Could 'Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII' End the Series on a Positive Note?

Final Fantasy XIII has long been considered the black sheep of modern Final Fantasy titles. It promised so much and delivered what was essentially a linear RPG with a slew of annoying characters, and one of the most convoluted plots in the series' recent history. It is a game that I pushed through, making it well into the 11th chapter (of which there is a total of 13), only to quit when I was faced with potential hours of grinding in order to progress. The sad thing is that underneath the drab linearity that plagued both the world and its leveling system, there was a good game. The combat system was a fresh spin on turn based systems of the previous games and the universe was interesting, to say the least.

Whether it’s Materia in VII, the draw system of VIII, or even the return to stylized character models in IX, the series has always been a hotbed of experimentation. If you also take into account the ridiculous level of polish each game has, it is no wonder that the series always rises above the faults to maintain its status as the premiere RPG franchise. With Final Fantasy XIII-2, Square-Enix has already made significant progress in their quest to maximize their return on investment while appeasing fans who were turned off by the original game. 

With Lightning Returns, Square-Enix is not only bringing the story that started in XIII to a close, but also making major changes to the structure and combat system. The world has mostly shed its linearity (hopefully) and the context of the story seem to be governed by the clock. Unlike any entry that came before it, Square is taking some risks with the way they tell the story. Like Majora's Mask or Dead Rising, Lightning Returns contains a lot of content that is accessible only at certain times of day.  Does this mean that certain quests can be missed entirely? Will the player have only a certain amount of time to complete the game? It's a risky idea and one that may or may not work to the game's advantage. 

Major advancements have also been made to the combat systems as well. Lightning is now far more maneuverable both inside and outside of combat and a whole new layer of character customization has been implemented. Combat looks and feels much faster, clearly establishing this game as an action-RPG, a genre that the series has only dabbled in throughout its long history. It doesn't hurt that most supporting characters have been stripped from the combat systems, leaving Lightning as the sole character for which players need to concern themselves with. This is a welcome change considering how little I cared about the supporting cast in XIII. But perhaps most notably, the combat system has been fused with a deep character-class customization system. Players will be able to customize the look of each individual job class and switch between them on the fly in combat much like they did in Final Fantasy X-2.

All in all, Lightning Returns looks like it is shaping up to be the high point of the Final Fantasy XIII trilogy. XIII is far from being my favorite Final Fantasy but perhaps this 3-game arc will be enough to leave a better impression in the long run. Lightning Returns looks to be an example of what developers can accomplish when listening to fan feedback while remaining committed to the vision they had for a project. Let's hope it turns out well. We'll find out when the game ships on February 11, 2014.