This is honestly one of my all-time favorite games.
This is one of the many "Final Fantasy: Star Wars" entries into the series. The story has a lot of exposition explaining the political conflict between warring countries, and that can be really heavy at first, but they are just setting the scene so you understand why all the characters are doing what they do.
The world has a ton of variety (once you leave the desert) such as vast forests, underground mines, snow covered mountains, cursed ruins and more! The soundtrack is great as well!. Balthier and Fran are probably my favorite pair of FF characters from any game in the series.
This game gets a lot of hate because of it's weird combat system, but I love it. I tinker a bit with programming as a hobby, so the Gambit system being one big if/else statement made immediate sense to me, and I loved being able to program how my party members would react to any given situation.
Another thing I really enjoyed about XII is they replaced the need to mindlessly level grind throughout the game with a series of Hunt side quests. As you journey through the world, a few major towns have job boards in them, where petitioners have posted monsters that are causing them trouble. This is all completely optional, but if you decided to do them, there are so many cool monsters! The final hunt took me just under 4 hours to beat. It was wild.
This is honestly one of those games that is on my list when people ask me "If you could only play one game for the rest of your life, what would it be?"
This is one of the many "Final Fantasy: Star Wars" entries into the series. The story has a lot of exposition explaining the political conflict between warring countries, and that can be really heavy at first, but they are just setting the scene so you understand why all the characters are doing what they do.
The world has a ton of variety (once you leave the desert) such as vast forests, underground mines, snow covered mountains, cursed ruins and more! The soundtrack is great as well!. Balthier and Fran are probably my favorite pair of FF characters from any game in the series.
This game gets a lot of hate because of it's weird combat system, but I love it. I tinker a bit with programming as a hobby, so the Gambit system being one big if/else statement made immediate sense to me, and I loved being able to program how my party members would react to any given situation.
Another thing I really enjoyed about XII is they replaced the need to mindlessly level grind throughout the game with a series of Hunt side quests. As you journey through the world, a few major towns have job boards in them, where petitioners have posted monsters that are causing them trouble. This is all completely optional, but if you decided to do them, there are so many cool monsters! The final hunt took me just under 4 hours to beat. It was wild.
This is honestly one of those games that is on my list when people ask me "If you could only play one game for the rest of your life, what would it be?"
disease and silence doing a lot to bring major intrusive thoughts to the forefront of my brain
This game completely blew me away. I had never heard anything about it beforehand, so I had no real expectations going into it, but wow, this game is nothing short of a masterpiece. In this review, I’m going to give my thoughts on why I believe this.
First up, I want to talk about the highlight of this game, which would definitely be the world. Ff12 is set in Ivalice, and this country/nation or whatever you want to call it is nothing short of breathtaking. The area design in this game is truly impressive, and the art style complements these designs perfectly, making this entire game gorgeous, especially considering this was originally a PS2 game. Nearly every area is a treat to look at, and I get excited whenever I arrive at a new location. Not only is the world beautiful, but it also feels HUGE. I’ll be bringing this up a lot, but the fact that this was all on the PS2 astonishes me because some of these areas are just massive in size, and it really makes you feel like you’re on an adventure and aren’t just going through virtual rooms. I also find it extremely cool that if you want to go from one side of the map to another, you can totally do that because every single thing is connected in this game, making it feel so much more alive. Ff12 has such an expansive and beautiful world that’s so easy to fall in love with.
As for the plot, I think it is VERY strong, especially in the first half. I think the political aspects of this game are done very well, and while not as unique or innovative as some of the other Final Fantasy plots, I think it is a much neater and tighter story than what you’ll see in Ff7, for example. While that may not be for everyone, I thought it was a very nice change of pace for once. I absolutely love this narrative; the characters and plot are always moving forward, and it just really helps you feel a sense of adventure and urgency as well. This story also deals with some pretty deep themes, like loss and revenge, which I think are handled pretty well in this game.
Moving on to the characters, I’m slightly mixed on them because while I think they’re all very enjoyable characters who all get their moments to shine, I did feel as if they were a little underutilized throughout the game. Compared to games like Ff9, for example, it didn’t really feel as if the cast is really present outside of cutscenes, which kinda sucks because in cutscenes they are extremely entertaining, and honestly, I wish we just got more of them. Ashe, Balthier, Vaan, and Fran are all extremely likable, and the fact that my only big complaint is that I didn’t get enough of them is a pretty good thing, I’d say.
Next, I want to talk about the level design and the actual combat in the game because, unlike previous turn-based Ff games, Ff12 changes things up and transitions into a more active turn-based, NPC-controlling system. I’m not gonna get into specifics about how this works exactly. If you want to know, play the game, but all you need to know is that this system is a blast. The combat is so satisfying and rewarding, and it also requires skill, proper planning, and sometimes even quick reactions to win some of the more difficult fights in-game. There’s also this board thing, which basically lets you pick out the different abilities, stats, and weapons you get in-game, and I absolutely love this. It’s so much fun filling out my character’s boards and altering what and what not I want them to learn. Apparently, some people preferred the OG version where you can give any character any board they want, but I honestly prefer this version where you only get two boards for each character. This makes it so that I have to be more careful and calculating with what I want my characters to learn. As for the level design, well, it’s not that great. A lot of the levels can just essentially be big themed rooms with no puzzles or anything, and even when there are puzzles, they’re not necessarily all that special. I do, however, believe the gameplay and pretty areas make up for the lack in actual level design.
Finally, I want to talk about some of the more technical stuff, i.e., the music, voice acting, the FMVs, and any other things like that. First up, I’m gonna cover the music, and god, this OST is incredible. I don’t know much about music, but from what I hear, this OST has tons of woodwind instruments, which gives the entire game such a joyful and cheery atmosphere while being extremely atmospheric if it has to be. I absolutely adore this soundtrack, with some of my favorites being Respite, Discarded Power, and Cerobi Steppe. Now let me talk about the English voice acting real quick, and omg, people weren’t kidding when they said this is one of the greatest localizations in JRPG history because holy shit, this voice cast gives it their 100%. If this game’s beautiful world didn’t immerse me, I’m sure the voice acting would because it’s just that good, and I say that as someone who plays the vast majority of his JRPGs in Japanese, including Persona. I almost fprgot this but I wanted to give quick mention to the speed up options in this game which makes breezing through monsters and areas you’ve already gone through so much more manageable. Also, final little bit, but the FMVs are as sick as ever. I won’t spoil anything, but the last hour of the game is FMV heaven, holy shit.
All in all, Ff12 is one of the greatest games I’ve ever played, and it is now my favorite Final Fantasy game, surpassing 7. I will be buying the game off Amazon, and I intend to replay it on my PS2 since it’s literally leaving PS+ the day I’m writing this review.
First up, I want to talk about the highlight of this game, which would definitely be the world. Ff12 is set in Ivalice, and this country/nation or whatever you want to call it is nothing short of breathtaking. The area design in this game is truly impressive, and the art style complements these designs perfectly, making this entire game gorgeous, especially considering this was originally a PS2 game. Nearly every area is a treat to look at, and I get excited whenever I arrive at a new location. Not only is the world beautiful, but it also feels HUGE. I’ll be bringing this up a lot, but the fact that this was all on the PS2 astonishes me because some of these areas are just massive in size, and it really makes you feel like you’re on an adventure and aren’t just going through virtual rooms. I also find it extremely cool that if you want to go from one side of the map to another, you can totally do that because every single thing is connected in this game, making it feel so much more alive. Ff12 has such an expansive and beautiful world that’s so easy to fall in love with.
As for the plot, I think it is VERY strong, especially in the first half. I think the political aspects of this game are done very well, and while not as unique or innovative as some of the other Final Fantasy plots, I think it is a much neater and tighter story than what you’ll see in Ff7, for example. While that may not be for everyone, I thought it was a very nice change of pace for once. I absolutely love this narrative; the characters and plot are always moving forward, and it just really helps you feel a sense of adventure and urgency as well. This story also deals with some pretty deep themes, like loss and revenge, which I think are handled pretty well in this game.
Moving on to the characters, I’m slightly mixed on them because while I think they’re all very enjoyable characters who all get their moments to shine, I did feel as if they were a little underutilized throughout the game. Compared to games like Ff9, for example, it didn’t really feel as if the cast is really present outside of cutscenes, which kinda sucks because in cutscenes they are extremely entertaining, and honestly, I wish we just got more of them. Ashe, Balthier, Vaan, and Fran are all extremely likable, and the fact that my only big complaint is that I didn’t get enough of them is a pretty good thing, I’d say.
Next, I want to talk about the level design and the actual combat in the game because, unlike previous turn-based Ff games, Ff12 changes things up and transitions into a more active turn-based, NPC-controlling system. I’m not gonna get into specifics about how this works exactly. If you want to know, play the game, but all you need to know is that this system is a blast. The combat is so satisfying and rewarding, and it also requires skill, proper planning, and sometimes even quick reactions to win some of the more difficult fights in-game. There’s also this board thing, which basically lets you pick out the different abilities, stats, and weapons you get in-game, and I absolutely love this. It’s so much fun filling out my character’s boards and altering what and what not I want them to learn. Apparently, some people preferred the OG version where you can give any character any board they want, but I honestly prefer this version where you only get two boards for each character. This makes it so that I have to be more careful and calculating with what I want my characters to learn. As for the level design, well, it’s not that great. A lot of the levels can just essentially be big themed rooms with no puzzles or anything, and even when there are puzzles, they’re not necessarily all that special. I do, however, believe the gameplay and pretty areas make up for the lack in actual level design.
Finally, I want to talk about some of the more technical stuff, i.e., the music, voice acting, the FMVs, and any other things like that. First up, I’m gonna cover the music, and god, this OST is incredible. I don’t know much about music, but from what I hear, this OST has tons of woodwind instruments, which gives the entire game such a joyful and cheery atmosphere while being extremely atmospheric if it has to be. I absolutely adore this soundtrack, with some of my favorites being Respite, Discarded Power, and Cerobi Steppe. Now let me talk about the English voice acting real quick, and omg, people weren’t kidding when they said this is one of the greatest localizations in JRPG history because holy shit, this voice cast gives it their 100%. If this game’s beautiful world didn’t immerse me, I’m sure the voice acting would because it’s just that good, and I say that as someone who plays the vast majority of his JRPGs in Japanese, including Persona. I almost fprgot this but I wanted to give quick mention to the speed up options in this game which makes breezing through monsters and areas you’ve already gone through so much more manageable. Also, final little bit, but the FMVs are as sick as ever. I won’t spoil anything, but the last hour of the game is FMV heaven, holy shit.
All in all, Ff12 is one of the greatest games I’ve ever played, and it is now my favorite Final Fantasy game, surpassing 7. I will be buying the game off Amazon, and I intend to replay it on my PS2 since it’s literally leaving PS+ the day I’m writing this review.
I’ve always been interested in FF12 aesthetically and it has been on my list for quite some time - now that it’s leaving PS Plus I had enough motivation to prioritize it and see it through fully to completion. I enjoyed my time with it greatly for the most part and am glad I finally played it.
Many people will talk about 12’s gameplay as if it’s a black sheep in the series, but having played other entries before and after, and both MMOs, I actually think it’s the gameplay is extremely fitting for where Final Fantasy was at when it released. It truly feels like a single-player evolved version of Final Fantasy 11 but with a stronger cast, less required busywork, and a solid trust system. If you approach this game with that understanding, I think it’s quite enjoyable and has considerable depth. A lot of what became Final Fantasy 14 (particularly ARR and later) also shows through in this game, which makes sense considering the large overlap in the development teams.
The gambit system is daunting at first, but quickly makes sense when you consider it as an assisted gameplay function. The easiest one to understand is attacking: this game would be quite tedious if you had to hit attack constantly, so you can set a gambit to hit attack every time your cooldown ends. You might want to automatically resurrect a character when they die. Automatically heal when you are below 30% of your HP. From this perspective, thinking of it less like “programming a character entirely” and more like “what do I want it to do by default with me still interjecting regularly” makes it easier to build a gambit system for yourself. The system is limited, but can be used effectively to avoid overly needing to micromanage your team while letting them do a considerable range of actions. Coming from more recent Final Fantasy entries, I actually appreciated the very wide range of status effects and vulnerabilities, which felt much more like earlier entries in the series in a good way. The gambit system can also be used to deal with many of these status effects automatically, and ultimately, these statuses can be used to break the game which is always a fun learning moment in any FF.
The plot is mostly fine: you’re a team of sky pirates and orphans helping a princess in exile get her kingdom back with her retainer. That focus is pretty clear from near the start of the game. The playable and non-playable characters have interesting connections and, other than Penelo who makes hanging around Vaan her entire personality (but makes a great healer!), everyone else seems to have an interesting backgrounds and driving factors. I found Vaan a little grating at times, and Ashe a little more passive and opinionless than I’d have liked, but overall was interested in the overarching narrative. Without spoiling much, the villains are layered and often sympathetic in some ways, which I think some people found dampening but after reflecting I found it kind of interesting. It sort of feels like not a ton gets resolved at the end but I think enough does that the basic plot feels complete and the main objectives feel satisfied, which honestly doesn’t even happen in most modern games now.
I previously attempted finishing this game on the Switch version, and remember struggling due to a lack of money and gear. Part of that is due to the importance of stealing in this game - if you’re not getting loot constantly and completing hunts, you aren’t making the most of your time in Ivalice. Loot is the primary way to make money early in the game, and selling loot earns you gil for buying new gear. Having a character set to Steal automatically for any full health enemy meant I had a very regular stream of loot incoming, so I never was stressed for money. Hunts also give good rewards, and eventually offer you the opportunity to get a specific set of accessories that ROCKET how much money you earn. At that point you can basically buy anything you want at any time.
While I never played the original, the Zodiac Age changes make this game much better than I would have imagined the original being. There is a 4X speed mode, which I used more than I expected to get through some of the grinding in the game. Without it I easily would have spent well over 100 hours playing, and probably wouldn’t have looked for some of the rarer gear as much. The licence board is very well done, and lets you try a lot of combinations of jobs and espers to build a set of 6 characters that work the way you like. These licences also lock different armor and weapons behind jobs, and because characters can have two jobs, you can make combinations of gears and abilities as well. The loot system in the newer version uses a lot of chests with random chances at providing different gear, which is fine for the most part, but also means some fairly critical skills are behind random chest spawns. This isn’t common enough to truly bug me, but felt a little odd.
I think this would only impact you if you went for a full 100% playthrough, as do most of the more tedious parts of the game. Someone who is mostly just hitting plot beats with light side content I think can have a satisfying journey - because of all the side content I did I felt exceptionally overleveled for the final boss, so it’s not necessary to overly grind to finish the game.
I had one main gripe with the game - the licence board is buggy and sometimes crashes when you open it. A few times I opened it directly after beating an Esper with the goal of getting the licence on my board, and the game crashed before I could auto save. This has apparently been an issue for years in the final update of the game and it should have been fixed by now. Smaller gripes are the plot being kind of whatever at times, and a little bit of tedium in some of the side content.
Generally, I think the game is fun and would recommend it. A solid JRPG with complex gameplay and layered decision making, wrapped in an MMO-like casing.
Many people will talk about 12’s gameplay as if it’s a black sheep in the series, but having played other entries before and after, and both MMOs, I actually think it’s the gameplay is extremely fitting for where Final Fantasy was at when it released. It truly feels like a single-player evolved version of Final Fantasy 11 but with a stronger cast, less required busywork, and a solid trust system. If you approach this game with that understanding, I think it’s quite enjoyable and has considerable depth. A lot of what became Final Fantasy 14 (particularly ARR and later) also shows through in this game, which makes sense considering the large overlap in the development teams.
The gambit system is daunting at first, but quickly makes sense when you consider it as an assisted gameplay function. The easiest one to understand is attacking: this game would be quite tedious if you had to hit attack constantly, so you can set a gambit to hit attack every time your cooldown ends. You might want to automatically resurrect a character when they die. Automatically heal when you are below 30% of your HP. From this perspective, thinking of it less like “programming a character entirely” and more like “what do I want it to do by default with me still interjecting regularly” makes it easier to build a gambit system for yourself. The system is limited, but can be used effectively to avoid overly needing to micromanage your team while letting them do a considerable range of actions. Coming from more recent Final Fantasy entries, I actually appreciated the very wide range of status effects and vulnerabilities, which felt much more like earlier entries in the series in a good way. The gambit system can also be used to deal with many of these status effects automatically, and ultimately, these statuses can be used to break the game which is always a fun learning moment in any FF.
The plot is mostly fine: you’re a team of sky pirates and orphans helping a princess in exile get her kingdom back with her retainer. That focus is pretty clear from near the start of the game. The playable and non-playable characters have interesting connections and, other than Penelo who makes hanging around Vaan her entire personality (but makes a great healer!), everyone else seems to have an interesting backgrounds and driving factors. I found Vaan a little grating at times, and Ashe a little more passive and opinionless than I’d have liked, but overall was interested in the overarching narrative. Without spoiling much, the villains are layered and often sympathetic in some ways, which I think some people found dampening but after reflecting I found it kind of interesting. It sort of feels like not a ton gets resolved at the end but I think enough does that the basic plot feels complete and the main objectives feel satisfied, which honestly doesn’t even happen in most modern games now.
I previously attempted finishing this game on the Switch version, and remember struggling due to a lack of money and gear. Part of that is due to the importance of stealing in this game - if you’re not getting loot constantly and completing hunts, you aren’t making the most of your time in Ivalice. Loot is the primary way to make money early in the game, and selling loot earns you gil for buying new gear. Having a character set to Steal automatically for any full health enemy meant I had a very regular stream of loot incoming, so I never was stressed for money. Hunts also give good rewards, and eventually offer you the opportunity to get a specific set of accessories that ROCKET how much money you earn. At that point you can basically buy anything you want at any time.
While I never played the original, the Zodiac Age changes make this game much better than I would have imagined the original being. There is a 4X speed mode, which I used more than I expected to get through some of the grinding in the game. Without it I easily would have spent well over 100 hours playing, and probably wouldn’t have looked for some of the rarer gear as much. The licence board is very well done, and lets you try a lot of combinations of jobs and espers to build a set of 6 characters that work the way you like. These licences also lock different armor and weapons behind jobs, and because characters can have two jobs, you can make combinations of gears and abilities as well. The loot system in the newer version uses a lot of chests with random chances at providing different gear, which is fine for the most part, but also means some fairly critical skills are behind random chest spawns. This isn’t common enough to truly bug me, but felt a little odd.
I think this would only impact you if you went for a full 100% playthrough, as do most of the more tedious parts of the game. Someone who is mostly just hitting plot beats with light side content I think can have a satisfying journey - because of all the side content I did I felt exceptionally overleveled for the final boss, so it’s not necessary to overly grind to finish the game.
I had one main gripe with the game - the licence board is buggy and sometimes crashes when you open it. A few times I opened it directly after beating an Esper with the goal of getting the licence on my board, and the game crashed before I could auto save. This has apparently been an issue for years in the final update of the game and it should have been fixed by now. Smaller gripes are the plot being kind of whatever at times, and a little bit of tedium in some of the side content.
Generally, I think the game is fun and would recommend it. A solid JRPG with complex gameplay and layered decision making, wrapped in an MMO-like casing.
"Final Fantasy XII: The Zodiac Age" improves upon the original game with its revamped class system, offering players more depth and strategic options. The graphics have been enhanced, and the increased frame rate of 60fps makes for a more enjoyable experience, especially in 2024.
Additionally, the soundtrack has been reworked, although this may be an acquired taste for some players. Personally, I prefer the modernized soundtrack, which adds a fresh twist to the game's audio experience.
Overall, "Final Fantasy XII: The Zodiac Age" is a solid remaster that enhances the original game in several key areas. However, while it offers improvements, it may not be enough to sway those who were not fans of the original release.
Additionally, the soundtrack has been reworked, although this may be an acquired taste for some players. Personally, I prefer the modernized soundtrack, which adds a fresh twist to the game's audio experience.
Overall, "Final Fantasy XII: The Zodiac Age" is a solid remaster that enhances the original game in several key areas. However, while it offers improvements, it may not be enough to sway those who were not fans of the original release.