I Was Wrong About Final Fantasy XIII

I replayed Final Fantasy XIII in 2025, fully expecting to feel the same frustration I did years ago — but instead, I realized I was wrong.

I revisit Final Fantasy XIII to explore its world, mythology, characters, and controversial structure, and explain why my perspective on the game has changed so dramatically over time. What once felt confusing, restrictive, and cold now reveals itself as a story about systems, control, and people fighting to reclaim their agency.

Final Fantasy XIII is not a perfect game — but it is far more deliberate, ambitious, and human than I ever gave it credit for. And sometimes, a game doesn’t need to change… we do.

If you once dismissed Final Fantasy XIII like I did, maybe it’s worth another look.

00:00 - The Game I Left Behind
02:29 - Cocoon, Fal’Cie, and the System
08:00 - The Fal’Cie Proxy War
12:52 - Characters Under Pressure
18:16 - Linearity as Design — Cocoon vs. Gran Pulse
23:20 - Understanding XIII — Growing Into the Game

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