The first western review for Final Fantasy XIII-2 has been published and all you can say of it is that it's not terrible. Game Informer gave it a solid 8/10 in February's issue, this is in stark comparison with Final Fantasy XIII's 9.25/10. Joe Juba, the reviewer in this case, cited a "laughable" story in which "time-travel and alternate realities are easy excuses to have a bunch of crazy stuff happen."
Whether this is a political move based on the criticism Game Informer had over the great score they gave the original game or not is hard to judge, but going on some of the flaws Final Fantasy XIII had, two points is a lot to drop based on a bad story and "poppy songs" with "generic lyrics."
Despite disliking the narrative and music, Juba liked Final Fantasy XIII-2, citing great graphics, excellent battle system, an increased freedom and "fun mechanics."
