FFXIII-2 XIII-3: To be or not to be? (SPOILERS)

[Kelvy]

Well if you beat the game or watched the ending on youtube, you'd know that the XIII-2 ends with "To Be Continued."

The ending left me with so many questions, like...
1) Is Serah a "new" Yeul? As in, will she keep being reborn forever and ever and keep dying just like Yeul?
2) What vision did she see right before she died?
3) Why did Lightning turn to crystal?
4) What happened to Snow? Will he ever come back?
5) Are they ever going to save Vanille and Fang?
6) Now that the world is filled with Chaos, what's going to happen to Noel, Hope, Sazh, Dajh, and everyone else who is still alive? Or did Chaos kill them?

Now, I know what a lot of you are thinking: "There won't be a XIII-3, they're just going to wrap everything up with DLC!"

And I'd really hate for that to happen :/. While a lot of you probably don't want them to continue on with the XIII series, I really hope that they make a third game. I want closure, and I don't want them to take the cheap way out and come up with some BS DLC ending >_>.

 

[Grimer]

Sorry but it will probably be in DLC. I think fans would revolt if they decided to make a XIII-3. Not going to lie, I wish they would move on from the XIII universe tho, just gimme Versus and then move on to something else.

 

[Lirael]

Well if you beat the game or watched the ending on youtube, you'd know that the XIII-2 ends with "To Be Continued."

The ending left me with so many questions, like...
1) Is Serah a "new" Yeul? As in, will she keep being reborn forever and ever and keep dying just like Yeul?
2) What vision did she see right before she died?
3) Why did Lightning turn to crystal?
4) What happened to Snow? Will he ever come back?
5) Are they ever going to save Vanille and Fang?
6) Now that the world is filled with Chaos, what's going to happen to Noel, Hope, Sazh, Dajh, and everyone else who is still alive? Or did Chaos kill them?

Now, I know what a lot of you are thinking: "There won't be a XIII-3, they're just going to wrap everything up with DLC!"

And I'd really hate for that to happen :/. While a lot of you probably don't want them to continue on with the XIII series, I really hope that they make a third game. I want closure, and I don't want them to take the cheap way out and come up with some BS DLC ending >_>.

I'm very much hoping for a XIII-3 as well! I have some theoretical answers to your questions, which I'll put in spoiler tags because they're based on events in the game and information I've read in the interview which appears in the Limited Edition guide.

Don't read these if you want to avoid spoilers!

Spoiler

1) Now that is an interesting theory and one I really like. Whilst I know Serah is like Yule insofar as she can see the future and, to quote Yuel herself, 'show others the way,' whether or not Serah is reincarnated is another question entirely. Apparently, Serah can see the future and bend monsters to her will because she came into contact with Etro, who saved her from her Crystal state.

ALSO, can we be sure that Serah is really dead?

2) Perhaps Serah saw Lightning in her Crystal state? She saw that Lightning can't be saved?

3) Perhaps Lightning's transformation is a sign that she must remain in Valhalla for all eternity. The interview in the guide suggests that Lightning essentially takes place of Etro and plays an important role in preserving the future/watching over the world.

4) I'm not entirely sure I want him to come back. He was so obnoxious in XIII-2 - I didn't mind him in XIII! When Noel and Serah meet him, he has so much bravado and basically claims Serah as his property. He's practically a jock. *grumble* (I used to like Snow. )

5) I'm not sure whether I want them to save Vanille and Fang... I think there's something beautiful about their sacrifice and I don't like it when plots turn into a happily ever after. It's beautiful because their sleep is eternal. Furthermore, one could argue that they are peaceful. They achieved their own Focus and saved the world - and their friends. They knew what they were doing and were able to atone for what they perceived to be their sins. I think of their Crystal sleep as a sort of heaven as opposed to the lonely sleep of Serah. I envisage them being in the same 'dream,' too, since they're connected via their hands.

6) Hopefully, we'll find out!


Having thought about this, I wouldn't be surprised if they wrap it up in DLC. Perhaps Serah understands through her final vision (which I assume is of Lightning in a Crystal state) that Lightning can't be saved.

 

[Martel]

1) Is Serah a "new" Yeul? As in, will she keep being reborn forever and ever and keep dying just like Yeul?

I hope so. Having Serah constantly die is good karma.

2) What vision did she see right before she died?

An announcement saying that Versus was cancelled.

3) Why did Lightning turn to crystal?

Because she had the personality of a rock to begin with.

4) What happened to Snow? Will he ever come back?

Snow rented an apartment in Cocoon somewhere and spent the rest of his life trying to find work, although he constantly failed due to his obnoxious attitude and his prejudice towards mothers. He spent his final days drunk in an alleyway, where he choked to death on his own vomit and was found several days later, stripped of what few belongings he had. His corpse was thrown off the Hanging Edge by a small group of PSICOM soldiers who all mysteriously died the next day, along with Chad from Accounting. Rumour has it that his ghost haunts the alleyway where he died, and it's been closed off to the public, just to make absolutely sure that he can't come back through some ridiculously contrived means.

5) Are they ever going to save Vanille and Fang?

No. They all agreed that it was the best that those two never be released from their confinement.

6) Now that the world is filled with Chaos, what's going to happen to Noel, Hope, Sazh, Dajh, and everyone else who is still alive? Or did Chaos kill them?

Noel died because Serah talked his ear off about Snow. Sazh got a new career as a supporting role in a proper video game. Dajh followed suit after an intense Weight Watcher's scheme. Hope was swallowed up by a singularity, which was the only thing that could stomach touching him. Even Chaos recoiled at the thought of having to come into contact with him in order to kill him. Everyone else tried to go about their daily lives as though this nightmare had never happened, but the suicide rates after that were alarmingly high.

I hope I managed to answer your questions

Square Enix really need to cut their losses and just wrap it up with DLC. I think a third "game" would probably finish off a lot of people. Granted, I suppose it would please the fans, but FFXIII didn't really have that many fans to begin with; it split the fanbase right down the middle, and XIII-2 is only serving to alienate those of us who want a proper Final Fantasy game.

XIII-2 was unnecessary. Granted, it didn't end properly, but then, it didn't really have a story to end. The development time shows just how little effort was put into it. A couple of DLC packs with final boss fights to wrap things up, two or three novels to satisfy the curiosity of the fans as to why the other cast members weren't included in this, and then we can finally have done with it. It worked for Lords of Shadow, so I don't see why it couldn't work for this. A third game is the last thing they should be doing; that's another year of time and resources wasted at the very least, time and resources that would be better spent into making a proper video game, or even remastering an old game. Hell, ANYTHING would be better than XIII-3.

They need to do something productive, and that is not productive. Two games plus DLC is far too much for it as it is.

 

[C i d]

An eventual DLC ending or worse, an ending featured in a novella, are much more probable than XIII-3. They don't seem to be hinting at any new games related to XIII, and interviews have been suggesting that DLCs will play an important part.

I seriously want this XIII series to just end properly soon. It's stretched too far and the story is starting to get inconsistent, especially the mythology parts. I would rather see an FFXV, or even Versus, instead of an FFXIII-3.

That said, I will be looking forward to these story DLCs as I am curious as to what will happen in the end.

About those questions, I agree to most of what Lirael said. Just to add on,

Spoiler

The idea of Serah getting reincarnated like Yeul is what I have been thinking too. After all, according to Noel, Yeul willingly got reborn because she wants to see Caius again and again. So if Serah had such ability, I'm sure she wants to get reborn in order to be able to see Lightning and Snow again.

I also feel they shouldn't decrystallise Vanille and Fang, for the same reasons as Lirael. After all, Sazh has already 'saved' Fang and Vanille by evacuating their crystals from the falling pillar. Or else, the two crystals would probably shatter due to the impact. I think they should in fact create a monument with their crystals, once all this chaos thingy is over (if it is ever over. It may just be meant for a canon sad ending all along).

I am seriously curious how are they going to make playable sections after that ending. I mean, only valhalla remains, and I'm not even sure if humans can live in such a world. Hopefully, we will find out that too.

 

[Climhazzard]

For the love of all that is holy.. please, please just wrap XIII up already. Finish up this so-called cliffhanger ending with DLC if you must, al though I find that in itself is a pretty shocking thing to do.

But if it means we can finally get past this not so great chapter in the mainline series I'll gladly welcome it with open arms. \O/

 

[phongfive]

3. That sequence where they show Lighting sitting on the throne gave me chills. I like the way they ended that.

 

[Grimer]

they shouldnt do anything, just to piss people off.

 

[Linnaete]

they shouldnt do anything, just to piss people off.

There's something about that idea I like. I've always wanted to see an ending where

Spoiler

the villains technically win in the end. They get what they want, and their cataclysmic effect on the world stays permanent. The heroes valiantly try to prevent it from happening, but unlike FFVI, they ultimately fail almost completely and never recover from it.

I'm leaning towards DLC here, rather than a full-fledged threequel. If SE is interested in story DLC - with miscellaneous side story scenarios at this current point in time - they can easily continue with DLC. Either way, I will be on Youtube when the time comes to see whether there is an actual conclusion where Lightning is - as Kitase had promised - living happily ever after.

 

[Starships]

Who knows ?

1) Is Serah a "new" Yeul? As in, will she keep being reborn forever and ever and keep dying just like Yeul?

Guessing yes with this. She was able to see the future just like Yeul did. They also had the same symbol in their eyes when they had visions. Meaning that Serah will die over and over again. Meaning Snow, Lightning and Noel will have to watch her die countless times, and be in torment because of it.


2) What vision did she see right before she died?

Guessing her own demise.

3) Why did Lightning turn to crystal?

She became her new Godness ? That's what I got from it. Meaning that she'll problery give her heart to somebody like the last Godness did to Caius Ballad. Guessing it's going to be poor Noel.


4) What happened to Snow? Will he ever come back?

Hopefully not. Hopefully he got lost somewhere trying to be a hero or his own motorbike ran him over or something.

5) Are they ever going to save Vanille and Fang?


Since like.... 99 per cent of the endings in the second part were terribly depressing. I'm going to say no. Not a chance. They'll die trying. Though, hopefully they do save them.

6) Now that the world is filled with Chaos, what's going to happen to Noel, Hope, Sazh, Dajh, and everyone else who is still alive? Or did Chaos kill them?

They'll have to survive if SE has plans to further advance on the series.

 

[Grimer]

There's something about that idea I like. I've always wanted to see an ending where

Spoiler

the villains technically win in the end. They get what they want, and their cataclysmic effect on the world stays permanent. The heroes valiantly try to prevent it from happening, but unlike FFVI, they ultimately fail almost completely and never recover from it.

I'm leaning towards DLC here, rather than a full-fledged threequel. If SE is interested in story DLC - with miscellaneous side story scenarios at this current point in time - they can easily continue with DLC. Either way, I will be on Youtube when the time comes to see whether there is an actual conclusion where Lightning is - as Kitase had promised - living happily ever after.

i agree with the first part. I think it would be something different for once if they went with that route. Plus

Spoiler

I dont think people should have to pay extra money to see the ending of a story. I'd like to think XIII-2's end was all there is, with Lightning crystalized and Sarah dead. They should just leave it as it is and finish working on Versus.

 

[ANGRYWOLF]

So that means those of us who haven't bought or played the game

i agree with the first part. I think it would be something different for once if they went with that route. Plus

Spoiler

I dont think people should have to pay extra money to see the ending of a story. I'd like to think XIII-2's end was all there is, with Lightning crystalized and Sarah dead. They should just leave it as it is and finish working on Versus.

need not bother.



That's what this post says in essence.

shrugs.

I don't like the way the game ends so I won't bother to buy it unless there's another game or dlc with an ending more to my liking.Until then I will stay away from it.

 

[Kenjin]

I believe there may be a XIII-3, knowing Square Enix.

However, I think Versus should be the foremost on their agenda.

 

[Grimer]

need not bother.



That's what this post says in essence.

shrugs.

I don't like the way the game ends so I won't bother to buy it unless there's another game or dlc with an ending more to my liking.Until then I will stay away from it.

no, its kinda fun to play, just not for the story.

 

[LibraryOnTheMoon]

I have a theory of my own, but to give some context for it, I'm going to answer your questions in my own particular order of choosing.

1) Is Serah a "new" Yeul? As in, will she keep being reborn forever and ever and keep dying just like Yeul?

THEORY: If she has the "Eyes of Etro," then Serah will somehow reincarnate after dying.

We know this because Yeul reincarnates, and she says that Serah is just like her. However, a problem presents itself...

6) Now that the world is filled with Chaos, what's going to happen to Noel, Hope, Sazh, Dajh, and everyone else who is still alive? Or did Chaos kill them?

The Chaos didn't just enter into their world, it consumed all of time, which essentially turned the entire universe of FFXIII into Valhalla.

We don't see Noel, Hope, Sazh, Dahj, etc. in the new world, but we do know that Lightning's crystal statue still exists. However, this is because Lightning already was in Valhalla (A world which exists outside of time) once the Chaos was unleashed, so she could not have been affected by what happened to the other side.

Now, going back to our last point.... if Serah still exists, will she be a soul trapped in Valhalla, or will be able to reincarnate if the human world somehow becomes restored? (Keep reading to hear my theory on how this will happen)

3) Why did Lightning turn to crystal?

Lightning was a protector of Etro, and by extension Valhalla; she travelled to Valhalla to do battle with Caius, but Noel and Serah were fighting him there on the beach.

Lightning became the protector of Etro because she had helped them earlier to stop Orphan. She knew that Etro was benevolent, so Lightning wanted to help out. I think by the point that Noel and Serah fight him in Valhalla, she must have realized that Caius was going to succeed anyway, and turned herself to crystal willingly. But Etro may have also transferred her powers to Lightning, and if that's the case, she'll end up taking Etro's place; the previous goddess is dead, but the new goddess will have just arrived (And what a goddess she is)!

Lightning (And by extension Etro) may have had a backup plan of some kind, since in the end Caius and Lightning (Along with maybe Yeul and Serah) still exist. The world will possibly be recreated somehow.

4) What happened to Snow? Will he ever come back?

When we last see Snow, we saw that he became a l'Cie, possibly fulfilling his focus by resolving the paradox where Royal Ripeness comes into being.

This would mean that he turns into crystal, but then why is he able to show up in the ending where Alyssa is arrested?

In the timeline where the proto fal'Cie Adam exists, it was created in 13 AF, and lived to 400 AF in Academia, which is past the 300 AF timeline where the Royal Ripeness existed.

Adam was created before the Royal Ripeness became a threat, and somehow both Royal Ripeness and Snow had survived / were allowed to remain alive. Snow obviously time travelled to 400 AF from 13 AF (How would he have survived otherwise?), and somehow became a l'Cie again.

THEORY: Snow time travelled to 400 AF from 13 AF, found the proto fal'Cie Adam, and was tasked with Royal Ripeness's destruction, becoming the l'Cie of Adam

Adam had the ability to turn people into Cie'th, so naturally it would follow that it also had the ability to appoint l'Cie. Snow happened upon it, but apparently wasn't shown the recording and the proto fal'Cie realized that Royal Ripeness was becoming a threat to the city in 400 AF (For whatever reason; both can't be killed normally without erasing them from the timeline, so apparently it didn't want to be caught in an eternal struggle between itself and Royal Ripeness).

THEORY: Because the Faeryl involved in Royal Ripeness's creation, and the proto fal'Cie Adam itself were both erased from the timeline, the Snow who entered into the new timeline from the old timeline had turned to crystal or vanished for whatever reason; The new Snow is the one which avoided such a fate in the new timeline.

Meanwhile, the other Snow that existed within the new timeline must have travelled to 4XX AF, thinking it was 400 AF, and because Adam no longer existed, his fate was averted. This then means that he somehow learned of Alyssa's impending betrayal, although why he doesn't show up at all if you take the artefact from Alyssa or don't have the Paradox Scope is a mystery...

In any case, this means Snow either turned to crystal, or was consumed by the Chaos.

Sorry for that long-winded write-up, but before I figured that out, it was one of the plot-holes that totally NAGGED at me, particularly because I liked Snow in FFXIII.

2) What vision did Serah see right before she died?

She saw Square-Enix releasing Versus-XIII and Kingdom Hearts 3D before finishing XIII-2's completed story, so she decided in her mind "#@&% it, I'm gonna reincarnate like Yeul once this is all over, then beg Noel and Snow for some holiday presents after they're old men."

... Just kidding.

There is really no way to answer this definitively as of yet, since while we were given glimpses or clues on the previous visions she experienced, this one is left ambiguous. However, I do have a theory on why they see such a vision, and why they die after seeing a certain one.

When Seeresses have a strong enough vision after their life has been eroded by previous visions, they die.

Noel states this as Serah frees him from his dream world. As for why Yeul dies relatively quickly while Serah dies after what seems like quite the journey, remember that Serah only recently gained the ability of a Seeress, at least from what we know; her focus as a l'Cie in FFXIII was simply to gather the main group together. Yuel on the other hand, appeared to have been born with it. By the time Serah and Noel also reach Yuel in each time period where she is seen dying, she had already grown up to that point. Serah's journey had also involved time travelling, so arguably the time she spent with the ability was shorter than any of Yeul's lives! What could have been the cause of such a gap, that Serah dies only shortly after receiving it compared to Yeul growing for at least a couple of years?

THEORY: The strong vision that a Seeres witnesses before death is of time ending, or in other words Caius succeeding

Remember when Yeul talks to you in Academy 500 AF just before the final bosses, even though she is not physically present? Yuel tells you here that she has seen a future where there is no Goddess. Previously, we saw her die in Augusta Tower 200 AF. We meet Yeul again in the Void Beyond, but these are the Yeuls from different time periods (Which are all dead), and that the last one is an illusion created by Caius.

The last times we saw an alive Yeul were 200 AF (from a chronological perspective of the characters who are time-travelling) and 700 AF (In the future that Noel came from, which later became where Lightning gives explanations in New Bodhum). So the voice that you hear in Academia 500 AF is that of a dead Yeul, who is somehow able to communicate with our heroes and tell them the vision she saw before death. The vision being the Goddess's death not only makes sense, since such a vision and what happens afterward might be so strong that if you witness it at any point you die, but it creates such a huge irony; Caius existing was not only the reason Yuel wanted to keep living (At least according to Noel), but his actions were also the reason her death was accelerated. Or... perhaps he is even the direct cause of her deaths, because that is the only vision that possibly kills them? How do any of the characters know if Yeul's and Serah's previous visions have any effect, and that the only thing affecting how fast a Seeress dies is how much time is left until they receive that one vision of the goddess's death?

EDIT: It is also worth noting that it is only AFTER Caius leaves to change the future, we see Yeul die from Noel's perspective after seeing the supposed final vision. This however, presents a problem with this theory of irony; how did Caius FIRST learn of Yeul supposedly dying? Was it perhaps that he heard a legend about the Seeress's death, and sought out to change it by then killing the goddess? Caius had to start somewhere... or was the goddess somehow destined to die, and that the whole time he should have been preventing that to save Yeul from her fate? Did Noel instead have it spot on about how changing the future is what causes the Seeress to see a vision, and that if it stops changing they won't die? If so, how would they have planned to prevent the use of time travel once the paradoxes were fixed, so that both Yeul and Serah would have been saved?

No matter what, Caius wanted to kill the Goddess to not only end Yeul's curse, but to prevent her death in his ideal of her life as well

He wanted a world without a beginnng or end; life would not begin, and thus death would not end it. (Sounds familiar? It's the same as the concept of the Zero World from FF9) Though he and Yeul apparently end up in the world after Caius succeeds, apparently this means they can't die. If they are the only living beings in this new world, will Yeul appreciate its state (Nearly everything destroyed, no humans except herself and Caius, similar to 700 AF from Noel's dream but without Noel)? Perhaps the reason Yeul was happy she died and reincarnated was because she wanted to see all the different futures, see Caius, and see other people. It will be pleasant irony if she in fact refuses to be remade into the world Caius has brought about, and instead desires for a new one to be created (In other words, Lightning's / Etro's supposed backup plan).

5) Are they ever going to save Vanille and Fang?

THEORY: While the characters expressed a desire to save Vanille and Fang, there is no real indication they will succeed, or if that is what Vanille and Fang really desire

Without the intervention of a fal'Cie like Etro, it really is impossible to reawaken from crystal slumber; we have never seen instances of characters doing this otherwise. On top of that, both of them are inside a crystal pillar, which was on the verge of collapsing. If the characters desire to simply move them somewhere else (Possibly since the two crystal statues might be destroyed if the pillar collapses), then I could see that being possible for them to accomplish.

Now, going by my theory about Lightning's reasons for turning to crystal above, if she indeed has Etro's powers and the world becomes re-created somehow, then Fang and Vanille most likely will be freed from their crystal slumber. If events play out largely the same, they will still be statues, but I don't think Lightning would leave them there; she would use Etro's power.

We must consider however... is being freed from this state what the two really desire?

Look at the other statues you see in FFXIII; most of them are alone, with only our heroes to give them the only bit of conversation they have had in an amount of time that is undetermined but presumably long. Would you really want to be alone like that for the rest of your life?

Fang and Vanille are seen rescuing Serah and Noel from their dreams.

It is possible that Fang and Vanille are in their own dream, but together. Maybe they're back in Oerba, before everything started going to crap? Perhaps the existence of crystal stasis is only a "hell" in a sense, if you don't have someone to be with.

Notice how in the "Vanille's Truth" ending, she is seen desperately wanting Fang by her side. When we see them at the end of FFXIII, they are embracing each other and appear happy, but when separated we see Vanille in quite a different state of mind. Perhaps they want to exist as crystal statues, together in a dream. In the paradox ending where Serah accepts her dream instead of escaping it, she comments how it would have been perfect if Noel was with her. Apparently, for crystal statues to not have such an existence be a living hell, they require others whom they care for to share in the dream, and then it becomes something pleasant for all involved.

The question must then be asked; our heroes want to remove Vanille and Fang from their slumber, but should they?

In any case, the human world of FFXIII will somehow be re-created, or the plot will somehow continue from this point; they won't just leave FFXIII-2 as is, since more DLC / games mean more money for Square Enix.

 

[C i d]

LibraryOnTheMoon
I enjoyed reading your response and theories! I think they are well thought and logical.

Lightning became the protector of Etro because she had helped them earlier to stop Orphan. She knew that Etro was benevolent, so Lightning wanted to help out. I think by the point that Noel and Serah fight him in Valhalla, she must have realized that Caius was going to succeed anyway, and turned herself to crystal willingly. But Etro may have also transferred her powers to Lightning, and if that's the case, she'll end up taking Etro's place; the previous goddess is dead, but the new goddess will have just arrived (And what a goddess she is)!

Lightning (And by extension Etro) may have had a backup plan of some kind, since in the end Caius and Lightning (Along with maybe Yeul and Serah) still exist. The world will possibly be recreated somehow.

Agree with this. I have also heard that Lightning indeed crystallised herself willingly as a last resort, according to the CE official guide of the game.

When we last see Snow, we saw that he became a l'Cie, possibly fulfilling his focus by resolving the paradox where Royal Ripeness comes into being.

This would mean that he turns into crystal, but then why is he able to show up in the ending where Alyssa is arrested?

In the timeline where the proto fal'Cie Adam exists, it was created in 13 AF, and lived to 400 AF in Academia, which is past the 300 AF timeline where the Royal Ripeness existed.

Adam was created before the Royal Ripeness became a threat, and somehow both Royal Ripeness and Snow had survived / were allowed to remain alive. Snow obviously time travelled to 400 AF from 13 AF (How would he have survived otherwise?), and somehow became a l'Cie again.

THEORY: Snow time travelled to 400 AF from 13 AF, found the proto fal'Cie Adam, and was tasked with Royal Ripeness's destruction, becoming the l'Cie of Adam

Adam had the ability to turn people into Cie'th, so naturally it would follow that it also had the ability to appoint l'Cie. Snow happened upon it, but apparently wasn't shown the recording and the proto fal'Cie realized that Royal Ripeness was becoming a threat to the city in 400 AF (For whatever reason; both can't be killed normally without erasing them from the timeline, so apparently it didn't want to be caught in an eternal struggle between itself and Royal Ripeness).

THEORY: Because the Faeryl involved in Royal Ripeness's creation, and the proto fal'Cie Adam itself were both erased from the timeline, the Snow who entered into the new timeline from the old timeline had turned to crystal or vanished for whatever reason; The new Snow is the one which avoided such a fate in the new timeline.

Meanwhile, the other Snow that existed within the new timeline must have travelled to 4XX AF, thinking it was 400 AF, and because Adam no longer existed, his fate was averted. This then means that he somehow learned of Alyssa's impending betrayal, although why he doesn't show up at all if you take the artefact from Alyssa or don't have the Paradox Scope is a mystery...

In any case, this means Snow either turned to crystal, or was consumed by the Chaos.

This is a very interesting theory too. Maybe he did show up, but Serah and Noel have already entered the gate?

How Fal'cie Adam is involved and how Royal Ripeness could be a threat to 'his' Academia, are cool ideas imo.

When Seeresses have a strong enough vision after their life has been eroded by previous visions, they die.

Noel states this as Serah frees him from his dream world. As for why Yeul dies relatively quickly while Serah dies after what seems like quite the journey, remember that Serah only recently gained the ability of a Seeress, at least from what we know; her focus as a l'Cie in FFXIII was simply to gather the main group together. Yuel on the other hand, appeared to have been born with it. By the time Serah and Noel also reach Yuel in each time period where she is seen dying, she had already grown up to that point. Serah's journey had also involved time travelling, so arguably the time she spent with the ability was shorter than any of Yeul's lives! What could have been the cause of such a gap, that Serah dies only shortly after receiving it compared to Yeul growing for at least a couple of years?

THEORY: The strong vision that a Seeres witnesses before death is of time ending, or in other words Caius succeeding

Remember when Yeul talks to you in Academy 500 AF just before the final bosses, even though she is not physically present? Yuel tells you here that she has seen a future where there is no Goddess. Previously, we saw her die in Augusta Tower 200 AF. We meet Yeul again in the Void Beyond, but these are the Yeuls from different time periods (Which are all dead), and that the last one is an illusion created by Caius.

The last time we saw an alive Yeul was 200 AF. So the voice that you hear in Academia 500 AF is that of a dead Yeul, who is somehow able to communicate with our heroes and tell them the vision she saw before death. The vision being the Goddess's death not only makes sense, since such a vision and what happens afterward might be so strong that if you witness it at any point you die, but it creates such a huge irony; Caius existing was not only the reason Yuel wanted to keep living (At least according to Noel), but his actions were also the reason her death was accelerated. Or... perhaps he is even the direct cause of her deaths, because that is the only vision that possibly kills them? How do any of the characters know if Yeul's and Serah's previous visions have any effect, and that the only thing affecting how fast a Seeress dies is how much time is left until they receive that one vision of the goddess's death?

I really like this thought. It really seems that the goddess' death is the sole reason for the seers' deaths.

I love the irony regarding Caius' attempts to save Yeul, whilst his very attempts kill her in the end, because he will trigger her repeated deaths by killing the goddess. A beautiful paradox, if it's true.

But it doesn't explain why some Yeuls had happy faces when they die

THEORY: While the characters expressed a desire to save Vanille and Fang, there is no real indication they will succeed, or if that is what Vanille and Fang really desire

Without the intervention of a fal'Cie like Etro, it really is impossible to reawaken from crystal slumber; we have never seen instances of characters doing this otherwise. On top of that, both of them are inside a crystal pillar, which was on the verge of collapsing. If the characters desire to simply move them somewhere else (Possibly since the two crystal statues might be destroyed if the pillar collapses), then I could see that being possible for them to accomplish.

Now, going by my theory about Lightning's reasons for turning to crystal above, if she indeed has Etro's powers and the world becomes re-created somehow, then Fang and Vanille most likely will be freed from their crystal slumber. If events play out largely the same, they will still be statues, but I don't think Lightning would leave them there; she would use Etro's power.

We must consider however... is being freed from this state what the two really desire?

Look at the other statues you see in FFXIII; most of them are alone, with only our heroes to give them the only bit of conversation they have had in an amount of time that is undetermined but presumably long. Would you really want to be alone like that for the rest of your life?

Fang and Vanille are seen rescuing Serah and Noel from their dreams.

It is possible that Fang and Vanille are in their own dream, but together. Maybe they're back in Oerba, before everything started going to crap? Perhaps the existence of crystal stasis is only a "hell" in a sense, if you don't have someone to be with.

Notice how in the "Vanille's Truth" ending, she is seen desperately wanting Fang by her side. When we see them at the end of FFXIII, they are embracing each other and appear happy, but when separated we see Vanille in quite a different state of mind. Perhaps they want to exist as crystal statues, together in a dream. In the paradox ending where Serah accepts her dream instead of escaping it, she comments how it would have been perfect if Noel was with her. Apparently, for crystal statues to not have such an existence be a living hell, they require others whom they care for to share in the dream, and then it becomes something pleasant for all involved.

The question must then be asked; our heroes want to remove Vanille and Fang from their slumber, but should they?

In any case, the human world of FFXIII will somehow be re-created, or the plot will somehow continue from this point; they won't just leave FFXIII-2 as is, since more DLC / games mean more money for Square Enix.

Yes. I much prefer if Vanille and Fang stay as crystals. The novella episode i also depict them as being happy in crystal sleep.

Besides, didn't Sazh evacuate their crystals to safety, before cocoon's pillar crumble?

I thought it will make their sacrifice less beautiful if they were to be revived.

 

[kalash]

they shouldnt do anything, just to piss people off.

hahaha.

Anyway.

Perhaps the DLC will be about Snow, Noel and Hope trying to figure out what Serahs final vision was. I've just been ranting about the end of the story of xiii-2 in another thread and I’ve pretty much exasperated as much as I can about the uncertain and unclear ending to this story. And I think now with an untainted mind I can say, the conclusion of the story could be wrapped up with DLC and it could potentially lead to XIII-3.



When you think about it, both are plausable. I really think there needs to be more closure for the time being though, so I’m hoping the DLC sheds at least a little more light on the Future of this story.


My answers to the questions:

Spoiler

1. Did you notice that during the vidoes where Serah displayed her farseer powers, that the camera always focused on her left eye, and never once showed both eyes exhibiting the mark of seing the future? Where as Yeuls visions demonstrated that both of her eyes bore the symbol. Could Serah be a hybrid farseer who was only temporarily granted these rites by Etro? This raises some questions.

2. I think like stated above, the DLC could be about the rest of the team trying to uncover what that vision was.

3. Caius was a l’cie, and had been given those powers by Etro in order to fulfil a focus, which must have been to protect Yeul. Lightning was also a guardian of Etro, and could have also been given a focus. Is she now a crystal because she actually completed her focus? Did she actually save Serah?

4. Snow is anyones guess, he’s probably somewhere in the future trying to get a five star rating against a Adamantoise single handed.

5. I like Lirael’s answer to this one.

6. The chaos could be the basis of the story for XIII-3

 

[01lander]

I hope so. Having Serah constantly die is good karma.


An announcement saying that Versus was cancelled.


Because she had the personality of a rock to begin with.


Snow rented an apartment in Cocoon somewhere and spent the rest of his life trying to find work, although he constantly failed due to his obnoxious attitude and his prejudice towards mothers. He spent his final days drunk in an alleyway, where he choked to death on his own vomit and was found several days later, stripped of what few belongings he had. His corpse was thrown off the Hanging Edge by a small group of PSICOM soldiers who all mysteriously died the next day, along with Chad from Accounting. Rumour has it that his ghost haunts the alleyway where he died, and it's been closed off to the public, just to make absolutely sure that he can't come back through some ridiculously contrived means.


No. They all agreed that it was the best that those two never be released from their confinement.


Noel died because Serah talked his ear off about Snow. Sazh got a new career as a supporting role in a proper video game. Dajh followed suit after an intense Weight Watcher's scheme. Hope was swallowed up by a singularity, which was the only thing that could stomach touching him. Even Chaos recoiled at the thought of having to come into contact with him in order to kill him. Everyone else tried to go about their daily lives as though this nightmare had never happened, but the suicide rates after that were alarmingly high.

I hope I managed to answer your questions

Square Enix really need to cut their losses and just wrap it up with DLC. I think a third "game" would probably finish off a lot of people. Granted, I suppose it would please the fans, but FFXIII didn't really have that many fans to begin with; it split the fanbase right down the middle, and XIII-2 is only serving to alienate those of us who want a proper Final Fantasy game.

XIII-2 was unnecessary. Granted, it didn't end properly, but then, it didn't really have a story to end. The development time shows just how little effort was put into it. A couple of DLC packs with final boss fights to wrap things up, two or three novels to satisfy the curiosity of the fans as to why the other cast members weren't included in this, and then we can finally have done with it. It worked for Lords of Shadow, so I don't see why it couldn't work for this. A third game is the last thing they should be doing; that's another year of time and resources wasted at the very least, time and resources that would be better spent into making a proper video game, or even remastering an old game. Hell, ANYTHING would be better than XIII-3.

They need to do something productive, and that is not productive. Two games plus DLC is far too much for it as it is.

Actually, XIII-2 was the fifth best selling game of the year in Japan.

 

[Sheechiibii]

Actually, XIII-2 was the fifth best selling game of the year in Japan.

We'll see in time if it manages to sell as many as its predecessors. I doubt it, the last sequel did not do well in comparison to the main franchise and given the fact that X was pretty much universally liked and XIII isn't...I don't think it will sell that many. But we shall see.


Xx..xX

 

[01lander]

We'll see in time if it manages to sell as many as its predecessors. I doubt it, the last sequel did not do well in comparison to the main franchise and given the fact that X was pretty much universally liked and XIII isn't...I don't think it will sell that many. But we shall see.


Xx..xX

Considering that XIII-2 came out on December 15th and still managed to be 5th best selling, with sales from those 2 weeks in Japan alone being around 700,00, I'm going to go ahead and say it's done pretty well. Also, X-2 managed 4 million in 9 months throughout the world.