Lightning Returns is the Dark Souls of Final Fantasy, says Kitase

In a recent issue of Weekly Famitsu, Lightning Returns: FFXIII director, Yoshinori Kitase, compared the difficulty of his upcoming title to the brutally challenging Dark Souls. Now, Kitase is not saying that Lightning Returns will be as heart crushingly hard as Dark Souls, but he did say this “I’d say that there are some elements [in Lightning Returns] with the severity of [a game like] Dark Souls.” Strong words Mr. Kitase, or should I say frightening words.

What Exactly Will Make Lightning Returns Anywhere Near as Hard as Dark Souls?

Well, a couple things.

Thirteen Days to Save the World

One of the main mechanics of Lightning Returns: FFXIII is the 13 day countdown timer; think the three-day cycle in Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask. Players will have a limited amount of time to complete certain objective, thirteen days to be exact. How 13 days of in game time will translate to play time has yet to be discussed. Regardless, such a system requires players to think on their feet and make calculated decisions.

My Bags are Full!

Unlike the majority of previous Final Fantasy titles, Lightning Returns will feature a limited inventory. For gamers who’ve played a variety of RPGs, a limited inventory is nothing new. Both Dark Souls and Demon Souls, as well as other RPG titles, feature limited inventories which caused players to think critically about which items to keep, sell, or drop. What with the thirteen day time limit already in place, managing your inventory in Lightning Returns will definitely be a challenge.

Where’s my XP?

Once again, Lightning Returns diverges from the standards set by previous Final Fantasy titles in that you do not receive XP or Gil (currency) from combat. Wait, what? Every Final Fantasy game, heck, every RPG gives you XP and Gold from combat. Well, not exactly. Dark Souls, if you remembered, required you to spend souls in order to level up and purchase equipment. How Lightning Returns will handle experience and currency gain is unclear at this point.

Because money will be scarce in Lightning Returns, Kitase tells us “While you can go to inns to heal up, you might not want to resort to that option unless you really need it.” Why is that? Well, resting at inns costs money. Kitase has emphasized that being economical, and financially shrewd, will be very critical in Lightning Returns.

So, is Lightning Returns the Dark Souls of Final Fantasy?

Honestly, we’ll have to wait and see. But, based on what we’ve learned so far, Lightning Returns promises to be a real nail-biter. Imagine, scrounging for xp and gil, trying to decide what items to keep and what items to toss, all while under a thirteen day time limit? Sounds pretty difficult to me.

Oh, and by the way, you actually start the game with only seven days to save the world; you build up to thirteen later. Challenging? Sounds it!

So, What do you Think?

Will Lightning Returns be as difficult as Kitase promises? Will it even come close to the challenge of Dark Souls? Also, how do you feel about these changes? Do you think this is a good direction for the FFXIII series, or has Square Enix jumped the shark?

As always,

Comment below, game hard, and stay safe!