"A new bar has been set"

Final Fantasy XII had been in development for years. As time went on, the hype increased and screen shots and trailers showed a remarkably different experience to be shown with this installment into Final Fantasy than that of previous titles mainly because it had Yasumi Matsuno's influence instilled in it to illustrate a different atmosphere as well as a different battle system and other things that defied tradition. The hype only built up as Final Fantasy XII became the sixth game to receive a perfect score from Famitsu and finally it was released and hailed in all its glory where it was received well and for good reason.

The graphics are nothing short of phenomenal. Hardly surprising knowing Square-Enix's track record of amazing graphics however it is not just the quality of the graphics that amaze but also how well they are used in making many of the diverse locales of Final Fantasy XII, the different characters, the spells, and the designs of the enemies. The designs of characters and enemies appear darker and more realistic not just because of increased graphical quality but also because of style, as skeletons look horrid and evil, the designs of the monsters range from cute to mind-numbingly vile, and as far as the characters are concerned, there is no excess of beautiful characters as has been the tradition of many J-RPGs; instead many of the antagonists look rugged and realistic with wrinkles, age, and in some cases ugly much like the people of reality. The protagonists are much in the same vein in that their features are not exaggerated anime designs given a new life with computer graphics but actually look like they came out of real life with how much attention is paid to hair and the facial features of the characters.

The music, being done by Hitoshi Sakimoto, is nothing short of splendid. His work in this title carries his usual flavor that screams medieval and carries a gritty, realistic flavor in it that can be found in the pieces that are meant to evoke joy as well as sorrow and despair. Sadly his work here is noticeably not as good as his work found in titles such as Vagrant Story, Final Fantasy Tactics, and Breath of Fire V: Dragon Quarter, leaving something to be desired, however ultimately his work here is efficient and satisfying to the player.

The story is something from a stock fantasy story, with a division of the corrupt Archadian Empire being led by the oldest son of the Emperor, Vayne Solidor, against the Kingdom of Dalmasca in an effort for land and resources in their war against the Rozarrian Empire. Archades' conquest succeeds and Dalmasca is annexed under the rule of the empire. Vayne takes his position as consul of Rabanastre, the former capital of Dalmasca, effectively marking his rule over the Dalmasca region and though he appears as a benevolent man who wants to help the people, ultimately his ambitions go to far darker places.

The protagonists are composed of disenfranchised Dalmascans who wish to retake the kingdom from Vayne's hands as well as some who are aware of the corruption of the empire and wish to fix errors in the empire's rule as well as make things better for the world of Ivalice that the Archadian Rozarrian war has been ruining. The protagonists all receive a fair share of development though something must be said in response to a popular acclaim that states that little of the protagonists receive development. The latter is not true as there is no real central protagonist of the story and all of the characters play their different roles accordingly and don't try to overstep their bounds. For example, Vaan is a young man who wants to become a sky pirate and overthrow the Archadian rule of Dalmasca because of the death of his brother Reks at the hands of Archades. As the story progresses, he becomes involved with rebels that seek Archades' demise but being a boy of seventeen years and living as a simple thief on the streets of Rabanastre all his life, his role seems to diminish however as the story progresses, he can be seen developing from a simple vengeful boy to a young man who is trying to find answers to life as well as accomplish his life's goals. Fran is a traveler alongside Balthier and though she says little and her role in the plot is minimal, she receives plenty of development because her past and character are revealed as she simply wants to travel with Balthier for events in her past are shown to have changed her drastically and her role in the plot, though it is not elaborated with flash, is shown and because of her actions in the story, she is a major character regardless of how much of her is spelled out.

The antagonists exist in the same vein as the protagonists. Some of them are corrupt Archadian soldiers, others are bounty hunters that are just trying to survive in the world, and others are people who regret the choices they have made but feel that they have gone too far to turn back. Aside from what is told about their pasts this is what is told to us about the antagonists and that is all that is needed because they aren't angsty kids enmeshed in their idiotic grandiose ambitions to rid the world of the "filthy humans" or people who feel that the world is evil and only they can make it right; no the antagonists are humans through and through who are shown to have their choices in life, some regrettable, some admirable, and that's all that is needed to know because the story of Final Fantasy XII isn't some epic journey to save the world from evil, it's a war story of politics and the struggle of people against other people. For example, the character of Vayne is a typical scheming politician who is out only for himself however what is shown of his past makes this character acceptable and believable and nothing else is needed of him. The same can be said for Ba'Gamnan, a bounty hunter out for money by doing whatever jobs he can take, as well as having a grudge against the sky pirate Balthier. His character proves to be particularly devious and though his role in the plot is minimal, his actions and character become memorable to the player because he succeeded in doing what the writers had wanted to do with him.

The battle system is noticeably different from previous Square-Enix games. The battle system mixes the Active Turn Based system of previous Final Fantasies with an atmosphere similar to that of an Action RPG in that there are no more random battles and all of the enemies are right on screen. With such a system where attacks can come suddenly without expectations of such as well as the constant need to input commands over and over again with the large amount of encounters and enemies that can come from one screen alone, even more when an entire dungeon is looked at, Square-Enix developed the Gambit system, a system in which the characters can be programmed with many different AI commands to replicate what you would have them do in battle. As the game progresses, more and more Gambits become available eventually rendering player control over the characters meaningless (save few exceptions) with how well the Gambits replicate the player's desires in how the characters are to act in battle.

There is no formal world map in this game, instead it has been replaced by a larger version of Final Fantasy X/X-2/XI's continuing world map of plains and towns to travel across and to fight treasure. The large scale of the world of Ivalice, as well as the elaborate designs of the towns as far as their size as well as the designs of the buildings, the towns themselves, and the people, shows a notable achievement in how everything seems so real in how an actual fictional world seems to have been made and not just any stock fantasy world meant as a device simply to carry the plot and story along. The realism of the world of Ivalice further carries itself with the bestiary of the game that has detailed biographies of each monster that show tidbits of the world's history, myths, and legends.

Another new addition to Final Fantasy XII is that of the License Grid a system of acquiring a few additional statistics, equipment, and spells similar to that of the Sphere Grid of Final Fantasy X. The License Grid works in that all of the game's spells, equipment, and techniques are accessible only after purchasing them off of the License Grid as well as purchasing them or finding them from the shops and dungeons respectively. The Quickenings, the new form of the Limit Breaks/Overdrives, are used differently in that usage of them can be random and sometimes difficult to use in that chance and timing plays a strong role when utilizing them however this is a wise decision on Square-Enix's part as the Quickenings themselves are shown to be overpowered even with their cost of a huge portion of a characters' Magic Points. The Espers, the new summon monsters have their strength relative to that of the character that summons them and they are powerful yet depending on how they are used, they can be easily killed by the enemy, thus requiring a bit of strategy and finesse from the player. The License Points necessary to further the journey of the License Grid come at one point even late in the game however with how addictive the battle system is, License Points are acquired quickly and easily.

There are many side quests in Final Fantasy XII, ranging from minor errands for people to becoming a hunter to hunt monsters and becoming well rewarded for such tasks. The extra tasks that can be done can easily carry on into the range of hundreds of hours further showing the expanse achieved by the game as well as how much work has been put into it.

Overall Final Fantasy XII is a masterpiece. It succeeds as a story of people's struggles and as a game of much depth and freedom to do much without the story infringing on such. The hype was well deserved for a game of this magnitude and it's status as the PlayStation2 game of the year was only to be expected and a new bar has been raised in the RPG genre.

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 02/14/07