Final Fantasy XII

[Demon Cleaner]

I thought it would be nice to set up a FFXII topic, so everybody currently playing (or not yet), can post their questions, tips, experience aso here.

[Harrison]

I'll begin by asking a simple question. What does everyone think of FFXII compared to the rest of the FF series?

Personally so far I'm finding this the best Final Fantasy game to date, and that includes Final Fantasy VII. The real time combat is a new direction for an FF game, but it only takes a few moments to get used to it as it still uses many of the combat machanics from previous FF games, such as the attack timer, and pausing the combat whilst you select your actions. Personally I'm finding the new combat system quite new and refreshing after so many variations of the turn based system from all previous FF games.

The character development system is maybe the only negative aspect of the game, where you need to purchase and assign the ability as well as equipping an item before you can use it, but after a couple of times it isn't too much of a problem.

The story is also just as well written and involving as previous FF games, and the graphics are some of the best seen on the PS2 to date.

[Demon Cleaner]

Only having played 7,8 and 10 so far, I think that 7 was better, but I have to mention that it is my favorite all time RPG, the first one with such a turn based combat system I ever played.

The combat system in FFXII is good, but gets quite boring, dull and bland with the time. I think they should have used a turn based again, because this is nothing else, only that you have to run around with bad camera positioning. In the beginning, when entering a combat, you chose ATTACK, run around, strike the opponent, run around... After some more combats, you just stop running around, as it leads to nothing. You just stand there, waiting for your attack to be performed.

Graphics are indeed great, and the monsters look great, as usual in RPG games.

I like the gambit and license system, as it's very unique, and you can chose what your character will become with the time. So I use my female characters with magick and ranged weapons, and my male characters with short ranged weapons like axes, swords and spears.

[Harrison]

The other big change is of course no random battles. You can now see all enemies roaming the area you are in and it is up to you to engage them or try to avoid them. I don't honestly know if I prefer this over random battles as they did used to add an element of surprise whilst you were travelling, and this did feel more realistic as in real life you would not always see an enemy before they ambushed you in an attack.

[Demon Cleaner]

You can now see all enemies roaming the area you are in and it is up to you to engage them or try to avoid them.I like that, and it is getting more and more used in upcoming RPGs. But I take all the fights anyway, NO MERCY!!!


add an element of surprise whilst you were travelling,It could also be very painful, retracing to a spot, and AAAARRRRGGGGHHHH, not again.


as in real life you would not always see an enemy before they ambushed you in an attack.Actually when running through a desert plain, you can see your opponents very well. This would only count when passing through woods and such. In Xenosaga you also see your opponents, running through big space ship corridors. Sam Fisher also sees his enemies ;) Imagine random encounter in Splinter Cell :huh:

[Harrison]

OK, that is true. As I said I'm not sure if I prefer random encounters to be in a game or not. But then games don't have to be true to live.

I do however agree with having too many random encounters in a game. Some games such as the original Breath of Fire got quite annoying with random encounters appearing every few steps in the world view.

Thinking about the combat system again, it might just me as I've not played it in some time, but I seem to remember Grandia's combat system being similar. Also quite a few PS1 games had visible enemies, but it is a first for an FF game.

[AlexJ]

Just 15 days until I'll be getting my hands on this hopefully...

Ridiculous it takes 4 months to do a PAL conversion. :mad:

[Harrison]

Hence the reason DC and myself both use chipped PS2's so we can play the games when they are actually released.

[AlexJ]

Hence the reason DC and myself both use chipped PS2's so we can play the games when they are actually released.

The guilt of helping kill the Amiga off means I'll never pirate another video game. Either that or I want to wait for the proper version with the case,manual and everything when it comes to FF games. (Looks at shelf full of 'non-original' games) Yeah, it's the latter.

Although I suppose with a chipped PS2 I could just import the NTSC American version.

[Harrison]

Piracy wasn't the reason for the Amiga's death. The bad management of Commodore was the only true cause. Even with the piracy, the games sales on the Amiga were strong. And it is evident with most platforms throughout history that the most popular systems have had the biggest piracy levels. Look at the original Playstation for example.

I do also like to own the originals of games such as Final Fantasy and most other RPGs. I have originals of all the UK releases by Squaresoft on both PSX and PS2 so will probably buy FFXII once it is released in the UK. I have also imported many original games from the US and Hong Kong in the past. Especially titles that never get released in the UK.

But I do still download most of the latest releases so I can experience them prior to a European release. If it is any good you can guarantee I will purchase the original eventually.

BTW, I look forward to seeing what you think of FFXII once you get your hands on it. :)

[Demon Cleaner]

Either that or I want to wait for the proper version with the case,manual and everythingThat's the reason I buy the strategy guides, much better than the manual.


BTW, I look forward to seeing what you think of FFXII once you get your hands on it.Me too. But stay topic related here, otherwise it will get too big. Pirating and modchipping should not be discussed in here ;)

[Demon Cleaner]

Yesterday I fought 2 hidden espers, Adrammelech the Wroth and Cúchulainn the Impure where the latter was very tough. You fight him on a field that has a HP sap buff, meaning HP draining constantly, and very fast. I had to use 2 characters with almost only healing/reviving gambits, and one character for fighting (if you managed to get him fighting).

The fight immediately starts off with you losing HP instantly and constantly, so after 10 seconds your characters already begin to heal themselves. Then suddenly they begin to fall/die, and you should revive them immediately or you lose the battle (with the right gambits, this was no problem). I constantly had at least one character down.

Then the guy is helped by some other creatures which get you in an even worse situation. And he begins to cast Bio, and other status effects, so that you have to remove negative status with remedies and other stuff too.

I used level 3 quickenings from the very beginning, which dealt some damage to him, but not that lot, so I wandered around him, only healing and reviving characters, waiting for a chance to attack, which seemed impossible. And after a level 3 quickening of a character, your MP drop to 0, so when chaining with 3 characters, they are all at 0 MP, so no more magicks possible, only technicks and items.

But then I stroke back, noticing a weakness. The guy uses the Invert spell, meaning that your HP and MP get inverted, which of course means almost sudden death, as some characters only had 5 MP (you gain MP by running around), so being at 5 HP, but getting full MP back due to the inversion, I could unchain quickenings again and so on.

So I mainly waited for him to use the Invert spell, then unleashed quickenings on him over and over again, and trying to keep my characters alive, which was a very tough task. But I finally defeated him.

In the whole battle I used about 30-40 Phoenix Downs and Hi-Potions and it took me 35-45 minutes to defeat this guy. Adrammelech was also tough the first time I fought him and I lost, but the second time, with levelled up characters, he only lasted for 5-10 minutes.

http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y184/cioprgr/adrammelech1.jpghttp://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y184/cioprgr/cuchulainn1.jpg

Yesterday I did some hunts again, the main hunts, and also the hunts from the Hunt Club in Phon Coast. But I don't know if I'm going to do all the hunts, as it is very time consuming. I'm almost finished with the main story (I think), that's why I concentrated on the hunts. But doing all the hunts, can also get very tedious, as you have to redo the whole deserts, dungeons and plains again and again (sometimes you can use chocobos though). Will also try to do some fishing. And of course, I have still some hidden Espers (and story based Espers) to get, which can get a very tough task.

[Harrison]

So what is your opinion on FF12 compared to the rest of the FF series?

[Demon Cleaner]

My opinion is still the same than it was on the previous page. And that's why I don't know if I shall play through the story, or also do all/some of the sidequests. Usually I do all the sidequests, but here they mainly consist in hunting rare monsters, which gets tedious with the time. But now I'm off for some hunting...

[Harrison]

I know what you mean, but the monster hunting is strangely addictive, much like collecting video games... you're not quite sure why you are really collecting them all or if you are really enjoying it, but you just need to collect them all. :unsure: :lol:

[Demon Cleaner]

I hunted down 3 of the notice board today, and 2 of them for the hunt club (which appeared before me by coincidence, as they are spread over the whol FFXII world, so I slashed them). Then I did a short and a long sidequest, which I had to do to get the Barheim key, which opens the doors to go for another fight with an Esper. I saved just before the fight, so tomorrow we'll see if I get him or not.

I've also seen, that you must do different hunts, to reveal more of the (side) story to get all Espers or items or whatever. The good point is, I played the story so far, that I'm able now to buy teleport stones, which are crucial to get you from one point to another, without running through the whole world again, which can be quite boring, as also earlier visited places have weak monsters which don't get you further with experience points, but only hold you back with boring fights.

[Submeg]

Cant wait til I have the airship so I dont have to run back and forth all the time...

[Demon Cleaner]

I never tried if I can take the airship at the aerodrome?? But where does it take you anyway, wherever you want, or only to other aerodromes? But then you won't need it, as teleporting works pretty good, there are enough teleport stones around Ivalice.

I don't know when you exactly get the/an airship, I already had the opportunity to fly with the Strahl, Balthier's ship, but that was story based. Or do you get an own one later?

[Submeg]

I hope you can get it later, otherwise it wont follow the previous games before it...

[Harrison]

I've not got that far myself, but I also hope you can take full control of an airship later in the game, as was the case in many of the previous FF games.

[Submeg]

Hmm, I havent even got a GF/Aeon thingy yet...

[Demon Cleaner]

Hmm, I havent even got a GF/Aeon thingy yet...It are Espers like in FF6. GF are FF8 and Aeons are FF10.

I have now completed 20/45 hunts (and only 3/30 of the hunt club, which you join later). I have 5 Espers, last one I fought was Zalera the Death Seraph, which was not so hard to fight. I also explored more of the world, as there are some sections, you don't have to visit directly during the storyline.

I also checked the aerodrome, and there you can buy tickent for different flight destinations. It costs 200 Gil, and you can also explore the airplane, which is quite good looking. There are even merchants where you can buy stuff, and you have a Saloon onboard where you can have a drink. But teleporting is faster and cheaper anyway. There's a little sidequest on the airships though, so at least take the airplane once to start the event (thereafter you have to take the airplane for each flight route once, as you have to visit Ann's 6 sisters who work on different flight routes).

During the last 3 days, I only did some hunts, sidequests and Esper catching. In the main story I'm at the port of Balfonheim, and I think I'm gonna continue a bit in the story, as the hunts now start to get tougher, and I need some more uplevelling. But at the port of Balfonheim I can also get the fishing rod to start the fishing sidequest.

[Demon Cleaner]

I began the fishing game today, but stopped almost immediately. It's very boring and a bit tough too. You go to a location and have to give orders to the guy with the rod. On screen then appear buttons you have to push the right way and time, but it goes very fast and is easy to miss. So after catching only a few fish, I quit, and I think I'm not going to do all the fishing sidequest.

[Submeg]

Ok, I'm currently trying to get to the tomb to retrieve the artefact to prove the identification of Lady Ashe. I am past the first sandsea, get through half of another and get to this cave. There are these toads plus slimers and I cant get through. These guys are nasty and I cant kill them. Help please?

[Demon Cleaner]

What do you mean by "I cant kill them"? Are they too strong, and you don't manage to kill them, or does it even not hurt them? What Slime and Toads are it exactly, as there are many through the game? What weakness do they have? How do you try to fight them, short ranged, long ranged or both?

I never had big problems killing non boss enemies, later there are some tougher ones though. Maybe you should level up, what level are your characters?

I'm at the final point in the game now. I can now still do sidequests and hunts, or when I take my airship, the Strahl (which means beam in german), and fight through the last chapter and end the game. I don't know what I should do exactly. Spend another 30 hours hunting, or just finish it off.

[Submeg]

All my characters are around lvl 16, apart from Vosseler who is 18. It seems that it does very little damage, if any. I don't know if I should level up or not.

[Demon Cleaner]

What licenses do you have? You should be able to use black magick against the enemies, as almost all enemies are weak against an element. Equip a gambit slot on one character with Libra or use a Bangle on one character to always see the enemies stats., thus weakness.

[Submeg]

How do you get to use black magic? I have the licenses, but I cant cast them...dont you need some other item?

[Demon Cleaner]

You have to buy the magicks (yeah, it's called magick, don't know why) in magick shops of course. Then acquire and open the license on the license board for it. Then it will be added in your battle menu. Don't you have a manual?

[Submeg]

Lol, no just lazy. Hehe, Yea I should buy them hey....but no cash, need to kick some ass and get some cash.

[Demon Cleaner]

I just finished FFXII and it took me about 65 hours. I did not finish ALL the sidequests, but I have a final savegame where I can load at every moment and continue with the remaining hunts before boarding the ship to travel to the final battle. I got all the Espers though.

[Harrison]

Very nice. How do you now rate FFXII compared to the previous FF games?

I've still not got that far into FFXII as I've had too much else to do. I definitely will be soon through. :)

[Demon Cleaner]

I rate it "worse than" FF7 and "better than" FF8. And perhaps equal to FF10. I haven't played FF9 or any other title yet.

The ending is definitely worth seeing as there is a lot of cg animation which is awesome. The final fight is pretty tough though, because in the last section of the game you have no save points.

So Submeg, if you're already having problems fighting jellies, you should definitely built up your characters to a high level ;)

[Harrison]

Interesting. I'm still not sure about FFX or FFX-2. I enjoyed them but not to the same degree as 7 and 9. You should definitely play FF9 as that is my favourite FF game to date. I also didn't like FF8 that much compared to FF7. And as for FF12, I've not played through it enough to form a proper opinion of it.

[AlexJ]

For me it's (from highest to lowest):

FF7
FF10
FF8
FF9
FFX-2

As with Harrison I haven't played FF12 enough to form an opinion on it (in fact it's only been off my shelf once, I haven't had enough time recently to have a proper session on the PS2 and FF doesn't tend to be a game you can pick up for 20 minutes)

[Submeg]

Yea, I'm leveling up at the mo, all characters at lvl 18. FINALLY got an Esper....

[Demon Cleaner]

You got Belias I suppose. He is very weak, but in the beginning you can summon him sometimes, and he only costs you one mist charge. I found quickenings to be more powerful than the first Espers you get.

[Submeg]

Yea quickenings are good, especially when you do 10 in a row.

[Submeg]

Hey I have a problem, Penelo is silenced and for some reason, vox or remedy wont get rid of it??

[Demon Cleaner]

Use Echo Herbs against Silence.You can also upgrade your remedies via licenses, so that they remove more than only the usual abnormalities.

@Submeg: Let's post all the FF12 related questions in the RPG's sticky section, so we have it all in one thread. I moved the last 2 posts.

[Submeg]

cool. But my remedy includes silence, so why doesnt it work?

[Demon Cleaner]

F.ex. if you upgrade Vaan's license, so that Remedies cure Silence, and in battle you use Fran to use the Remedy, and she does not have that specific Remedy license herself, it doesn't work.

[Submeg]

hmmm that could have been what I was doing, not sure...

[Sharingan]

Has anyone finished FFXII by now?

I completed the game a few weeks ago. While I thought the game was fine overall, I couldn't help but feel like it could've been so much more. The game started with a big bang - thrilling intro sequence, a fine premise for an epic storyline to follow, an interesting setting, decent voice acting. By the time I was halfway through the game, however, character development pretty much stalled, the story became a little convoluted, all sense of urgency was lost, and the end pretty much came as a surprise as well - it was abrupt and a bit anti-climactic, to be honest. It was almost as if the development team had suddenly lost inspiration, or perhaps they were running out of time or money.

I'm slowly, very slowly, replaying the game right now, hoping to pick out details I missed, but I'll probably have to wait a few years again to see if the next installment is able to surpass FFVII for me. I actually fired up FFVII yesterday, just for fun, and I still found it as fun and charming as it was back then. Proof that superior graphics and sound aren't everything.

[Harrison]

That is a very true fact. Graphics and Sound count for nothing. It is the narrative, design and gameplay that will always make the difference in the greatest games.

As for FFXII, I've not completed it yet and intend to very soon. :)

[Submeg]

Im nowhere near finishing it. But I'm like that :p

[Demon Cleaner]

Has anyone finished FFXII by now?I finished it 2 months ago, if you go back a bit in the topic you can also see my opinion of the game.

And as you say, graphics and sound aren't everything, but explain that to the younger generation. I also like to see games like Lost Planet or Gears of War, but finally prefer to play Jumpman Jr on my C64.

That's why I call myself a Retro Gamer, and I'm proud of it. I'm sure you'll find another one like me on this board ;)

[Sharingan]

finished it 2 months ago, if you go back a bit in the topic you can also see my opinion of the game.

Ah, there you have it. Personally, I'm placing FF9 and FF10 ahead of FF12 too. Maybe my opinion will change after the second playthrough - if I ever manage to finish it again.




That's why I call myself a Retro Gamer, and I'm proud of it. I'm sure you'll find another one like me on this board ;)

I think most of us here can be classified as such :)