FFXII is a great game that only gets better with a second playthrough. I'd probably rate it my third favorite FF (behind only FFVII and Tactics). I finally replayed it myself last year, and I just enjoyed it more. My biggest complaints the first time around were the choppy pacing of the story which can be tough to follow when you want to explore for 20 hours before the next cutscene, but knowing it ahead of time allowed me to appreciate it more. And the game does have a great story.
Yeah, it's like they're real people who don't automatically fall in love with strangers they happen to tag along with. For people who prefer the completely fantastical tropes of typical fantasy RPGs, I (like Fynn) can see how FFXII might not be your bag (and there's nothing wrong with that; Lunar SSSC is about as cliche as you can get, and I love it to death). But I enjoyed and appreciated all the ways FFXII was different.Originally Posted by Formalhaut
Fran only really interacts with Balthier, which I agree, is made great by subtlety and the emotions that are unsaid, but I can hardly remember any time she meaningfully communicates with Basch or Penelo.Fran's real merit are her interactions really. There's so much going on in there that isn't outright stated but is just fine masterfully through the use of body language. You can tell how deeply they care for each other just by looking at them, whether you interpret that as romantic or not (though you'd be wrong if you didn't)
That's probably the greatest weakness to me. The party just doesn't feel like a party. There's pairings of deep interaction, but there's not really much room for conversation between pairings, like with Fran and Basch, for example. I'm not necessarily saying the group should achieve Persona 4 levels of sugary camaraderie, but I do feel that the group could, you know, be a group.
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