Weekend, what are you playing?

A lot of new games reached Philippine shores this week. Tomb Raider, the new Sim City, the new Naruto game, Castlevania: Mirrors of fate, and many more hit shelves last Tuesday giving a good variety of new games to enjoy during the weekend. so pick your poison, what are you playing this weekend?

Quash:For me, instead of going for something new, I weirdly chose to backtrack for the weekend. I bought Final Fantasy XIII-2 for P950 for my Xbox 360 and I'll most likely be playing that over the weekend. I guess it was the price, plus the urge to play an JRPG. I wasn't impressed with how Final Fantasy XIII turned out, and from what I was hearing about the sequel made me decide to not get it on release. But a year later with its price down, I decided to give it a try, see if it actually turns out good for me in the end.

Well, 11 hours in, and many time travel jumps later, it's actually a lot of fun. The story though is very forgettable at this point, but the combat mechanic is still one of the best in the series. O wasn't too fond with the whole third character being captured monsters found in the wild, but the merging of monsters and finding different combinations for new skills and all always get me thinking. The freedom and the ability to backtrack is also welcome. The sequel has what the first game lacked, and if Square actually merged the two and minus the whole time travel storyline, the Final Fantasy XIII series would have gone so much better. Oh, and that damn moogle is just as annoying as Vanille, just saying.

I also might get Tomb Raider this weekend for my Xbox 360, or maybe start preparing for BioShock: Infinite?

Migoy: Don't have much planned for this weekend. I just need to finish my LP of Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance and DmC Devil May Cry before I go into / continue anything else. Oh that and maybe some Battlefield 3 online with the crew and homies. All of which have videos up on our youtube channel that you can check out.

New Final Fantasy XIII announcement coming soon? what?

Apparently Square Enix is not done with Final Fantasy XIII. Future development of Final Fantasy XIII will be announced on September 1 during  a stage show at the Final Fantasy 25th anniversary event in Japan. Now this could mean more DLC costumes for XIII-2, or simply Final Fantasy XIII-3. I prefer an announcement for the next Final Fantasy if you ask me.

I have no idea why Square Enix is throwing so much resources into this title. If this announcement actually become a XIII-3 reveal, this would be the first Final Fantasy story turned into a trilogy. Final Fantasy XIII was a disappointment for me. The only thing I got out of playing the first one was how good the gameplay felt. Aside from that, it was a pretty bad game. Then they announced XIII-2 with pokemon features. I couldn't see myself playing it. Sequels don't seem to work for Final Fantasy games, but it looks like Square Enix is pushing it.

The last Final Fantasy that I really enjoyed had to be Final Fantasy X. After that, nothing. I still have high hopes for Square Enix and the Final Fantasy franchise. Their new game engine Luminous Studio that's meant for next-gen consoles seems to be raising the bar yet again in terms of graphics. So I'm eager to see what Square can produce with it.

Now the announcement could be more DLC for XIII-2 in the end, but if it really is another sequel...

Well, what can you do. Just took this opportunity to throw a rant on Square's latest Final Fantasy. We'll have to wait and see on September 1.

Do you wish Final Fantasy XIII-3 to happen?

[Source: Andriasang]

Final Fantasy XIII-2 - Lightning and Master Sergeant Amodar DLC Trailer

Pretty sure everybody is going through Final Fantasy XIII-2's main story right now. if your liking it so far then this might excite you. DLC will be present in this Final Fantasy game and Square Enix released a trailer showing its content. It's an extra Coliseum Battle against Lightning himself and Master Sergeant Amodar. If you win the battle, you get Lightning as a playable character.

"Lightning and Master Sergeant Amodar" DLC will be out on February 7 for $2.99.  Three bucks for an extra character? Doesn't sound too bad. The Lightning in the DLC seems to be the Lightning in the first game. I just wished Square would just give players a third character to begin with. Final Fantasy and Pokemon don't mix well for me.

Final Fantasy XIII-2 Reviews Are Now Up, Review Round Up

Reviews for the next Final Fantasy game is out online. Did it being less linear help? It certainly looks that way. Its been getting decent scores from critics and has a slightly lower metascore against its predecessor in Metacritics.

It sounds like it's still a great RPG in its own right. It still presents problems but it looks like Square Enix is heading for the right direction this time. I played the demo of 13-2 and it was not the Final Fantasy game for me. I'll say it again, Final Fantasy XIII just ruined it for me and I have no plans in hitting its sequel any time soon.

If you have any other online reviews to share, hit the comments.

Here's a list of some of the reviews for the game:

Metacritics - 80(As of January 30)

Eurogamer – 8

Machinima – 9

Digital Spy – 4/5

Joystiq – 3/5

IGN – 8

OPM UK – 8

The Guardian – 4/5

Destructoid – 8

GameTrailers – 8.8

OXM – 8

GameSpot – 7.5

Planning to get this sequel? Final Fantasy XIII-2 is set to be released on january 31 for the Playstation 3 and Xbox 360.

Final Fantasy XIII-2 Variety Trailer

Final Fantasy XIII-2 is only days away and Square Enix wants to make it clear that the sequel won't be as linear as the first game. Trailer is all about  variety, showing what you can do in the game if you need a break from all the drama..err I mean story.

I've tried the demo and while I do appreciate the changes made in the sequel, It wasn't enough for me to plan on getting it when it releases on january 31. The story of the first game was a mess and from what I'm seeing, it got worse.