The producer of Final Fantasy XIII, Yoshinori Kitase, has come to terms with his own game it would seem. In an interview recently he admitted that the game was not perfect and did have some problems; specifically addressing how linear the game was.
"Obviously it was the first Final Fantasy numbered titled for current-gen, high definition consoles, so we found it very challenging," said Kitase. "When it comes to graphical standard, game volume and [creating a] big story, we were quite satisfied. I think we did a good job. However, when it comes to gameplay there were some issues.” Yeah, I think most gamers would probably agree with that. “"Because the game was very story-driven, I think the problem was that it was quite linear. There could have been more opportunities for world exploration." Kitase went on to say.
Kitase also placed some of the blame on American gamers, saying that they may have had the game hyped up too much and may have been expecting too much. “Gamers outside of Japan, who hadn't played the game yet, might have had some kind of preconceptions which might have led to a bit of overreaction, possibly. Having said that, the criticism of the game being too linear was sort of true, as well." Honestly I bought it, played it for four hours, got mind numbingly bored and took it back.
