Square-Enix really want you to give Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII a chance. The new trailer for game number three in the XIII series is keen to show you the large numbers of quests available, the expansive maps and the reformatted combat. Oh and chocobos and moogles naturally.

Having had a hands-on with the game, I can say I enjoyed the new combat, which ditches the ‘press X to win’ mentality by assigning individual attacks/spells to the face buttons with more to choose from by changing your schemata (like the dress-sphere’s in FFX-2). And with 80 schemata to choose from -and all of them being customisable- it would seem like we’re finally getting some tactical depth in the series for the first time in years. Old stalwarts may still dismiss the lack of a traditional turn-based approach, but this is an improvement over the last two games, and is slightly turn-based in the sense that you can only dish out a few attacks at once before waiting for a meter to recharge. 

The guided tour video also shows how movement has changed, both in battle (free movement) and in the game world where platforming, sprinting and sliding will play a larger role than before. With many characters from previous games returning, the game looks set to finish off the trilogy in style although we’re not convinced by the narrator’s implication that newcomers to the series will have a clue what’s going on. I’ve been through both and am still going to need a wiki top-up before tackling the new game on February 14th.