Edge gave it a 5/10
http://www.edge-online.com/magazine/review-final-fantasy-xiii

FFXIII takes brave risks with the series’ foundations, but they ultimately create trembling fractures throughout the entire edifice, that robust battle system unable to support the weight of an entire world. Final Fantasy games are always an investment. This time, the returns are questionable. [5]

IGN UK - 8.3/10
http://ps3.ign.com/articles/107/1074227p1.html

Closing Comments
But the lack of anything substantial to do beyond fleeing and fighting soon brings the game crashing back to earth, and even when the walls are lifted Final Fantasy XIII’s world can seem strangely lifeless. As a technical feat the game is a triumph, but it seems a slave to its own spectacle, manacling the gameplay to serve its own bombastic vision and ultimately while the excellent combat and stunning visuals are enough to recommend it, they're not enough to earn it a place amongst the series’ top rank.

Rating	Description
out of 10	click here for ratings guide
9.5	Presentation As you'd expect from a Final Fantasy, it's front-end is immaculate, proving both user-friendly and drop dead gorgeous.
10	Graphics Final Fantasy XIII consistently delivers some of the most stunning sights we've seen this generation - and it's going to take something to top their splendour.
9.5	Sound Nobuo Uematsu's absence isn't felt too much, as from the Battle Theme onwards the soundtrack's excellent. Even Leona Lewis' effort ain't half bad.
8.0	Gameplay While the combat is stellar it's left to carry too much weight, with little else aside to engage the player.
8.0	Lasting Appeal Yes, it's sixty hours to see it to the end, but that doesn't mean sixty quality hours - too much of it is lost to banal and repetitive grinding.
8.3 Impressive	OVERALL (out of 10 / not an average)

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IGN AU - 8.4/10
http://ps3.ign.com/articles/107/1074667p1.html

Closing Comments
How, then, do we feel about Final Fantasy XIII? Well, I’ve really enjoyed my time with the game, but there’s no question that the mechanics are far less involving than in XII. There’s also no question that if Square-Enix had used the present mechanics, only with a little more choice – a better Crystarium system for role development and a less linear path through the first 20-30 hours, for starters – this would have been a much better game. Even so, this is a staggeringly pretty PS3 game, and for all its faults, it is enjoyable and it is a meaty adventure... just not meaty in some of the ways we would have hoped.

Rating	Description
out of 10	click here for ratings guide
9.5	Presentation The character designs get more and more ludicrous with every instalment. Even so, the art direction is stellar and the menus are user-friendly.
10	Graphics Stunning. The characters look phenomenal, while some of the world design will blow your mind. A real showcase for the PS3.
8.5	Sound Decent score, although you’ll get sick of hearing the same battle music over and over. Voice acting is reasonable, but Fang’s accent is awful. Not quite Aussie and it stands out like a sore thumb.
7.5	Gameplay Here’s where the game falls down. It’s fun enough, but so automated and on-rails initially that there’s a real danger players won't get to the point where it opens up.
8.5	Lasting Appeal It’s a massive game with a ridiculous amount of content. That said, bigger isn’t necessarily better. A slightly shorter game with a more unified design might have worked better.
8.4 Impressive	OVERALL (out of 10 / not an average)

Damn, the shop I pre-ordered from wanted to ship it today but I didn't put any money on that card -.-
Now I'll have to wait for monday. Oh well.

IGN review has been delayed to March 8. Here's what they said:-

"Many of you are looking forward to IGN's review of Final Fantasy XIII. It's safe to say this is one of the most highly anticipated games of the year. We're excited for it too. Our original plan was to publish the review Friday, March 5. However, the review will hit early the following week instead.

We were given a PS3 build of Final Fantasy XIII first, which became our primary build to play through for review. Unfortunately, PS3 systems around the world were rendered useless for more than a day. This affected our debugs as well and made it impossible for our reviewer, Ryan Clements, to play the game.

We feel it's important that Ryan finish an entire playthrough and have time to reflect on Final Fantasy XIII before writing a review and deciding on a score. You can expect impressions on the first 30 hours of the game to go live this Friday. The review will be up on Monday, March 8.

Thank you for your understanding.

Editor-in-Chief,

Hilary Goldstein"

http://ps3.ign.com/articles/107/1074412p1.html

FFS, if this game turned out to be a disappointment, I will..........AHHHH
I can't believe I've waited more than 4 years for this game and might end up being disappointed.

We'll see @ March 9.

*cries*

Yeah that's really sad.

White Knight Chronicles and now FFXIII.

But then again I'm sure I'll love FFXIII so reviews doesn't matter much to me. Especially Edge.

If i recall, you had a small meltdown about WKC an' almost put it in homers ass along with GoWIII (lulz) but for FFXIII your reaction is you'll still stick with it?

Hmmm... i sense treachery afoot.

There's still quite a difference of score between both games:

http://www.metacritic.com/games/platforms/ps3/finalfantasy13

http://www.metacritic.com/games/platforms/ps3/whiteknightchroniclesinternational

I won't hide that I have bigger expectations for FFXIII than I had for WKC. I mean FFX is my favorite game.

Who called it? I did.

That just really nailed in the coffin that Edge is a shit reviewer.

You know... i hear people saying this alot, many compare it to X which was a good game, however i'd say its more like VI sense you know... the main character is a... oh nevermind.

An' don't show me those Meta scores, there banished!