FFXIII Impressions!

I'm not very far (just found Serah), but here's what I think:

GOOD
- All the female characters so far have been AMAZING
- Lightning gets a special mention, because I approve 100% of everything she has done thus far
- THE GRAPHICS ARE SO PRETTY OH GOSH
- The character models are so amazing that it's difficult to tell what is and isn't an FMV
- Combat system is fun and fast-paced
- In-game encyclopedia is nice, especially since it includes a recap
- Sazh is AWESOME and hilarious

BAD
- UGH SNOW stfu forever
- FF has always been linear (with the exception of XII), but daammmnnn this is actually annoying
- No grinding! Which is awful because auto would make grinding so easy
- WHAT IS GOING ON I realize that this is what happens with in media res, but we are past the point where things should be making more sense. The in-game encyclopedia is less useful when it tells me about something only after I've been trying to puzzle it out for 2 hours (like l'Cie... and fal'Cie). I hate characters like Tidus and Vaan, but it seems SE doesn't know how to explain things without a clueless audience surrogate.
- Consequence of no grinding: low money and shitty equipment. This is especially bad because if you're not so good at the game and keep having to use potions... no equipment for you. In previous FFs less experienced players could simply make it up by grinding a while. I would have preferred a middle ground from previous FFs. A game where you could beat it without grinding, but it was there if you needed it.

Now I am going to be stupid and stay up playing the game when I have to wake up in the morning.