In FFXIII-2 we learn that the L'Cie are only released from their eternal crystal prison because the universe's most worthless and stupid goddess, Etro, decided to take pity on our main characters, hence dooming the entire timeline as a result.
When people first finished FFXIII, they would NOT have yet known that Lightning and company escape their eternal crystal prison because of Etro. FFXIII rolls with the idea of trying to fight against your predestined fate. Here you are, a bunch of doomed L'Cie, whose only salvation lies in an eternal crystal sleep, otherwise, unless you just decide to shoot yourself in the face, you're done for as a crystal zombie, or later a bit of rock. The first half of the game features your characters aimlessly running around, mostly lost at what they ought to do, with ridiculously contradicting interpretations until Barthandelus clearly drills into their heads that their fate is to destroy Orphan and send the entire dyson sphere planetoid into the earth.
By the time the final fight against Orphan begins, four of the six main characters manage to snap themselves out of zombie mode because apparently they believed in a better future hard enough. They inexplicably decide to turn their blades/spears/guns/fists/fishing rods/boomerangs on Orphan, doing exactly what the villains of the game have been chanting for them to do in the entire second half of the game. Their reasoning? Well, firstly they go along with Raines's crusade of a society where humans control their own lives and fates, not the despotic Fal'Cie. Secondly, they have in their minds that if they WISH for a miracle hard enough, they can free the world from Fal'Cie tyranny by doing exactly what Barty has told them to do, but WITHOUT killing everyone.
That would have been the impression a perceptive player would get from the final battle and ending. Believe hard enough in a miracle and it can totally happen! Frankly, that's just balls stupid. It would have seemed to be one of the worst cop-outs ever, and the player would not have known until the sequel that this isn't really the case. Oh, how Lightning, Hope, Snow and Sazh get out of crystal zombie mode in the Cradle remains the same, presumably: they wished hard enough.
But it does not negate what is an absolutely ridiculous "plan". Hey guys, let's kill Orphan. You know, the thing that Barthandelus told us exactly to do in order to kill everyone and call back a neglectful God of some description. But let's hope for a miracle that this doesn't kill everyone, nor will it call back a neglectful God of some description. Let's just attack Orphan with no actual basis of knowing that the destruction of Cocoon can also save it! Wonderful non-plan, fellas. It's almost like Snow came up with it.
When people first finished FFXIII, they would NOT have yet known that Lightning and company escape their eternal crystal prison because of Etro. FFXIII rolls with the idea of trying to fight against your predestined fate. Here you are, a bunch of doomed L'Cie, whose only salvation lies in an eternal crystal sleep, otherwise, unless you just decide to shoot yourself in the face, you're done for as a crystal zombie, or later a bit of rock. The first half of the game features your characters aimlessly running around, mostly lost at what they ought to do, with ridiculously contradicting interpretations until Barthandelus clearly drills into their heads that their fate is to destroy Orphan and send the entire dyson sphere planetoid into the earth.
By the time the final fight against Orphan begins, four of the six main characters manage to snap themselves out of zombie mode because apparently they believed in a better future hard enough. They inexplicably decide to turn their blades/spears/guns/fists/fishing rods/boomerangs on Orphan, doing exactly what the villains of the game have been chanting for them to do in the entire second half of the game. Their reasoning? Well, firstly they go along with Raines's crusade of a society where humans control their own lives and fates, not the despotic Fal'Cie. Secondly, they have in their minds that if they WISH for a miracle hard enough, they can free the world from Fal'Cie tyranny by doing exactly what Barty has told them to do, but WITHOUT killing everyone.
That would have been the impression a perceptive player would get from the final battle and ending. Believe hard enough in a miracle and it can totally happen! Frankly, that's just balls stupid. It would have seemed to be one of the worst cop-outs ever, and the player would not have known until the sequel that this isn't really the case. Oh, how Lightning, Hope, Snow and Sazh get out of crystal zombie mode in the Cradle remains the same, presumably: they wished hard enough.
But it does not negate what is an absolutely ridiculous "plan". Hey guys, let's kill Orphan. You know, the thing that Barthandelus told us exactly to do in order to kill everyone and call back a neglectful God of some description. But let's hope for a miracle that this doesn't kill everyone, nor will it call back a neglectful God of some description. Let's just attack Orphan with no actual basis of knowing that the destruction of Cocoon can also save it! Wonderful non-plan, fellas. It's almost like Snow came up with it.