PS3 News: Only One Thing Left To Do: Blend CoD With Final Fantasy - PS3 News

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Only One Thing Left To Do: Blend CoD With Final Fantasy

If I am to understand Square Enix's logic - if one can call such insanity "logic" - then the next step is inevitable.

As Final Fantasy XIII: Lightning Returns appears to be yet another step away from role-playing and towards the twitchy Western gaming crowd, one has to wonder: Why not just go the whole way, Square Enix? Why not do what you've been longing to do (obviously)? Why not just make a Final Fantasy a first-person shooter?

In just about every interview with a major Japanese developer, you can find some reference to Western gamers "only" liking shooters. Call of Duty rarely goes unmentioned. And considering that Square Enix desperately wants to ditch all their old fans and get a bunch of new unappreciative ones in this region of the world...well, the answer is obvious, isn't it? Just replace Lightning's sword with a gun. Then at least you've got a third-person shooter, which is just about what we "only" want, anyway, right? We're just so one-dimensional.

At least then, we'll have a better understanding of the company's goals. At least with that abomination, we'd sort of get it. We'd all just go, "Oh, I see, they're not even trying anymore." It actually appears that they're trying with Lightning Returns, which is indescribably depressing and infuriating. I'd much prefer if they just gave up and caved in to these so-called Western demands, rather than continually putting a legendary series under the scalpel and creating some horrific Frankenstein conglomeration. Just hurry up and be done with it, Square Enix, so we can be done with Final Fantasy for good. For good and forever...bye-bye.

We're all just sick of hoping.

Tags: call of duty, final fantasy, square enix, gaming culture

10/29/2012 10:14:24 PM Ben Dutka

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Comments (27 posts)

Jawknee
Monday, October 29, 2012 @ 10:30:19 PM
Reply

Maybe CliffyB can "fix" it.

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Mogreen
Tuesday, October 30, 2012 @ 4:30:24 AM

ROFL... good one

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Knightzane
Monday, October 29, 2012 @ 10:30:58 PM
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You said what needed to be said. The longer we would like FF to return the further it will get from us. Maybe it is time we just forgot about what it was and either accept what its become or enjoy the memories we have of it. I will keep hoping square will get a pres that was a die-hard FF fan and he hears the fans outcry and tries to mend the wound of the FF fanbase.

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ZenChichiri
Monday, October 29, 2012 @ 10:30:59 PM
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Oh no! He killed me while I was reloading my MP!

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556pineapple
Monday, October 29, 2012 @ 10:32:22 PM
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I realize that Eastern companies say these things for a reason; Western audiences are truly enamored with shooters currently. But this is also a stereotype. There are plenty of gamers who like other genres, especially RPGs. The problem is that these companies are looking at it in black and white terms and think that we don't like JRPGs. By trying to cater to Western audiences, they're destroying the fanbase they already have and have spent 25 years building. I agree, Ben. If this is the direction they want to take, they should just put it out of its misery already.

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xenris
Monday, October 29, 2012 @ 10:49:04 PM
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Lets all just hope Ni No Kuni does amazing and shows square that traditional RPGs can survive in the west.

Otherwise they just seem greedy to me. The tales series has stayed faithful, as well as a bunch of others ones whose names escape me. These games can do just fine and localize their games and they don't even have the brand power Square has.

I understand your frustration though, and now you know how I felt with the direction that ME2 and ME3 went.

Yes it wasn't as severe as a turn based RPG turning into an FPS like what square is doing. But it was terrible in the fact that they completely switched their focus from the RPG elements, and put everything into the gun play and corridors.

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Jawknee
Monday, October 29, 2012 @ 10:58:53 PM

Square has posted huge losses this gen. It's not so much greed as they are just trying to pay the bills. They seem to lack the drive, talent and ability to make great games again. They have sunken into the depths of mediocrity.

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xenris
Tuesday, October 30, 2012 @ 11:39:26 AM

I just dont understand why if that is true and they have been having huge losses...why the heck would they keep trying the same thing that most likely put them there? I think that is the definition of insanity :P Actually I know that FF14 had a lot to do with the losses, it flopped hard at launch. Maybe the relaunch can save it I dont know.

I think they still have talent there I just think its being suppressed, that or everyone awesome is plugging away on versus and they are just making these games as a piggy bank along with their MMOs.

This is wishful thinking as Versus is my main anticipated this whole gen over everything even the last guardian. I would drop every other game to play it, I'm hoping it doesn't become vaporware :(

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WorldEndsWithMe
Tuesday, October 30, 2012 @ 12:50:14 PM

They forgot that paying the bills means making what people want.

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Nas Is Like
Monday, October 29, 2012 @ 11:07:08 PM
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Get 25 kills without dying to call in your Omni Weapon.

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Geophphreigh
Monday, October 29, 2012 @ 11:10:05 PM
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If they appointed a team to make a ps1 and earlier style rpg with graphics of an hd ps3 collection or a little better i believe it would be more welcome and sell better and have higher review scores as long as they didnt mail it in during development. During Ps1 they pumped out 7, 8 , and 9 in a little over or under three years, so lets say they devote a team for 1 year to make a ps store release, then they could find out what their fans really want, and at the same time it wont be all about graphics... more story and more exploring.

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Warrior Poet
Monday, October 29, 2012 @ 11:23:40 PM
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S-E's mythical Western gamers say "I played Final Fantasy on PS2 and it was dumb." That's the target audience they're trying to reach.

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Ben Dutka PSXE [Administrator]
Tuesday, October 30, 2012 @ 12:10:49 AM

Sadly, truth.

Agree with this comment 3 up, 1 down Disagree with this comment

BikerSaint
Tuesday, October 30, 2012 @ 12:26:05 AM
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Wake me up when Wada announces his Final Call Of Fantasy IVIII-3.
That way, I can turn over & go back to sleep on my other side.

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Snaaaake
Tuesday, October 30, 2012 @ 12:26:44 AM
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Wada must hated SE to the point he's driving them to the ground.

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BigBoss4ever
Tuesday, October 30, 2012 @ 1:29:14 AM
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I thought SE was long done already. nothing more...and un-pause and move back to continue my D3 Paragon leveling... :D

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Lawless SXE
Tuesday, October 30, 2012 @ 3:16:50 AM
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They already did it. It was called Dirge of Cerberus and it supposedly sucked. I don't even know what S-E is doing now...

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WorldEndsWithMe
Tuesday, October 30, 2012 @ 12:51:35 PM

It was a TPS spinoff and yeah, it sucked but at least it made a little sense as Vincent was a gunner.

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Underdog15
Wednesday, October 31, 2012 @ 4:17:26 PM

It was pretty below average. But I had a lot of fun with it still.. lol. It was easy to accept because it wasn't a main entry, Vincent used a gun already, and they fleshed out the story of my favorite character from FF7. Not to mention the high nostalgia of running around a 3D model of Shinra Mansion.
Last edited by Underdog15 on 10/31/2012 4:17:52 PM

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ethird1
Tuesday, October 30, 2012 @ 3:31:51 AM
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Hey, I think a fantasy based, multiplayer, fps, complete with magical spells, summons, and cool weapons would be cool for Final Fantasy.

They could make it like Borderlands, with 4 player co-op and even some pvp! Im not saying use it as a replacement for the regular FFs, but I am saying it would be cool.

Look how fun Phantasy Star Online was.

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ZenChichiri
Tuesday, October 30, 2012 @ 4:07:08 AM

I don't think anyone is really opposed to that idea but like you said, the thing that's bugging people is the fact that their main series games(and Versus/Agito localization, the spinoffs that actually look promising) have been put on the back burner. That idea does sound neat, I agree, but that can't be all there is.

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Mogreen
Tuesday, October 30, 2012 @ 4:31:03 AM
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ROFL... this is the correct way to wake up from a nap and have something great to laugh at.

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Highlander
Tuesday, October 30, 2012 @ 12:15:48 PM
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So, how many FFXIII games are going to release before SE can launch a working FFXIV or FFvsXIII?

SE are beneath contempt to me know. They have progressively destroyed the two things that made them a success - the JRPG and the JRPG audience.

There is no way back for SE as far as I am concerned, they betrayed all of us. That betrayal came with an almost biblical event - 30 pieces of silver from Microsoft. SE is dead to me now. I was considering FFXIV, but making gamers pay $40 or more for a game you'll charge them $13 a month to use is not the kind of thing that will restore any faith or trust in SE.
Last edited by Highlander on 10/30/2012 12:16:16 PM

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WorldEndsWithMe
Tuesday, October 30, 2012 @ 12:54:45 PM
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What's sad is that there were so many ways to use this generations advancement to make the game better (bigger worlds with more towns and characters, more side quests and side plots, more playable characters, the ability to use MP to take your team up against another person's team or even have others online control each character in a party, deepen the strategic components, etc) But instead they just keep stripping it down hoping the simpler it is the more people will like it.

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xenris
Tuesday, October 30, 2012 @ 4:08:10 PM

You know my friends and I were fantasizing about what the next generation of RPGs were going to be like when we were playing KH1 for the first time on the PS2.

We were imagining games like FF9 but with amazing graphics, and branching storylines, lots of hidden characters, and multiple ways to build your party.

I guess we were naive to think they were going to evolve things instead of streamlined down to corridor RPGs.

Its sad that White Knight Chronicles is the only RPG this gen to really try and do an RPG with a really fleshed out world, big cities, and multiplayer. Its a shame the combat didn't grab me more something felt off about it, like it was too slow or something.

Ni No kuni is the next big RPG that looks like it is an actual evolution of the genre instead of a dumbing down. I is excite.

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Underdog15
Wednesday, October 31, 2012 @ 4:20:46 PM

I feel exactly the same as you guys. In the Chronicles and Anthology collections, you could have a friend control a couple characters. I really wanted an online version of that with friends! Why not flesh out battles so much that you use your WHOLE PARTY and not have bench players!

Imagine running around a world map together, each causing random encounters and having to help one another out. Ugh... so much more could be done with a turn based mechanic, it's true. The possibilities are endless... :'(

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emily lockwind
Thursday, November 01, 2012 @ 3:52:48 AM
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Oh GOSH NO. They might actually listen to you!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Haha what do I care? It might actually do some good to the franchise.

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