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If you haven't already played Final Fantasy XII, let me start by giving you the quick intro. If you have played it, skip this paragraph. For starters, this game is awesome. Not surprisingly, it is also huge. You play as some kid off the street who gets embroiled in a plot that spirals out into a save-the-world scenario. Well, I assume it will spiral out that far, though I am currently only out to save the country right now ;). There are TONS of cut scenes, mixed in with in-game story sequences, providing a pretty rich story. The combat system, once you get going with it, is refreshingly smooth. Characters can be assigned "gambits", which are essentially macros, that can be placed in order. These macros function like big if-else blocks. In each macro, you set the threshold condition, like "Ally HP < 70%" or "Enemy: Flying" or "Target Nearest Enemy". Then you set the action, anything from "Attack", to casting a spell, using an item, whatever. Each character can have multiple gambits, which will take effect in order. So your first gambit might be to cast cure on any ally with HP < 50%, then a second gambit for attacking the party leader's target. This lets you prioritize their actions for some circumstances. Combat in ffxii is no longer based on the traditional system where you walk around and randomly get sucked into a battle scene separate from the world map. In this game, you see the bad guys wandering around and there is no difference between the combat sequence and the regular walking around map. It's like walking around in EQ, where you see baddies and walk up and start beating on them. The gambits are really nice because you can tune them up for your group and basically all that dungeon-crawling and grinding through enemies is automated. The combat is also in real-time, not strictly turn-based, so characters are doing things based on individual timers and it can all get pretty chaotic.
In a nutshell, the game is huge, sprawling, and interesting. I found it difficult to get on board with the story at first, just trying to figure out who the hell the characters were and what was going on. In fact, the first 4 hours of the game, well, pretty much suck. It's like introductory stuff to familiarize you with the gameplay mechanics, which I suppose is necessary, but it was incredibly boring. The story starts out pretty simple, but rapidly expands, leaving your head spinning about who is who and what is going on for probably 8 to 10 hours. Now, though, with 12 hours in, I am feeling more comfortable with the characters and story, but especially with the combat and gambits. I enjoy tuning up the gambits and watching the team carry out their orders.
In most RPGs of olde, you would go into town, talk to every single person for any tidbits of info, buy up new stuff, then advance the story and head to the next dungeon. This game holds to some of that basic structure, but it would take MONTHS to talk to every person in town. The places are pretty damn big and full of people.
By way of conclusion, let me say that the game is solid and I recommend it. I have heard it compared to FFVII as the story rolls on, just getting better and better, and so far this has been true for me. It has great graphics, a complex story, fun combat, and plenty of different ways to play and things to do. It is an excellent addition to the Final Fantasy series, at the very least. As for being one of the best, that remains to be seen, but I will keep you posted.
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