This game was a joy to experience from beginning to end.
It does a fantastic job at establishing the main cast and their dynamic. New characters are introduced naturally and all felt like they had a place within the party, the narrative, and the core message of the game.

The pacing & main story was also really solid for most of it. The early hours do take its time to introduce us to this world but it never felt slow. The way that the game flows from one massive event to the next felt satisfying and exciting. With every event and reveal leaving an impact in one way or another. Near the end I do think it went a tiny bit fast and some characters could've definitely been explored more, but while these are definitely flaws, they are pretty minor next to the fantastic stuff that this game has to offer.

From a gameplay standpoint the game is a bit more hit and miss tho. The way that the world opens up to you is done really well and the exploration is fun, but I really didnt enjoy the combat. It's extremely slow to the point that it's annoying, trances are not implemented well and the ability/equipment system is kinda whatever. There were point where I thought that I was getting used to it, but I never fully enjoyed the encounters in this game. (It's also not an age thing as I really like the FFVII combat)

That's my biggest issue with it tho, if you can look past the combat it's an incredible game