With the imminent release of Final Fantasy XIII, I'd like to take this moment and reflect on the series. "Final Fantasy" is one of those names that people instantly associate with video games, sharing company with name brands like "Sonic the Hedgehog" and "Super Mario Bros" as poster boy game franchises. It certainly has a storied reputation among gamers, and the exorbitant sequel number only underscores the derivative nature of the gaming industry--despite the fact that none of the mainline Final Fantasy's are direct sequels to each other (spin-offs, side-stories, and remakes aside). There's no doubt that it has be an exceptional series, both critically and commercially. The wait for the latest installment has been excruciatingly and inexcusably long, but at long last, it will finally come.
There are things to expect when you hear the words, "Final" and "Fantasy" put together. Yellow oversized birds called Chocobos, a guy named Cid, and breath-taking cut scenes laden with CGi wizardry and big budgets. Honestly, that's all I really expect. Final Fantasy was never one of those game series that I thought of as the penultimate expression of the JRPG genre. They're fine games in their own right, but I never saw them as "Game of the Year" material. They're not mediocre by any stretch--they're mostly stellar, just not masterpieces of the highest order. I regard the series with a fine level of respect, akin to the respect reserved for accomplished commercial writers like Stephen King and J.K. Rowling. Not many can argue that their literary merit rivals Twain or Tolstoy, but we can all agree that they have authored some very successful and entertaining stories. While Final Fantasy never really achieves transcendent sublimity, it always guarantees a hell of a good ride.
There have been some murmurs of discontent regarding the latest sequel because of it linearity. Classic overworlds and townships have been completely replaced by a straightforward narrative that proceeds down story-driven segments and dungeons. Some gamers view this as an evolutionary step backwards for the JRPG genre, and its particularly worrying since this move comes from Square-Enix, the good 'ol reliable JRPG standby capable of delivering triple-A experiences time in and time out (although that sentiment has mostly eroded into nostalgic-driven cynicism). It's as if all FFXIII will have is cutscenes and combat, without any of the exploration elements that was always present in the series.
People say linear like its a bad thing. Compared to the shockingly nonlinear creations of the WRPG genre, games like "Fallout 3" and "Oblivion," I'd gladly say: fuck open-world RPGs. Those games are examples of some of the most mind-numbing mundane experiences I've ever had the displeasure of, well, experiencing. There's such a thing as too much freedom, as the very prospect of "go anywhere, do anything" paralyzes my gaming soul. Especially in today's world, with college life limiting the amount of time I can use for gaming, I'd rather be filed down a finely crafted ride rather than wander aimlessly like a chicken without a head, trying to derive my own fun in an empty wasteland devoid of the intricate modeling and design sensibility that linear game design can afford. One thing that linear games provide extremely well is a sense of progression, a sense that you have accomplished goals and continue to move on to higher and higher levels of skill. Open world games have a tendency to generalize gameplay mechanics all over the map, becoming a Jack of all trades, and Master of none.
When FFXIII comes out this Tuesday, I will not be so concerned with the evolution of next-gen JRPGs. I'm not even looking for a story that will blow my socks off. Even for a genre so driven by narrative, I'm not expecting big things from the story, although I'm sure it will be very entertaining. A soap operatic-novella-esque melodramatic tale with swords, magic, explosions, gunfire, and fantasy--for a Final Fantasy, that's all I need.
