Me and Final Fantasy XII have a bit of a love/hate relationship.
I've got to agree with Mr Cactuar on the music, it's just not memorable. I'm hearing a lot of people here saying "Oh but it's atmospheric! It compliments the surroundings!" So? Uematsu's music was hugely atmospheric AND memorable, Sakimoto's music just doesn't have that extra something about it that makes you wanna go and download it, or just stop playing for a second so you can just listen and fully appreciate the sound. I'm not saying Sakimoto's a terrible composer, but Final Fantasy has got a reputation for emotive and memorable music that XII just isn't living up to.

The absence of random battles are a bit more of a complicated subject. On one hand, they're great. They make the game more seamless, more 'realistic', and it's good to have some change from time to time. But on the other hand, if I wanted realism, i'd go play outside. Random battles have become a part of Final Fantasy in the last 20 years or so, no matter how reluctant people are to admit it, and I have to say that I really miss them.

I don't think it's the absence of a love story that brings this game down necessarily, it's the lack of any real emotion from any of the characters. And it's a shame because some of them, like Balthier, really could have made brilliant characters if they had been developed on, but instead we've got Ashe whose response to everything is to exhale and Penelo, one of the main characters, who just doesn't seem to serve a purpose once you really get into the game. And Vayne! What a bad villan. He doesn't even act particularly villaneous, he just acts like your average politician. He doesn't even COMPARE to the insanity of Kefka or Sephiroth.

The basic idea for the plot is pretty refreshing to be honest. All the politics is such a good change from what has been in recent Final Fantasies. But again, Square failed to build on it properly, resulting in players who just don't care what happens, or evidently, some that don't even know what's happening.

However, I don't think this is a necessarily bad game. It's just that, when compared to other Final Fantasies, it doesn't live up to the same standards.