4 out of 5 stars

When Final Fantasy XIII was released two years ago, it was met with harsh critical scores and fan backlash across the market. The game was criticized for its confusing story, uninvolved gameplay and linear nature, with gamers running down a single, long hallway in each dungeon.

With the sequel, Final Fantasy XIII-2, developer Square Enix has tried to fix all the complaints gamers had with the previous title. Fortunately, aside from a few hiccups in the narrative, the title succeeds, providing one of the best games Square Enix has released this console generation.

Final Fantasy XIII-2 opens three years after the previous game. Lightning, the last game’s protagonist, has gone missing, with only her sister Serah remembering her previous appearances. Soon, however, a mysterious man named Noel appears, claiming to know where Lightning is. Together, the two set off on a journey through time to fix paradoxes and find Lightning.

The narrative in Final Fantasy XIII-2 is one of its weaker elements, but it still manages to provide an entertaining thread to follow. The time travel nature of the plot also allows for a wide variety of time periods and locales to be visited, making for a more episodic story than its predecessor.

What helps the plot immensely is the strength of the voice actors bringing the characters to life. Though side characters vary in terms of quality, the main stars of the title all manage stellar performances. Jason Marsden and Laura Bailey share great chemistry as Noel and Serah , while Liam O’Brien sells the threat of main antagonist, Caius Ballad.

The locations are also far more involving than they ever were the last time around. Instead of running from plot point to plot point on the map, XIII-2 allows players the freedom to explore environments. There are treasures to find, sidequests to take on and several other hidden extras for interested players to find.

The game also allows for entire side areas that have nothing to do with the main plot. Areas can be visited at different points in their timeline for optional gameplay, making for a title that offers a great deal of extra content once the main game has been completed.

Another improvement the game has seen is in the battle system, which provides a much smoother and involving experience this time around. The previous title’s Paradigm Shift system returns, allowing characters to switch their role in a fight in the middle of battle.

While many of the game’s challenges can still simply be overcome by executing auto-attacks, the more involved boss battles require a great deal of preparation and strategic use of role switching in order to be victorious.

This is the one area of Final Fantasy XIII-2 that has seen the least revision, however, and gamers who didn’t enjoy it the first time around aren’t going to find anything that changes their minds here. However, fans of the battle system will find an all-around much improved experience.

The biggest change to the battle system is the inclusion of monster training. Instead of a third human party member, Noel and Serah have the ability to recruit the monsters they defeat in battle to help them in fights.

While this system could’ve easily proven a complex and unnecessary addition, it works quite easily and allows for an extra element of strategy when deciding which monsters should join the battle. Still, the monsters you collect don’t add much to the story. A third playable character might’ve been a better idea.

Final Fantasy XIII-2 is by no means a perfect game. However, it is a highly enjoyable RPG experience, one that fans of the genre would be remiss to overlook. A fun battle system, interesting story and areas of exploration all come together to provide a solid game.

If nothing else, Square Enix has taken a step in the right direction with Final Fantasy XIII-2. After several rough years, the Japanese developer is doing its best to rise back to its former position of glory. The focus seems to once again be on providing gamers with unique and enjoyable experiences, something that Final Fantasy XIII-2 certainly manages to do.