Finally here, and not half bad…

Well finally the game hit stores in Australia (and elsewhere) recently, and I can get up to my elbows in it and add my two-cents into the debate that has surrounded this game. Myself and the princess have clocked about twenty-hours on Square-Enix’s latest installment to the Final Fantasy series, and thus far, its been a bit of a mixed bag of good and bad things.

Its quite obvious that this rendition of the series is heavily influenced by western role-playing games and MMORPGS for starters. Its funny, I thought Square-Enix taking a leaf out of Bethesda’s book would be a good thing… and to some degree it is… but there is something that just feels half-hearted (or even "wrong") about it. Though not as linear as older games, there appears to be no way (thus far for me anyway) to impact the story other then through your scripted set of tasks. It feels different, but still feels like a Final Fantasy game to me, even though it doesn’t always play like one.

The combat system isn’t all that bad either. Its plays a little glitchy, I have no idea what my attack gauge resets completely after my target is slain, why can’t I just redirect the attack? But regardless it takes a new step and retains what has been a stereotypical feature of the series thus far, so kudos to them for implementing it in a way that does make combat refreshingly different, albeit not perfect.

The license-system doesn’t work, plain and simple. Yet again with enough time and effort you can build an expert-in-all-trades. Even those who want to mimic specialization within the game can’t… because time and again you have to license out rubbish you don’t want in order to get to the stuff that you do. Ridiculous. One simple way to resolve this would of been to make it dynamic; so if you license "Bows 1" then "Swords 1" is removed from the grid, I don’t know… something to at least show they’re TRYING to make the characters a wee-bit more interesting to build.

Quickenings; meh they are a little overkill. They seem disproportionately strong, and the fact that you can stack them up on each other does tend to makes things rather easy. They haven’t quite cracked the best way to implement special and unique moves in a Final Fantasy game yet; I don’t know what it would be… I just now that it does not make an appearance in XII.

The Gambit system is quite refreshing. I like it in the sense that the option is there to refine your party’s combat, but the problem is the characters are not nearly as dependent on team tactics as they should be. Anyway its a step in the right direction and will be a welcome feature when the get the character framework right.

The story is fine. Nothing too crash-hot this far, but what drives it forward are some interesting characters, some very Elizabethan dialogue (some will hate it but I think it fits well), and some brilliant voice-acting work. The chemistry between a handful of the more interesting characters is nice, and some of the finer points of detail make all the difference.

The music isn’t all that good this time around. I never thought I’d say that about a Final Fantasy game (ok I said that about X-2 but there are quite a few that were a saving grace for the title, this one has none that I’ve come across). Some of the pieces are nice, most are just too mellow and don’t really reflect the mood of the scene as good as they could. When is Hans Zimmer going to compose music for a video game dammit? Some of the music is recycled from older games, which is ok if you like that nostalgic factor, but I would have preferred a few more dramatic signature pieces instead.

Visuals are nice as always, but some of the draw-distances can be disappointing. In some cases you can peddle through a populated district only to see citizens flesh up seconds before you pass them and they fade into obscurity again; and its even more hazardous when the same thing happens with monsters roaming around.

Well it looks as though my report thus far has been a little bit all-over-the-place. But I guess thats because the game itself is. The bottom line is; I like it, its a solid entry into the series, but some of the old problems remain whilst new ones have popped up. I was so worried about this title after Dirge of Cerberus came out; because I thought that was a sign of things to come… thankfully it wasn’t.

So yeah; any comments, or suggestions from those who just got the chance to grab a copy? Or any veterans with more time invested in the game care to add anything?

Iam kind of mad with the videogame store here, because there is no sight of Final Fantasy XII. And most games here come in a few days. Ill meybe have some luck with play.com (i hope).

Actually I heard about this. Some online places had it on back-order availability the day before it was released. A hell of a lot of people must of been waiting for this. Good luck anyway.

but the problem is the characters are not nearly as dependent on team tactics as they should be.

I totally disagree here. When you learn to use the Gambit system properly, you can make you team members work together really well. One party member serves as a tank (an melee attacker who will take damages from the monster), then a supporting character who’ll serve as both attacker and healer if it gets critical, and then you have the caster who’ll either cast supporting magic (Bubble, Protect, Bravery, etc…) or cast black magic (this is what my team looked like for most of the game, and it worked pretty good.)

It’s up to you to decide what the characters do in any given situation. I really wonder how you could say they’re not really dependent on team tactics.
Sure the game is no FFXI where you can barely do anything if you’re alone. But I felt there was a huge emphasis on team work in the game. Especially when fighting some later bosses and Marks.

My pre-order at HMV still hasnt come through. Hopefully I’ll be able to play it soon, I’ve been waiting for this game for ages.

I finally have it and am just about to boot it up, will post my initial thoughts on it sometime over the weekend.

I have high expectations of FFXII, so here’s hoping it meets them.

So yeah; any comments, or suggestions from those who just got the chance to grab a copy? Or any veterans with more time invested in the game care to add anything?

Just two things for now:

Quickenings; meh they are a little overkill. They seem disproportionately strong, and the fact that you can stack them up on each other does tend to makes things rather easy.
Trust me, the Quickening system only seems disproportionately strong early in the game. The further on in the game, the less overkill it becomes, and I actually feel it works more like a Limit system should.

When is Hans Zimmer going to compose music for a video game dammit?
Heh, excellent thought! Actually, I think a bit of his music did make it into the Pirates of the Caribbean section of Kingdom Hearts II, but that’s about it.

Anyway, I will agree that some of the music in this game wasn’t as good as it should have been, but there are still quite a few pieces that I like.

Am I like the only one who’s disappointed in the battle system? I actually WANTED the turn-based system.

I just got my copy today. Pretty pleased with the game being that I have played alot of Final Fantasy XI online. To me it seemed like FFXI but with a stronger Story line and of course offline. I know alot of people are probably going to dislike the battle system in this BUT I like to think that it’s not just the new stories that keep me buying these games but also the little changes that define each one.

Only down side so far is that I couldn’t find my memory card until a bit earlier and of course with me just HAVING to check the game out straight away I went on playing without saving until i got a game over and obviously found my memory card about half an hour later.

Yup my first post too 😀

First impressions-have played roughly two and a half hours so far-well, a mixed bag at the minute. I was certainly impressed by the opening introduction, the graphics are simply immense, and the voiceovers and lip-syncing are improved from X-2, (though am I the only one who thinks Vaan sounds suspiciously like Tidus??) however there are already two minor gameplay issues I have to pick at-the battle system, which seems to be very similar to that used in Star Ocean and gives the game a very non-Final Fantasy feel to it. Personally I think it’s a step-down from FFX-2, though obviously it’s early days yet. And secondly, the camera angles, which frequently change without player input, are somewhat irritating and can put you off when you’re trying to find your destination.

I may well change my mind about those things upon completion of the game, however.

I imported the game a couple of months ago. I got something like 37 hours in, realized there wasn’t a single thing about the game that I actually liked, then stopped. Quite sad really, because I had been looking forward to the game for 3 years.

I totally disagree here. When you learn to use the Gambit system properly, you can make you team members work together really well. One party member serves as a tank (an melee attacker who will take damages from the monster), then a supporting character who’ll serve as both attacker and healer if it gets critical, and then you have the caster who’ll either cast supporting magic (Bubble, Protect, Bravery, etc…) or cast black magic (this is what my team looked like for most of the game, and it worked pretty good.)

It’s up to you to decide what the characters do in any given situation. I really wonder how you could say they’re not really dependent on team tactics.
Sure the game is no FFXI where you can barely do anything if you’re alone. But I felt there was a huge emphasis on team work in the game. Especially when fighting some later bosses and Marks.

Nope, nope, nope… you’re wrong, you’re wrong, you’re wrong. You can just as easily configure your gambit system to ensure each character looks after themself and no-one else. If you choose to edit your combat-style and take a more team driven approach then thats fine… my point is you don’t NEED to. There are no dedicated "tanks" or "healers" or "rangers" in this game… because as I said, the liscence system ensures everyone has the propensity to do everything.

One thing I was wondering from any veterans out there. Does the game have a "new game plus" feature? And if so, what is it that rolls-over to your next game?

No it does not sorry that is FFX-2 only.

As for Liscene insuring the equal character play that is not true presicely. If you have all your characters equal Level Lp board and equiped there are some minor differences. For instance Basch and Vaan have equal STR and are the Highest Penelo I believe has the Highest Magic rate. The basic stats are what makes each different though you won’t notice it until your level is maxed.

As for Gambits while it is true you can make everyone look after themselves it is also true and as the Poster you qouted said a Party effort. You will LOSE badly if you try to take on some of the Later bosses like Ultima and Zodiark with an Indivudal care Gambit set-up. You can’t heal very well if the person healing is on the brink while said boss is breathing down their neck you need the others to heal because the boss just might kill your character while they sit there and heal or drain all their Mp doing it by attacking as they heal and bringing them back to their heal mark. Careful planning is needed for Later bosses espically ones that set-up Pailing and Magic shield.

As for dedicating a Character to Tank Archer and so forth it is actually a good plan. While any character can fill this role it is best to create it early and stick with it for your character so you get use to it since some areas are so swarmed with enemies that control becomes hard for all but the Leader. Also weapon choice Does help some jobs selections. Example Fran I equipped with a bow from start to finish and made her my mage that for the Most part kept her outside enemy range and unmolsted in her spellcasting and healing. Also I gave Vaan a Bubble Belt and since I play with him as leader most enemies targeted him this he became my tank I equipped him for defense Hp and evasion as his goal points. While Ashe I gave her High avodiance shields so she could go in and Hack away with lower Hp or I gave her Agesis shield to Avoid magic in Mage heaven areas.

Plan how you like to play then bulid on it with an idea of coropation and you will be able to take down Bosses at Low level like I did with Gil snapper at Level 20ish I think it was.

Re the camera angles — it was occasionally off at times, but I love that this game lets you control the camera as you please with the right analog stick — an unprecedented level of freedom-of-control over it that was sorely lacking in previous Final Fantasies. In any case, I don’t find it anywhere near as bad as the "Heartless camera" from the original Kingdom Hearts (which was a major complaint about that game.)

As for Gambits while it is true you can make everyone look after themselves it is also true and as the Poster you qouted said a Party effort. You will LOSE badly if you try to take on some of the Later bosses like Ultima and Zodiark with an Indivudal care Gambit set-up. You can’t heal very well if the person healing is on the brink while said boss is breathing down their neck you need the others to heal because the boss just might kill your character while they sit there and heal or drain all their Mp doing it by attacking as they heal and bringing them back to their heal mark. Careful planning is needed for Later bosses espically ones that set-up Pailing and Magic shield.

I couldn’t have said it better. It’s funny though that someone who just started playing the game can have the guts to tell me I’m wrong here and argue about that Gambit system.

But I felt there was a huge emphasis on team work in the game. Especially when fighting some later bosses and Marks.

Do these bosses and Marks I talked about (if you can find them) and then you’ll understand what I meant.

Then, we’ll see if I was so wrong.

Re the camera angles — it was occasionally off at times, but I love that this game lets you control the camera as you please with the right analog stick — an unprecedented level of freedom-of-control over it that was sorely lacking in previous Final Fantasies. In any case, I don’t find it anywhere near as bad as the "Heartless camera" from the original Kingdom Hearts (which was a major complaint about that game.)

I have one complaint about the FF12 camera; there is no option to invert the X or Y axis. I’ve been playing a LOT of third person games recently – Gears of War, Dead Rising, and currently Crackdown – and the camera control i’ve gotten used to in those games is the complete opposite to FF12’s default. Which is rather disorienting as i’m trying to play FF12 and Crackdown at the same time.

Also, having a 32" widescreen LCD with this game is a blessing and a curse; FF12 in 16:9 is amazing, but the lack of support for progressive scan is really horrible. In every section of the game there is interlacing, and it makes the graphics look a lot worse than they actually are. I’ve actually been playing the game more lately on my old 22" CRT – you can appreciate how good the game looks. Still, support for 480p (or even 1080i! Gran Turismo 4 did it) would have been fantastic.

As for gameplay and storyline, i’m going to hold out on my judgement until I finish the game. I’m 15 hours in (AND I got the game a day early; I don’t know where you’ve found time for 20 hours, Bunniesworth :p), but i’m only up to the Ozmose Plains (i’ve been tracking down Marks). So far i’m enjoying both.

I went to go buy it, it wasn’t in.

fuk da world

I will tell you all a secert. The game is over a 100 hours average. I am at the end with mostly everything Done with 98 hours which is abnormal big time and I am a Veteran of FF games since I was a tyke. You have a LONG WAY to go before you really get near the end. But if you need any help there is a Q&A thread where the Veterans of FFXII give advice so there you go. Also just a hint don’t give up the game until after you have finished Raithwall’s tomb and a little after that is when most of us agree the plot truly gets going.

Re the camera angles — it was occasionally off at times, but I love that this game lets you control the camera as you please with the right analog stick — an unprecedented level of freedom-of-control over it that was sorely lacking in previous Final Fantasies. In any case, I don’t find it anywhere near as bad as the "Heartless camera" from the original Kingdom Hearts (which was a major complaint about that game.)

As I said, I’m sure I’ll get used to them, but it was a bit annoying having them change a lot when travelling around Rabanastre. And yes, I agree that add to the game as well as being prohibitive. An option in the menu to have a fixed camera would have been great.

Ive got my copy today. A lot of changes have been done. I kind of prefer the turn based system, but im sure ill get used to the new one. I cant comment on anything else right now, i havent played it a lot

I couldn’t have said it better. It’s funny though that someone who just started playing the game can have the guts to tell me I’m wrong here and argue about that Gambit system.

Do these bosses and Marks I talked about (if you can find them) and then you’ll understand what I meant.

Then, we’ll see if I was so wrong.

Bitter kitten aren’t we? Didn’t Square-Enix come out and say that the "Yiazmat" thing referred to was beatable with characters at level one? I KNOW I’ve read that in an aussie PlayStation 2 mag, apparently someone did it. Hardly a testament to the gambit system.

Anyway I’m not "down" on the gambit system entirely. I’ve said its a welcome feature, but its ruined by the licensing system. Regardless how diligently anyone argues, there is always a way to tip-toe through a difficult battle if you’ve leveled up enough. No doubt that gambit system makes things easier, but I’m adamant that the fact any character can assume any role in the game, there is a flaw, because the sheer number of gambit slots on the boards make it possible to knock up an all-rounder gambit setup for each character that will handle the character themselves, and his/her party quite adeptly. Its too much.

I have one complaint about the FF12 camera; there is no option to invert the X or Y axis. I’ve been playing a LOT of third person games recently – Gears of War, Dead Rising, and currently Crackdown – and the camera control i’ve gotten used to in those games is the complete opposite to FF12’s default. Which is rather disorienting as i’m trying to play FF12 and Crackdown at the same time.

Also, having a 32" widescreen LCD with this game is a blessing and a curse; FF12 in 16:9 is amazing, but the lack of support for progressive scan is really horrible. In every section of the game there is interlacing, and it makes the graphics look a lot worse than they actually are. I’ve actually been playing the game more lately on my old 22" CRT – you can appreciate how good the game looks. Still, support for 480p (or even 1080i! Gran Turismo 4 did it) would have been fantastic.

As for gameplay and storyline, i’m going to hold out on my judgement until I finish the game. I’m 15 hours in (AND I got the game a day early; I don’t know where you’ve found time for 20 hours, Bunniesworth :p), but i’m only up to the Ozmose Plains (i’ve been tracking down Marks). So far i’m enjoying both.

Oh god, the camera shits me madly. Why on earth tilting left makes the damn thing go right just bemuses me beyond comprehension. I’ve gotten used to it now, but I know I am going to get all messed up again when I move to other games.

By the way. Its about 35 hours now. Its easy when you’re on holiday and have another gamer to take the reins and play. God it seems almost all we’ve been doing lately is play that damn game… but soon enough uni starts up again and I certainly will have my hands full. So we have to soak up as much of it as we can before March 5.

Bitter kitten aren’t we?

Can’t help reacting this way to someone who tells me I’m wrong without even knowing what he’s talking about.

As I said, I’m sure I’ll get used to them, but it was a bit annoying having them change a lot when travelling around Rabanastre. And yes, I agree that add to the game as well as being prohibitive. An option in the menu to have a fixed camera would have been great.

Fixed camera would have been needlessly prohibitive. In fact, the fixed nature of the camera in X was quite posssibly my biggest complaint. I move the camera in XII during almost every second of gameplay, and I am forever greatful for that level of freedom, as Agent said. Thanks to the gambits, my thumbs are on the analog sticks more than anywhere else, and I love it dearly. Yes, the angles change suddenly, if you aren’t willing to actively control them constantly, so if that isn’t your preference, I completely understand.

I guess I’m okay with being an active director 😀

Yeah, I guess I’m okay with being an active director of the camera too. In fact, for me, I’d say at this point, it’s more second nature. I do it without even consciously doing it.

As for the opposite configuration from other games, can’t really speak to that. But I will say that I’ve played other games in the past that have had different control sets that took me a bit to get used to at first. But after while, you get so that you can just sort of switch modes based on what game you’re playing, again sometimes even without really being conscious of it.

I have never been able to do that I always take a bit to switch back but after a bit it does become second nature.

Also as for the LP board some see it as a bad thing others don’t each their own on that. But one thing I do have to say is everyone gets a favorite Character that they want to use no matter what. So being able to use them without a Penelaty and shape them how you want is NICE. I always like playing my Black mages as Crowd control but get annoyed on how fast it goes through MP so the abilities such as Headhunter Ether ups and other like are nice. Also the ability to equip your Black Mage in Knight armor to last longer is again nice makes them live longer then if you didn’t. But really we have been debating the LP board since the beginning it truly is a Love or Hate topic.

I have one complaint about the FF12 camera; there is no option to invert the X or Y axis. I’ve been playing a LOT of third person games recently – Gears of War, Dead Rising, and currently Crackdown – and the camera control i’ve gotten used to in those games is the complete opposite to FF12’s default. Which is rather disorienting as i’m trying to play FF12 and Crackdown at the same time.

This is a critical error for the game! I had just finished FF VII: DoG before this and now FF XII has the opposite pattern with no option to reverse it! I’m starting Rogue Galaxy recently and their camera controls are normal plus have an option to invert it!

The games main flaw is the camera plus story/characters, but it’s great! 🙂

This is a critical error for the game! I had just finished FF VII: DoG before this and now FF XII has the opposite pattern with no option to reverse it! I’m starting Rogue Galaxy recently and their camera controls are normal plus have an option to invert it!

The games main flaw is the camera plus story/characters, but it’s great! 🙂

I’ll of course accept arguments to the contrary, but it seems to me that complaining about camera control is no different than complaining that the menu in VIII is mapped to the O button, as opposed to the standard Triangle.

You will get used to it. It is not a flaw, it is a design decision. Feel free to like it or dislike it as you will, though.

Edit: I played Dirge during a break from XII, and set the controls up to mirror XII’s. You can make lemonade, in some cases. Also, if you’re going to argue that the option to change them would have been a nice idea, I’ll agree with you. However, that still does not make the original decision a flaw.

I’ll of course accept arguments to the contrary, but it seems to me that complaining about camera control is no different than complaining that the menu in VIII is mapped to the O button, as opposed to the standard Triangle.

You will get used to it. It is not a flaw, it is a design decision. Feel free to like it or dislike it as you will, though.

I think that it is a design flaw not to allow the option for the player to choose; literally every other third person game I’ve played allows me to invert both the X and Y axis for the camera. The default camera in EVERY third person game until this point has been the exact opposite of FF12’s camera control.

Now, I could switch camera control in Crackdown if I want to, but I’m faster and more accurate with the camera system i’m accustomed to. In a quasi-turn based game like Final Fantasy XII, it doesn’t really matter, but when it puts off my game in places like Gears of War where accuracy matters, it’s annoying.

I got annoyed about the camera too, but as i dont play much 3rd person games i wont have any problems.

Ive been killed 3 times in 5 hours, which starts to piss me off 😛

Now, I could switch camera control in Crackdown if I want to, but I’m faster and more accurate with the camera system i’m accustomed to. In a quasi-turn based game like Final Fantasy XII, it doesn’t really matter, but when it puts off my game in places like Gears of War where accuracy matters, it’s annoying.

You may not agree with me, but this shows you understood my lemonade comment. That’s the best I can ask for. =)

Can’t help reacting this way to someone who tells me I’m wrong without even knowing what he’s talking about.

Sure… by all means disregard everything else I’ve said in that post if it lets you peddle on with your point-of-view and pepper that oh so damning word, "wrong", in my direction one more time. I’m near 60 hours into the thing, haven’t had to modify a single gambit system and everything has been managable thus far. If a couple tail-ending bosses (heck they might even be optional ones, which don’t really count) change that, well thank god I say, but as I climb through this game I can’t see anything too redeeming about the lisence system working in conjunction with the gambit system; everyone is too well rounded to need it.

So are you still using Potions to heal yourselve? No phoenix Downs? Put in Curga or anything like that if you have then yes you have modified the Gambits. Also have you fought ANY of the Side espers yet?
I know you haven’t faced Cid yet for the second time otherwise you would change the tune because I know you have to adjust your Gambits for same with the Last Boss.

So are you still using Potions to heal yourselve? No phoenix Downs? Put in Curga or anything like that if you have then yes you have modified the Gambits. Also have you fought ANY of the Side espers yet?
I know you haven’t faced Cid yet for the second time otherwise you would change the tune because I know you have to adjust your Gambits for same with the Last Boss.

Haven’t modified any gambits. Vaan has his gambits turned off and so I control him explicitly and he has all the white magic spells at present. Everyone else, well they use whatever they originally used. Which is frustrating since many don’t use anything; but Vaan gets the job done and it works fine. If someone is too badly injured I swap them out.

Side espers, I don’t think I have but I’m pretty sure the princess might have during her "shift" I’ll have a look when I start up again after getting off here. But the word SIDE doesn’t sit well with me. If its possible to go through say, 85% of the main story line and not have to worry about gambits, the system is broken I say.

The problem is I think something is off even I when I overleveled up do to the side Hunts I was still having to use the regualar Gambits like heal in several areas that were plot specific like Giruvegan for instance. No matter what you get hurt no way around that so to have no need for Healing that can all be handled by Vaan seems off to me big time.

Also where are you I don’t think you are at 85% of the game it is an easy mistake to make on this game on where you are. Pharos or something close like Giruvegan would be the roughly 85% mark are you even aware what those mean? No offense meant just trying to find where exactly you are in the game since hours really mean nothing in this one. I have a few people Like Kneagtive who have 160 hours or so and are only half way through.

As for the sides No if you haven’t fiddled with the Gambit system then you could not have gotten any Espers except for maybe 2 Like the one in the caves and Zalerai maybe even Zermours if you are leveled enough. But stuff like Chuclain the fat esper too lazy to find his name you need Gambits or you will DIE. Agent who took him on near the end and was overleveled big time had trouble with him and he uses Gambits.

As for Gambits its all in the player if used right it can make you a GOD if used wrong you will die and be a Monster’s meal.

The problem is I think something is off even I when I overleveled up do to the side Hunts I was still having to use the regualar Gambits like heal in several areas that were plot specific like Giruvegan for instance. No matter what you get hurt no way around that so to have no need for Healing that can all be handled by Vaan seems off to me big time.

Also where are you I don’t think you are at 85% of the game it is an easy mistake to make on this game on where you are. Pharos or something close like Giruvegan would be the roughly 85% mark are you even aware what those mean? No offense meant just trying to find where exactly you are in the game since hours really mean nothing in this one. I have a few people Like Kneagtive who have 160 hours or so and are only half way through.

As for the sides No if you haven’t fiddled with the Gambit system then you could not have gotten any Espers except for maybe 2 Like the one in the caves and Zalerai maybe even Zermours if you are leveled enough. But stuff like Chuclain the fat esper too lazy to find his name you need Gambits or you will DIE. Agent who took him on near the end and was overleveled big time had trouble with him and he uses Gambits.

As for Gambits its all in the player if used right it can make you a GOD if used wrong you will die and be a Monster’s meal.

I’m not saying I’m at the 85% mark, but I was just suggesting that if its possible to go such great lengths through the game and not use the gambit system (which thus far, about 60 hours in, is the case for me) then something is wrong.

I know using the gambit system can make the dynmaics of a party "better"; buts if you think about it, you can switch everybody’s gambits off and take total control of your party and the team dynamic can be just as good with you doing everything manually. Its got nothing to do with gambits at the end of the day, and everything to do with what all of your characters are capable of doing off that lisence board. Thus far I’ve gotten by without gambits, and will continue to do so until the game shows me I no longer can. Because now all I do is control Vaan’s every move, override another character’s desired move (if need be), and leave the original gambits as they were; and things still happen quite easily and in a timely fashion.

Though Pain in the butt.

Question what was the last scene you saw I am curious to know your location and could better handle this thread with a benchmark like that.

Most recently got through Slyt; which was painfully easy after inflicting the oil status; default gambits still and no major stresses yet. Sorry; gambits are broken, broken, broken…

What the heck Slyt? What is that I double checked and that is not the name of a boss, dunegon, or place as far as I can tell.

The only thing that comes close is Stilshrine but I don’t think that is it. Tell me the Last town you went to and what you were doing there like Jahara Cyrstal like that.

And also tell me what the Heck Slyt is? I don’t rememeber that at all.

Also I can’t use the Oil status as a marker beyond the fact that you have been to Bhujerba which is about 5% into the game plot wise

Speaking of the Stillshrine, that’s where I am at the moment.

Horrendously underlevelled, too – my highest is Ashe, and she’s on 30. Vaan is next on 27, and the rest are hovering around 20-25.

I’ve always wanted a FF game that lasts – I guess this is a case of ‘be careful what you wish for’. An epic-sized FF isn’t good in combination with the first week of study ;_;

Stilshrine can be a pain espically since if you haven’t gone esper hunting this will be the first time you run into a Field effect.

Field effects are nasty crap what they do is mostly block actions such as magic, attack, tech, item, so forth. But there are 2 nasty effects one of which you are about to run into called sap, and Magentic. Sap is exactly that is drains your Hp like the spell but you can’t get rid of it it is always on anyone who is active party at that time Very nasty. Magentic if you are wearing any Heavy armor then you get weighed down and move slower then if you got hit by a Slow spell this is the one you are about to run into.

Sorry, I should have said I finished the Stillshrine. I’m on the road to Archades, now.

The Magnetic field didn’t really bother me – Mateus went down with a 12-chain quickening. Boom.

Quickenings are cheap but useful in cases espically if you know how to use it.

** POSSIBLE SPOILERS **

Slyt?? You don’t know?? Perhaps the PAL version of the game uses different names but its a boss after Pandemonium in Pharos. Anyway I’m way passed that now too. I’m running up the home-stretch, knocking off a few side quests and finishing off the main story soon; and still… gambits have had NO part in anything. They’re overrated completely.

Havent Really Had My Say On FFXII Yet… Bought it On The 25th Of Feb… And Now Im Still Only An Hour In… To be Quite honest I Dont Know Why But It Just… Doesnt Feel Right… However Being Only An hour In I Reserve Absolute Judgement Til i Have Some Real Experience Under My Belt.

The Thing I have To Say Disappoints Me The Most About FFXII Is That Even Though I Dislike Most Final Fantasy Games When I Get them I play them Solidly Until i Make Some Sort Of progress… While I Know That Final Fantasy Games Are Slow To Start XII Just Lacks A Certain… Undescribeable Something That Lured Me In With Previous Titles…

The Game Mechanics Themselves While i Cant Comment On The Entirely Due To Only An Hours Play… I Was Hoping That The Battle System Would be Alot More Interactive Than It Is… It Feels Like The inbred Child of Real Time And turn Based And Doesnt Really Sit Well With Me.

The License System While i Havent Got Much Progress Into I Get the general Gist of It And it Appears To be Very Sphere Grid-Esque Which Will Come Down To Whether you Liked That Sysem Or Not… Personally i Didnt… But i Appreciated The Time You Could Spend With Maxxing it out And i Hope XII Offers A Similar Timeframe For Completion

On A Sidenote However Big Kudos on The Very Rennaisance Feel Of the Game… A Nice Step in A Different Direction But The Plot Itself Im Yet To Even Scratch The Surface On…

Anyway… All Judgements Reserved I Think That Like Most Final Fantasy Titles You Either Love Or You Hate XII…

Ah Forgot about that I checked the Bosses and places but Slyt is a Rare Hunt on the tag I forgot about that. I am passed and beaten the game and currently working on a different game Bunnysworth so I have to admit I am impressed that you have done all that with no gambits.

Now here is the question have you done most Hunts? If not then I suggest you do them it gives alot of nice items and they will be challanaging for you after a certain amount of time since you will be overleveled for Alot of the normal hunts and midway for the Elite hunts. I don’t think you can be overleveled in an elite hunt its all about stragety for the later ones.

But maybe after you beat the game why don’t you try the gambit system on a new game and see just how easier it makes everything.

i use gambits to attack and cure, anything else i do manually

also i don’t think the license board is well designed.
For one thing when you buy a new weapon or magic you might not know where the license is for it, so you’ll waste points just trying to find it.

For one thing when you buy a new weapon or magic you might not know where the license is for it, so you’ll waste points just trying to find it.

This NEVER happened to me in my 2 run though the game.

It does happen, because you can’t see what things are until you’ve got the license for it.
until then they’re very vauge as to what they are.

yeah sure. But never did I end up with a weapon I couldnt use because I didnt know what lisense square to unlock. If this happened to you, you probably rushed trhough the game, and ended the game at level 30. lol

Ive not finished the game.

Anyway, so you’re saying we’re suppoed to spend lisence points for useless things so at least we have them unlocked ready for anything we happen to aquire?

Quite simply i would like to know what i’m spending my points on.

FFXII isn’t really final fantasy like.

I feel like I’m playing pokemon mystery dungeon, but like, you can do a bit more, I guess.

I finished the game earlier today, no gambit modifications (though my manual work increased condiderably for the final boss and all his forms) and had no major stresses with some of the sidequests I’d done; though I didn’t complete them all.

Ok after completing the game and many of its side-quests I’m in a much better position to criticize the game as a whole now. Unfortunately though, I don’t look at this game as warmly as I did initially. Its still good, just not great, so here’s my wrap-up:

*** SPOILERS BELOW ***

1 – STORY & CONCEPT
The story was very thin. It started out very strong and I thought it would become a quest to get excited about, but it was just such an uncompelling adventure that was hard to get immersed in. The concept itself was a little off because of the politics involved, which made the general premise of the game a hunt for swords and rocks in a bid to deter war. I don’t know about anyone else but I didn’t want to deter the war, I wanted to win it.

Worst of all, Vaan just didn’t feel like the central character of the story. In fact, no one did. Unlike say, Final Fantasy X, the goings-on weren’t being witnessed from one particular perspective; and that’s bad because it distances the gamer from the story as well.

2 – CHARACTERS
I think the most enjoyable two characters throughout the game were Balthier and Fran; who really came off like a Han Solo and Chewbacca pair (ironic, since Nicole Fantl, the voice of Fran, was in Star Wars). They didn’t exactly have any real depth but their mannerisms and chemistry was made stereotypical so they didn’t need any, and it worked. Basch was also quite well done and seemed the most driven, but the rest of them were disappointing.

Vaan’s little subplot about "picking up" the sky-pirating trade was nonexistent. One minute Balthier is telling him he has a lot to learn, and then with no development at all he’s giving him his ship with everything else in between just being implied; completely unsatisfying. Worse still was Ashe’s sub-plot. They tried to do something with it, and add in moments where she was hesitant and close to losing her way, but it just didn’t work I thought. And Penelo, *sigh* why on earth did they bother? They gave more attention to nobodies at the beginning of the game then they did to her through the totality of it, she added absolutely nothing and was just party-fodder, they shouldn’t of bothered.

3 – MECHANICS
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again; the licensing system is complete rubbish, especially when you add gambits into the fray. Anyone who goes on about their "tank", their "caster", their "ranger", or their "healer" is deluding themself. Because with the abundance of license points I had throughout the game, anyone could step into any role during combat, and that many options during a battle just takes any challenge out of the equation completely. Anyone who thinks otherwise is just plain wrong, and I say this as a man who went through the entire length of the main story-line and most of its side quests with the default character gambits still in place; and it required very very minimal grunt-work.

The combat system was a little quirky but seeing as my manually controlled Vaan was set up as a marksman, it worked ok. In close-quarters situations where you’re trying to open a door or chest, the constant hiccup between readying your weapon to fight something and putting it away becomes very annoying; especially if you’re attempting to flee.

I also didn’t find Espers particularly useful. I’d prefer just being able to summon them and let them perform some sort of special attack. Having them roam around alongside you isn’t particularly useful, especially when you have no overt control over them.

4 – AUDIO
I know that Final Fantasy X had upwards of 9,000 lines of spoken dialogue, and when playing through it, you’ll notice that its the abundance of spoken conversations that end up propelling the story and its emotion forward. This game just didn’t have that. You couldn’t invest too much in the characters put before you because it was never made explicit that they were investing in each other throughout their journey together; that is just implied. No doubt audio was stripped away to incorporate some of the grand cut-scenes and the like, but in the end I think it hurt the game more then it helped it. The real sting in the tail is… the voice acting was brilliant, they should have cashed in on it more.

I’ve already said the music was poor, and it really is. In every other Final Fantasy game the music appears to be slightly louder and really becomes a character in itself. But obviously Sakimoto was just content to put quaint little jingles in the background instead, that is really a shame. Almost every Final Fantasy character and area in the past has had a dynamic signature theme, and these characters and areas don’t and feel kind of empty without it.

5 – VISUALS
Everything looks fine, no real complains other then those I previously made about the draw distances and such. Some of the cut-scenes towards the end are particularly nice and live up to the Final Fantasy name.

The areas to explore were very grand, but there seemed to be a hell of a lot of model copying for the monsters out there. I know that happens in all Final Fantasy titles, but it seemed a lot more apparent here, and that was disappointing to see.

6 – SUMMARY
At the end of the day its a solid video game that is worth a buy regardless of whether you have been a fan of the series up until now or not. But is it the final chapter of the series to appear on the PlayStation 2 that we expected it to be? I don’t think so. Its nice that they have finally righted some of the wrongs that have plagued the series for so many years, but in doing so they have also moved away from some of the things that made the series such a standout.

I like this game, and am actually looking forward to a second play-through; but something tells me I’ll be a wee bit disappointed as I think-up all the things this game really could have been.

I do have to point out for the Lp Board you are right at the end of the game but at the beginning and Middle the roles aren’t as easiely filled. The gambit system is only good if used correctly for you have more patince then anyone I know but at the same time you made the game harder on yourself by along shot. Penelo I can agree with but Ashe and Vaan no I think you missed it. Vaan has always been under Balithers wings from the save penelo part onwards he is just relucant to admit it. Plus there are Lines that show Vaan is learning like Basch saying or Balither saying now you start to think like a sky pirate and other such lines. As for Ashe play again it makes it very clear she is struggling with her inner problems of revenege or what is best for her kingdom. I truly feel if you express that Ashe’s plot didn’t go anywhere you didn’t pay enough attention to her parts.

As for Main character it is like FFVI there is no Main character there are people who take center stage sometimes like Ashe but in the end there is no TRUE main character. I will also agree on the hiccup between sheathing and drawing of weapons same with the Summons.

As for Gambits usually people complain that it makes the game automated not that is broken. You are the first to say that it is and I think from what I have seen the Minority in your opnion. The gambits are nice and can make the game easier to play and I think you blantly ignored it for some reason pride mayhap? Who knows but until you play your second play with the Gambits in use I don’t think you can give a fair evaluation of it.

Now most of these are my opnion but I do encourage you a second play through doing what others say such as a tank Gambits and so forth just to see what we are talking about.

Andyuk you can figure out what you are spending your LP on. On the purchase screen it will say Heavy light gun bow etc. It will also have a number next to it such as 6 or so the higher the number the more powerful it is same goes for spells mostly. Also when the a Bought Liscene is next to an unbought it tells you what it is so where you get this I don’t know what I am buying from is because you don’t pay attention to the screens if you did you will always know what you are getting. That is the reason why I got Genji armor and Telekenisis long before I was suppouse to was because I looked at what the icons title is.

Just add a "Use Cure(cura/curaga/potions if you have a bunch) when Ally’s HP is >30%" to a couple people and bam free healz eazy gamin.

Not quite espically later on but yes the basic idea some things like Zodiark even with Gambits he is HARD AS HELL. I was level 72ish or so for my main party and I still nearly lost so many times it is not even funny. The areas like near Roblon which is a hunt is so Battle chaosed that you NEED gambits to live.

And as a Veteran of the Hunts and Sidequests you need Gambits if you are going to win. About Gil snapper and up is where I needed to real use my Gambits but I also was doing them as soon as possible so I was underleveled on quite a few of them.

You only need Gambits if you’re shit at micromanagement.

It feels much better to have direct control over my team in important battles, so I prefer having the battle system on ‘Wait’, give my characters instructions, and let them have at it.

…mainly because that’s exactly how KOTOR plays, and KOTOR is still the best RPG ever.

True but if you prefer ACTIVE Gambits are a god send. It is all in how you play

Andyuk you can figure out what you are spending your LP on. On the purchase screen it will say Heavy light gun bow etc. It will also have a number next to it such as 6 or so the higher the number the more powerful it is same goes for spells mostly. Also when the a Bought Liscene is next to an unbought it tells you what it is so where you get this I don’t know what I am buying from is because you don’t pay attention to the screens if you did you will always know what you are getting. That is the reason why I got Genji armor and Telekenisis long before I was suppouse to was because I looked at what the icons title is.

the unbought squares have a name on them like ‘weapon’ or ‘magic’ then question marks. There is no way of knowing what it is until you have spent points on getting a square next to it. So you are spending points getting useless lisences to find the right square, like i said.

this is even worse for augments because if you want to increase your characters hp’s you have to search through various other things to find it. So you might get a few potion lores and extra gambit slots you don’t want until you find what you do want.

I do pay attention.

Now that is where you are wrong. Armor weapons spells and so forth will tell you even on NOT EVEn close unbought what it is such as White Arcane Black Armor Light Armor Gun and so forth. If say you are trying for all white spells then all you have to do is LOOK and see White 5 or some such. Same goes for if you are doing a Ceratin weapon type such as Guns then all you have to do is look and plan it out same goes for anything really.

As for wasting Lp on unknowns let us use Armor for an example. If you look at your past Armors have all the armors in white on your most farthest unbought armor slot and let us say you picked up at a shop a new armor that is unlisted chances are really GOOD then that the armor is in the next over slot of that Armor type next to the unbought one all you have to do is use your brains a little. The only place you are correct in is the augments and that is it but even that isn’t so bad after you have different Learning paths for your characters to help map what is where and how much.

Now also I never had trouble getting Lp EVER espically after I got Gold Bangle I think it is. Also LP is easy to Farm just go out Rabnastre-SP?- and kill Wolves for half an hour or so you won’t level up easily after a ceratin Level but you will rack in the LP like crazy. Use the Gambits and all you have to do is move your Characters near the monsters and Boom VERY easy Lp. So I don’t see your problem with Lp gathering at all since there is no LIMIT to Lp at all.

Also you can never waste Lp since you never know what comes into play. I accidently gave Vaan a bow Liscene well when I was first exploring the path to stilshrine that Bow Liscene came in handy. In fact one of the Sky pirate figurines is mastery of the LP board so you do need to get everything.

Nice post Reva. I couln’t have explained all this better.

I really enjoyed the battle system of FFXII, I think it’s one of the best so far.

Sorry to go off topic but I was wondering, can anyone start a new thread and if so how do i do it?

And yea FFXII had a great battle system. I liked the fact that the battleground was the entire map. It put alot of depth into the game i thought.

Now that is where you are wrong. Armor weapons spells and so forth will tell you even on NOT EVEn close unbought what it is such as White Arcane Black Armor Light Armor Gun and so forth. If say you are trying for all white spells then all you have to do is LOOK and see White 5 or some such. Same goes for if you are doing a Ceratin weapon type such as Guns then all you have to do is look and plan it out same goes for anything really.

Take a look at it. It tells you how many points it takes and ‘weapon’ or ‘armour’ or whatever.
It does not tell you the level or the weapon type until after you’ve bought a square next to it.

As for wasting Lp on unknowns let us use Armor for an example. If you look at your past Armors have all the armors in white on your most farthest unbought armor slot and let us say you picked up at a shop a new armor that is unlisted chances are really GOOD then that the armor is in the next over slot of that Armor type next to the unbought one all you have to do is use your brains a little. The only place you are correct in is the augments and that is it but even that isn’t so bad after you have different Learning paths for your characters to help map what is where and how much.

They’re not all next to each other, and even if most of them are what is the point in not telling us?

Now also I never had trouble getting Lp EVER espically after I got Gold Bangle I think it is. Also LP is easy to Farm just go out Rabnastre-SP?- and kill Wolves for half an hour or so you won’t level up easily after a ceratin Level but you will rack in the LP like crazy. Use the Gambits and all you have to do is move your Characters near the monsters and Boom VERY easy Lp. So I don’t see your problem with Lp gathering at all since there is no LIMIT to Lp at all.

It’s a waste of time to have to gain points like that. Maybe I don’t want to spend hours point farming.

Also you can never waste Lp since you never know what comes into play. I accidently gave Vaan a bow Liscene well when I was first exploring the path to stilshrine that Bow Liscene came in handy. In fact one of the Sky pirate figurines is mastery of the LP board so you do need to get everything.

It is if you want some kind of control over your character growth.

Tides it is under forum tools.

No it does tell you Heavy armor 5 and how much Lp it costs I know it does because I used a guide to figure out a path for Maxamalion and I know it tells you that since I used those as Bench marks. As for them not being next to each other it matters not since all you have to do is See Light armor 3 then find Light armor 4.

As for waste of time Lp farming maybe maybe not if you do ANY of the hunts chances are good you will get stuff you can’t equip yet so that type of farming HELPS alot. Also that is your opnion on the farming some like doing that type of Farming such as K- who is famous around here for his 200 hours and not even half-way through game. Also it doesn’t take that long if you know what you to do and are a decent level.

As for the growth it doesn’t matter since it is LEVEL that matters not what augments. Augments only help they don’t make or break a party. Also what makes a Character a long range a tank isn’t the Augments it is the equipment and weapons given to said characters.

The only truly sound Arguments that are really is the fact that the spacing for techs and spells are off big time and that all characters are the same basically because of the Lp.

Also that is your opnion on the farming some like doing that type of Farming such as K- who is famous around here for his 200 hours and not even half-way through game.

Ahahaha. Thank you Reva, though I doubt I’m famous outside the circle of me, you and Agent. It’s actually 150 hours currently, but the fact stands. Some people are into farming, some are not. I have full boards for everyone, most of that done before I ever got Golden Amulets.

hunting is really, really boring.

but farming = more fun than the story because the story is really awful lol jftr

The beginning ones are but once you get into the elites you get to fight Gilgamesh and Yizmat. Now those are fun you just need to stick with it a bit.

Ahahaha. Thank you Reva, though I doubt I’m famous outside the circle of me, you and Agent. It’s actually 150 hours currently, but the fact stands. Some people are into farming, some are not. I have full boards for everyone, most of that done before I ever got Golden Amulets.

Still though, 150 hours? You must have like everything pretty much save the rest of the story and some hidden bosses.

Still though, 150 hours? You must have like everything pretty much save the rest of the story and some hidden bosses.

I just disposed of Judge Bergan. I have the bestiary complete for every area I have visited*, all the loot I have access to to make all the synthesizable items on the Bazaar, all the hunts available up til Bergan (I’m working on the post-Bergan set now), all the side-quests available done and all the available Espers (6)

Basically everything I can have done at this point, I have done. Penelo is lvl62 and everyone else is 54.

*I haven’t finished Mosphoran, Salikawood, or the Necrohol as I just took a stroll to pick up the Zodiac Spear.

yea the first thing i did was complete the main storyline. My main party was at level 60 or so (Didn’t even bother training the other 3 members) Now im working on the hunts and side quests. I got up to the first 20 hunts completed today alone, and i’ve been doing some training in The Pharos-Subterra with my main party equipped with Embroidered Tippets so i’ve been leveling up insanely and im close to getting to level 70. I only got about 60 hours however which pales in comparison to your time put inot the game.

The most time-consuming thing is loot hunting. You can synthesize a fair amount of powerful weapons and armor early if you know exactly what you need lootwise. I made a complete list shortly after I started the game. I do alot of stealing and chaining, but it’s worth it. I’d honestly rather do it now than later. I’ve always enjoyed synthesizing (Weapon upgrading in VIII, Rikku’s mixes in X) and if I had time in my life to play XI again, I’d love to do it there as well, but alas.

My levels are a natural result of the looting. I could take out the Saurian before I left the estersand because I was raising money for all the Grimoires.

Duplicate post. Connection went screwy. My apologies.

No it does tell you Heavy armor 5 and how much Lp it costs I know it does because I used a guide to figure out a path for Maxamalion and I know it tells you that since I used those as Bench marks. As for them not being next to each other it matters not since all you have to do is See Light armor 3 then find Light armor 4.

It does not tell you until after you learn a square next to it. I will show you a picture of my television if you don’t know what i’m going on about.

As for waste of time Lp farming maybe maybe not if you do ANY of the hunts chances are good you will get stuff you can’t equip yet so that type of farming HELPS alot. Also that is your opnion on the farming some like doing that type of Farming such as K- who is famous around here for his 200 hours and not even half-way through game. Also it doesn’t take that long if you know what you to do and are a decent level.

I know it’s my opinion.
However the game is making people do more point farming than it could have if it was designed better.

As for the growth it doesn’t matter since it is LEVEL that matters not what augments. Augments only help they don’t make or break a party. Also what makes a Character a long range a tank isn’t the Augments it is the equipment and weapons given to said characters.

Even final fantasy 7 gave the player the choice of which stat boosting they did via sources.
Final fantasy 12 does not allow me to spend my points on strength or hp boosts without having to gain other things i don’t want.

ps: my host isn’t letting me upload things right now, but i’ll show you what i mean later

It does not tell you until after you learn a square next to it. I will show you a picture of my television if you don’t know what i’m going on about.

Reva means that it shows you literally "Heavy Armor 5." You’re right, it doesn’t show you what pieces of armor are covered under it until you activate it though.

FFXII is really, really shit.

FFXII is really, really the shit.

Fix’d :smrt:

Too easy.

Way to easy.

Fix’d :smrt:

Too easy.

Boring crappy storylines with boring crappy characters and boring crappy sidequests don’t make it the shit.

It makes it shit.

License system was an awful idea too.

Too easy

FF12’s storyline was politically based, not emotionally based.

Not everyone’s cup of tea, but I liked it – especially since it showed the early history of Ivalice, where most of my favourite Square games are based.

I also think the License system is kinda crappy, but honestly, any Japanese RPG system is crappy compared to the level of customization a game like KOTOR or Oblivion gives you. Still, my favourite J-RPG system is still the Job system, seen in FF3,5, Tactics, Tactics Advance, X-2 and XI.

Boring crappy storylines with boring crappy characters and boring crappy sidequests don’t make it the shit.

It makes it shit.

License system was an awful idea too.

Too easy

We disagree. That’s perfectly cool with me.

Reva means that it shows you literally "Heavy Armor 5." You’re right, it doesn’t show you what pieces of armor are covered under it until you activate it though.

I know exactly what he means, he just doesn’t know what i mean.

Neither do you apparently

I know exactly what he means, he just doesn’t know what i mean.

Neither do you apparently

Well then I apologize for getting involved.

Andyuk: It’s pretty simple really. If you want to get a character to be a knight, You just need to unlock the path that leads to the heavy armor class and the weapons of you choice. You unlock the Heavy Armor 1-2-3… which you can see even if you didn’t unlock it. I really wonder what you don’t understand in all this. Sure, you won’t know that this Sword tile has the Tournesol in it, but you’ll know that it will unlock a higher type of sword. The progression of the game is so that it will give you the swords in the proper order, so if your character is a swordsman, you’ll get all the swords in the logical order, and the unlocking of the tiles will be in that same order. Unless you rush in the game, you’re not likely to end up lacking LP points.

Also the FEW tricks you can apply to get the better swords also help gain ALOT of LP such as Demonwall-Doomwall and the Demonbane or the Mimic trick in the Barheim for Deathbringer.

As for your point rephrase it because 3 people can’t see what you are trying to say. Since you say I don’t get your point please rephrase it as clear as possible so I can. Thank you.

Okay I just checked I was wrong all stuff like guns axes or magic are under the tile heading weapon Magick respectivly. I am sorry it has been awhile since I played and not have the Lp board shown to me completly if unbought. So I concead the Tiles are not labeled as I thought they were until they are next to a bought one my mistake.

But honestly by the time you can buy a Tile you are well aware of what is in it as well as the general pattern of the tiles such as the bows and lance are genrally straight across. So I still don’t see how you can waste Lp on a tile since you DO see what is in it when you can by it, and if you still buy it when you have no whire light items then either you have no brains or Lp to burn which the Latter is the more common practice by far.

I also agree with Raidenex on the ability systems it is impossible for someone to make an ability system every one will love there are always problems. Example Kotor you have to halt your level ups at a ceratin point in order to have more strength when you become a Jedi. I was level 8 scout when I became a Jedi Sentinel so I didn’t get as many force powers nor strenghts as I should have had. Oblivion I have never played what is it? Every game has problems that is a fact.

As for FFXII some get it others don’t exactly like how some like my friend known as the Twinkie Man, to keep him faceless, can Dance better then anyone on DDR and he is 30ish or so. While myself I can’t dance worth crap on it. Each there own some enjoy intrigue others don’t.

The way i play i might want to change a given characters weapon type. Then I will have to spend points finding out where the swords are when they had only unlocked say, bow 1, 2 and 3 before.
Like when i got the Blood sword from the bazaar. I spent loads of points looking for it until i could use the bugger. It’s a pain in the arse.

I just think it would be better to make all square visible and give more information from the start.

Sure, it would be better for a weak player if every characters started the game at level 99 with every pieces of equipment in his inventory, and every abilities learned.

Please don’t be a moron.

What i just said doesn’t make the game easier, only less time consuming.

You’re the only one I’ve met that have an issue with this. So maybe I’m not completely being a moron here.

You are if you post comments like your previous post.

It’s like you complain that in order for Vivi to get Doomsday in FFIX, you need to find the weapon that will teach you the skill beforehand.

But Andyuk has a point, though. If I recall correctly, Final Fantasy X’s Sphere Grid let you see exactly what was available on each one. Of course, FFX’s Sphere Grid only taught statistics and abilities, and not weapons and armor. It was also a much more closed path compared to the Licenese Board. But I do see the point here.

Though to be fair FFX sphere grid had the early problem of the spheres or whatever they were called Power speed so forth not being enough in the beginning espically ability.
Andyuk is complaining about basically the same thing on Lp points and FFXII is easier since you can farm the Lp right from the beginning while FFX spheres you couldn’t.

As for the whole info thing I never had a problem and I never Lp farmed until the end to get the Skyfigure. The basic hunts and or Leveling naturally kept me mostly up to date so long as I wasn’t stupid in my Lp use. Also I was finding for most equipment I was AHEAD of the gear by a wide margin magic was a little varied since I gave each character different magic paths to figure out what works best. Basically what I am saying is with the normal play through and only a little bit of leveling you shouldn’t be having the problems you are having your example I had Bloodsword for Vaan and Ashe by the time I got to Raithwall. So I really can’t understand your problem since while I admit having all the panels open for viewing at least slightly like with Sword5 or so would have been nice all the tiles follow a lose pattern Heavy Armor zig zags roughly till the end then it goes weird Bows Lances axes Swords great swords all pretty much go straight across with a few exceptions here or there. All Accesories are in the upper right corner Magic upper left Tech mid Right Augments Mid left and so forth all have an area and all have a basic pattern. Sure you might not have a perfect picture to go with but you can have an idea. Mind you Augments Accesories and Techs are null in this.

So while yes it could have been better it is not as glitched as you seem to think it is.

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lol it’s not even a much of a complaint. It’s just an observation really.

But you seem to disagree with me for some reason Hynad.

There are some emotional parts of the and I have noticed quite a few throughout the game

Vossler’s death, Drace’s death, the Massacre at Mt.Bur Omisace, the scene at Eruyt village between Jote, Mjrn and Fran, the final words spoken between Cid and Balthier, the moment after between Fran and Balthier, Reddas sacrificing himself, the ending too, especially with Gabranth passing.

So yeah, if anyone is worrying about it being too political..I’ve highlighted some touching/emotional moments.

I hope people can view my spoiler thing btw.

spoiler?

spoiler?

Click Quote on his post and you’ll be able to see what he said.

that’s a nice trick.

Yeah, it would be nicer if you actually could click it to view it, but it’s the best we’ve got for now.