My problems with the story

[Wolf Kanno]

Ok, so this isn't a bash at the game because I love it but it is an honest view on the story.

The story isn't great. It's straight forward. I feel as though if there were more involvement with Vayne earlier on in the story then there would be so much more connection with the characters. Often in FF the characters wouldatleast interact with the main enemy earlier on in the story instead of 3/4 the way through!

I also feel that the steaks for the characters just AREN'T high enough. I don't want to compare FF's because each is different but i have to here. In previous FF's one got the impression that if they did not stop this villain the world as they knew it would end, their lives would be lost, all would be doomed etc. however, in this episode I got the impression that there just wasn't enough panic.. or fear. Some character's even quoted "I'm just along for the ride". There was no reason for them to fight, and therefore, this took away from their connection with the story and the seriousness of their actions.

I love this game, but if there had been more memorable interactions, reasons and character development i think it could easily have been one of the best, if not THE best, FF.

I disagree on most of your points. I like that XII stuck to saving your characters homeland. I direct you to Big D's post for the reason why. I like the honesy in it all and I hate utilitaristic (sp? hell is that even a word?) nonsense about people waking up to save the world when they all get involved for rather selfish reasons. But that's just my opinion. I think the idea of characters racing against time to stop a major war, that will destroy everything important to them, was pretty intense. Granted a few scenes of skirmishes and possibly some more feedback from Rozarrio would have presented it better. Overall, I think the story is fine and one of the better plots and casts to come out of the series in a LOOOOOOOOOONNNNGGG time.

On a more serious note, the bombing of a refugee camp is a MAJOR event in real life and in Ivalice the bombing of Mt. Bur-Omisace was shrugged off as the poor kiltians business. I found that added "realism" of shrugging off genocide of unarmed people extremely distasteful.

As I stated in another thread. We are dealing with monarchs and more of an ancient world mentality. No one is going to really say anything about Burimasce cause no one wants to die. Nalbina prison has enough people in it that spoke against the empire. Not to mention the NPC's that mention the event are more worried about getting wasted by the Archadian Military since they had no issue killing civillians and refugee's in order to wipe out a few dissenters. Historically speaking, that's how the real world works.

I thought FF12 presents hope for the future of this series, by expanding its audience and growing up plot wise.

Ahh.. the "grownup" argument.. Another one of my pet peeves.

Grownups take responsibility for their actions. They make sure to right wrongs and help the people who sacrificed for them. Even crooks help each other and have loyalty / gratitude. Ashe promptly forgot that the Gran Kiltias gave his life to buy Ashe and her team more time. Neither her nor Larsa nor Al Cid give a rats arse about the Kiltians and their wounded. Ashe also ignored the friends who saved her life and her kingdom. She had "queen things" to do, let her friends, the Kiltians and Reddas friends, in a crisis over power and direction at Balfonheim fend for themselves.

This game showed a bunch of spoiled brats vying for power and ignoring all that aided them, after getting said power.

People taking responsibility for their actions? Grownups making sure to right wrongs? I don't know what fantasy world you've been living in and I don't want anything to do with it

Seriously, when has anyone "willingly" fessed up to making a major mistake? If people took responsibility for their actions we wouldn't have lawyers or even a court system. Ideally we want to be this way but no one ever really falls through with it.

People will always try to take the easy way out. It's just human nature. Adults are, psychologically speaking, children with pretentious and inflated ideas about themselves. No dictator has ever willingly took responsibility for his actions. Most people won't take responsibility for their actions unless they are forced to by either a "worst case scenario" or being caught red handed. watching CNN for 10 minutes is proof of this.