I was one of those people who disliked FFXII. The first time I played it, I stopped when I first arrived at Eruyt Village because I felt no desire to continue. Yet, I gave the game another try...and I really love it. It might even be one of my favorites (although, I think I have to play ALL the FFs before I come up with opinions, my opinions keep changing dramatically as I play more of them).

Really, this game is AMAZINGLY deep for those who care to look. The bestiary and the NPCs (as others have said) provide a wealth of information about Ivalice. As for the lack of a love story, that's another thing that can be satisfied by talking to NPCs... I'll admit, you don't really see relationships growing in this game (unless you like Balthier/Ashe ::shrugs). Rather, many of the couples are already established before the game begins. At that point, you just kind of see what the NPCs say about the couples and you watch how the pairs interact with each other and that's cute enough for me.

Music-wise...well, I like the music. So, that's not a bother for me. Uematsu's scores, especially as the series progressed, were always filled with songs that I loved and songs that were forgettable. It's the same thing for me with the FFXII soundtrack.

Battle system-wise: this game has my favorite system.

Overall, as others have said, I believe the game's main flaw is in its pacing. But, I don't really think that's a big deal. Somehow, it feels less jarring to have loads of battles and side quests jammed in throughout the title than to have ALL the extra stuff stuffed in at the end (FFX).