XIII is the Dark Souls 2 of the Final Fantasy saga and it is a compliment.
Amazing game ;D

I have to say it has been a joy to revisit this game after many years and aim to get all of the Achievements a second time.
The game while Linear tells a tight knit character drama about the nature of destiny and despair and how people find hope to live through difficult circumstances.
The Combat does take a little while to open up but it meticulously trains you in understanding the fast paced Paradigm system which at face value can seem to be hit auto battle to win, but at its core has a depth of strategy with the ability to change and adapt on the fly using a real time ebb and flow with combat.
I typically start with Buffing my party, switch to de-buffing the enemy while healing with one of my three characters and then shifting again into an all out assault paradigm to win the battle. That's just my approach but there is so many other ways you can customize your play style and experience to suit your play style.
The characters are deep and complex and the story is one that by the end you will be tearful its over but glad that you experienced it.
Give it a go, I will say the first few chapters take a while to start up but the game (I feel) is worth its time investment.

People hate this game lol
But i love this game

The story good and very very very linear in gameplay,
Anomaly of final fantasy :D

Great Game