Final Fantasy XIII (Xbox 360, PlayStation 3)

common sense media says

Gorgeous fantasy RPG with combat & some suggestive scenes.

parents & educators say

57% say there are positive role models
43% say there are positive messages

What parents need to know

Parents need to know that Final Fantasy XIII is Teen-rated, mostly because the gameplay is combat-heavy. Your party of characters will square off against enemies and engage in a turn-based fights, but with the ability to make some decisions during the battle. There is no blood or gore and most of the enemies are nasty creatures. You are also defending your homeworld and way of life instead of aggressively attacking enemies for no reason. The game has some scantily clad female characters and an occasional suggestive scenes (such as a holographic dancer). There is also some mild cussing in the game, too.

Educational value: Not applicable.

Positive messages: The game features a "party" or group of peaceful people under attack by a malevolent force. While bloodless combat is used to win the game, you are the "good guys" who must defend yourselves against the threat.

Positive role models: In Final Fantasy XIII, you play as peaceful, loving people who must fight back against the hostile fal'Cie and protect your world. So, on that level, you're playing as decent role models, but you are using violence to ward them off. Also, while most charcters with appear to be Caucasian, there are also black and Asian friends, too.

Ease of play: While the developers changed the battle mechanic in this game somewhat, those who've played a Final Fantasy game before should have no trouble picking up the controls in this game. Newcomers, however, will have lots of time to master the controls before tougher battles.

Violence: Combat, which is played out primarily in turn-based battles, makes up the bulk of the gameplay in this game. But the fighting is quite mild, there is no blood or gore, and many of the skirmishes you get into are against fantastical, evil creatures. You can also summon elementals to do your battling for you. Some of the game's cinematic sequences depict violence, including humans as the victims.

Sex: The game has some mild sexual imagery, including female holographic dancers who move seductively and wear little clothing (bra-like top, but with pants). There is also a cutscene sequence with a statue turning someone back into a naked girl (but nothing graphic is scene). Some of the women in the game reveal a lot of cleavage.

Language: The game has some mild profanity, but it's not heard very often. This includes words such as "damn," "hell," and "ass."

Consumerism: Not applicable.

Drinking, drugs, & smoking: Not applicable.

Our ratings and reviews are informed by child development guidelines. Learn more.

What to talk about

Talk to your kids

Families can talk about whether they like a game with so many non-interactive sequences. As with many other Final Fantasy games, do you like all the mini-movies designed to help push the story along or would you rather play without the cutscenes that break up the action? What do you prefer? Or did the developers do a decent job balancing the two?

What's the story?

If you can get past the irony of a thirteenth "Final Fantasy" game -- not to mention dozens of offshoots over the years -- Square Enix's latest cinematic epic is ready for action. Available on both high-definition consoles at launch (for the first time), FINAL FANTASY XIII focuses heavily on a moon called Cocoon, once a floating utopia, but now a target of the hostile fal'Cie from the seedy lowerworld. The combat-heavy mechanics should be familiar to fans of past games, though new features have been added including the ability to execute numerous commands in a single turn, the summoning of creatures (called Eidolons), and support for a specialized party of fighters (commando, medic, and so on).

Is it any good?

Yes, especially for longtime fans of the series. Final Fantasy XIII once again brings together the talents of producer Kitase Yoshinori, director Motomu Toriyama, character designer Tetsuya Nomura, and art director Isamu Kamikokuryo, to deliver a stunningly deep and breathtakingly beautiful role-playing game that plays out more like an interactive movie -- complete with orchestrated soundtrack and the theme song "My Hands" by Leona Lewis. The modified turn-based battle mechanic should also please veterans as it provides more freedom and tactical options during gameplay.

The game, however, is quite linear, which might disappoint those looking to roam in this gorgeous fantasy world. But this ambitious single-player adventure features an interweaving storyline, new characters, and tweaked battle mechanics that should excite and delight Final Fantasy enthusiasts and RPG fans alike.

Platform Note: Both versions of the game play and look the same.

Game themes & details

Game Details

Available on: Xbox 360, PlayStation 3
Not available online
Genre: Role Playing
Developer: Square Enix
Released on: March 9, 2010
Price: 59.99
ESRB Rating: T for Mild Language, Suggestive Themes, Violence

Screenshots

This review was written by Marc Saltzman

Review It

What parents & educators say

Based on 7 parent & educator reviews:

57% say there are positive role models
43% say there are positive messages
29% say violence is an issue

Read the reviews

Most useful reviews by all members

prince of ...
kid, 12 years old

well lets start off by talking about the content a few uses of bad words but no blood or and gore as far as suggestive themes its got a few but nothing super bad violence there is some fantasy violence where you take turnes hiting each other using sticks swords fire balls ice balls and ligtning but like i said no blood and gore now then for the gamplay okay sounds okay graphics asome asome asome asome asome they look so real there is one scene where a person turnes a statue back to life but there is no nudity even though common sense medis says so

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Final Fantasy XIII (Xbox 360, PlayStation 3)

common sense media says

parents & educators say

What parents need to know

More on Final Fantasy XIII

What to talk about

Talk to your kids

What's the story?

What's the story?

Is it any good?

Is it any good?

Game themes & details

Game Details

Screenshots

Review It

Review Final Fantasy XIII

What parents & educators say

Most useful reviews by all members

Great game, but a little mature for tweens

Great for teenagers and up.

WOW!

Perfect in older kids, somwhat for tweens unless they have played the others

12+

An ok game.

THE BEST GAME EVERRR!!!

Final Fantasy XIII

Final Fantasy XIII

I'll try.

I'll try.

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