AHA!Originally Posted by Wolf Kanno
You hit the nail in the head about what bothers me about FFXII storytelling. Like you: I personally don't consider having a character explain every little damn nuance in the game to be called "story telling" or "a well written, cohesive plot". Every little nuance of FFXII plot is said out loud by a character, "telegraphing the plot" which, btw, is considered very bad writing.
On XII Vaan comes and says flat out the issue he has with the death of his brother. (SPOILER)I guess I was running away from it The Emperor of Arcadia during the Senate meeting where Vayne's deeds are discussed does the same: Tells you exactly what the Senate is asking him to do in a loud voice. (SPOILER)You ask me to decide between my son and my Kingdom Well DUH! I didn't need Vaan and the King telling me that, did you ?
See the point I'm making about XII's weak storytelling ? The plot itself is good, political intrigue, several father / son conflicts, a fallen knight, etc... But the way it gets presented to the gamer is very cheesy and forced.
On X Tidus doesn't come out and say "My dad was abusive and that is why I feel ambivalent about him". The writers make us know that by subtle clues and flashbacks. This is good writing: Assume your reader is intelligent enough to figure out things for himself, don't patronize him by "telegraphing the plot".
I also dislike the idea of leaving parts of the story in the Bestiary. A matter of taste I suppose. But still... Again, this is Role Playing, and one of the best RP franchises ever. Soulcalibur, Metroid and Mortal Combat which have a very rudimentary world for players to explore, making their strong point the battles or shooting might need to resort to those "Story Cards" but an RPG ? An FF rpg ? Pu-lease!
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