Final Fantasy XIII was a highly divisive game when it released last year. I found myself enjoying its finer points, but also finding fault in some of its design leading me to write a rather mixed review. With a sequel on the way, the opportunity for a more consistent experience has been opened.

Final Fantasy XIII-2 takes place three years after the first. Lightning has disappeared and Serah (her previously unplayable little sister) is out to find her with the help of a new character named Noel. The demo wasn’t heavy on exposition, but there was enough talk of “points in time” and “anomalies between dimensions” to pique my interest.

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"How does it hold up to the hype?"

Final Fantasy XIII has been a long time coming. To give you a little perspective, the game started its initial development on the PS2. Here we are in 2010, about three and a half years into the PS3′s lifespan, and the game has finally dropped. With teaser videos shown as early as they were, the game has been anticipated for so long that its release onto store shelves seems almost awkward.

The first thing you’ll notice upon booting up FFXIII is that it is an extremely pretty game. While some argue that there are more technically impressive looking games (have gamers really become this joyless?), FFXIII stands above most thanks to its superb art direction. Every enemy, character, and environment looks beautiful. Colors are vibrant, designs are ornate, and everything is a real treat to look at.

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"Our #1: The Blue Footed Bubi"

On a very special sixty-second episode of “Barrel Roll! A Video Game Podcast”, we discuss our Top 10 Birds of the Year (thus far). Sure, the goldfinch may have other outlets’ votes sealed up, but with their wingspan getting them solid 9′s across the board, the Blue Footed Bubi is putting up quite the show.

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"Actual Game Graphics (as seen by my memories)"

As the internet makes everyone’s voices heard more and more, whether it be through comment systems, forums, or social media sites, it’s interesting to see the different patterns that develop. One I’ve taken note of in the last couple of years is the inaccuracies of our memories. Yes, I say “our” because I’ve fallen into this same trap from time to time just like everyone has.

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"My PokéMans Walker. Let me show you it."

On a very special sixty-first episode of “Barrel Roll! A Video Game Podcast”, Jonah’s PokéWalker has been stolen by his cats, who then proceeded to put it up on eBay. Just search for “Jonah’s PokéManswalker”.

On what we’ve been playing, Russ joins us to show us his PokéMans, Jesse talks Mega Man 10 DLC and Final Fantasy XIII, Jonah has been playing Uncharted 2 and finally finished Resident Evil 5, and Wes has thrown down with some UmJammer Lammy.

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On a very special fifty-ninth episode of “Barrel Roll! A Video Game Podcast”, while shopping for some cans, the guys passed away, floated up towards heaven, but got lost along the way. Now, together, they form the Love-Matic Grandpa. They will fill your hearts with looooooove.

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On a very special fifty-eight episode of “Barrel Roll! A Video Game Podcast”, Jesse, Jonah, and Adam try to catch them all. It ends tragically.

In “The Games We Played Since Last Time”, Jesse and Adam mock Mega Man 10′s easy mode, Jesse gets even more in-depth with Final Fantasy XIII, and Adam tries out the Monster Hunter Tri demo. It turns out he is actually digging this one, and it is sounding more and more like we’ll have a team with which to hunt monsters come April.

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"Jaaaaaayyyyyson!"

On a very special fifty-seventh episode of “Barrel Roll! A Video Game Podcast”, it’s up to Detective Space Glasses and his awesome Space Glasses to once again save the universe from impending destruction at the hands of Xargon and his anti-Space Glasses task force.

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2010 is looking to be one of the most ridiculous years we’ve ever seen for game releases. The amount of promising titles coming out is nothing short of intimidating. It is entirely possible that you may drown in quality titles. But remain calm.

We here at WingDamage are here to throw you a life preserver of information. So grab a hold of our list of Xbox 360 releases below and you just might survive the first three months of 2010.

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2010 is looking to be one of the most ridiculous years we’ve ever seen for game releases. The amount of promising titles coming out is nothing short of intimidating. It is entirely possible that you may drown in quality titles. But remain calm.

We here at WingDamage are here to throw you a life preserver of information. So grab a hold of our list of PS3 releases below and you just might survive the first three months of 2010.

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