Final Fantasy XII

[Daniel E.]

Originally Posted by Danj

Yes, that would be the ideal situation. I hear the DVD is only about 3.8 gigs, so they could theoretically add English voices and still fit it on a DVD-9.

I think part of the problem with a dual audio track would be lip sinch. It would be too much work to make both tracks fit the movement of the character's lips; Specially during FMV.

Maybe if they released two versions of the game, but I just dont see this happening here in America.

Originally Posted by Archuka

I do.

The PS2 is already so very outdated. I'd have preferred FFXII on the Xbox, but unfrotunately SE is loyal to Sony so I'll have to settle for inferior graphics.

Agree.

[SlugZilla]

Originally Posted by Crusaders

well...I just hope it wont be they last game for PS 2

FFXIII will be on the PS3.

Originally Posted by Archuka

The PS2 is already so very outdated. I'd have preferred FFXII on the Xbox, but unfrotunately SE is loyal to Sony so I'll have to settle for inferior graphics.

The game looks so amazing, that it beats most Xbox games in graphics.

[Archuka]

Originally Posted by SlugZilla

The game looks so amazing, that it beats most Xbox games in graphics.

Yes it looks good, however, the Xbox is still a much more powerful system so it could only look better on it. Oh well, at least the next one will probably be for the PS3.

[reinloch]

There was a link some pages ago that had some great pics of the airships featured in the game. I was wondering, are there anymore pics besides those, like from an artbook or something on the net?

[suteki girl]

Hi everyone,

I am abig fan of FF. ana i'm playing the FF XII> so I need your help please. Since in Saudi Arabia we have only the japanese trial (I don't know what I have to do lol) . However, I traped in a huge you can say the royal city I think so( ). I think who play the game will understand me and Balthier & Fran are sitting in the bar ( my level is only 9 ) . Beside all the monsters are very strong there damege is about 49 or more . What shall I do I really need your help thaaaaaaaaaanks

[C.A.]

I think right now you have to look for Daran and he will ask you to bring a sword to someone.

Daran is the old guy in downtown.

After recieving the sword, you can check your map with select and they will be a blinking '!' somewhere. Bring the sword there and you will continue with the game.

[suteki girl]

Hi every,

I am abig fan of FF. ana i'm playing the FF XII> so I need your help please. Since in Saudi Arabia we have only the japanese trial (I don't know what I have to do lol) . However, I traped in a huge you can say the royal city I think so( ). I think who play the game will understand me and Balthier & Fran are sitting in the bar ( my level is only 9 ) . Beside all the monsters are very strong there damege is about 49 or more . What shall I do I really need your help thaaaaaaaaaanks

[suteki girl]

thaaank you C.A for your hel . Sorry guys but I have to continue playing bye bye

[Iron Maw]

PSM's 14 page Review is up now, and FFXII score 9.5 of 10.

http://uk.gamespot.com/pages/unions/...&union_id=4039

[arias]

Originally Posted by Iron Maw

PSM's 14 page Review is up now, and FFXII score 9.5 of 10.

http://uk.gamespot.com/pages/unions/...&union_id=4039

I've put in 30-40 hours into the game (JP).. and in my opinion, it probably deserves a full 10.0 regardless of its flaws. The game itself is leagues ahead of any RPG out there, in terms of the shine and polish given to the gameplay. It did feel somewhat episodic sometimes, but overall it's a real gem.

Can't wait for the ENG version..

[C.A.]

The best thing about FFXII is the battle system, the fun it provides and how addictive it is lol

I had 200+ hours of FFXII now, battles still don't bore me, all because of its battle system.

[Daniel E.]

So that's the official box art then?

I'll admit it is actually the first time I get to see it.

Nice article by the way.

[arias]

Originally Posted by C.A.

The best thing about FFXII is the battle system, the fun it provides and how addictive it is lol

I had 200+ hours of FFXII now, battles still don't bore me, all because of its battle system.

The battle system is definitely ace. The no-loading times and the seamless integration makes it rather fun and easy to level-up.. I definitely much prefer it to the previous Final Fantasies. FFVIII had an 11 second loading time for each battle ... If I had time, which I don't since I'm a fourth year, I wouldn't mind putting extra hours into FFXII. But I think 60 hours into the game will be acceptable this coming Fall/Winter.

[Kouji]

Originally Posted by Daniel E.

So that's the official box art then?

I'll admit it is actually the first time I get to see it.

Nice article by the way.

lol, Well that is if you don't pre-order the game. But if you pre-ordered the game, you'd get a tin cover, with one of the judges in the front cover. Think it's

Spoiler:

Judge Gabaranth

[ImperialPanda]

About 14 hours into FF12, First impressions:

Gameplay

- Mist Quickening is probably the worst incarnation of limit breaks ever. The whole concept is totally stupid. You either 1 hit kill the target or you're basically dead. It's pretty much a rush to get 9 quickenings and then you should have absolutely no problems. Boss battles are fairly hard without quickenings. Does give ethers some use I suppose.

- To continue on that, Potions etc are actually useful with the new battle system. Because item cast time is incredibly short you can "potion chug" which will work much better than casting cure. As opposed to before when using items took the same time as doing anything else so it was almost never a good idea to use items.

- Overall, the new battle system is not bad. But they're missing a few things. If you're gonna copy MMO battle, then you're definately gonna need AGGRO MANAGEMENT!! Maybe it's there and I dunno what it is, but way too often I find Basch and Vaan curing while Penelo is tanking and attacking... -_-;;

- It's really stupid how when I revisit an area I *just* completed the monsters are 4x level. Only time I died.... one hit kill.

Story (spoilers are marked)

- I don't think the story is terribly impressive thus far. Without the typical impending apocalypse the mood or motivation isn't really there. The feel of the story is more like

Spoiler for very minor, not even a spoiler more like expectations:

Disney's Aladdin.

- The translation is very good, but at times I think the translator went a little overboard. He should've kept the English a bit more "normal."

- Voice is mixed. I think Ashe, Penelo, and Vaan are overall pretty good. Basch is meh. Fran is good sometimes but other times just horrible. I know it's "intentional" but I hate it nontheless. Balthier I didn't like because comparatively his JP voice was sooooo perfect.

Spoiler for SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER:

It was somewhat unexpected... but Basch not being a traitor because he's got a twin as an Archadian judge? Unexpected because that's just sooooo cheesy/stupid. C'mon "my evil twin did it!" is the stuff of jokes.

[marten]

I Have This Game

It's Very Nice

[arias]

Originally Posted by ImperialPanda

Spoiler for SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER:

It was somewhat unexpected... but Basch not being a traitor because he's got a twin as an Archadian judge? Unexpected because that's just sooooo cheesy/stupid. C'mon "my evil twin did it!" is the stuff of jokes.

Actually, it's consistent with the VERY BIG "sibling" relationships that run through the game. Notice how so many have a brother/sister.. it's typical of Matsuno games. And you need to finish playing before judging this arc ; )

[Zanaikin]

ok I'm playing this game currently, about ~40 hrs in and my guess is about 75% of the way thru (I took a quick glance at a online game guide's table of contents). The game really has been a disappoint for me after all the great ratings they got:

the gameplay is amazing, I'd agree with that, especially in comparison to other FF game thus far. However, given what Kotor offered in terms of active party-based RPG gameplay several years back, the slight more development doesn't surprise me that much.
Pros:
-The active battle systems allows so much more possibilities (like buffing up right before a boss fight, or running away from opponents while powering up an attack).
-gambit system basically allows you to run around and powerlevel using only 1 hand if you programmed all your triggers correctly. If you're having problems managing your party members then you didn't set this up properly :P
-automatic MP stroll rocks, the biggest complaint I had about FF was the general lack of MP regeneration capabilities.
Cons:
-Mist Quickenings: This version of limit breaks... really... suck. They consume way too much MP to be seriously useful. Unless you're going for that finishing blow to a boss (which is very helpful at times, some bosses are insanely powerful when they're at critical HP), it's best to stay off it.
-Summonings: not really that powerful and... still burn too much MP. My party can dish out damage a lot faster than the ESPERs, not to mention they have a very limited duration.
-weapon proficiencies: its a pain in the butt to have to grab proficiencies for one or two weapons at a time. I like the flexibility of the system but... can't we do better than one at a time?
-"Off-hand" slot: what? No double weapon wielding? I was so excited when I saw the left hand slot being "off-hand" instead of "shield" but... no.

-I find the bosses too easy. I really didn't powerlevel that much in comparison to a lot of the other RPGs I play and I get thru almost all the boss fights just by smashing them with repeated normal melee attacks. Of course I actually had to micromanage during boss fights (especially when they use status effects like heck) but I didn't need to pull off any complicated combination of special attacks or anything. Although I must confess I also hurl pots around like heck, but at the same time I have never yet needed a ether or anything. Hi-potions to keep party members over 90% hp and having all party members know curaga & curaja really helps

World design:
I just have to comment that the scenario design is awesome. Cities actually feel more like real cities now, with people talking about random this n that, not just a one-street road you walk down with stores on each side.

Storyline:
-I really haven't seen anything too surprising or original yet, not really any plot hooks to keep me on the edge or any major plot developments that would really shock you. Personally I find this part of the game far inferior to most other high ranking RPGs these days.
-If the plotline seems boring, the character development is really bad. You really don't find out much about your party members on their background, history, so and so. Also it feels that the party members' personalities are a little stereotypical for their roles in the plot.
-I just keep feeling that the main char Vaan is REALLY out-of-place in the party. Like the rest of them all have clear objectives and he's just... in there. There also doesn't seem to be that much of an attachment between him and Ashe. My friends were wondering if this might be the first FF where the two main character don't get paired .

still yet to finish the game, but... I definitely don't think this is that great of an RPG. Hopefully what remains of the game I haven't touched will change my mind .

[ImperialPanda]

Ditto.

Character development and storyline is sub par, by average RPG standards, not only final fantasy. I honestly think the frequency and graphic detail of the pre-rendered videos contribute more to the story and atmosphere than any other aspect of the game. That's not good.

Without saying too much, the story is a bland version of the, by now, standard final fantasy formula. But the big problem is that the main characters aren't used. For a majority of the game they seem more like bystanders rather than participants.

As for gameplay, the only new comment I have is that it's excruiciatingly difficult to dedicate someone as a black mage. It's already hard enough because of the mp. But now you need to know where to find new spells and where the absolutely cruicial license board blocks are, and get them asap. Also, making someone a black mage means you've got one less healer, because otherwise even a dedicated melee char can heal perfectly fine.

And because the necessary gambits are found later in the game, if you make a black mage s/he will have to be the char you're controlling because you have no way to automate that char w/ proper mp management. Unlike melee chars who just use an "attack target." ;P

[C.A.]

When you get your mp charging licenses, you'll find that you'll never run out of mp lol, you can actually gain more mp than spent by casting Collapse. Your magic character can have Collapse as the primary attack gambit.

Mp is only a problem for like 1/3 of the game, once you get 2 mist cartridges, mp becomes almost too much.