Final Fantasy XII Review

Lleyn

Beep
Full GL Member
5,951
2012
39
Awards
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Credits
500
Well here is a game I've never played in my old ps2 days? Why? Because everyone I knew was going on about how lame it was and I got influenced easily at that time, plus I was broke and was selective about the games I bought. Well I was wrong. While not being the best Final Fantasy game ever, XII was still really good.

Gameplay 8/10
Gambit, Gambit, Gambit. Thats what everyone I know complained about. Apparently it ruined the whole experience, especially when the players were in auto-steal mode. Which brings up the question, why would anyone sane put up auto steal in battles? If you want loot just steal when the battle starts and then let the Gambit kill or heal?

Then there's the lack of money they said was obvious. Did they realize that when you keep the some monster a few dozen of times in a row (chain battles) they start dropping about 5 loots at a time? Find a mob that drops expensive loot and keep killing it. I made about 30k and 20 minutes with that method.

Next is License Points, they are slow to get? I didn't find it any slower that Final Fantasy X. In fact there is even an item that doubles License Points earned.

My only issue with the game is the lack of mini-games and that the Quickenings are pretty much useless and barely damage bosses. I only got them to increase my max mp.

Graphics 9/10
Thats the one thing no one could complain about. Everything was beautiful, from the characters to the environment. I also loved that the monsters looked more like realistic wild creatures than out of a Pokemon game.
The only problem I had with this would be Vaan's abs and, forgive me to say this, Ashe's micro-skirt. While I think it looked nice, it still didn't fit her character.

Sounds 8/10
The music was really nice to listen to and never out place. Everything from battles, towns to cut-scenes fit perfectly. However, I did somehow have a problem with a couple of voice actings, name Ashe's and Basch's.

Story 7/10
I'll have to admit that this was probably one of the worst Final Fantasy plots, it was a bit boring at times, but that never lasted long due to the many plot twists. One thing I don't agree to is when they say that the only characters with a link to the story were Ashe and Basch.
Balthier for example is an Ex-Judge, which to me makes sense to me that he's interested in what is happening, especially since his father is involved.
Next is Vaan. He's pretty much trying to find out more about why/how his brother died, and is also trying to find out what he can do with his life (and don't forget that Ashe is hot, I'd hang out with her too).

Overall 8/10
To conclude, this is an awesome game with a few flaws. But then again what game doesn't have flaws?
I'll also admit that this game didn't have the feel of a Final Fantasy game, but after 10 games from the same mold, the series definitely needed to evolve.
 
my only big problem was, IT WAS TOO FREAKING LONG! and in a bad way. I stopped playing it just short of the ending as I didn't feel like beating it and had other stuff to play.

Another thing was the best weapon, which you could only get by not opening certain chests that you wouldn't know about till end of the game (thank you guidebook!) so that is a major trolling since the game is pretty long.

Like you said, the story made me yawn a lot, I have to wonder if SE kind of got bored as well but just went with it anyways.
 
Honestly, I liked XII a lot. I never finished it cause I got distracted, but it was a fun game. Loved the environment and the plot.
 
If I told you I plan to play one of the FF games, any one, (except for 7 which I played several times), which would you recommend? Would this be it?
 
IV and X are my favorites. Same with VIII, but it's not good to get into the series with.
 
IV i a good starting point. It's regarded as one of the best, plus it is the best. :p
 
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