Final Fantasy XIII-2

Let's not kid ourselves.  I was not the biggest fan of Final Fantasy XIII when it first appeared, but a second play through really made me appreciate the game.  And even my first inclinations with its sequel (in demo form) were positive.  So how did Final Fantasy the Thirteenth Part 2 fair?  Hit the jump for the full details...

Final Fantasy IV

You can keep your fancy polygons:
16 bit is the life for me.

Before there were cutscenes, and polygonal graphics, and confusing combat systems, and teen angst, there was Final Fantasy IV (or Final Fantasy II as it was released in the United States to avoid then-confusion in exchange for now-confusion).  In addition to the game being simpler, I too was simpler: a boy of 8 or 9, unconcerned with taxes, or mortgages, or whether or not to use an Oxford comma when making lists.  And I was there with FF4, following the adventures of the sprite-like protagonists in - upon reflection - one of the most clear Final Fantasy stories ever.

The fourth iteration of the quite un-final Final Fantasy series told the story of Cecil, a dark knight who begins to question if exchanging his morals for power was all that great of an idea.  By extension, he questions the orders of King Baron for sacking the helpless mages of Mysdia to collect their Water Crystal (which, presumably has power - because it is so shiny).  For questioning orders, you are summarily dismissed on a final errand to deliver a package.

The package is actually a bomb, destroying the village Myst and all of its inhabitants (Summoners who threatened the king's plans) minus one girl who Cecil feels really bad about killing her mother and helps protect her.  In turn your party is complimented by the girl, Rydia, a Summoner; Rosa, your girlfriend; Yang, a martial arts master; Tellah, an old sage seeking vengeance for his murdered daughter, Edward, a spoony bard; Palom and Porom, twin mages from Mysdia; Cid, the first playable entrant of the recurring airship captain; Edge, a ninja; FuSoYa, a ridiculously over-powered mage for which you only briefly have control; and Kain, your former Dragoon companion gone-traitor after his own personal redemption.

Redemption is a recurring theme for FF4 - Cecil seeking redemption for being a Dark Knight (and becoming a Paladin), Edward seeking redemption for the cowardice that killed his fiance, Cid seeks redemption for helping build warships... the list goes on and on.  The story here is complicated, but in the way that epic tales are not simple, not the way that I have no idea what is what without reading an accompanying compendium.  There are the occasional cheap writing techniques, but all-in-all the game plays like a story unfolds: naturally.  And there are plenty an epic moment: becoming a Paladin, Rydia's triumphant return to the party, and flying to the moon.

I'm surprised! at how awesome I thought this looked as a kid.

Battle is active, turn-based, and menu-driven.  It's not quite to the perfected point of future Final Fantasies, but the unique ability sets each character develops are a nice addition.  Some battles are quite difficult without grinding, but they are mostly reserved to optional areas and the final dungeon.  Random encounters abound, but the game almost feels bad about throwing them at you: they start and conclude rather seamlessly with the world map.

And the world is well crafted, and huge.  There is an overworld, a world below, and the mother-fucking moon for you to explore.

The game is available in so many ways, you have no excuse not to be playing it right now.  It is available for the Wii in its SNES dumbed-down for American's version, the GBA re-release featuring additional difficulty (as was intended), the Playstation re-release on the PSN (not recommended due to horrible loading times) and a DS remake with polygonal characters and cutscenes (with voiceovers)!

The Legend of Zelda: The Skyward Sword

Skyward Sword takes place largely above the clouds.

Skyward Sword represents the first Zelda title for the Wii (as Twilight Princess was simultaneously released for both the Wii and Gamecube).  It also boasts itself as the first game in the chronology of over-arching Legend of Zelda story.

The game begins in Skyloft, a floating island town of bird-riding humans who are giving the bountiful land above the clouds as a gift from the goddess after her banishing of an ancient evil.  If you've played a Zelda game before you will not be surprised to discover that the banishment of that ancient evil has become slightly tenuous.  Luckily, you - Link - are the hero chosen by the goddess to protect the realm.

The titular sword, held skyward.

But before you go can do that, you have to visit some temples, pass trials, and otherwise prove your worth.  It's almost as if the entirety of the game is to complete quests to justify being selected as the chosen hero.  First you follow Zelda around, then you have to charge your sword with sacred flames, and complete some song.

Unfortunately, the variety of things to do doesn't correlate with an extensive world.  Outside of the above-clouds world of fractured, floating islands, only three worlds exist: a forest world, a fire world, and a desert world.  It feels very claustrophobic compared to Twilight Princess or even A Link to the Past.  Frequently, you are given reasons to revisit previous environments, sometimes under very thin pretenses.

The design of the game is a perfect blend of Twilight Princess' realism and Wind Waker's cell-shading.  Each world has a unique feel, especially musically.  

However, the design cannot cover up some of the game's biggest shortfalls.  I wish the worst I could say was that I was mesmerized into stupidity by Zelda's bangs, but it was far worse...

The first game flaw is the flavor of the month assistant, Fi.  While I have to accept the fact that Nintendo insists that its players are idiots and need an assistant to give guidance on every single facet of the game, I am greatly disturbed by the intense level of assistance that is constantly offered.  After learning about Zelda's next location, I can barely breathe before Fi errupts from the sword and says: "I'm 80% certain that Zelda is in this location, we should go there."

There are a lot of missed opportunities in Skyward Sword to establish some components of the overarching universe.  Story-wise, the game stands steady, but I'm disappointed at missed opportunities to add depth and explain the origins of long-standing Zelda characters.  At times, it almost felt like a game that was not designed to be a Zelda game, but was turned in to one.  Not that Nintendo hasn't done that before...

A Stalfos battle, requiring a specific Wiimote swing.

And finally, my misgivings couldn't be complete without commenting on the Wii MotionPlus motion controls.  The game boasts the use of MotionPlus in combat and solving puzzles, but in reality, it is an incredibly painful addition.  The Wiimote is critical seconds behind during combat situations, wherein almost every enemy has a motion-based defense, encouraging forcing the player to swing the Wiimote one direction or the other.

But if combat is clunky, it seems next to graceful compared to the Wiimote motion controls of the game's various mini-games.  Mini-games, and subsequent cursing at the world while playing them, are a staple of the Zelda world; however, these mini-games are rage inducing.  Not only must you contend with achieving scores that are nigh undoable, but you must also achieve those scores by using frustrating and inaccurate controls.

In spite of these shortcomings, the game is a lot of fun, albeit frustrating at times.  If you haven't grabbed it, check it out!

Link to purchase from Amazon.com: The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword with Music CD.

The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion (GOTY)

While everyone else is enjoying the fifth installment of The Elder Scrolls, Bethesda's ongoing, Game-of-the-Year winning, fantasy franchise, I'm just now sitting down with the The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion - Game of the Year Edition.  I was really shy from getting into the series, because I like my fantasy games like I like my sex life: turn-based and from a third-person perspective.  Just kidding:  I'm married, and no longer have a sex life.

Unlike the traditional genre staples, the Elder Scrolls series are fantasy games from first-person perspective, which dynamically changes everything when it comes to combat strategy, and gives the game an unsurprising sense of immersion.  The engine is painstakingly identical to that of the Fallout series, which makes sense, as the games are made by the same folks.

Full review is happening, after the jump...

A Song of Fire & Ice: A Game of Thrones

Though I've tried, my journey into the fantasy epics has been somewhat limited to Harry Potter.  Well, no more!  Despite not having watched Game of Thrones, Season 1 Box Set, I decided to read the first book of A Song of Fire and Ice.  The books' spine was thick, and its pages were thin as they come.  With a deep sigh, initially, I opened the pages and delved into the exciting world of George R. R. Martin's plane of intrigue and drama.

Firstly, I would be hesitant to nail A Game of Thrones solidly into the "fantasy" genre.  For the first half of the book, it reads very much like a historical fiction text with sudden bounces into the extremely fantastic (e.g. reanimated dead corpses).  The story centers on Eddard Stark - a Lord of Winterfell - and his family, as he is named Hand to the King and uncovers a plot that led to the previous Hand's death.  The story is told from various point of view (POV) characters, including Eddard himself, his wife Catelyn, his daughters Sansa and Arya, his son Bran, his bastard son Jon, the dwarf brother of the King's wife, Tyrion, and finally a mysterious young woman who is the last of the line of Targaryeans (the previous ruling nobility), named Daenerys.

Already, I was pretty lost.  It kind of felt like being in AP Euro again and not knowing who was related to who and what.  At one point of time, I almost drew a genogram of the families.  Somewhat helpful is an appendix at the end of the text that listed the noble families.  It was more helpful than I care to admit. 

George R. R. Martin writes engrossingly, but the sudden switches in POV lead to some frustrations as a reader (especially with cliffhangers).  I was very happy when the author discovered he could use dialogue to move the story forward, and there was a point when things moved very, very quickly.  The language is pretty dense, and on more than one occasion, I tried to look up the definition of some words by holding my finger to solid page and expecting a definition to appear.  I highly recommend an eReader for these texts unless you have a very proficient vocabulary, are excellent with archaic syntax, or read with a dictionary nearby.

Throughout the book, the mysticism and magic of fantasy remain beyond the reach of the reader.  Only at the end do we (the readers) get a good look into just how deep the rabbit hole of the world can possibly go.  I can't deny that I am eagerly anticipating the next in the series.

If you do give A Game of Thrones a whirl, be patient; there really is a lull until the action gets going - and before you start to see character dynamics unfold.  Before long, you barely notice that you once were unaware of the long and mythic history of the Seven Kingdoms, and you'll be nibbling at every new shred the book gives you to fill in the blanks.