So, I finally picked up Final Fantasy 12

The special edition, too.

I'm about 20 hours into it, and it's pretty damned cool. I really like the new combat system. It's a refreshing change of pace from using a traditional turn-based setup for the twelfth friggin' time. The story seems decent so far, but I have yet to encounter anything that puts it ahead of 10 in that department.

My one question, directed at the folks on the forum who might have beaten it already, is this: do the locations ever generally change? I've been seeing a lot of deserts so far. A lot. Deserts and desert cities. Is the scenery ever going to make any radical changes to other climates, or am I pretty much going to be sweating my ass off the rest of the game?

No, mostly the beginning is just like that. It starts in a desert country, after all. I'm surprised that you're 20 hours in and you haven't seen anything else. The zone just south of the main town is a swamp, after all.

The story isn't bad, but XII seems more about the gameplay than the story.

What do you think about Balthier, Raziel? He seems like your sort of character.

Does he work at the front desk of a hotel?

Why don't you ask your mom.

I also found that Vaan didn't seem to fit into the story very well. It was almost like he didn't even belong in the story, at least not as the main character. I don't really care for him much.

Well, I haven't been to Giza during the rains yet. I'm just about to. In the earlier segments, it looks like desert environment to me. And yeah, I know it's probably taken me longer than it should have to get to where I am. Just finished Raithwall's Tomb, and I'm clocked at 23 hours. I've spent a lot of time grinding.

What do you think about Balthier, Raziel? He seems like your sort of character.

Balthier is a badass. He's James Bond. Period.

I also found that Vaan didn't seem to fit into the story very well. It was almost like he didn't even belong in the story, at least not as the main character. I don't really care for him much.

My personal favorite of the bunch is actually Vaan. I really like his character. Thus far, he hasn't shown an overweening obsession with destroying the empire, he's not a moody anti-hero and his ineptitude and lack of experience aren't glossed over with comic absurdity. Plus, he doesn't have amnesia, he's not a lecherous pervert and he doesn't exhibit any sort of "fractured, torturous past." He's successfully avoided just about every videogame RPG hero cliche in the book. He's just a regular guy with ideals and hopes. I like that.

I can also say that, so far, Fran is my least favorite character in the bunch. To me, she seems thrown into the game solely for sex appeal and to explain away all the mystic mumbo jumbo that the player doesn't understand right off the bat. She's just not compelling or valuable to me.

One more question. Upon unlocking two Quickenings for each character, I'm starting to feel that boss battles have become too easy. I had a hell of a time with the optional Demon Wall (beat him by the skin of my teeth), but since that I pretty much annihilated the two other bosses I've encountered. Does the game suddenly ramp up in difficulty, or is the Quickening system totally overpowered?

You said you've spent a lot of time grinding, that's probably why the bosses seem easy. Spending a while making money/leveling up in the beginning makes the game so much easier.

Don't miss my post just above yours, I happened to post it right before you posted.

The thing is, even if Vaan doesn't fit into the story in some grandiose fashion, I'd rather have a more lax protagonist this time around. I can't count the number of RPGs I've played wherein the seemingly unassuming and regular hero turns out to house some ancient, mysterious power that makes him the only weapon against the game's villainous antagonist. It's actually refreshing to me to see a hero that's just another dude along for the ride. That's kinda what Square was going for with Tidus, and mostly succeeded at. I like the idea of Vaan not necessarily being the "hero", but rather the avatar for the player. In essence, an inexperienced and mostly unknowledgeable kid that's sharing the learning experience right alongside you. Crono did the same thing, only he didn't talk.

Tidus fit very well into the story of FFX though. He wasn't just "along for the right", though I guess you could argue that.

FFX was Tidus' story.

Vaan really has no place in the story, he would be much better as a character you just aquire along the way, then again I haven't played through much farther than yourself, for all we know he might just not be fully developed.

Oh and I must add, so far FFX is superior to FFXII when it comes to story, but FFXII is superior when it comes to gameplay. I absolutely hated how battles in FFX were pretty much like Rock->Paper->Scissors. It gave a use for every character, such as Wakka being the master of killing flying monsters, Lulu being the master of killing elemental monsters, but it was absolutely horrible in my opinion. But FFX's story is absolutely amazing.

I must also add, I've taken a liking to the word "absolutely" it seems. I said it 3 times in the past paragraph.

FFX was Tidus' story.

That right there was precisely the issue I had with Tidus. The fact that he had to keep reminding us that he was the hero. It wasn't his story, it was Spira's story told through his eyes.

And the fact is, to a certain degree he was along for the ride. True, it was actually his outsider's point of view that set into motion the events that ended the Sin cycle on Spira, but he was still an outsider. Unknowledgeable, unskilled for the most part in the ways of combat, and not terribly intelligent. He was not a hero or adventurer. He didn't even want those things. He was enough of a man to accept those responsibilities when they were thrust upon him. He was the avatar for the player, much like Vaan.

The main thing I like about Vaan is that he's a much more streamlined character than most Final Fantasy heroes. Pretty much all of them have some sort of deeply personal stake in the plot, with lots of twists and turns. Whereas Vaan seems to just be a guy who wants to be a part of something bigger. That's different, and I like it. Neither his mental stability, nor his survival are his motivations for taking part in heroism. He's just tired of sitting on the sidelines waiting for things to change.

As Vaan is the avatar of the player, him not having much of a connection with the story makes the player feel like they don't have much of a connection with the story. The story for FFXII is lackluster to begin with, and I'm not attached to it in any way really. I got to the point that I just stopped playing FFXII, I haven't played for something like a month now.

FFX on the other hand sucked me right in. The story is partly about Spira and the summoner's journey and all that, but for the most part it's Tidus' story. It's that that kept me sucked into the game. The game made it seem like the whole story was about Yuna and that Tidus was just along for the ride, but it's just that that made his character develop over time and turned the game into the awesome game it is. I'm hoping FFXII does the same thing with Vaan once I pick it back up, but the way things are going he's almost like a stranger to me compared to the other characters.

My problem with Vaan is that he could just completely disappear and it wouldn't change the story one bit(so far anyway.) He doesn't seem to serve any sort of purpose, he's like the appendix of my party. I don't care if he's not the hero come to save the day, but I want to have SOME SORT of connection with him at least. So far I don't.

I love Balthier and Ashe.

My problem with Vaan is that he could just completely disappear and it wouldn't change the story one bit(so far anyway.)

But isn't the same true for the rest of the cast, with the exception of Ashe? Balthier doesn't have any great stake in the plot. The only thing he provides is an airship. Basch hasn't done anything noteworthy yet beyond being related to Gabranth. I needn't reiterate Fran's general uselessness. And Penelo is there as Vaan's conscience, basically. So, individually, none of the characters, except Ashe, would make a giant dent in the plot if they were suddenly removed. It's an ensemble cast. The whole of it is worth more than the sum of it's parts.

However, it can be argued that if it hadn't been for Vaan's brash behavior (attempting thievery in the palace), none of the characters would have congregated into the central party at all. Vaan tied himself to Balthier and Fran, which gave way to rescuing Basch, which gave way to saving Ashe. Without that first incident of theft, Basch would still be rotting in jail and Ashe would most certainly be dead. So, he holds more importance than what you're giving him credit for.

Asside from Penelo, if any other character were to just disappear from the game, I would miss them. Vaan and Penelo seem like they don't belong.

This is all pretty much just a matter of personal taste. I like my bread with butter, you like yours with jam.

My guess is Vaan's character will develop later, at least I hope so. I don't think either of us are far enough into the game to say.

I don't think FFXII focuses on just one character. It's like all the characters have a part in the story and no ones part is bigger than the others, atleast as far as I've played. I think thats why they added the whole point of you being able to choose your own "Party Leader". It's either that or I'm playing the stoner's version.

This is ps3 or ps2?

PS2, but I think they're making XIII already for PS3 only .

FF XIII and FF XIII Versus are both PS3 exclusive.

Squenix are also making an MMORPG for Vista, 360 and possibly PS3.