Are any of you guys enjoying Final Fantasy 12?

[Evsann]

I bought it the day that it came out and between the slow starting story, an uninteresting main character and a battle system so boring that it makes me put it down to play WoW, this is turning out to be the worst in the series for me. IV-X all had me hooked at the beginning. This is the first one that I feel like I am dragging my self through in hopes of it getting better. I went through the first 20 hours of Xenosaga that way and ultimately gave it up.

I don't plan to give this game that much time. Did any of you?

 

[breathe_no_more]

I actually prefer this battle system to the old ones...the "main" character Vaan definitly isn't a great part of the game but once the story gets going its definitly one of the Best Final Fantasy games in my opinion. Mind you I havn't played it for a couple weeks cause all my energies have been focused on Legend of Zelda Twilight Princess which is amazing.

 

[puka-pride]

yeah this game is pretty weak so far.... the battle system is too easy.. hell I rarely even do anything besides move the thumbstick.....

the story is weak.. slow.. kinda boring and very predictable... the characters have potential.. but i doubt the potential will be utilized...

the ridiculously tedious sidequests are just annoying... I mean who would figure out how to do all of the sidequests without the players guide unless they had at least 3 hours to waste on each one... if not more...

BUT I do like the whole Ivalice thing... its like learning more about the Final Fantasy Tactics world.. and I loved that game... plus u get to summon the zodiac braves..

the game seems based more on looking pretty than being interesting... its dissapointing but its really not the first Final Fantasy to have such a weak story... at least there isn't 4 elemental crystals in this one which lead to 4 dark elemental crystals...

 

[MizuRyuu]

i do have to say that the story is slightly slow, but is pretty good once you get into it.... the battle system is way better than the previous method...

 

[Just_Believe18]

I finally beat it just the other day at 72 hours.


----------------------------
MINOR SPOILERS (NO PLOT ONES)

Comparing it to other Final Fantasies, this one was good, but no where near the best.

The battle system was unique and refreshing.

I had a serious problem with the Licensure/Item system though. I find it so annoying that like 20% of all the bad guys are either Undead or Demons and you can't get the spell Holy until the every end of the game. I hated how you could invest the license points into good abilities but couldn't buy them until 2/3's of the game was over. The trade system and random treasures are AWFUL. You aren't guaranteed a chance for the best gear/items. And you have to trade with the most complex of item recipes to get the best swords and armor. And some limited, rare trade goods also make basic goods, so if the system recipe creates the basic gear first, you don't have the rare good to make the ultimate weapon anymore (and can't get anymore).

CHARACTERS:
As for the characters, I really enjoyed most of them.

Balthier - is so cool and suave. One of the best FF stock characters I've seen. All the voice acting had superb and beautiful talents and accents. I was very impressed in that regard. Some great airship battle cinematics as well.

Vaan - was a very weak main character. He and Penelo were sort of just... there. While Ashe and Bashe were driving the story (with the helping hand of Balthier and Fran) Vaan and Penelo seemed to be just spectators.

Ashe - was the leading lady of the story. She was an interesting character but Yuna (FFX) blows her out of the water in terms of a well-rounded, developed character. The plot seemed to force feed her lines.

Basche - Russel Crowe, anyone? lol. I liked him. He was noble and all that.

Vayne - weak villian. He's twisted but he reminds me of that villian in FFX. Very effeminate and somewhat annoying.

Larsa - Vayne's brother. At first I thought he was a girl! Eventually I could picture him as a boy. He was a cute character. I liked him better than Vayne.

Judges - AWESOME theme. I really liked the Judges. Their look, their attitude, were just great! They are the highlight of this game. Unfortunately, most of them have very little screen time in the plot.

 

[Evsann]

What did you like about the battle system? It felt like grinding my WoW character. It only works in WoW because I am usually doing other things while "grinding" and do not mind letting the game play it self for a bit.

When I am playing a Final Fantasy, I want to play it. On the story, I love all of Tactics Team's other stuff. I am sure that this one will be cool but I just hope that it is character driven. Everyone tells me that it feels like the plot is 10 times bigger than the characters and you are just experiencing it through them. That would be great if I was reading a book or playing a PC RPG but I actually like how the stories in Final Fantasies revolve around the characters by the game's end. It was always one of the main appeals to me.

Thanks for the responces, everyone.

 

[Theyoungman]

Dude. The battle system owns the past games batle systems...

Anyway. I'm done here.

 

[Davelandia]

I'm rather liking it, though I don't think its as great as X was. There are a few minor annoyances but those exist in most games.

The new battle system took some getting used to but I like it quite a bit now. I think part of the lack of character development in this one is that there are so many people involved and for that reason I felt the plot was a little complicated in the beginning and it took a bit for me to fully understand what was going on and why - but once the "lightbulb" came on I got really into it and there were some twists that were pretty cool. Its a beautiful looking game - and the many locations are huge. The music is great too and adds a lot to the game. Overall I give it a thumbs up.

 

[NovusSemita84]

I liked the battle system - it seemed a lot like an MMO to me and that's not a bad thing. I did get annoyed by my gambits doing something dumb and having to carry around guns for everyone to use against flying mobs.

The story was... underwhelming. I'm used to Final Fantasy stories being epic this played out more like a Tom Clancy novel.

 

[Halifirien]

I'm enjoying it so far. The Gambit system makes it feel like "Final Fantasy XI," which is my big MMO addiction. It definitely feels like the "Deep Space Nine" of FF games, with the bigger emphasis on political intrigue and the large ensemble cast.

 

[luminum]

I think it's refreshing and though it's really slow in the beginning, once you reach a certain point, the story becomes interesting. The first hour or so was kind of boring sinc eyou were just Vann trying to figure out everything and the political aspect was hard to understand or grasp entirely. But once you get characters who are involved with the larger struggle, it gets more engrossing.

Ivalice has always been about politics. I give it an A+

Strategy is also important and at a different level. You have to have other characters prepared as a back up, know which weapons to give them for which enemies and be able to switch to different weapons and tactics as it is necessary. I feel like with this system, timing is everything, whereas in the other kinds (tactics excluded) you usually cast or attack right after, and planning is less important than just getting it in when you're unsure of when it will hit.

 

[YeahWhatever]

I think it's refreshing and though it's really slow in the beginning, once you reach a certain point, the story becomes interesting. The first hour or so was kind of boring sinc eyou were just Vann trying to figure out everything and the political aspect was hard to understand or grasp entirely. But once you get characters who are involved with the larger struggle, it gets more engrossing.

Ivalice has always been about politics. I give it an A+

I totally agree. I the beginning was way slow, especially when you're exploring Rabanastre for the first time, but it really kicks in when you're on your own (and it's even better when you have all 6 characters). And so far, I LOVE the story. For the first time in a long time, FF doesn't revolve around a love story. I'm hoping the pay-off is great in the end.

 

[zingerz]

I'd have to agree FFXII did not turn out as i expected really boring way too slow... and very cliche if you've played the others

 

[raiden]

what console are you talkin about?
is it the final fanstasy on the xbox 360??
im so lost, i cant even complete final fantasy 10 ad I am stuck on that lord guy, he summons a very large creature which is hard to defeat!

 

[Runewell]

I got it for Christmas and I am enjoying it a whole lot!

I think the battle system is much faster and fluid than the traditional turn-based battle system, but my only complaint is the fact that it's not turn based kind of takes away from the whole "epic-ness" of the battles. I think one of my favorite parts of RPGS are those boss battles where the music changes and all that...I think the real time battle system is very interesting though.

I also think FFXII is refreshing in that its very political, and not so much about supernatural stuff as past FFs have been--it has a totally different feel to it, as if it could be a real world or something.

 

[Evsann]

what console are you talkin about?
is it the final fanstasy on the xbox 360??
im so lost, i cant even complete final fantasy 10 ad I am stuck on that lord guy, he summons a very large creature which is hard to defeat!

Yeah, Anima is hard if you are not prepared. Check out how much Pain hits for and restart at an earlier save point. Then Level up untill Yuna's HP is higher. As long as you can keep her up, you are fine. Anima is really only dangerous to one character at a time.

 

[Evsann]

I got it for Christmas and I am enjoying it a whole lot!

I think the battle system is much faster and fluid than the traditional turn-based battle system, but my only complaint is the fact that it's not turn based kind of takes away from the whole "epic-ness" of the battles. I think one of my favorite parts of RPGS are those boss battles where the music changes and all that...I think the real time battle system is very interesting though.

I also think FFXII is refreshing in that its very political, and not so much about supernatural stuff as past FFs have been--it has a totally different feel to it, as if it could be a real world or something.

Hold up! The music does not change during boss battles? That was of Xenosaga's main turnoffs for me.

As for Ivalice being all about politics, that is true but FFT had me caring about about Deltia and the Princess every time that I saw them. At the end, the story was really about him. I will stop before I go on my FFT Advance should have been about what he did during FFT instead of some school children.

Also, Vagrant Story was political and extremely character based.

Oh well, Kingdom Hearts will have to fill the Epic Gap untill XIII.

 

[Runewell]

Hold up! The music does not change during boss battles? That was of Xenosaga's main turnoffs for me.

The music does change for boss battles! Sorry about my mistype!

I meant to say the music doesn't change for the regular battles. During regular battles, the music for the area you're in continues to play instead of shifting, like in Kingdom Hearts.

**a side note**I had that same issue with Xenosaga Episode I, but they fixed that in Episode II.

 

[luminum]

It does for some. Like really important boss battles that are set up. But if you're fighting some kidn of side boss character it's not a change in mood.

Lucky for you, then, that FFXII is by the same team as VS and FFT and FFTA.

Just give it some time, it's a really engrossing game.