“Hope” Boomerangs Into Final Fantasy XIII
Adding to the repertoire of Final Fantasy XIII characters is a 14-year old boy whose mother was killed. His name is Hope Estheim. He has also been marked as a chosen one, a l’Cie, the same as Lightning.
Hope had been living quite happily in Cocoon with his mother, but in the battle against the fal’Cie there his mother was killed. Snow got her involved and now Hope is bent on revenge.
Onto the battle system! Hope’s weapon is a boomerang. After throwing it, it’s possible to have it chase the enemy and hit a target multiple times before returning. Of course, since Hope uses a long range weapon like Vanilla, he’ll have to stay back, far away from the enemy, in battle.
Vanilla’s weapon is usually folded up, but during battle, it spreads out into an antler-like shape. From the tip, four wires are shot out, and at the tips of these wires are many needles. These wires grip the enemy and cause damage.
New spells revealed that are familiar to Final Fantasy fans are Protect and Faith. Like before, Protect increases defense, whereas Faith increases magic power.
On another note, it has always been assumed that L’Cie, the chosen ones that are branded, have a certain fate in store for them. However, if he or she fails to fulfill this, it seems that they will transforms into a Cie Corpses. Although these guys still look like they did when they were human, they have no emotions and are bound to suffer a cruel eternal life.
