I know people who have quit

[Rockman X]

I agree, all it was a shitty coloured piece if tin with a huge XII put into the middle of it

It looked SHINY on Gamestop's website, thus the pre-order...bastards shooped the pic

Gthat's y i stop playing cos the story is too complicated lol

Wut? Complicated? I'm sorry but how is the story complicated? There's not enough of it to be complicated. Now I can understand if you got totally lost and forgot wtf was going on, since the pacing in the game was horrid.

I'm a tit like that you see, I always seem to make a beeline for the expensive stuff...like the guide. I could of got the normal one for the usual 12 quid but noooooo I had to ge the hard back one that was almost 20 quid

I bought the collector's Brady Games guide and don't regret it. It was alot more convenient to flip through that than the PDF version I had on my comp, and it has a gorgeous artbook with it. Only thing that pissed me off was I got Penelo on the cover

I wish all of these boards (sphere grids, liscense board, etc) would go away in the FF games. What happened to just having a character use a certain weapon and armor specific to them? I'm just glad the battle system had an active/wait function when choosing commands. And dont get me started on gambits

I like the Sphere Grid, although it does have a bit of a learning curve. But I agree, having set classes is nice. IX's system was nice and simple, equip armor and weapons appropriate to your class to learn abilities. Kill things to get AP to learn said abilities. The gambits...ugh. I won't get into that.

 

[Cecily]

I fell in love with this game. I had not played a Final Fantasy since X, so I was aching for another one to play. I knew it was going to be different from the others going in, and I think that's why I liked it so much. It was literally unlike any game I have ever played.

A lot of people call it "MMORPG lite," but I think that's why I liked it. I've never played an MMORPG, so it was a new experience for me. At first I thought Gambits would take away too much power from the player, but customizing them was a hobby for me. It did include a lot of level-grinding, but this is one of the few games in which level-grinding is actually fun, because you can do it during hunts and pick up some good items on the way. Big thumbs up from me on the battle system.

I can't get enough politics in my storylines, so I will sing the praises of Tactics and XII to anyone who will listen. I got the feeling Vaan and Penelo weren't really vital characters, but that made them more real to me. Most of us aren't involved in world politics, but they do affect us and we do observe them. Now that we're on the subject of characters, Fran is my favorite, followed closely by Balthier. I loved Fran's back story and the events of Eruyt Village, and I love how Balthier sticks up for her.

When I first learned about the License Board I thought it would be a lame version of the Sphere Grid (which is amazing), but it grew on me. Even though there was a lot of freedom, I thought there were pretty clear paths you could take to make each character different enough. For example, I made Ashe my summoner, so she owned all of the Esper licenses.

My only real problem is the Zodiac Spear, I guess. Why would they punish us for opening chests?! I missed it.

 

[Aselia]

frankly i love this game. At first i had trouble getting into it, but it is now my favorite game. It actually quickly overtook FFVIII as my favorite game

 

[Azekez]

I play it in little bursts with big gaps in between. I really enjoy playing it for awhile and then lose interest.
The storyline is too sparse to hold my attention.

It's cool not having random battles but i think square need to come up with some new ideas with the battle system.

I'm going to see the game through (almost finished) but at this stage it's unlikely i'll ever play it again.

 

[Misty]

...They came up with new ideas for the battle system! The whole stepping away from random battles brought on plenty of new things to try out.

 

[Karoleena]

i think this game is a whole work of art. the visuals are beautiful and make my eyes twitch with glee @_< anyway...back to topic.

i am one of those who has given up...well i didn't give up but i went on hiatus *lol* i bought it about a month after it came out and i got hooked. i couldn't really get the hang of customizing my characters so i just gave them all the same abilities which was really stupid. i got to raithwalls tomb and just couldn't beat it so i stopped playing for about a year. a year happened and i decided to start a new game. this time i took time to read tips online to create skilled characters. i made it to raithwalls tomb and beat it in like 4 minutes. i played it some more 'till the part where you go to Fran's home. it's been 4 months since i played it. i don't dislike it, in fact i love it and like the fact that it's different from the other ff's but i can't get my ass to play it...i don't know why.

 

[Ironman]

me and a couple of my friends debate weather this game is good or not, i think it is great but my friends have all said they don't like it, not sure why they are crazy. although it has grown on me and most of my mates haven't completed it

 

[Hal Otacon]

I have the same - lots of people i know don't like this game, i find it amazing game.. don't know what thy don't like

 

[Bambi]

I like the Sphere Grid, although it does have a bit of a learning curve. But I agree, having set classes is nice. IX's system was nice and simple, equip armor and weapons appropriate to your class to learn abilities. Kill things to get AP to learn said abilities. The gambits...ugh. I won't get into that.

My guide just has the same as whats on the case of the game

Anyways, the licence grid really irritated me, it was really boring and I hated the fact that everyone could use well, everything. Sticking to their own weapon types would have been far more appealing

I know everyone could learn all the same stuff in X, but at least they had there own set of weapons. This way just makes me want to kit everyon out in the hardst armour and weapon I can find regardlesss of wether I wanted to make them magic users or not. And I know I could have kept them that way but I didn't really see the point when I knew something else hit harder....

Restrictions would be nice, or maybe their own licence grids as opposed to just one. I really got sick of looking at that thing

I think it was more a graphic fest than anything...it just felt so linear and I think that's why I got so bloody bored with it

And I still haven't gotten around to replaying it I'm not sure I ever will at this rate

 

[Talo]

I remember the first time I was playing through the game I could only get just past Raithwall and I stopped playing. I enjoyed the gameplay a lot but the way the story was paced it didn't reel me in. I wanted to finish the story but didn't want to have to worry about rushing too quickly and not having enough gil/equipment to keep the pace up so I relied on a gameshark. Gasp, oh no. Whatever. Using this I could speed up the pace and just get the story without worry. I noticed the story quality rose the quicker the next plot point was reached. The intensity of a single scene hadn't been whittled down by unnecessarily long gaps in plot. Which is why to this day I don't criticize the story as a whole (though there are still details I think take away from the story's quality but it's hard to find a perfect story) but I do criticize the pacing. Final Fantasy Tactics did the politics better.

At that point, after my first playthrough, I really didn't get into hunts or delve into the bazaar or really anything but about a year later I found out about all the extra stuff you could do so I went back. I finished my second (legit) playthrough a couple months ago and I'm going through a third time (also legit). I enjoy the gameplay too much to set this down. And now that I know the story, a thorough/leisurely pace set by me and not by poor storyTELLING is something I find enjoyable.

I never understood why the Gambit system was criticized the way it was. I approached it this way: as long as my characters do what I want them to do, I have no qualms telling the computer what I'm going to do so it will do it for me. I realize this is a personal opinion but at it's base level, it doesn't take away any of my influence on my characters.

The license board is a bit of a different story. If the entire board was revealed instead of just surrounding tiles it would be more effective in party planning. I shouldn't have to rely on FAQs for the big picture. And as for having everyone able to learn everything I realized that in practice it's not really that hard for someone you don't want to use a certain spell to not use it. Sure they may have that license aquired and everything but depending on their role, it could be more efficient not to use it. And everyone being able to use every weapon doesn't bug me personally but I do see where people might want a sort of restrictive guideline. For me though, I don't mind. I like everyone being able to switch mid-battle to a ranged weapon if I'm fighting a flying monster that swoops in then switch back after. Or Balthier to be a ranged chemist in the beginning but a support attacker or tank with katana/greatswords near the end.

I don't like random chests. It's a dumb idea and I just don't bother with them. I'll grab them as I come upon them and be happy that I'm gaining anything at all.

More than random chests I don't like the rediculous spawn conditions for some Rare Monsters. Who in their right mind would be wandering through the Westersand (or any area for that matter) with less than 10% of their health that would spawn Dustia? I realize if someone stuck around in Westersand long-enough and ran out of restoratives it could happen but it's just not very likely.

The Bazaar wouldn't have bugged as much if two things were included. A list of ALL previous items sold to the bazzaar. And some sort of a recipe system. I don't see how hard that would have been to include them as Clan Centurio rewards/Hunt rewards. "I see you are a blah-blah-blah rank now. You've been burning the midnight oil, kupo. Clan Centurio knows how to reward it's hardworking members. Recieved 2 Arcanae 4 Teleport Stones and Golden Flower Recipe!" The sometimes vague bestiary hints don't count. But as an aside I did like all the incidental knowledge about the world that came in the bestiary entries.

Though I seem to have contradicted my earlier statement of enjoying the gameplay I really can't put this game down. Once I printed off Bazaar requirements I was interested in, Rare Monster spawn conditions and the like; I remedied those problems. On principal I don't like that I was practically forced to take that route but in the end I'm still completing my bestiary and getting bazaar goods as soon as possible and I enjoy it. I enjoy the locales. I enjoy most of the music. I enjoy seeing how NPC's change their responses based on current events. I enjoy the Hunts. I enjoy summoning Espers for fun. I enjoy running around with Penelo using weapons that look goofy on her. I could go on but I think I've gotten way too long winded as it is

 

[BalambFish]

I know people who have quit it too. They find it too boring. I'll tell you what: when i first started the game, i kind of felt it was boring too. The story line was outright simple, the marks and hunts were time fillers, the license plates suck, the chars were mediocre, and only the gameplay and world map were innovative. With more bad than good, I still finished the game. If you're really a Final Fantasy fan, you should be able to complete the game no matter how sucky you or they say it is.

 

[Bambi]

Just because someone choses not to complete a game doesn't mean they are not a 'true fan' I very nearly wrote this game off and left it neglected for months although I still did beat it ....eventually.

I doubt I'l even get FFXIII. Doesn't make me any less of a fan IMO. It's just fanboyish to play a game you hate just because of the name attached to it

 

[BalambFish]

it's not fanboyish, it's love...

You love a girl even though you know all the defects and wrongs of her charcter. Despite what people tell you or what you seem to tell yourself, you insist on hanging with her. In the end, none of it matters because you want to go with her till the end.

I'm not fanboyish; I just love the game. I don't play it because it has "FF" attached to it. I play it because it represents a franchise with a long outsanding record, a game achieved only with creativity, discipline, hardwork, and perseverance. As a supporter of the series, I play it through because I want to follow it through the good and bad times. And when people finally say"FF12 sucks" I can just say "It's just one of their bad years."

If people don't play their games to the fullest? Would Square have a reason to continue it? Maybe profits, but with less people finishing it, they'll lose sales eventually via OST's, artworks, extra products.

Honestly, lack of the will to finish something only means lack of interest for me. The lack of popularity of something, eventually leads to that things decline.

 

[Rockman X]

it's not fanboyish, it's love...

You love a girl even though you know all the defects and wrongs of her charcter. Despite what people tell you or what you seem to tell yourself, you insist on hanging with her. In the end, none of it matters because you want to go with her till the end.

LOLWUT? Did you seriously just make that comparison? I agreed with your previous post, but this...wow. You just compared playing a game to having a girlfriend, I'm not sure if that's demeaning to women or if it's just pathetic.

I'm not fanboyish; I just love the game. I don't play it because it has "FF" attached to it. I play it because it represents a franchise with a long outsanding record, a game achieved only with creativity, discipline, hardwork, and perseverance. As a supporter of the series, I play it through because I want to follow it through the good and bad times. And when people finally say"FF12 sucks" I can just say "It's just one of their bad years."

Um...newsflash...all those reasons you listed ARE because it has the name FF attached to it. You just said you were a supporter of the franchise, therefore, you support the name FF. Personally, I think of it as bad morals and blind fandom. SE is a company, the only language they speak is sales. Now, if you go around buying all the crap along with the good, it's not going to teach them how to differentiate between the two is it?

If people don't play their games to the fullest? Would Square have a reason to continue it? Maybe profits, but with less people finishing it, they'll lose sales eventually via OST's, artworks, extra products.

I don't see how OSTs, artwork and memorabilia can be affected by whether a person is a completionist or not. As a matter of fact, there IS no correlation. I bought the OST to FF9 years ago, long before I'd ever completed any of the sidequests. People don't have to complete a game to say "oh wow, this soundtrack is awesome, I want it" or to buy an art book because they love the game's artwork.

Not to mention, they make sidequests sidequests for a reason. They know not everyone out there is going to have the time or the patience to achieve 100% on the game. There are plenty out there who just wanna get through the game and enjoy the story. But they also know there are people out there who DO love getting 100% for bragging rights or because they're obsessive compulsive. Like most companies, SE caters to both the casual RPG gamer and the hardcore. That's another business tactic, making sure you can appeal to multiple targets. And I daresay that half or more of their sales come from people who aren't completionists.

Honestly, lack of the will to finish something only means lack of interest for me. The lack of popularity of something, eventually leads to that things decline.

Well duh lack of will to finish is lack of interest. That's because XII's plot and characters are largely on the dull side. But one game boring people doesn't mean the entire series will decline. If anything, it's a good thing, because that forces SE to look at why the game isn't as popular and change things for the better.

Business mah boi, it's business

 

[Trextbomb]

For the original topic

I found 12 to be a letdown compared to the other games, seeing that i started the series with 10, then back tracked passed all of them apart from 2 and 3.

I didnt feel like 12 had a story to follow, the characters were boring, and you didnt get to know them very well, balthier was probobly the only one.

But the battle system was pritty amazing compared to the games past, it was faster, but once you had set up the macro's they characters played for them selves, which made it a simple game.

Id like 13v to have the same battle system as to what 12 had, but alot better story line, since honestly i didnt get involved like i usualy would with an FF game.

 

[Donald Trump]

Just because someone choses not to complete a game doesn't mean they are not a 'true fan' I very nearly wrote this game off and left it neglected for months although I still did beat it ....eventually.

I doubt I'l even get FFXIII. Doesn't make me any less of a fan IMO. It's just fanboyish to play a game you hate just because of the name attached to it

Oh Noes, this is the second time in two days I've agreed with you.

That aside, I think you're totally right, it's fanboyism not being a FF fan. I beat XII once and I started to play through it again, though this time I can't be bothered because it is boring IMO.

Again, shockingly I agree wth you about FFXIII, but that's because I can't afford a PS3, if I could, I probably would buy 13. Not buying it however, is not justificatrion for accusations of heresy.

I'll try to resist making a childish remark about Video Games, Wimminz and Secks. There, I alluded to it, but didn't actually say it.
Comparing obsessive love of FF to a girl is laughable really. Because Video Games are so much like Women aren't they?

I disagree with you Trextbomb, I'd prefer the ATB system in 13, like in FFX

 

[Coco]

I am one of those who gave up.

Unfortunately, I was not that connected to the story, the characters, the music.. A friend of mine who had also given up told me that it was just "too perfect" for him. Including the smooth voice of the narrator and the fantastic graphics.

Anyway, I gave up after about 52 hours. (I don't remember where I stopped. I was in a very tall and confusing tower, which provided a lot of headaches for me.)

 

[Misty]

You were probably in the Pharos. Gee whiz, it seems there's no point in me putting up my FFXII review. Really, it'll get just ragged the fuck out of at this rate.

 

[Rockman X]

I disagree with you Trextbomb, I'd prefer the ATB system in 13, like in FFX

CTB, actually. And I agree, X's battle system kicked ass. I don't really like XII's system that much. Either give us completely real time (ala Kingdom Hearts) or give us turn-based, I don't wanna see any of this MMO bullshit again.

A friend of mine who had also given up told me that it was just "too perfect" for him. Including the smooth voice of the narrator and the fantastic graphics.

lolwtf? That's hilarious. As for fantastic graphics...one could counter with something as simple as Vaan's painted on abs. Those looked like shit. It was nifty seeing people's hair blow in the wind and pendants swing around when people ran though, instead of seeing them permanently glued down like in X. Not really anything groundbreaking, just a nifty touch.

Anyway, I gave up after about 52 hours. (I don't remember where I stopped. I was in a very tall and confusing tower, which provided a lot of headaches for me.)

The Pharos, I believe. Hated that place but you'll gain levels fast in it...Reddas does more harm than good in it though

You were probably in the Pharos. Gee whiz, it seems there's no point in me putting up my FFXII review. Really, it'll get just ragged the fuck out of at this rate.

You can put it up if you want to...but you gotta realize, you're in an extreme minority here. There are alot more people who were disappointed and bored out of their minds with XII than there are fangirls of it like you. You can't expect people not to reply to you when you say the Judges are deep, wonderful characters and such. People have their opinions and they're gonna say them. Not to mention every argument about how XII is awesome can be shot down by using Tactics as a counter-example......sooooooo *shrug*

 

[Red_Mage]

Level 99 for 99% of the game amused me. I like it overall.

It was like a good concept that needs working on. Kind of like Mario Sunshine, but that's not relevant.