FF XIII is by no means a bad game. However, it's not exactly an heir to the throne either. New good stuff were added, but the old legacies which helped FF series gripped the heart of their fans were still lost.
Here we go...

PROS:
- Battle System is fun. It starts off slow and seems boring, even a bit clunky, at first. But you'll get more and more comfortable with the system as you proceed. It also gets deeper as you start facing tougher enemies.  You can't win the fight without strategic thinking and being quick on the execution. Many fights seem impossible, until you grasp the right strategy.

Many complains about not being able to control all the team members. That doesn't bother me much since the AI is quite reliable, and the Active Time Battle in this one is quite a bit too rushing to put in commands for everyone anyway. Paradigm system works as effectively as the Gambit system in FF XII, and it's simpler to set up.

- Item and skill upgrading systems are similar to that of FF X. They're not revolutionary, but not at all bad.

- Art direction and graphics are, of course, impressive as ever. Soundtracks, though not imressive and not much of a romance in the melodies, get the job done.

CONS:
- The game forces you to endure an endless limbo of boredom during the first long hours, and that's critical. The game makes you switching back and forth between all the two-man teams of the 6 characters who got separated. I understand that it's a form of story telling. But 20-30 hours of very limited strategies and fighting hordes after hordes of weaklings seems like eternity. It picks up the pace greatly after the reunion of all characters. But for those with low tolerance, the first hours is more than enough to make them throw away the game.

- Being unable to control other team members or removing of the MP system might get on your nerve at first, though not a big deal and you'll get over it eventually. But what really frustrated me is that the death of the team leader alone decides the fate of the whole team. It means, in the tough fights, your only option for the team leader is the characters with high strength, not the mages. And since tough fights do come along quite often later in the game, you'll find yourself using the same set of characters over and over. Trying new combinations might spoil the fun rather than improving it.

- Story telling is less than impressive. It's not exactly sucky, but definitely not good. Character development hardly occurs. Though it's not as bad as FF XII, but you don't really care about the characters either.

Now the unforgiveable part. The developers did quite a good job creating an interesting world. BUT, sadly, they took the lazy way out of a story telling hassle by putting them in the glossary and notes. I'm talking about the descriptions of the locales, background stories, and even many crucial points of the main story line that would help players to understand. It wouldn't be a big deal if this was a PS1 game, but it's not.

Story telling and soundtrack of FF series have gone down the dangerous path since Hironobu Sakaguchi and Nobuo Uematsu left Square-Enix after FF X. The developers that took over the projects had done terrible jobs so far. And I'm certain that it's a fatal blow to the heart of FF fans.

...We dropped the controller when Aerith was stabbed in FF VII, from that moment on, revenge on Sephiroth was personal...
...We smiled with the two-generation romances of Rinoa and Squall and his father and her mother in FF VIII...
...We shed the tears with Yuna when Tidus faded away in FF X, and were happy to see their reunion in FF X-2 (even though FF X-2's gameplay sucked)
  All other FFs also had their moments of emotional grip. And those moments are what set FF apart from other JRPGs.

But since FF XII, they focused too much on the gameplay. You could still go on for a 100 hours on quests and leveling up. I don't say that it's a bad thing to be creative on the gameplay. But those moments are no more. The stories and characters in FF XII and XIII are... bland. And spending 50-80 hours taking in a story of the boring or annoying characters is not a happy time for FF fans.

If SE's teams won't develop their story telling skill to be at least on par with the old members who left for Mistwalker, this franchise might someday die a tragic death or transform into something entirely different, and lesser.

- Dialogues in FF XIII are cheesy. Voice acting of Vanille is unbearable.

IN CONCLUSION:
3.5 stars from me. (I can't believe I give an FF less than 4 stars. Sad but true)

FF XIII feels a lot similar to FF X. Better in the esthetic department (of course, it's a generation apart), different and fresh in the gameplay department, but a lot lesser in the story department.  The game itself is not a bad RPG, but considering all the series' landmarks that are lost, it's not a good FF.

Die-hard fans, like me, might find it to be reasonably fun and a bit dissapointing at the same time. I got my money's worth nonetheless.

But if I want my friends to love FF, I won't recommend this one as their first game in the series. At least not until the price dropped.
FF XIII is by no means a bad game. However, it's not exactly an heir to the throne either. New good stuff were added, but the old legacies which helped FF series gripped the heart of their fans were still lost. Here we go... PROS:
- Battle System is fun. It starts off slow and seems boring, even a bit clunky, at first. But you'll get more and more comfortable with the system as you proceed. It also gets deeper as you start facing tougher enemies. You can't win the fight without strategic thinking and being quick on the execution. Many fights seem impossible, until you grasp the right strategy. Many complains about not being able to control all the team members. That doesn't bother me much since the AI is quite reliable, and the Active Time Battle in this one is quite a bit too rushing to put in commands for everyone anyway. Paradigm system works as effectively as the Gambit system in FF XII, and it's simpler to set up. - Item and skill upgrading systems are similar to that of FF X. They're not revolutionary, but not at all bad. - Art direction and graphics are, of course, impressive as ever. Soundtracks, though not imressive and not much of a romance in the melodies, get the job done. CONS:
- The game forces you to endure an endless limbo of boredom during the first long hours, and that's critical. The game makes you switching back and forth between all the two-man teams of the 6 characters who got separated. I understand that it's a form of story telling. But 20-30 hours of very limited strategies and fighting hordes after hordes of weaklings seems like eternity. It picks up the pace greatly after the reunion of all characters. But for those with low tolerance, the first hours is more than enough to make them throw away the game. - Being unable to control other team members or removing of the MP system might get on your nerve at first, though not a big deal and you'll get over it eventually. But what really frustrated me is that the death of the team leader alone decides the fate of the whole team. It means, in the tough fights, your only option for the team leader is the characters with high strength, not the mages. And since tough fights do come along quite often later in the game, you'll find yourself using the same set of characters over and over. Trying new combinations might spoil the fun rather than improving it. - Story telling is less than impressive. It's not exactly sucky, but definitely not good. Character development hardly occurs. Though it's not as bad as FF XII, but you don't really care about the characters either. Now the unforgiveable part. The developers did quite a good job creating an interesting world. BUT, sadly, they took the lazy way out of a story telling hassle by putting them in the glossary and notes. I'm talking about the descriptions of the locales, background stories, and even many crucial points of the main story line that would help players to understand. It wouldn't be a big deal if this was a PS1 game, but it's not. Story telling and soundtrack of FF series have gone down the dangerous path since Hironobu Sakaguchi and Nobuo Uematsu left Square-Enix after FF X. The developers that took over the projects had done terrible jobs so far. And I'm certain that it's a fatal blow to the heart of FF fans. ... We dropped the controller when Aerith was stabbed in FF VII, from that moment on, revenge on Sephiroth was personal... ... We smiled with the two-generation romances of Rinoa and Squall and his father and her mother in FF VIII... ... We shed the tears with Yuna when Tidus faded away in FF X, and were happy to see their reunion in FF X-2 (even though FF X-2's gameplay sucked)
  All other FFs also had their moments of emotional grip. And those moments are what set FF apart from other JRPGs. But since FF XII, they focused too much on the gameplay. You could still go on for a 100 hours on quests and leveling up. I don't say that it's a bad thing to be creative on the gameplay. But those moments are no more. The stories and characters in FF XII and XIII are... bland. And spending 50-80 hours taking in a story of the boring or annoying characters is not a happy time for FF fans. If SE's teams won't develop their story telling skill to be at least on par with the old members who left for Mistwalker, this franchise might someday die a tragic death or transform into something entirely different, and lesser. - Dialogues in FF XIII are cheesy. Voice acting of Vanille is unbearable. IN CONCLUSION:
3. 5 stars from me. (I can't believe I give an FF less than 4 stars. Sad but true)

FF XIII feels a lot similar to FF X. Better in the esthetic department (of course, it's a generation apart), different and fresh in the gameplay department, but a lot lesser in the story department. The game itself is not a bad RPG, but considering all the series' landmarks that are lost, it's not a good FF. Die-hard fans, like me, might find it to be reasonably fun and a bit dissapointing at the same time. I got my money's worth nonetheless. But if I want my friends to love FF, I won't recommend this one as their first game in the series. At least not until the price dropped.