Does any one else realise it,s smurfing Star Wars?

[Ouch!]

Vaan is completely pointless, except for the introduction of superior party members. It's a shame he's such a great tank statistically the most powerful character in the game really.

I think it's funny when people say something ripped off of Star Wars because Star Wars itself is hardly innovative in most any way. The whole plot follows a very formulaic model and lends little originality in the way of story-telling in the first place.

FFXII has a remarkable amount of depth to its plot. It's too bad that it gets hidden behind characters like Vaan who forcibly take center stage when they really have no business whatsoever being there.

Edit: I'd also argue that Basch is more of a leading character than Ashe. The beginning and end of the game both tend to focus on his circumstance more so than any other. Ashe is merely a means by which Basch can redeem himself.

[Wolf Kanno]

Yes, I do agree that Basch is still one of the major players but I feel the zenith moment of emotional expression in the game is the Sun-Cryst scene at the Pharos and despite Basch and Balthier both getting some great moments, its the part where Lady Ashe makes her final decision that is the centerpiece of this moment.

Its not just the fact the plot is about her situation its also that the main conflict is more about Lady Ashe deciding what to do. Should she get revenge or save her kingdom? I don't feel that Basch or Balthier have such moral dilemmas, they both have made their choices of what to do long before the game started and both stick to their code. Ashe grows while Basch and Balthier are just plain awesome.

[Urgent Picnic]

Character-wise, there's a ton of similarities, far more than just the main party. Spoilers abound:








Vaan & Penelo = C3PO & R2D2. Two insignificant ancillary characters through whom the audience is introduced to the world, players & plot. Star Wars stole this narrative device from The Hidden Fortress.

Basch = Obi-Wan/Luke hybrid. Obi-Wan in that he's an old school knight who fought many battles during the previous wars, now looked upon as unwanted/unseemly (for Obi-Wan, he was the crazy old desert guy, for Basch, he's a jailed traitor). The Luke portion of the character comes into play via family connection to the Darth Vader of the story - Gabranth, and in being the primary male "good guy." Unlike Balthier, Basch's motives are genuinely "good" all the way through the story.

Ashe = Leia. "Princess" & leader of the rebellion, yet not your typical damsel in distress. Very in charge, tough & bossy.

Balthier = Han Solo, smuggler/pirate who only looks out for himself, goes through the overall "redemptive" arc by the end and attempts to sacrifice himself so his friends can live.

Fran = Chewbacca, furry co-pilot from a species that lives in the trees.

Gabranth = Darth Vader, traitor to his original kingdom, badass armor, family connection to one of our heroes, etc. Not the only "Vader" styled character though.

Vayne Solidor = Emperor Palpatine, became Emperor through trickery by destroying the Imperial Senate, was aided by Vader (er I mean Gabranth) in doing so.

Larsa Solidor = Closest thing in the story to Lando. At first you meet him as some kind of friend to the rebellion, then discover he is loyal to the Empire and you wonder if he's a good guy, only to discover as the story goes on that yes - he is in fact a good guy.

Ba'Gamnan = Boba Fett, bounty hunter who is after Baltheir (Solo), right down to the color scheme of green red & orange.

Stahl = Millennium Falcon.

Leviathon = 1st Death Star (imprisoned Princess, then goes kaboom).

Judge Ghis = Moff Tarkin, another in charge player of the Empire, overly confident about the destructive power of a new weapon of the empire, ends up exploding on the Death Star (Leviathan) during an attempt to use said destructive power.

Bahamut = 2nd Death Star (surrounded by giant space fighter battle, goes kaboom).

Gran Kiltias = Pseudo Yoda, wise spiritual elder to whom a character must go to in order to become a true Jedi Knight. In this case, Ashe must go to him in order to truly become Queen.

All other Judges = Jedi Knights of the Republic, now an evil empire, who continue to serve, rather than be killed off by the new Emperor. Granted, that doesn't happen in Star Wars, but it's still the basic idea. Judges = Jedi. it's just inverted. In Star Wars, one Jedi (Vader) stays with the new order and the rest are killed. In FFXII, only one Judge doesn't go with the new order, and is thusly killed.

Dr. Cid = Another Darth Vader, slightly crossed with the Emperor. The Vader portion comes in the idea of him being revealed 2/3 of the way through as father of one of our heroes, and that he was not always the evil man he is now. However, unlike Vader, he wasn't trying to "save" his family in his fall so much as he was completely selfish and looking for power. He has a touch of Palpatine in him in his motivations here, plus he is the source of the power for the bad guys - he's the one that figures out how to use nethicite.

Occuria = Jedi ghosts. Only jerks. And more of them.



Now if only I could figure out who is Jabba the Hutt.......

[DK]

Balthier is not Han Solo, he is Ace Rimmer.

[Skyblade]

I never really bothered to draw the comparisons out this much, but I don't think anyone is really surprised by them. This game has been compared to Star Wars ever since the opening video was leaked and we saw that it was just bits of Episode I with some minor editing changes (and not the few good bits of that movie either).

Balthier is not Han Solo, he is Ace Rimmer.

Balthier has not quite reached that level of awesomeness yet. I feel he could reach it, if the writers were willing to give him more to work with, but they seem decidely set against working him up as a character anymore (Revenent Wings and his FFT appearance weren't as kind as some of the other character's recurrences were). It's sad.

[G13]

Balthier is not Han Solo, he is Ace Rimmer.

I remember that hidden scene where Balthier surfs a crocodile in mid air and saves Vaan from the Judges! What a guy!