And so it ends...

After nearly fifty hours and a most lengthy, difficult, and hideous boss fight, my Final Fantasy XII experience came to a close. And what can I say? It was one of the most pleasant gaming experiences I've ever had. Of course, it wasn't without its flaws. The ending was somewhat underwhelming, though I think that's just because everything leading up to it was so well-done and intense, and there were some elements of the gameplay that were paced a bit strangely. For instance, you obtain more Espers in the last couple of hours of play than in the 40 that precede them. Certain technicks that would've been expected far earlier, like telekinesis which is used by guest characters in the first couple of hours in the game and is almost necessary to take down flying foes in an uncomplicated manner, come far too late, if at all (telekinesis is hidden in one of the game's hardest, optional dungeons). Offensive magic is severely gimped until you get the "Target foe that is weak to X element" gambits, which are available only right before the second-to-last dungeon. While not game-breaking or totally infuriating, they also aren't minor quibbles, either.

BUT WHO CARES BECAUSE HO DAMN THIS GAME WAS SOME AWESOME SAUCE. The story, while perhaps a bit simple, was incredibly well-done and engaging. Some bitches have faulted it because they say you don't find out enough about each character, and the conflict is too basic given how long the game is. These are the same people who would say that the "Tales" series has exceptional writing, the very people who probably buy into every JRPG stereotype. The power of FFXII's plot is in its subtlety. Every character in the main party is nuanced and has some amount of depth to them, and the writers were wise in deciding not to bash the audience over the head with them. The overarching plot is somewhat basic, yes, but it's also told so nicely and is incredibly convincing. And thankfully, there wasn't any cliche "ZOMG GIANT MAGICAL MONSTER FROM HELL COMING TO TAKE OVER THE WORLD." Towards the very end, it did bring in a bit of that "RELIGION DANGER," but that's pretty much a Final Fantasy trademark by now and it didn't bother me in the least bit. Even better than the story was the gameplay, but I think I've talked about that sufficiently in the past.

So yes, I don't know, this game was fantastic, and I'm sure everyone on the face of the planet knows that by now. It isn't perfect, but neither is anything else. Honestly, I enjoyed it so much that I feel like starting up a new game right now, perhaps making Penelo my heavy armor tanking slut this time around and Basch the frilly magical woman. Perhaps I'll just wait for Final Fantasy III DS, though, which should be coming any moment now. ANY MOMENT.

In other news, I've been playing some Halo 2 on Xbox Live. I don't know if I like that game or not.

Edit: Oh, I forgot that I wanted to bitch about the final, final, final boss fight. What the fuck was that character design other than hideous and reminiscent of early 90s angst, cyberpunk, Spawn trash?