I was having a nostalgic moment a few moments ago, where I was contemplating all of the RPG games(from board games, to written games, to what we have today) i've played and inevitably my mind wandered to FFXII. Somehow, I came across this discussion(it smelt of mist) and I decided to contribute my two-cents(though in today's economy, it is more likley to be one-cent or heck! One quid!).

I received the collector's edition of FFXII for Christmas in 2007. I had thoroughly enjoyed FFX(despite the criticism surrounding it) and I had looked forward to what looked to be a game geared towards someone of my specific nerdiness. Four years later, and i'm still enthralled by this game. What follows will not be an unabashed love fest however, as I do have critiques of this title. Ultimately though, I believe that in order to really appreciate something, you must be able to evaluate both its positive and negative aspects.

When I read negative reviews for FFXII, most of the complaints are as follows:
-Confusion as to who is the main character
-Vann(who seems to be the main character at times) is grating and unlikeable
-The score suffered without Nobou Uematsu
-The game is too long
-The plot is too complicated
-The pace of the game is too choppy
-The ending was rushed
-The liscence board

To speak to the main character point, the lack of a single main character in a game(or story) doesn't bother me. I don't mind for the protagonist to infact be a group or cast of characters, so long as each character is given some attention that explains their significance to the story. And I believe that FFXII tried to achieve this, to some extent. But they did unfortunately not suceed in this respect. At first glance, Ashe appeared to be the obvious candidate for main character. The plot is affected and propelled the greatest by her actions and her decisions. She is the one tasked by the deceptive Occuria to cut a new shard from the Nethicite, and it is her decision not to be a pawn of the warmongering beings that leads to the eventual outcome of the game. But then we have Vann, which brings me to point number two. Vann is often seen by fans as an incredibly annoying character. I've played this game three times now, and I've liked and understood it more with each playthrough, but I have never warmed up to this sloppily thrown together exscuse of a character. The fact that Vann is the character whose image is seen in cities and towns as well as is high-stats make him seem like the intended main character. But all he is really, is a tie-in for the story. And a BAD tie-in at that. This character could have been developed better(for instance, making him look like an actual street rat and not some sort of entertainer), his relationship with his brother and dead family could have been expanded upon, and his appearence could have been altered(I think his hair looks absolutely silly in the HD cutscenes--it looks like a lego piece! Like it doesn't even belong on his head! And why is it that his clothes look new and exspensive? And why isn't he tan if he lives in the middle of a desert? As a matter of fact, why aren't more Rabanastrian's tan?).

So, to wrap up the first two points: Yes, there is confusion as to who is the main character. This could have been avoided if the game makers had chosen to shift the focus more on one character or, better yet, if they had given characters equal treatment and acknowledged all of their roles in the plot as oppossed to having two stock characters(Vann and Penelo) and one character of questionable purpose(Fran). Penelo is the least developed out of all the FFXII main cast, which I always found sad as her character design is adorable and her potential as more than just the "cute-factor" of the team was unexplored. *sigh*
And yes, Vann is an annoying character. He was shoddily written, not designed well, and ultimately had little to do with the story.

I am a fan of Nobou Oematsu, but I wouldn't say that this game would have been better with his score. Infact, I think this is perhaps the best overall soundtrack out of all of the Final Fantasy soundtracks. The feel isn't as contemporary as let's say, the music from FFVII or FFX, but why would it be? FFXII is an epic fantasy with vague science-fiction themes. It isn't contemporary--it has a distinctly unique old-world feel to it that somehow doesn't feel old. The music is wonderfully abstract and fantastical, and I never grow tired of it. It's entirely unique too---I can't think of another game or movie soundtrack that i've heard that is quite like this one.

Personally, I found this game to be almost the perfect length. And with how exspensive it was when it first came out(especially the collector's edition) you really get what you pay for. If anything, I found this game to be one or two chapters too short. Part of this is because of another common complaint: the plot is too complicated. I disagree with this statement, because I love the plot. Maybe it's because I read all the time, or maybe it's because most of the books that I read tend to be lengthy standalones or series filled with plot and detail. Maybe it's because my favorite game is Shenmue II, which is prolific for not only costing a heck of a lot of money to make, but also having a rediculous amount of areas and buildings to explore during free gameplay. I love the plot of this game. It's rich with political intrigue, epic journeys, interesting and diverse areas and races, and a realistically glum setting that goes well with the serious tone of the story. Unfortunately, this wonderfully complicated plot worked against the game creators in some ways. Things that are introduced in the story are not completley expanded upon(like the nation of Rozaria--which we never get to see!). The ending was a little rushed, and somewhat disatisfying. After almost 200 hours of gameplay, I expected them to take their time with it, like they had the majority of the game.

As for the pace, I really enjoyed it up until the rushed ending. Perhaps this is because I didn't strive to complete all of the side-quests and hunts my first time around. All I cared about was the plot. And the second playthrough, when I did focus on game completion, I wasn't bored at all. Why? Because this game improves itself after every replay. I relearned things about the plot I had forgotten, learned new things, and paid more attention to all the fascinating information pumped into the Bestiary. I didn't really mind the liscence board either, though I can understand some of the complaints against it.

Overall, I both agree and disagree with the OP. Yes, there is plenty of unexplored potential in this game. But the incredibly amount of explored potential in the game is enough for me to consider it my favorite out of the FF series. If only the sequel had expanded upon the story's loose threads, I think this game would be more appreciated for the wonderful accomplishment that it is.

On a COMPLETE side note, I've always thought that this game would make a great book series(possibly a trilogy?). So much more detailed can be explored in literature, and character development is generally better in my opinion. I was having a nostalgic moments a few moments ago, where I was contemplating all of the RPG games(from board games, to written games, to what we have today) i've played and inevitably my mind wandered to FFXII. Somehow, I came across this discussion(it smelt of mist) and I decided to contribute my two-cents(though in today's economy, it is more likley to be one-cent or heck! One quid!).

I received the collector's edition of FFXII for Christmas in 2007. I had thoroughly enjoyed FFX(despite the criticism surrounding it) and I had looked forward to what looked to be a game geared towards someone of my specific nerdiness. Four years later, and i'm still enthralled by this game. What follows will not be an unabashed love fest however, as I do have critiques of this title. Ultimately though, I believe that in order to really appreciate something, you must be able to evaluate both its positive and negative aspects.

When I read negative reviews for FFXII, most of the complaints are as follows:
-Confusion as to who is the main character
-Vann(who seems to be the main character at times) is grating and unlikeable
-The score suffered without Nobou Uematsu
-The game is too long
-The plot is too complicated
-The pace of the game is too choppy
-The ending was rushed
-The liscence board

To speak to the main character point, the lack of a single main character in a game(or story) doesn't bother me. I don't mind for the protagonist to infact be a group or cast of characters, so long as each character is given some attention that explains their significance to the story. And I believe that FFXII tried to achieve this, to some extent. But they did unfortunately not suceed in this respect. At first glance, Ashe appeared to be the obvious candidate for main character. The plot is affected and propelled the greatest by her actions and her decisions. She is the one tasked by the deceptive Occuria to cut a new shard from the Nethicite, and it is her decision not to be a pawn of the warmongering beings that leads to the eventual outcome of the game. But then we have Vann, which brings me to point number two. Vann is often seen by fans as an incredibly annoying character. I've played this game three times now, and I've liked and understood it more with each playthrough, but I have never warmed up to this sloppily thrown together exscuse of a character. The fact that Vann is the character whose image is seen in cities and towns as well as is high-stats make him seem like the intended main character. But all he is really, is a tie-in for the story. And a BAD tie-in at that. This character could have been developed better(for instance, making him look like an actual street rat and not some sort of entertainer), his relationship with his brother and dead family could have been expanded upon, and his appearence could have been altered(I think his hair looks absolutely silly in the HD cutscenes--it looks like a lego piece! Like it doesn't even belong on his head! And why is it that his clothes look new and exspensive? And why isn't he tan if he lives in the middle of a desert? As a matter of fact, why aren't more Rabanastrian's tan?).

So, to wrap up the first two points: Yes, there is confusion as to who is the main character. This could have been avoided if the game makers had chosen to shift the focus more on one character or, better yet, if they had given characters equal treatment and acknowledged all of their roles in the plot as oppossed to having two stock characters(Vann and Penelo) and one character of questionable purpose(Fran). Penelo is the least developed out of all the FFXII main cast, which I always found sad as her character design is adorable and her potential as more than just the "cute-factor" of the team was unexplored. *sigh*
And yes, Vann is an annoying character. He was shoddily written, not designed well, and ultimately had little to do with the story.

I am a fan of Nobou Oematsu, but I wouldn't say that this game would have been better with his score. Infact, I think this is perhaps the best overall soundtrack out of all of the Final Fantasy soundtracks. The feel isn't as contemporary as let's say, the music from FFVII or FFX, but why would it be? FFXII is an epic fantasy with vague science-fiction themes. It isn't contemporary--it has a distinctly unique old-world feel to it that somehow doesn't feel old. The music is wonderfully abstract and fantastical, and I never grow tired of it. It's entirely unique too---I can't think of another game or movie soundtrack that i've heard that is quite like this one.

Personally, I found this game to be almost the perfect length. And with how exspensive it was when it first came out(especially the collector's edition) you really get what you pay for. If anything, I found this game to be one or two chapters too short. Part of this is because of another common complaint: the plot is too complicated. I disagree with this statement, because I love the plot. Maybe it's because I read all the time, or maybe it's because most of the books that I read tend to be lengthy standalones or series filled with plot and detail. Maybe it's because one of my favorite games is Shenmue II, which is prolific for not only costing a heck of a lot of money to make, but also having a rediculous amount of areas and buildings to explore during free gameplay. I love the plot of this game. It's rich with political intrigue, epic journeys, interesting and diverse areas and races, and a realistically glum setting that goes well with the serious tone of the story. Unfortunately, this wonderfully complicated plot worked against the game creators in some ways. Things that are introduced in the story are not completley expanded upon(like the nation of Rozaria--which we never get to see!). The ending was a little rushed, and somewhat disatisfying. After almost 200 hours of gameplay, I expected them to take their time with it, like they had the majority of the game.

As for the pace, I really enjoyed it up until the rushed ending. Perhaps this is because I didn't strive to complete all of the side-quests and hunts my first time around. All I cared about was the plot. And the second playthrough, when I did focus on game completion, I wasn't bored at all. Why? Because this game improves itself after every replay. I relearned things about the plot I had forgotten, learned new things, and paid more attention to all the fascinating information pumped into the Bestiary. I didn't really mind the liscence board either, though I can understand some of the complaints against it.

Overall, I both agree and disagree with the OP. Yes, there is plenty of unexplored potential in this game. But the incredible amount of explored potential in the game is enough for me to consider it my favorite out of the FF series. If only the sequel had expanded upon the story's loose threads, I think this game would be more appreciated for the wonderful accomplishment that it is.

On a COMPLETE side note, I've always thought that this game would make a great book series(possibly a trilogy?). So much more detailed can be explored in literature, and character development is generally better in my opinion.