Final Fantasy XIII-2 is, as the name suggests, a direct sequel to Square’s 2009 outing. Things kick off in the futuristic world of Valhalla – a somewhat post-apocalyptic city that seems to be the Final Fantasy equivalent of an urban limbo. Lightning, thought to be dead by her sister Serah, is in constant battle with Caius – a nasty-looking chap who’s fancy-boy looks and visual kei fashion is lifted right out of the A-Z of Final Fantasy supervillain design. The game makes use of the Paradigm Shift system and Quick Time Events called “Cinematic Actions”. And after an early shock, Lightning is left to make a last stand for the sake of humanity, the world and everything else. Serah, who is left in another time and dimension rebuilding civilisation with Cocoon survivors, is apparently the only hope for Lightning and the safety of the universe. However, the gamer also encounters Noel Kreiss, a mysterious kid who teams up with Serah to help get reunited with her sister. Time is of the essence as a former resistance group NORA witness a strange meteorite that’s impacted near Cocoon, which Noel and Serah discover is causing timelines between hundreds of years to bleed into one another. This means that Noel and Serah having to hop between historical moments and dimensions via Stargate-esque portals to reach the Historia Crux. Battling enemies in XIII-2 is a very similar affair to its predecessor, using the Paradigm Shift system which allows for the same automatic battling that you could achieve in past Final Fantasy games by hammering the X button, but maintains a strategy in Paradigms that allow you to get creative with team attacks. Square Enix hasn’t changed too much to the combat here in that regard. What it has done is add some new features to shake things up a bit. Monsters fought on the field can be captured automatically and added to your own team. Each creature has its own set Paradigm style that you can use to cover any cracks in your strategy. Cait Siths are Medics, for example, while Zwerg Scandroids are Ravagers that can cast spells in your stead. There’s plenty here for anyone who enjoyed Final Fantasy XIII to sink their teeth into.