First Look At FF XIII

So I finally got the PS3 because Final Fantasy XIII international version is finally out. The Han brothers were nice enough to offer to get the console for me from Singapore. Very grateful to Terrence Han as he was moving his life back from Singapore to Brunei and yet still found space and energy to hand carry the console back.I got the game last Wednesday, immediately went to Hua Ho to purchase a 32" LG HDTV for $699. I also put my accumulated credit card points to good use by redeeming some Hua Ho vouchers. After converting my Visa Classic to Visa Platinum and after a year of charging a lot of company's purchases on my Visa, the points amounted to $220 in Hua Ho vouchers. So in the end I only spent around $400 for the TV.However, there's something funny going on with the screen. There seems to be a lot of snow appearing and disappearing while the PS3 is on. They aren't so bad that they distract me from the game but it's just irritating that this is happening. Whenever the screen fades to black, they are very obvious - like something is wrong. And because they are tiny white dots, they tend to be invisible when the game's picture is on.But going back to topic, I am disappointed. I am disappointed at how the creators are still using the same characteristics and traits in their characters. I am disappointed at how exaggerated still the animation of the characters' movements are. I am disappointed in how cheesy the lines still are. I am disappointed at how I still cannot skip the summary of each battle just by punching a button, but have to wait till everything is properly on screen. I am disappointed at how there still isn't a smooth transition between running and picking up treasures.  I am disappointed with how characters are still doing a stupid dance, especially Sazh, after a battle.Hope is annoying. Something about Sazh just irritates the hell out of me when he talks. And I just want to strangle Vanille every time she begins to act cute.Storytelling is also not impressive. I miss the whole concept of FF VIII. I still remember the first time I woke up inside Balamb Garden as Squall. That was an experience I will not forget. In XIII, already in Chapter 4, I still haven't got a chance to do "exploration". Right now it's just going through the motion, from point A to point B - because that's what it is. I don't even stop to look at what's around me.But getting to learn how to play the new game is fun and easy. There are a lot of cut scenes, and they can be a little time consuming but it does get the story going. The graphics has definitely improved a lot; and the new format of battle with Technic, Crystarium and Paradigm Shift all make the process interesting at the moment.So that's all for my first impression. I know I'm being extra particular about certain minor stuff but even without high or any expectations, I am disappointed.Will I stop playing though? Of course not!