Post by Vireo Gilvus on Jul 13, 2012 9:36:52 GMT -5
Recently I've been getting back into a classic (and oft-misunderstood) gem for the PlayStation 2. I bought it about five years ago, but I never got a chance to play it much because of various IRL issues I'd rather not get into at the moment.
Final Fantasy 12 is one of those games where you can lose yourself in the grinding and side quests for many hours, and forget about the plot. Instead of a conventional RPG world map, all the areas are seamlessly connected. Its open-ended world and detailed gameplay options are reminiscent of MMORPGs, even though it always remains offline. Its soundtrack, voice acting, and visual design of the characters and locales are nothing short of first-class. (Plus, you gotta give it credit for not being as punishing to the player as certain other FFs were. Ahem.)
So why did it attract such a Hatedom? Probably because of its unconventional ideas (Gambits, anyone?), as well as the markedly "un-FF-like" design choices throughout. People familiar with Square Enix's oeuvre will quickly figure out that it was made by the same development team behind Final Fantasy Tactics and Vagrant Story, as opposed to any of the main games in the series.
All in all, if you like FF but are looking for "something different", FF12 is worth a try, especially if you're a fan of that whole "sandbox RPG" subgenre. (And if you'd rather not buy it or play it again, HCBailly is filming a FF12 Let's Play video series right now on YouTube.) As an indie RPG designer myself, I highly recommend FF12, and my current project will be greatly influenced by it.
(Incidentally, I was wondering if the Final Fantasy subforum set here should have a board for FF12. Whether this game should be treated as part of the main series is debatable, since it's closer to FF Tactics than "regular FF" in terms of style, presentation, and staff. I know Kalisiin doesn't have a PS2, but they're dirt-cheap and I recommend she at least get Dragon Quest 8, being a DQ fan and all.)
Final Fantasy 12 is one of those games where you can lose yourself in the grinding and side quests for many hours, and forget about the plot. Instead of a conventional RPG world map, all the areas are seamlessly connected. Its open-ended world and detailed gameplay options are reminiscent of MMORPGs, even though it always remains offline. Its soundtrack, voice acting, and visual design of the characters and locales are nothing short of first-class. (Plus, you gotta give it credit for not being as punishing to the player as certain other FFs were. Ahem.)
So why did it attract such a Hatedom? Probably because of its unconventional ideas (Gambits, anyone?), as well as the markedly "un-FF-like" design choices throughout. People familiar with Square Enix's oeuvre will quickly figure out that it was made by the same development team behind Final Fantasy Tactics and Vagrant Story, as opposed to any of the main games in the series.
All in all, if you like FF but are looking for "something different", FF12 is worth a try, especially if you're a fan of that whole "sandbox RPG" subgenre. (And if you'd rather not buy it or play it again, HCBailly is filming a FF12 Let's Play video series right now on YouTube.) As an indie RPG designer myself, I highly recommend FF12, and my current project will be greatly influenced by it.
(Incidentally, I was wondering if the Final Fantasy subforum set here should have a board for FF12. Whether this game should be treated as part of the main series is debatable, since it's closer to FF Tactics than "regular FF" in terms of style, presentation, and staff. I know Kalisiin doesn't have a PS2, but they're dirt-cheap and I recommend she at least get Dragon Quest 8, being a DQ fan and all.)
