Final Fantasy XII

FF XII is a much more mature game than the previous FF games. FFs from X-2 below, all centered in simple plot lines, with a few plot changes, or the common "Hidden Evil" that has been the center of 90% of FFs. FF XII takes the thing to another level, it has a story that its more like a critic to human beings, those who did the Fafnir Hunt may have realized this. I understood this from the beginning of the game. I realized that there was not going to be much character development, since here, the final fight is not going to be a "giant boss", but their hearts. They have their ideas setted from the beginning: Revenge, Honor, Lust for power. But as the game goes on, you will see them changing, entering in conflict, "evolving" in a certain way of speaking. The story is not easy to follow, you have long dungeons, that can be tiresome unless you use the map. The side quest like hunts that are given all the time are also tiresome to some, even to the point of boredom. (To me the whole game is great but thats my opinion, and has nothing to do with what I was saying). Most of the complaints about the game itself are the previous ones: no character development (that actually is there); poor story (which most people dont understand due to most likely age issues); boring battle system (I recommend using it one or 2 spheres faster, besides, except for the fact that you dont hit "Attack" anymore, the gameplay is turn-based; besides that, there is the spell qeue later in the game).

The game has exellent graphics, though other games like The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess has better graphics, but this issue is because of it being on a less powerfull system. The music is right there. Nothing catchy as in the old days, but the soundtracks have been fading since VII and VIII. I still think that X and X-2 had the worst soundtrack possible but that again, is my opinion. Along with it, one has the option of turning 16:9 resolution on, allowing for nicer graphics.

Effects, here we have lightning effects, dust, fire, water etc. Most of them are awesome, especially when doing level 3 Quickenings, or using the Espers specials. Magics also are good to look, mostly as usual, the high level spells, such as scathe and holy. The weakest effect in the whole game has to be water, and closely to it footsteps. Most likely because having them in big areas such as the Nebra river area would have slowed the game if a fight were to happen. Characters, this game has the standard 6 character limit. But as in previous FF games, you will have the company of thirds during certain moments of the story. You can fully customize a character using "Gambits". Gambits are an innovative system that basically is a programmable A.I. This is most likely a tool used in previous FF for the enemies that controls their behaviour in a fight. You start with the basic gambits. A gambit is basically composed of 2 things: a situation and an action. The situation varies, from "same target as leader" to "Self=Haste" or "Foe=Reflect" and the actions are chosen from your available command. Take it as a cause an effect.

Why did I said "available"? Easy, because you have to "unlock everything for your character”. From skills and stats; to weapons and armours. This system is called the "license" system. By defeating enemies you gain AP (ability points). With this AP, each character can learn whatever you choose, and by whatever, I mean anything. From magics (magicks in the game) to quickenings (limit breaks), lances to guns, etc. This means, that the more AP you gain, the stronger your character can be. For a character to be strong, you need to level him up as usual. But this alone wont help, leveling gives you a boost in your stats, but its not that big of a boost. The biggest boost comes from learning feats as "HP+100" or learning to equip new stuff. The game stats, are mostly based on equipment, so the better your equipment is the stronger the character can be. You will still need to level up to gain more MP and HP though.

Espers, or commonly known summons. You can check early in the game how many of them are in total (13). You will fight some during the main story, but some others are secret, and are hidden in places that unless you have a faq in hand, you will have to draw a map (damn you Ultima). The bad thing about Espers, is that or you get them later in the game, meaning your party is really powerfull, or you get them early. If you get them early, and example would be Zeromus, that you can get after Mt. Bur-Omisace, you will love him. He is a really strong Esper, and I still use him even though I´m really high in level. Other Espers like Belias or Mateus will be used momentarily, and left behind since they will grow weak easily as you grow strong fast. The best idea for the Espers comes from the strategic side. Decoy on them when in a tight spot, keep healing them and Syphon them. That´s the smart way to use them, since they have MP but dont use it. Another thing you can do is use them as starters in a boss battle. You summon them, wait for the time to go until they are almost gone, and enter, so as he enters, he casts his especial. This is really a good thing when you have Zeromus or Exodus.

Side quests are plentyfull. They consume some time too. The most easy to find are the Hunts or Marks. This basically consist of reading a bounty (as in the "old west"), be it on boards, or Montblanc; then going to the requester and doing it. To complete them, you will have to find and kill the monster. Sometimes, you will have to talk to some other guys beside the requester to know how to find the mark, sometimes you will have to wait for the weather to change, or find certain person. The good thing about hunts is that they reward you with equipment, sometimes its great equipment like for example the Masamune, and with hard to get loot and lots of Gil. There are other kinds of quest, like the Rare game quest and some other small side quest that are not as important and could be considered mini games.

The combat system resembles that found in the old Final Fantasies turn based system. You will have you ATB bar that will charge and once it does an action will be executed. You can modify actions from your gambits too, making the handling of you other members less trouble some. The action that will be automatically executed is attack, so you better watch out, since later on the game enemies will have different stats and you will want to see who it is before attacking heads on. To attack you will have the classic arsenal of spells from previous games, though they will be divided in a sort of Final Fantansy V style. There will be Black, White, Green, Arcana, etc Magicks that will have corresponding spells. A big bummer though is the lack of some famous spells like Ultima and Meteor, which are now the special attacks of 2 Espers. To be combined with that, you have Espers that were previously described. Espers carry a Gambit of their own, so you should check that out too, and as an extra point, not all Espers cast their specials by time depletion, so you better experiment with them. Finally, your arsenal is completed by your weapons. You will be able to equip swords, shields, staffs, bows, guns, axes, lances, and some other stuff that will help you progress through the game.

All in all, Final Fantasy XII is a game that changed the face of Final Fantasy. Including a plot derived from Shakespeare works, a graphical art as no other, a gorgeous setoff characters, suiting music for each area and situation and a long main quest that will keep players involved for hours to come. Final Fantasy XII carries the legacy of Square Enix and gives a refreshing new face to a franchise that’s the pillar of RPGs around the globe.