'm so glad there's another that loves and understands lightening's character, you are as cool as bunanigans said eggpire 
sachz or however you spell it was a fun character, he was the most normal, getting tired complaining and his story was touching... i loved all the characters but if i had to choose someone after lightening it would be Hope. i know he comes off annoying and weak but i love that type of character. his drama and inner struggle was enjoyable. he was the strongest character i had, from all the attention i gave him XD
I'm partway through the game myself and I would most definately tap Lightning. :3
That is all.
Waitasecond! Bunanigans said I was cool? And here I thought I scared everyone away! Anyway's I didn't mind Hope too much. His overall story has a lot more depth than most people give him credit for. The atitude shift a about the haldway point goes a long way to showcasing his comlex feelings in a way that mere whining cannot. That said, though, Hope was my least strong by the time the credits rolled (I spent all my time foucusing on Lightning, Sazh, and Vanille). I would like to see these character return in the sequel in some form or fashion. It would be nice to see how these charcters lives turned out after the climax of XIII. More specifically Sazh and Snow as they had a whole lot going from at agme's end. It would be nice to see how they act when they're not cursed. Either way I'm getting pumped for this game by just speculating on everything that could be in it!
I'm partway through the game myself and I would most definately tap Lightning. :3
That is all.
she might be skinny but she'll beat the crap out of you dear, we'll just have to admire her from far XD
and oh i dont know if it was "cool" exactly maybe "the kindest sweetest person in the world".. i dont remember what she said exactly eggpire but seeing your old avatar made it hard for me to believe it XD now i do though, you're a cat lover you just have to be awsome.
snow was cool but my that vanille got on my nerves not as a character she was okay but as a fighter, she was very slow at casting and got me into a lot of trouble, if i put hope on auto he knew exactly when to heal but vanille was a bad healer for me. and i couldnt afford anyone in my team to be useful in just one skill
Hahaha I got tired of that old Ixus Nagus. I don't even know why I had him as an avatar, he's not my favorite character and that particualr drawing up him was atrocious! My new avatar is my own pet kitty Gingy and I love him to death! Anyways, yeah Vanille was slow, but her debuffs were second to none. I absolutely love to cast status aiments on my opponets, plus she also doubled as a decent Ravager when I needed an extra hand at fighting!
XD i always wanted an orange tabe, Gingy is very cute and looks very spoiled too. you really should've put something closer to your personality, you made me think you were very scary then, than gingy's pic makes me think of you now.
i dont like magic a lot, i used lightening and snow for attacks and hope did everything magic that was needed, like healing, giving protective magic on my characters and be a ravager... though i'll tell you now no matter how hard you try his hp is the lowest always. XD but i love him too much to think of exchanging him with a more strategically better character.
Looks like Serah will be playable. The other one's a new guy, Noel. Who kind of reminds me of Kurando from Shadow Hearts 2.
FINAL FANTASY XIII-2
Developer: Square Enix Co., Ltd.
Publisher: Square Enix, Inc.
Platform: Xbox 360®, PlayStation®3 system
Genre: RPG
ESRB: RP (Rating Pending)
Ship Date: This Winter (NA)Story Overview:
Set a few years after Lightning and the others saved Cocoon, some survivors have decided to start over by rebuilding on Gran Pulse. Lightning, however, is nowhere to be found and thought dead by many, but Serah believes otherwise. When her town is suddenly overrun by monsters, a mysterious man named Noel appears to save her. Together, the two set off to find Lightning...FINAL FANTASY XIII-2 is the follow-up to the 2010 hit title, FINAL FANTASY XIII, and the latest installment in the world-renowned FINAL FANTASY series, which has shipped over 97 million units worldwide. FINAL FANTASY XIII-2 features an all-star production staff including producer Yoshinori Kitase, director Motomu Toriyama, character designer Tetsuya Nomura and art director Isamu Kamikokuryo.
They'll be showing the game off at E3. There will be a short public demo and a slightly longer demo with more content for private viewing.
I thought Serah had died, then again I never did finish the game. Oh well now I never have to. We saved her! *high five*
Looks like more of the same, really.
Which is NOT a good thing. Here's hoping for some major improvements and hoping that I'm seriously wrong about it, but so far, nah, looks pretty bad.
I see towns, I see Moogles, I see a KH reject...I see many new things!
Yes I'm a Squeenix apologist
Hell, I'd still hit it! 😛
