The new game Lightning Returns pretty much confirms this IMO.
Judging from the details surrounding Lightning Returns, Square-Enix has no fvckin clue what to do with the series anymore, so now they're coming out with the gimmicks full stop. Save the world in thirteen days? lol. Granted, it is true that my favorite game ever (Majora's Mask) does something like this, but I'd bet money that Squenix will not do it in the organic and tasteful way that MM did it. It will be just another mechanical gimmicky "system" from SE.
I know what you guys are going to say. "Final Fantasy always does new things! Were they running out of ideas back then?" The truth is that the changes in the FF series are overstated by fanboys. Most of the games have the same basic framework with some new systems thrown in. Sometimes they worked (the character customization system seen in FFIX), sometimes they didn't (the stupid Junctioning system from FFVIII). But you still had the same basic framework, just with a new story, new art direction, new characters, new universe, etc.
There were some big changes at times, but they all made sense. For instance, the removal of the overworld map in FFX. That made sense at the time. With new hardware, the developers no longer had to rely on such an antiquated way to traverse between locations. Was it too linear? Yes, but getting rid of the overworld map was neccesary for the series to grow. And while some people hated the changes in FFXII, they were a genuine attempts to try a "bigger scope" approach rather than the rather confined congested feel that FF games had since FFVII (the license board was dumb tho).
FFXIII was not a bad game (tho definitely not a great one by any stretch), but it seems clear that the way the game was designed had more to do with Squenix's focus on suped up visuals than anything, hence the corridortastic design of the game (I think the FFXII backlash might have confused them as well, lol). However, I thought FFXIII's modern take on the jobs system was great. It was just too bad that the rest of the game was so paper-thin.
At first I was willing to just write XIII-2 off as another X-2 kind of thing, but now, with this 3rd XIII entry, it really seems like Squenix just really doesn't know what to do with the series and are overcompensating with a whole bunch of weird ideas. Even the descriptions of the different environments seem to be a Frankenstien of different styles meant to please a whole bunch of different tastes. It's similar, IMO, to when Sonic Team had no idea what to do with Sonic and started coming up with bizzare gimmick after bizzare gimmick.
I know some of you are going to call me crazy, but this is what the downfall of a once critically acclaimed series look like. There is a somewhat slight decline in critical reception (FFXIII) and then a series of wild attempts to breath fresh air into a series that is starting to lack a solid design foundation or basic competence. That's not to mention the critical bombs that start happening (FFXIV).
If Squenix wants to save this series from becoming the new Sonic, they should do what Sonic did: go back to basics. In other words, they should simply come up with a new compelling story with new compelling characters and make a traditional JRPG with the fantastic art design that FF games always have. Going back to basics would almost seem fresh at this point.
/end rant.
Log in to comment