Is this game better than Final Fantasy XII?

[The Fat Bioware Nerd]

I think it is because the leveling up system in Final Fantasy IX is simple where as the leveling up system in Final Fantasy XII is complicated in my opinion.

[Yar]

In my opinion? Yes. IX was like a "THANK GOD!" to me when it came out, because it returned to the roots of the series. It's one of my favorites, which is contradictory to the fact that I've never completed it. :p

XII on the other hand is my least favorite in the series. Square-Enix tried something new, and I thought it was terrible.

[Heath]

I really like both IX and XII, but I most certainly prefer IX.

I didn't find the levelling up complicated in XII at all. Certainly no more difficult to get to grips with than any of the other games. You gain EXP to level up your characters, and you earn the equivalent of AP to spend on learning abilities and augmenting your characters. I'm an idiot, but I managed both systems just fine!

[Depression Moon]

IX is perfect XII is good. The only problem I had with XII was the pacing of the story. It has the best combat out the entire series though.

[The Fat Bioware Nerd]

I didn't find the leveling up complicated in XII at all.

Well that's you and I'm not like you Heath I didn't understand why I needed a god damn license to equip my fucking armor. That licensing system was complicated and annoying in my humble opinion.

[Wolf Kanno]

I didn't find the leveling up complicated in XII at all.

Well that's you and I'm not like you Heath I didn't understand why I needed a god damn license to equip my smurfing armor. That licensing system was complicated and annoying in my humble opinion.

It was more about gameplay pacing and a bit about customization depending on your play style. Though you could spend your hard earned AP on Genji Armor or Diamond Armor the idea you might not acquire some till a future time meant you were more likely to spend on lower level equipment.

Another point is that buying one type of armor license unlocks more of that armor type so for a good way in your character is restricted to using heavy armor or magic armor and cannot use the other types. This gave players the ability to build custom job classes for their party.

The other reason for the system, one of the writers on the development team said part of the reason for the license boards construction (the one where you can't wear certain equipment without the license) was suppose to represent the Archadian's oppression of the people... Course like most people, I feel this info would have served better use had it been stated in the game rather than a random interview. :rolleyes2

Overall, I enjoy both games. I have issues with XII's pacing and IX has some unforgivable story flaws imo but overall, I enjoy both games immensely and they are close to my top games in the series.

[Crossblades]

IX and XII are both very good games(and they're also 2 out of my 5 favorite FFs). However, if I was forced to pick one, it would be IX. I liked that at that point the series returned to its original roots with it medieval setting, set job classes, etc. And I liked how you learn abilities by equipping equipment. Plus, this game had lots of references to other FF games, which I liked very much.

[Saber]

FF9 was better then ff12. Excalibur II = Zodiak spear.... I had many regrets.

[f f freak]

I didn't find the leveling up complicated in XII at all.

Well that's you and I'm not like you Heath I didn't understand why I needed a god damn license to equip my smurfing armor. That licensing system was complicated and annoying in my humble opinion.

I didn't understand how I could equip a crappy staff and have access to incredibly powerful spells!

Okay, I did understand, but still, the same can be said about most FF games.
The system wasn't complicated at all. You spend points, you gain access to spells and armour. Very much like X, but you don't need to buy the spells in X.

Anyway, personally, I like both games and I wouldn't say either is better. They both have qualities and flaws that make me like and somewhat dislike them.

[demondude]

Even if XII was impossibly amazing, Quina wins it for IX.

[Heath]

I didn't find the leveling up complicated in XII at all.

Well that's you and I'm not like you Heath I didn't understand why I needed a god damn license to equip my smurfing armor. That licensing system was complicated and annoying in my humble opinion.

I suppose in a way, the game could've done with some in-game tutorials or something, couldn't it?

Hang on...

[McLovin']

How can you compare 9 and 12...

12 is a good game, just not when it's compared to the other FF's.

[Crizpy]

Comparing the two would be an insult to ffix.

[Vivisteiner]

XII has better gameplay, but IX is better in every other respect. Ergo, XII is a great game but FFIX is the best game ever.

[Jessweeee♪]

I liked FFXII better :p


FFIX was pretty good, just didn't like it as much.

[Bolivar]

Everything that I felt XII was missing was done to the extreme in FFIX. Certain aspects of XII I might like better, but IMO FFIX is a much better RPG.

[Roto13]

I didn't find the leveling up complicated in XII at all.

Well that's you and I'm not like you Heath I didn't understand why I needed a god damn license to equip my smurfing armor. That licensing system was complicated and annoying in my humble opinion.

You don't have to understand why, you just need to know how. With the license system, you get more control over your character. You can choose whether to focus more on equipment or magick or augments or whatever. Right now, I have Balthier mostly collecting Augments, only visiting the equipment every few towns. Like X, though, it kind of hurts the characters' individuality. At least Penelo is always good at Magick and Basch is always good at attacking, etc..

Anyway, I personally prefer XII. IX is a fantastic game, though.

[LunarWeaver]

I think they're a little too different to compare. I liked different aspects of both. I suppose if Voltron demanded I choose only one, I would pick IX. Vivi for the win, kids.

[DarkLadyNyara]

I like both games, and I enjoyed the battle system in XII, but IMHO, IX was far better overall. Especially since the latter part of XII seemed rushed.

[Markus. D]

FFXII... being epic and everything.

It for me, lacked a certain required flavor that makes it an FF game.

[demondude]

I think XII is a better game personally, but IX is nostalgic.

[Big D]

I like 'em both in different ways It's hard to pick a clear 'winner' as such: I've played through IX many times, but XII only twice; but XII is more impressive in a lot of respects. Overall, I guess I like XII more - it's just thoroughly polished in every respect, whereas IX's let down in a couple of areas.

[Vivisteiner]

^Yeah, FFIX failed in the area of not being totally unbelievably fricking awesome. ;)

[sdm42393]

Well obviously people are leaning more towards XII, it's a newer game. It had the technology to do all of the fancy things like the License Board and the new battle system (that people seem to like).

But I like IX much more. The thing that tipped me over about XII was the battle system (and to a certain extent the characters). I guess it depends on what you're interested in.

[The Ceej]

Final Fantasy XII was the first mainstream Final Fantasy game that I quit playing in the middle due to how bad it was. So, I'm going to have to say the answer is yes. Final Fantasy IX is better than Final Fantasy XII.

[Jessweeee♪]

FFIX was excellent, but I liked FFXII better :p


FFIX was supposed to bring us back to the classics and FFXII was a breath of fresh air. Just a case of old vs. new really. When it comes to Final Fantasy, I usually end up leaning toward new.

[Imperfectionist]

FFIX was, by far, the superior game in my opinion. And, although there are many many reasons as to why I believe this, I feel that only one word is necessary: Vivi.

[Vivisteiner]

^You are indeed an imperfectionist. The correct reason is, in fact, two words: Vivi Steiner.

;)

[Imperfectionist]

^You are indeed an imperfectionist. The correct reason is, in fact, two words: Vivi Steiner.

;)

Ah I chuckled :p

[nik0tine]

In my opinion its impossible to say one is better than the other. I think IX is better in terms of characters and story but XII is the best game in the series in terms of gameplay.

[theundeadhero]

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/95/219405389_949d7581db.jpg?v=0
You must choose between FFXII and FFIX.

I choose nine! Nine!

[crazybayman]

Its hard to say which I prefer.

IX is an awesome throwback to the old series, great nostalgia, etc. My main two issues with IX are battle scene loading times, and the foolish abilities you have to learn. As well, I found the story kind of silly at times, but overall great. Other than that, excellent game.

XII is good, however to me it doesn't feel quite like an FF in the traditional sense, as I prefer a turn style, with my guys on one side, and the enemies on the other. Plus, I do not like the summons or quickenings, although I didn't really give them a chance. Although I must admit, while playing through for a second time, I realize you get through battles quickly where you don't have to wait for loading times. Perhaps I'll give the quickenings and summons a chance this time around :p

And I do like the "seriousness" of FFXII. In a way its kinda bad-a$$.

Not trying to bash either, just weighing out the pros and cons. My intent is not to get a response from the "pro-progression in Final Fantasy movement".

At the end of all that, I pick neither :D.

[Roto13]

Final Fantasy XII is mysteriously awesome the second time. xP

[crazybayman]

Final Fantasy XII is mysteriously awesome the second time. xPSo far it is a bit better the second time around.

Something else....another thread put this in my head. This is superficial, but worth mentioning.

The looks of the characters in each game. The look of the characters in XII is far better than the retarded looking deformed children of IX.

[drotato]

Final Fantasy IX was definitely the best, in my opinion. The monsters were great, and the characters were amazingly drawn out. I loved them. Also, this might just be me, but I thought that the leveling up in that game was a lot easier as well.

[Fynn]

I cannot choose between the two. Both of them are among my top three. I love both of them - XII has a great, deep story (once you get past some of the pacing problems) and an superb battle system. And I do have a certain soft spot for the Ivalice games ;) IX had a fantastic story as well and was better-paced than XII, and I liked the ability-learning system. Also, the cutscenes here were breathtaking.

[G13]

I have an idea! Let's take the weakest characters from XII and pit them against the "weakest" (let's face it, even the weakest aren't that weak) characters from IX.

From IX we have Garnet, Vivi, and Eiko.
From XII we have Penelo, Fran, and Vaan.
(These are just my opinions, don't get pissy)

XII's characters go in guns blazing, little red lines coming out and connecting to their victims, thinking these little cartoons are goin' down, "BUT WAIT!"... what's this? Vivi's unleashes Firaga and Vaan is reduced to Ashe, lol. And what is that in the sky? Oh my gawd it's Garnet's Bahamut! Even the weakest most lame IX character, Eiko, is bustin' out with Fenrir. Penelo runs for her life but gets cut down in a burst of dragon fire, while Fran is being used as a doggy chew-toy.
XII's weakest characters are decimated.

So, Voltron, I choose IX! XII was fun but undeserving of an FF title.

[roen]

^You are indeed an imperfectionist. The correct reason is, in fact, two words: Vivi Steiner.

;)

Umm three people Vivi, Quina, and Steiner

[The Unknown Guru]

Toughest question ever. Wow. Both games were amazing in their own way. I'm going to do my best to get through this without completely reviewing each game. Here goes.

I'm not even going to compare the gameplay. I like both, they're just different. I'll just talk about the stories instead.

Both stories were amazing in their own way. IX was really more about the characters and how their journey changed them. XII was much a much more epic and political game. I really, really like both kinds of stories, with each having their moment. For me, IX's defining moments were on the second disc, journeying across the Outer Continent. All of those small character development scenes (for example, when you rest at the inn at the Black Mage Village) just made the game for me.

SPOILERS THROUGHOUT THIS PARAGRAPH.
XII, however, was all about the different motivations of the major players and how they interacted with each other. Vayne, for instance, was only trying to help humanity break free of the control of the Occurians. His source of power (Venat) and his methods were evil, but his basic motivation was justified. The Resistance simply wanted to break free of Archadian rule. Vaan simply wanted adventure and went along for the ride. I could go on, but I won't. How these different purposes cross paths is what I like about the game. All the political maneuvering and the epic scale of the game really appeals to me (that's why I love Xenosaga so freaking much). The setting was also amazing and deep, and that's a major plus and something I think was missing in IX to some extent.

The choice is really tough for me. I'm going to have to go with IX. Some scenes were just so beautiful and emotional that I was just awestruck. XII was just missing that, IMO. But based on the story, the choice would probably be based on whether you personally prefer heavy character development or heavy plot and setting development.

[Shotgunnova]

On the whole, FFIX might just be the numbered series' most well-rounded entry, so that. FFXII's storytelling perspective, junk villains, and a mostly boring cast really capsized most of the enjoyment I had, despite having a well-realized world setting and decent dungeon layouts. Not a big fan of the whole MMO battle system but it could be worse.

[Brennan]

The hero (Zidane) in FFIX is more involved than the hero in FFXII (Vaan)
So FFIX wins.

[Wolf Kanno]

But Vaan isn't the actual lead character in XII... The staff said XII has no real lead. :eep:

[Skyblade]

I would say that this game is indeed better than XII.

Actually, this game is the game I want to be remade the most right now.

[Polnareff]

HELL yes it's better! There's no way that pile of filth XII could ever be compared to IX IMO. Ain't no way. Probably the graphics and that's it. But XII was such a depressing and life-draining game to play.

The battle system, although you could move around (whoop-dee-doo, you can move but even if you're far from an enemy and they attack you you still get hit) was really slow and boring and the characters, music, and nearly everything else are uninspired.

IX has a charm about it that combines the "new" (for its time) style of FF with the old style of characters and being stuck in one class.

[ReloadPsi]

XII didn't feel like an FF game. It bored me to tears.

[daggertrepe]

This thread is an insult to the game. I played FFXII for the first ten minutes and shut it off. What a joke!

I am also extremely angry they got rid of random battles. That's what makes Final Fantasy Final Fantasy!!

[Omni-Odin]

While I think it's not even close, IX is much better. In fact, IX may be the most under-rated in the series, while XII was more like a bump in the FF road. Go IX and wow let's hope Square-Enix will ever dish us a gem that SquareSOFT used to be able to do on the reg.

[Jiro]

IX and XII tried two different ways of handling an RPG. I prefer IX over XII, but I don't think XII sucked. Comparing the two is not an insult, but rather pointless.

[Laddy]

FFIX had more involved characters, beautiful locals and one of the best storylines in the series. It's music was brilliant, and the writing is excellent, especially considering it's in the PS1 era.

XII is pretty and has better combat. A good game, but FFIX is simply unreal. Oh, and Zidane is a much better protaginist than Vaan. In fact, I find only Terra and maybe Cecil to be better. Since Zidane matures rather than changes, at the end of the game, he is wiser and older, but still has the same personality unlike say, Squall or Cloud.

[The Shoeless Hobo]

Without a doubt IX is better.

[Mirage]

FFIX loses because of its incredibly slow battle system. I just couldn't bear it.

[asukaevaunit02]

In some aspects yes.
IX is my fave, overall the game is great, not much at fault.

But now I have a ps2 and have been playing XII for over a week straight... its that good... I decided not to finish X coz XII was so interesting. The combat system of XII is the best in the series, it reminds me of Secret of Mana which is my all time favourite... the combat is just so fun and customisable. I like/gotten used to XII's free/faster combat that I'm finding hard to go back to previous games and play through, due to the battles being somewhat slower and not as involved as XII. Unfortunately the music in XII is good but just background music and not memorable, where as IX the music was great and very memorable, to the point I can recall some part of the game to just about every song.

But both are my top 2, and are great games in their own way.

[Aydin]

I didn't really enjoy the story in FFXII because i hated how Vaan was totally the main character and he wasn't really involved in the story! (SquareEnix says there's no real main character. HA! Don't make me laugh...) The characters were uber dull, the music was okay, and the battle system was good though.

The aspects in FFIX are WAY better. The music, story, characters, battles were amazing.

[hectord25]

Yes,of course,FFIX was a great hystori,a great battle system,is a classics tribute,is the best FF ever,FFIX is the best of all!

[Kyros]

I've played a few hours of FFXII, and the only reason I didnt play longer or havent picked it back up it b/c Im always doing other stuff. From what I played I liked XII a lot better for a few reasons. I'm happy I dont look at 99% of the characters and hate them, I actually like the main villain instead of spending more time wondering why theyre called a 'him' when it does several closeups on the crotch to show its definitely not a guy who has a horrific 'ultimate' ability, and the hunts are more challenging than that pos extra boss Ozma was (what a waste of time). FFIX is probably the only FF I've played where I could not find myself working to play through a 2nd time. I've tried like a thousand times, reach the forest, and say screw it I dont want to put up with this again.

edit: Oh yeah and FFIX's card game sucked hard

[Old Manus]

I was reading this with interest until I saw a post by roto13. Holy old thread, batman!

FFXII was a dungeoncrawling borefest though imo

[Raebus]

Final fantasy XII is the superior game in my eyes and its due to the fantastic gameplay. :)

[J.Raven]

Pre-set job/class was one of the more major causes of why I prefer IX over XII, because it further enhanced the character in the storyline. If every character was customizable, it lost the unique feel of the characters.

For example in FFIX Freija will be remembered as the one who can top high-rise buildings in a single jump in her red cape, strike down targets hard and fast, and Zidane's thieving matching his outgoing character and heart of gold.

The medieval aspect was another major factor as well. Nobuo Oematsu (sp?)wrote over a hundred music pieces for IX, and during his break went to Europe to see the castles there, especially in Germany and France, to get a feel for getting the medieval atmosphere of IX.

XII was the only other game I played, although not to the ending, so I can't say much about IX's past references feature. But I thought going back to its roots in light of being the last game on the PS1 series was good.

A lot of effort was put into it. The problem was bad timing and poorly executed marketing/sales strategy.

The downer for IX had to be at times when during battle, the character would reach Trance at the end of the battle, and it could not be carried over to the next battle. Personally the vast difference in graphics between actual gameplay and FMVs was a bit jarring,

[sir helix]

trance was unique, but not wel thought out in my oppenion, it takes for ever to get into trance for some charecters, some (dagger, eiko) iv hardly ever seen tranced. Zidane's trance was very useful but i didnt figure out how to obtain dyne skills untill the end of the game. (i was only equipting skills i needed at the time) and daggers trance was practiculy useless in the game, eikos was very useful but as iv said, it take forever to get her tranced.

vivi was the median of trance. here and there hed change, quina was pathetic in boss fights, steiner was a lot of help when tranced and mixed with a super mage vivi.

and honostly iv never seen freya in trance so i dont even know what she does and iv been playing ffIX for years.

ffXII is the worst ff ever, the plot was too easlied cliche'd, it wasnt even entertaining at all, the combat was unique but it took away the feeling of Final Fantasy that i grew up knowing, when i was eleven i picked up copies of 7 and 9 and flabbergasted by the games, and i was dumbass back then and learned a lot of math by playing those two games, i learned to try and predict what was going to happen next, strategy, puzzle solving, patience, all these aspects were riped away from FFXII and its sad.

[malkyah]

You like what you like, you dislike what you dislike so in that aspect it's your perception whether FFXII isn't as stellar as FFIX. It happens to be my favorite in the series, it has new features and innovation while maintaining the classic elements to final fantasy that we have grown to love and be accustomed with. The musical score is also one of the greatest things about it.

[Alexander]

*first post is 2 and a half years =o*

It's not that FFXII is bad. In fact, it's pretty darn awesome.

It's just that FFIX is the best Final Fantasy ever, ever made. Comparing both is as much of an insult to FFIX as other comparisons would be. It's just that perfect.

Well, as long as you guys don't compare FFIX to FFVII, I won't feel offended. =O

[IXVI]

by far..better than XII :bou:

[Markus. D]

IX for the victory!

[The Space Pope]

12 sux >=(

ahmagahd they changed the game its not like all the other FF games i h8 it

[Dark_Firion]

Did...did you just told me to compare Final Fantasy IX to that disgrace?
BLASPHEMY! :mad:

[Jessweeee♪]

FFIX was nice, but I like FFXII better.

[Rye]

I think FFXII is FFIX without the heart. When I started FFXII, I thought "Wow, this could be on part with 9!" but then I stopped playing about 25 hours in - something I never did with a Final Fantasy game before. FFIX just has a lot of soul in it.

I also much prefer FFIX's fighting system. I love four character fighting! FFXII is too easy, as well.

[Shiny]

If Final Fantasy XII is the ground, Final Fantasy IX is the dog taking a dump on the ground.

[Depression Moon]

*first post is 2 and a half years =o*

Well, as long as you guys don't compare FFIX to FFVII, I won't feel offended. =O

lol. I love me some IX i really like XII too, but it's just for it's combat, for it to be up par with iX it had to have an amazing well paced story along with a great battle system. Sadly it didn't.

[Imperfectionist]

I think both games were pretty easy, and both have stunning cutscenes. However, I thought FFXII was a disaster, especially in comparison to FFIX.

The terrible pacing in XII meant that half the time I had no idea what was going on and after a while I kinda stopped caring, whereas IX always lead you back to the matter at hand, even if it occasionally deviated.

I also felt that XII had boring, undeveloped characters which meant that there was no respite from the terribly thought out pacing of the story, which is a shame as there where a couple characters such as Balthier who could've been brilliant. And I don't just mean good, cos I know there's a lot of people that like his character and i'm in agreement to a certain degree, I mean really great. Of course, this isn't the case in IX where we meet some of the most loved and memorable characters in the entire series, namely Vivi, Quina etc.

Also, the array of seemingly endless 'areas' that look exactly the same screen after screen reminded me of a game I played years ago called Dark Cloud. Anyone else who has played this will understand the horrific bordom caused by that game. The environment in IX seems to have been much more thought out, no two screens look the same and I feel this made for an on the whole more visually spectacular game.

[The Last Oath]

hell yes it is

[Elpizo]

This thread is full of fail with how childishly people are bashing XII. You wouldn't know a decent RPG if it came up and slapped you all in the face with a rotten fish.

And this is coming from somebody who says IX > XII. But seeing as IX is my favorite and XII my second, that's not saying much, I suppose. And just for good measure: V > VI and III > IV.

Honestly, gamers these days, no respect for any hard work of the developers anymore...

[Rye]

Let's be nice, Elpizio. Everyone has the right to their own opinion and it seems everyone has given well-thought out reasons for their criticism. :)

One of the things I did like about FFXII was just the sheer beauty of the world - it seems a lot like FFIX's scenery, but combined with the really advanced graphics of FFX and onward. The first town was just... wow. I wish there were more towns in the game than dungeons, but that's just me. That's one of my favorite things about FFXI as well - they seemed to look so similar, though that game didn't work out for me when I tried the trial of it because my laptop was a bit too laggy for me. Maybe I'll try it again when I get a better laptop or a PC.

[Elpizo]

I'm not denying people's right to their own opinion. People can dislike XII, that is true. But let's be honest here. XII a piece of :bou::bou::bou::bou:? The ground IX poops on? Please. The game is full of quality, and clearly shows a lot of hard work went into it. It's very developed, and an enormous, expansive world. Arguably the best Ivalice we've seen so far.

That not everybody likes its changes, gameplay or story, that is fine. After all, I think VI is the worst FF game ever, too, and I find it boring. But, I won't deny that it's a good RPG that a lot of effort went into. I just don't like it, for my own reasons. XII dislikers should be like this, too. However, the way XII is bashed by some people in this topic is, and pardon me for saying it again, just childish, as well as disrespectful to the people who worked hard on the game.

People need to be reasonable. There are far worse games and RPGs out there than XII, but reading some of the comments here would make one believe XII is on the level of Superman 64 bad or something like that. And it really isn't.

[Old Manus]

Hey, don't you rip on my precious Superman 64! A lot of time and effort went into creating that paragon of human technological achievement!

[Elpizo]

If you mean a lot of effort in making it drive gamers as mad as possible, then yes, you are correct.

[Madame Adequate]

FFXII has no soul. It has the ingredients of a great game, one I should absolutely love, but I don't. That je ne sais quoi is absent. With IX, I don't grok the soul, but it certainly is there - I invoke Kishi;


FFIX is thematically charming, whimsical, fun, and doesn't always take itself completely seriously.

I might like the technical elements of XII more, but I've certainly spent a lot more time playing IX and I have a much greater desire to try to finish IX than XII.

[Breine]

Final Fantasy IX is one of my favourite FF games, so my opinion is pretty clear.

To be fair, though, I haven't finished FFXII yet. I managed to play maybe 36 hours of it, before stopping (for an unknown reason) - that was over a year ago.
I've been intending to start a new Final Fantasy XII file for a long time now, and finally did it the other day.

Actually, I have this thing where I never finish a Final Fantasy game on the first playthrough. I always tend to stop playing it at one point, before finally picking up the game again later to yet again play it from the start - this time more thoroughly and extensively. It's almost like I'm half-assing it on the first playthrough, subconsciously knowing that I'll finish it at another point. Strange.

[ANGRYWOLF]

as someone else said FFXII has no soul.

:p

[Lightening]

I haven't finished FFXII, I was hoping to do it before march, but it doesn't look like it's happening. There's just so many huuge empty areas in FFXII, I search them looking for secrets but most of the time there's nothing to find.

[Madame Adequate]

Either that, or finding whatever it is precludes you from getting something later :p