Final Fantasy XII: The Zodiac Age

I'm willing to bet they had us going into the other major empire at some point and then realized they ran out of space, either on the disc or the deadline they set for the game. It all got cut and then we ended up with the final boss that we got.

The ending is by far my biggest gripe, as I absolutely loved the game, and it's because the final boss doesn't really feel like the final boss, and it just came too soon. When I got the message at a save point that I "wouldn't be able to come back" or something I was like wtf, game doesn't feel over yet.

There was so much more they could have done with that storyline, it felt like we were cheated out of what the game should have been.

lold

Picked this up today, Gamestop upgraded me to the Limited Steelbook Edition for free. Which means I have the original PS2 Steelbook edition and now this one. Special Editions typically don't do anything for me, and this one is no different, but it was free so whatever.

Looking forward to playing it again, wonder if the voice acting is as bad as I remember. Haven't played in about 10 years. Also don't know how I am going to balance this and Stormblood, first world gamer problems.

I played the through the original twice due to enjoying the game so much. The 2nd time around though was a more serious run where I collected all the badges, defeated Yiazmat and farmed all the legendary weapons.

Good times.

That's because you da man Ava!!

I'm on the fence on getting this again.

On the one hand, it's not that bad of a story.
On the other hand, that damn Trust Gambit system, along with horrible battle system.

I played it through the entire story once, but spent more time enjoying the side missions/collections/hunts than the actual story. I might have gone weeks at a time between advancing the game.

I am looking at it my self
But ya KKing. Gambit system was lame.

I never played the Zodiac version, so the battle system is going to be completely different for me this time around.

Beginning to this game is just brutal. Here are Vaan and Penelo, two of the worst characters in history. Enjoy.

-__-

Waiting on feedback from others before I decide to purchase this game.

Although what's sucky is that you cannot change jobs at all. Lame if you ask me.

I believe this time around each character has two jobs to choose from, instead of one.

So it says on wiki.

Still on the fence, even with the "job board system" in place. Nobody has said that the Gambit system has improved, and that's pretty much the biggest thing that would make/break the sale for me.

I'm just hoping to see it on PC.

Well, as I said, the beginning is brutal, I will post my thoughts on the new gambit system..as soon as I unlock it and play around with it. But I have no idea when that is gonna be.

no ps vita release ... if only

Please do.

My leaning is geared towards falling on the "buy" side, but that gambit system is a weight that's keeping me from falling outright.

Metaphorically speaking, of course.

Balthier is still obnoxious, definitely relegating him to the WHM role, just go back there cure me and be quiet.

Ok 3 hours in, update. What? Yeah, I've had the game for 7 hours, but I played some Stormblood, so what!!!

Ok, update! To me, its the same game. Yes, they included the Zodiac edition, and added a job for each character, but for now I am still locked into 1 job. The license board is largely the same, and the gambits look to be the same as well. You can unlock 5 or 6 gambit slots per character really early on, and you can buy a lot of gambits at the same time.

As for the Zodiac feature, its an interesting addition, and I think as the game goes on party selection is going to matter a lot more, whereas in the original version nothing mattered, you could go with any 3 characters and smash everything. That said, the game provides almost no guidance when selecting a job for each character. Who is better at what job? Figure it out. Oh and you cannot change your job once you choose, so good luck!

This is a poor design, there should at least be some kind of in game guide as to what character is ideal for each job. Sure the easy counterpoint is "just look up a guide online." True story, but that doesn't mean SE deserves a pass. Apparently, Balthier is the ideal WHM in the game, no way in hell I would have EVER guessed that on my own, the character is introduced with a gun and obnoxious dialogue.

As for the graphical upgrade...the cutscenes don't look nearly as good as the FFX remaster, which is a surprise. The characters are still kind of blurry, something is off. I am going to try the Japanese audio soon, the English version, well if you liked it the first time you will still like it I guess, but if you are like me and never cared for the voice acting, especially Fran, its still bad.

What's funny is the original version of the game had a HUGE ordeal, and you wouldn't know about it if you didn't follow a/the strategy guide. But basically at the the beginning of the game (in Lower Rabanastre) if you open this very specific treasure chest you screw yourself out of the Zodiac Spear (the most powerful weapon in the game).

I wonder if SE changed that for this updated version?

Yes, the Zodiac spear is accessible without following those stupid stipulations.

Gambit system isn't changed much.

Second job is unlocked fairly early on in the game.

"Who's best for each role" literally only matters if you're going to be doing some super minmax ***for the 100 Floor Trial Mode. Which is a mixed bag due to License Board nodes, equipment and base stats influencing character stats. Also, attack/combo/counter/block animation speed and other tiny ***like that.

Max level with endgame gear will have most characters maxing out relevant stats for their primary role. If they aren't, it's by a point or two.

I read somewhere that originally, the devs wanted to make Basch the main character, which would have been significantly more serviceable. However, I think producers and execs butted in and changed it to Vaan so it could appeal to a younger audience. Unfortunately that meant having a character as fascinating as lint.
Which is too bad really, because they've done plenty of good character arcs and development for younger characters before, but alas, it comes down to: Because Square-Enix.

*** off, Penelo is the best. And Vaan is my man in FFRK.

You forgot to use the sarcasm font.

Nope, I'm serious. Penelo may not be your super heroine, but she's an orphan girl with her heart and mind in the right place, which is admirable. Vaan is no super hero, but your typical RPG trope is about a random boy in a village that picks up a wooden sword and ends up saving the world from a lord of darkness, so him existing isn't some major issue either. He's an angry teenage boy who does a pretty decent job at stepping up when the door opens for him to do so.

Sure, Basch would have been the better hero for the story, but I understand why Vaan and Penelo were added, and I like them as characters. And besides, Ashe is the true main character, Vaan is just the window for us to view the story.

Vaan and Penelo were added to ask questions about things to have the world explained to you. Other than that they were there because they wanted more than 4 characters.

I don't feel either way about Vaan. Penelo is adorable though.

Balthier best party member character fite me



Cid is the best character in the game though

See I have a major weakness for Penelo because FFXII came out when I still wasn't over my ex-fiancee and she reminded me of all the good things about her (and without the bad!). This probably made me a little more patient with Vaan, too. I don't really get into the waifu scene but if there's any such thing as an anime/video game waifu for me, it's Penelo.

And this has translated into a bit of a problem later on, I've spent way too much money in FFRK on Penelo and I don't even have a use for her in my party because I still need to make a group that'll win first and foremost >.>