Final Fantasy XII

Written by Tom Clare in PS2 Game Reviews, Tuesday 11 August, 2009

Released: 2007
Developer: Square Enix
Publisher: Square Enix
Genre: RPG
Platform: PS2

Final Fantasy XII is quite a remarkable triumph for Square Enix. The enduring, familiar formula upon which the series RPG traits are built have been changed in so many areas and in some cases, to such dramatic effect, that it seemed inevitable that FFXII would collapse under the weight of its own ambitions. But after eighty hours immersed in perhaps the most in-depth Final Fantasy universe yet, the feeling is the series is back to somewhere near its best.

Given the acclaim the three iconic PSOne Final Fantasy’s were met with, the following few years felt like something of an anti-climax. It was hoped the PS2 technology would allow an even grander envisioning of Square’s franchise, but ultimately, beneath FFX’s pretty skin lay an adventure with ageing gameplay mechanics and a listless story. Compounding the problem was the strange decision to make the sequel-within-a-sequel X-2, an unnecessary distraction for Square as they busied themselves with an online-only FF, released in Japan in 2002 but taking nearly four years to surface on a home console in the UK. Thus expectations for FFXII were slightly more reserved than usual.

The recurrence of beaches locations, bright landscapes and a ludicrously dressed blonde hero suggested only a small departure from its PS2 predecessor, but looks can be deceptive. Indeed, in terms of the gameplay, Final Fantasy XII makes what are probably the biggest and most significant changes in the series twenty year history.

Most extensive among them is the battle engine. Random battles have finally been cast aside, with all fights now taking place within the field of play and all enemies being visible. The player has control over character movement now so its no longer a case of simply waiting to select the ‘attack’ command every few seconds, though you still have to wait for your bar to fill before you can make your move and the command menu that consists of physical attacks, magic and items will be familiar to fans.

Real-time movement in itself doesn’t make a great deal of difference – you can run around a bit to distract enemies for instance, but there’s no dodge or block command to react/counter their attacks. It takes a bit of getting used to but the result is really dynamic and free-flowing; all the battles zip along at a good rate and boss fights in particular require constant tactical evaluations as you judge when to replenish health and when to chance landing some critical damage.

There’s only really one small element of the battle system that doesn’t excel, so I’ll get that out the way first. Espers, long-time series mainstays that can be summoned to do your bidding, sadly feel surplus to requirements with all of the other stuff going on in battle. You’ll rarely consider it to your benefit to use them; as doing so removes two of your three party members, leaving the remaining one vulnerable to attack and in the bigger battles, your Esper often gets overpowered before they can make a meaningful contribution. A bit of a shame really, as their special attacks are as spectacular as ever.

For those looking for an extra layer of tactical input, the Gambit system is ideal. Basically, it allows you to customise and prioritise the exact moves your computer-controlled allies make in specific situations, with literally thousands of possible combinations and outcomes. So you can designate a comrade to heal your party when someone drops below 30% health; use fire magic on enemies vulnerable to that element or use a healing Antidote when someone gets poisoned. At first it seems like a needless complication, but it’s hugely satisfying when you devise a strategy whereby own team-mates can help you out of trouble and win a fight you otherwise would have lost. It feels so different, and yet fits so comfortably – and that in a nutshell, is what makes Final Fantasy XII so successful.

It doesn’t stop there either. The standard experience points system (kill lots of beasties = get stronger) is complemented by a Licence grid. With licence points (LP) attained from defeating the various monsters in the game, you can buy licences that allow you to use specific magics, accessories, weaponry and armour as well as numerous status upgrades – think FFX’s Sphere Grid, only a little more user-friendly. It allows for some degree of freedom in the manner in which you develop your characters; some may learn to use high-level Swords or Crossbows, whilst others may choose to learn healing magics or attacking spells at the expense of something else. It works well because it gives you a frequent and tangible sense that you are expanding your characters abilities, though it does feel like it’s complicated for the sake of it. Acquiring a licence itself doesn’t necessarily mean that you can use the designated ability straight away – so for instance if acquire the ‘Flare’ magic licence, you’d still have to buy the ability itself from a magic store to be able to use it, and this also works the other way as certain equipment you buy can’t be used if you don’t have its specific licence – checking the selection of goods in the various armouries against what your status menu says you can or can’t equip can get a bit tiresome.

The depth of the gameplay is enough to gloss over what is not the best of stories. Granted, it’s an improvement on FFX but still suffers from excessive high-fantasy posturing, relying on clichés to such an extent that at times it feels at the point of parody. The cut-scenes look splendid, but are punctuated by needlessly convoluted and strangely worded dialogue exchanges, and there’s still just an inkling of unwelcome pomp and pretentiousness about it all. Vaan is a better lead character than his predecessor Tidus and this goes for the majority of his cohorts as well, thanks mostly to some improved English voicing.

Sky-pirate Balthier teases Vaan for having a bit-part role, a bit of an irony given his increasingly diminished involvement in the second half of the game. As his allies increasingly establish their roles, relationships and motivations within the bigger picture, the youngster’s part seems restricted and colourless, almost to the point where you feel he’s simply along for the ride, just to see what happens. The tale of the promising youngster with ideas above his station and potentially great powers is a well-worn one though, so maybe the shift in focus was no bad thing. The plot does become heavily bogged down by the middle part of the adventure, though fortunately the game-world itself remains a fascinating place to explore.

The world of Ivalice is just enormous; the scale and grandeur is really quite difficult to describe concisely. It’s perhaps the biggest Final Fantasy yet and for the first time, almost every location in the game is linked to at least one other, creating the feeling of a truly complete landscape with a very impressive structure. The locations are endlessly excellent; from the mist-shrouded Feywood to the swirling sandstorms of Dalmasca Westersand desert and the spooky swamps of the Nabreus Deadlands, exploring is a pleasure. The towns are also fantastic, particularly Rabanastre which plays the centre point to the opening few hours of play; there’s so much to see and do it takes a long time for the novelty of the bustling market-city to fade. Such places are packed with people to interact with, many dropping hints or rewarding your curiosity with mini-quests or some funny anecdotes, so whilst the main story may not be all that great, the dialogue exchanges with the townsfolk go someway to making up for it.

Compared to the lofty expectations set by its predecessors, FFXII’s in-game graphics don’t actually stand out a great deal. This is relatively speaking of course; the FMV’s are still jaw-droppingly fine and the general architecture of the surroundings is as ambitious and outstanding as ever. However, the texturing is a little unattractive, with buildings and characters also lacking a bit of clarity and sharpness, though it’s hard to complain too much as everything moves smoothly and for the first time in a main Final Fantasy game, you have full control of the camera, which is a nice touch.

Anyone who has ever played a Final Fantasy will be prepared to tackle a bewildering array of side-quests and FFXII is no different. There are so many, the majority of gamers probably won’t even discover half if they looked for them. Undoubtedly the best time-waster is the bounty hunting missions. Various characters within the game request help in hunting unique foes, each ranked according to difficulty, known as marks. Defeating them sees the player rewarded with money, items and occasionally a greater rank in The Clan – a group in Rabanastre set up specifically for rewarding hunts. There are dozens, and part of the fun is deducing where to find the creatures as you are given a hint to their location – they range from dragons and sandworms to giant wolves, rampaging chocobos and sewer-dwelling ghouls. It’s easy to get side-tracked for hours is search of these prized-beasties, and they provide the most satisfying challenge of all, a few of which proving harder than the final boss. The hunts provide an excellent means of gaining experience points for your party members without it ever feeling like you have to stop for a session of level-grinding.

On top of all this you have another quality soundtrack and a main game that, even should you chose to avoid all the additional trappings will offers weeks of play. The puzzles are mostly do-able and the objective marker on your map helps keep track of your immediate aims should you get distracted. There is still the odd baffling moment, such as the need at one stage to summon an Esper to help open a sealed door and several obscure pedestal challenges in the closing stages – but aside from this, there’s plenty to recommend Final Fantasy XII to both beginners, who might find the new combat more to their liking, and long-term players, who will appreciate the raft of new features and the chance to be immersed in an adventure that has unrivalled levels of depth.

 

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