We're nearing the end of the holiday release window, something that's plain in the smaller-sized review section in this week's issue of Famitsu magazine. The PlayStation Vita hits stores December 17 in Japan, and while the editors review some other titles due out around that date in the current issue, no Vita reviews were printed. A couple of blockbuster reviews were still in the offing, though:
- Final Fantasy XIII-2 (10/10/10/10, 40 points): The 18th game in Famitsu history to land a perfect review score (on both the 360 and PS3 versions, no less). If Famitsu's reviewers can be trusted, then Square Enix has apparently done a fantastic job of improving over the previous FF. "The setting and presentation is fantastic," wrote assistant editor Norihiro Fujiwara, "and the issues people brought up with the first game -- its linearity, its lack of meaty gameplay -- are a thing of the past. You're sucked into the game right from the beginning, and the story's very easy to get into."
"I have to take my hat off to the staff for being so open and thorough with responding to the feedback they got from FFXIII," added reviewer Ranbu Yoshida. "It feels like a very different game from its predecessor; the story changes depending on where you choose to go in your time-traveling journey, and it's easy to lose yourself in changing and redoing areas you've previously finished."
Although the adulations were laid on thick for XIII-2 (the second FF after XII to score 40/40 in Famitsu), the review text did offer one or two caveats. "The battles are very strategic in nature," Fujiwara wrote, "although you can adjust their difficulty to suit your abilities. I think some people may not be fans of how the party is locked into Noel, Serah, and your monsters."
- Monster Hunter 3G (10/10/9/9, 38 points): The original Monster Hunter Tri for the Wii scored a 40/40 from Famitsu back in 2009, but the heavily-enhanced 3DS port seems to have been docked a couple points. Why? A few little things -- the learning curve of the new controls, and the fact you can't pick up where you left off with Tri. "You can't continue from Tri," began one reviewer, "so you're back to the beginning, but a fair amount has been added to the Tri sections such that it still feels fresh. The touch controls are a breeze once you get used to them, and once you see the target camera for yourself, you'll wonder how you ever managed without it."
"It still essentially feels like an upgraded version of the Wii game," added another, "although you could certainly think of it as a wholly remade product. The controls are custom-made for the 3DS, and customizing your touch panel makes everything proceed pretty naturally. The increase in the number of more powerful monsters, among other things, make this game playable for a pretty long time."
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