^Not quite the same Im afraid (or am I glad?). I thought all Nobuo's soundtracks were stellar. Save perhaps FFX.
But yeah, I think Sakimoto did a good job in the end.
^Not quite the same Im afraid (or am I glad?). I thought all Nobuo's soundtracks were stellar. Save perhaps FFX.
But yeah, I think Sakimoto did a good job in the end.
"They said this day would never come. They said our sights were set too high. They said this country was too divided, too disillusioned to ever come around a common purpose. But on this January night, at this defining moment in history, you have done what the cynics said we couldn't do." - Barack Obama.
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I think the overarching reason why some people didn't like it as much is because it deviated away from what Final Fantasy has become and is changing into over the last 20 years. The truth is, the Final Fantasy Ivalice games (FFT, VS, FFTA, FFXII) are different from the FF series. They're both good series but their feel and objective aren't the same.
The music is the best example of this. Hitoshi Sakimoto is a great composer, but his music is better suited to strategy RPGs rather than Final Fantasy type games.
To me, random encounters go hand in hand with what I'm trying to get at with the above point on music - A Final Fantasy just isn't a Final Fantasy without a killer battle theme and an even more killer Boss Theme. The Boss theme was very un-cinematic and the battles lack the excitement of previous games for sharing the same song as the area it's on.
Look at Final Fantasy II - the Mysidian Tower and Castle Pandemonium tracks just give you this epic feel that you're progressing towards some truth or goal whereas in XII you're just in the game.
The game was also a step back from what the developers have been trying to accomplish with the way in which this game places a huge difference between gameplay and cutscenes. Beginning with VII, cut scenes lead into, picked up from, and were just in the middle of gameplay, making the entire game one seamless experience. In XII, it's almost like Xenosaga, where you play for a little bit and get rewarded with a movie. I don't like games like that. Let me feel the experience all the while I'm playing the game.
XII is maybe in my top 5 FF games but I have to admit I much prefer the way Final Fantasy has been before this. As far as a love story, I'm not sure if it's necessary, but in the example of VIII, it's exactly that which allowed the game to really reach out and take hold of the player's emotions and leave you at its mercy. this is a great game, but it's different, and I think that's what turned off alot of people. People like to get what they pay for, you know?
Exactly what I was trying to say about the random battles.Originally Posted by Bolivar
I'm not trying to say that the love stories are needed. I also hate when they get poorly tacked on. I love it when its done right e.g FFX. It doesn't just compliment the story, it guides it.
The thing about the storyline in XII is that, like people have said, it was poorly executed. I just lost track of things at times when I was off doing Marks and other side quests.
The battle system was poorly executed in my opinion. While it was fresh and sometimes fun, it was just too easy at some points. I don't care much for difficulty in Final Fantasy just as long as it isn't ridiculously easy, and I swear I had like 3 game overs tops.
I'm not saying that the music in XII is bad, just that it was mediocre compared to other soundtracks. Sure this may be personal opinion, but it is a regular gripe that people find with XII.
Also some people are not reading the title of the topic, I'm giving reasons as to why fans of FF may not like this particular one.
Thanks to Sir Edeon X for signature"It's the decisions you make, when you have no time to make them, that define the person you are" - Teh_Masterer
This might sound stupid, but... there were still random battles in XII, there were just some changes in how they were executed.
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Graphics - Perfect in all aspects
Sound - The music is great but I think that Nobuo Uematsu had a little better stuff. I think Hitoshi Sakimoto's score may be underrated because he is compared to Nobuo Uematasu. But imagine if this score was put out for a game of less, but still very high, popularity, such as Xenosaga 3 or Valkyrie Profile 2: Silmeria, people would praise the soundtrack.
Controls - I think they were great but there is no option to invert the camera. I also prefer more configuration options. Also, there is no page up and page down assigned to L1/R1 in menus, for some reason.
Battle System - I think the battle system is great! Some people don't like the style as much but I do.
Story - I didn't like the story as much. For some people that like it, don't get defensive too much about it, there are many people that don't like the story. The Executive Producer of FF XII stated that he was disappointed that the story wasn't as good in FF XII, because of creative differences in the development team.
Characters - The characters could use some improvement. Some are great like Balthier and Cid. Some don't do much, like Vaan and Penelo and Fran(That's three main characters!).
Sidequests - This game has really great and long sidequests which take dozens of hours, which is great
Polish - This game is highly polished, I can't explain too much about this, but there are a lot of little things that are added in the game and stuff that is great.
The game I give 9/10 and the only big flaws I give it is that I prefer better story and characters.
FF XIII is being made by main Final Fantasy team, who did X, then X-2. They also kinda split up to do some random work on some Kingdom Hearts games and the FF VII Compilation, this is at the same time that XIII is being developed though. By the way FF V XIII is the Kingdom Hearts team. And FF Agito XIII is the same exact team from FF VII: Before Crisis, FF VII: Crisis Core, and Kingdom Hearts: Coded.
Recently beaten: Alundra 1, Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core
Currently playing: Final Fantasy Tactics A2: Grimoire of the Rift, Final Fantasy I
Will play next: The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, Mass Effect, Fallout 3(???)
*Last Update 7-25-2008
1. The music.
Actually, I really like "Seeking Power" and "The Golmore Jungle." I agree, overall the music isn't quite what I expected, but it fits the game well, for better or worse, in some people's opinions. This isn't a soundtrack I can just listen to straight through, which is sad because I pre-ordered it and listened to it before I played. Nothing really stood out then, and only after playing do I really care about some of the tracks as stand-alone pieces of music.
2. Random Battles.
I give them props for trying something different. I don't like random battles, if only because they're random and they're disruptive. I do miss my giant Malboros and their lethal bad breath (this game's bad breath was a joke). No FFXII enemies reached the iconic status that Cactaurs, Tonberries, and even Yans (goddamned yans) have reached. I really truly missed being pelted with needles and stabbed with kitchen knives...
3. Where is the love?
"Last time I checked, these 3 FF's are the most loved ones around. Hmm..."
Um, no. I pretty much agree more or less with everything else except that statement. FFVIII is my personal favorite, but it's not the "most loved." The other two you mentioned are very mainstream but also strongly disliked amongst many hardcore Final Fantasy fans I know. I always got the impression that FFVI was most loved, incidentally. And I think FFIV and FFIX were better than FFVII and FFX, but that's purely opinion.
Love stories are nice, I agree, but I don't know how they would have fit into a game that attempted to be this epic. The only real romantic relationship, Ashe and her husband, was nicely done. I strongly feel that Balthier and Fran are more than just friends, but whatever the nature of their relationship, it was also very nuanced and subtle, which I appreciated. Drace and Gabranth was also similarly handled, and I really wish I knew more about them.
4. Whacky doodly piddly pop.
God, the pacing of this game sucked a lot. Character development was uneven, and the storyline was very poorly realized in parts. Fran, Drace, Balthier, Gabranth, and Larsa were my favorites. I didn't really care for Ashe, Rossler, or Vaan. Penelo was okay, as were Basch, Reddas, and Al-Cid. but no one was developed well enough for my tastes. I didn't even like Ashe at first, and she's my least favorite main character in this and any Final Fantasy game.
I criticize this game heavily but I really enjoy it. I've just got a long list of grievances with it because my expectations were so high.
Music -
Like many have said before I found the music to be unremarkable. It fit everywhere, but never stood out. I also agree with whoever posted about not having a kick ass battle music.
Battles -
I'm not particularly attached to random battles, but there are, however, a great deal of pros that go along with random battles that map battles can't possibly compete with. First of all, as noted, is the scale of battles. Monsters can come in packs, scale size wise better, and it allows for creation of more intricate dungeons. All the areas in FFXII had to be wide open which to me made the world feel far more sparse and boring. There are some best of both world solutions, such as Chrono Trigger witch had all the benefits of random battles, but mechanics of encounter battles.
Love -
I absolutely abhor the idea that love must be a central plot focus. I think that was one of the few things they did right in FFXII. Not to say I object to it's presence in games, I felt the love story's in VI and VII added quite a bit to the game, but I found the central nature of VIII and X's love stories ruined the games for me.
Plot -
Through most of the game I mostly felt I was going somewhere to do something because somebody told me so. Most of the actions I was taken were just because I was told to, not because I was brought to believe there was a good reason to. The whole plot stunk of apathy to me. In trying to make a plot of grey instead of black and white all that happened was I felt like it didn't really mater if I undertook my journey or not.
The central plot was liberating Dalmasca, however the game completely failed to convince me the Vayne was a worse ruler for Dalmasca than Ashe. Lets face it, if he invaded the country and in only a few years started to make the populace like him I would say he is doing a fairly good job. Compared to young Ashe, I would say he is a far more experienced ruler and infinitely more qualified for the job. My plot beefs for this game could fill an entire thread, so I'll just stop here.
I liked to play XII, but it didn't feel like an FF to me. No random battles? WTF?
I'd rather play any other FF than this one. Gee, thanks Square, alienate your original fanbase by overhauling a product they already enjoy. Looks like they've smurfed XIII up too.
Oh god, they've taken away something that's been plaguing RPG's games since the SNES era and further back. Damn you square for trying to do something different! For taking a stale random battle turned based system and changing it into an exciting battle system. YOU HAVE DONE WRONG. >=(
If anyone points out anything wasn't correct in that post, possibly the "since the SNES era", I don't give a crap, randomly guessing.
Last edited by Raebus; 11-08-2007 at 10:48 AM.
music:i love the music,i think it goes well with the feel of the environments.but if nobuo uematsuy did it,it would be better
battles:as far as the combat goes,i think its sweet.sure,it breaks from the traditional methods,but thats what square was aiming for.personnaly i like to see my enimie,scan them(hit left lol)then devise my stradegy,all in real time.and as for fighting only one enemie at a time,i like to herd alot of enimies together and then fight.
for love,id have to agree with some other ppl here and say that this stgory doesent need it,it has other types of relationships that add to the goodness.
and for the story,i love it.its not AS good as ffX in my opinion,but its still pretty awsome.everybting really dosent unravel until neer the end.
this is my 10th final fantasy
(SPOILER)waha made you highlight
1. I didn't find the music as good as most other FFs. It's not entirely composers though. It's also because of points 2, 3, and 4. The best music from any of the FF games has always been the battle music. But, with their move away from random battles, they also moved away from battle music. With the exception of bosses, Espers, and a couple of marks (like Gilgamesh and his awesome Clash on the Big Bridge), there was no battle music. So, a lot of the great songs had no chance. Sure, the pretty world exploring music is there, but none of the hard hitting battle themes are. Then too, with a plot with no love story, and little if any emotional connection that I can see at all, the other category of great songs, the story builders, got axed as well. There were no moments in the game that would have been appropriate for the truly emotional songs that tear your heart out, because the story lacked the emotional involvement of other FFs.
2. I didn't mind the lack of random encounters as much as I minded the gimmickry. Teleporting enemies should have been left out. I don't mind fighting groups of enemies, but being able to teleport across the entire room and force you to either flee or fight every enemy in the room was wrong. The best thing about random encounters is that there was some control over them, and you wouldn't suddenly have an uber enemy join a fight while you were fighting random mobs (the few times things like that did happen, they were scripted, and very rare). Then too, no other FF game has ever had to rely on the cheap, gimmicky tactics that make up the staple moves of all of the powerful foes. You could always protect against instant death, now you can't. You could always block attacks, now you can't. The games never had unstoppable tactics. There were plans and strategies to get around everything, if you thought about it enough. Now it's all just luck (and that is why I quit playing the game).
3. Yeah, the lack of a love story did not help the game. Love stories have been a staple of FFs since the beginning, and I would have liked to see one in this game as well. Not that a game needs a love story to be good, I'm just a sappy romantic who prefers them.
4. I didn't find too much trouble with the story making sense (except that I failed to understand why no one was willing to put a bullet in Vayne's head). The biggest problem with it was that there was little to no emotional involvement. No love story is fine, but give the characters some big emotional scenes.
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Yeah, I think I'd agree with you actually. I mean, at times there were fleeting moments of emotion but a lot of the time things simply didn't stand out. Certain scenes with Balthier and Vaan (over Reks) were notable, but I can't think of many things that stick in your mind like when Red XIII sees his father in FFVII or when Garnet sees (SPOILER)Brahne die in FFIX for just two examples off the top of my head.
Last edited by Heath; 11-08-2007 at 10:23 PM.
Not my words Carol, the words of Top Gear magazine.
They have not been in FF since the beginning. FFI-III didn't have one, and FFIV would have been the first. FFV also didn't have one; FFVI had one, though it was hardly the main focus of the game, and was never as blatant or forced as many of the others. FFVII and on up until X obviously had their love stories (each of varying quality), while FFXII didn't (we'll exclude FFXI here). So essentially, not only have love stories not been present in the series since the beginning, only about half of the titles in total have even featured a love story at all. Love stories aren't integral to an FF.
Heyyo Heath that's very true!
I disagree, but no, not on the SNES part. While the battle system in certain FFs was a little slow, I seriously disagree that this made them more exciting. Probably the biggest flaw in this is the music factor. almost every FF before this had really intense battle music (FFVI boss theme maybe the epitome of this), while the one in this one really didn't add any suspense considering except for boss fights, there was no battle music. FFVII is also an example of how the system used the camera and ATB to create a really interactive, fast paced, really intense battle sequences. This one, it was boring watching your characters fight, even the battle animations had to be made less epic due to constraints with ADB.
If you were only talking about the internet, I would agree with you, but in real life, I know only 1 person who really cherishes VI like that. Every "hardcore FF fan" I know outside of these boards picks either VII or X (not as much) at the top of the list.
True, I exaggerated a little. And while V didn't have one, I have come to expect them since IV. They haven't always been there, but they have a lot, and I have always liked them.They have not been in FF since the beginning. FFI-III didn't have one, and FFIV would have been the first. FFV also didn't have one; FFVI had one, though it was hardly the main focus of the game, and was never as blatant or forced as many of the others. FFVII and on up until X obviously had their love stories (each of varying quality), while FFXII didn't (we'll exclude FFXI here). So essentially, not only have love stories not been present in the series since the beginning, only about half of the titles in total have even featured a love story at all. Love stories aren't integral to an FF.
My friend Delzethin is currently running a GoFundMe account to pay for some extended medical troubles he's had. He's had chronic issues and lifetime troubles that have really crippled his career opportunities, and he's trying to get enough funding to get back to a stable medical situation. If you like his content, please support his GoFundMe, or even just contribute to his Patreon.
He can really use a hand with this, and any support you can offer is appreciated.
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