Final Fantasy XII

Final Fantasy XII (ファイナルファンタジーXII Fainaru Fantajī Towerubu) is the twelfth installment in the Final Fantasy series. The game was released on March 16, 2006, in Japan and in North America on October 31, 2006. The game is to be released in Europe and Australia on February 23 2007. A playable demo of the game was shipped with the North American release of Dragon Quest VIII on November 15, 2005. A few weeks before the North American version was released, the game was leaked on the Internet, though Square Enix took legal action against the sites hosting the files, causing the torrents to be removed.

Development
Developed from 2001 to 2006, Final Fantasy XII cost approximately 4 billion Japanese yen (35 million USD) to produce with a crew of more than one hundred people. Yasumi Matsuno, originally announced as both producer and director, was forced to bow out of both roles midway through the creation of Final Fantasy XII due to health concerns. In his place, Hiroyuki Ito and Hiroshi Minagawa took over directorial duties, with Akitoshi Kawazu assuming the role of the executive producer. Matsuno remains credited for "Original Work/Scenario Plot/Supervision". Hitoshi Sakimoto was the music composer for the game, and Nobuo Uematsu contributed one new composition — the vocal theme, "Kiss Me Good-Bye", performed by Angela Aki. Renowned violinist Taro Hakase provided performances for Symphonic Poem "Hope", which served as a promotional theme along with "Kiss Me Good-Bye".

In early stages of development, the main character was to be "big and tough", but as development continued and targeting demographics were considered, he became more effeminate. With the casting of voice actor Kohei Takeda, who also did motion capture for the part, he became less so and more "active, upbeat bright and positive".

Veteran translator Alexander O. Smith was involved with the English localization of the script. Smith had previously worked on the localization for Vagrant Story as well as several other Final Fantasy installments, including Final Fantasy X. The voice overs were directed by Jack Fletcher, who had previously directed the voice overs for other Final Fantasy games as well.

In North America, the game was available in two versions — the stand alone game with a suggested retail price of $49.99 and a "Collector's Edition" for an additional $10. The Collector's Edition is an exclusive title offered only by GameStop or EB Games. This edition includes the original game packaged in a tin case along with a special bonus disc, which contained Final Fantasy XII developer interviews, an art gallery, four U.S. and Japanese trailers, and a "History of Final Fantasy" featurette, which gave brief chronicles on all released and upcoming Final Fantasy games.

Changes to the North American version of the game include the addition of widescreen 16:9 support and additional scenes that were left out of the Japanese version due to rating issues.

Story
Final Fantasy XII takes place mostly in the kingdom of Dalmasca, a small city-state in the world of Ivalice. A neutral party in the past wars between the neighbouring Empires of Archadia and Rozarria, Dalmasca was ultimately conquered by Archadia and reduced to the status of an occupied state under Archadian rule. Vaan, a street urchin living in the Dalmascan capital of Rabanastre, is stealing some treasure from the Archadian Consul's residence in the old royal castle of Dalmasca. While looting the castle's safe Vaan meets Balthier, a sky pirate bent on stealing the Consul's treasures and his companion Fran, a Viera warrior. By coincidence the underground Dalmascan resistance movement assaults the royal castle on the same night, to depose the Archadian Consul. Vaan's looting gets noticed and he, Fran and Balthier are pursued by Archadian soldiers, along with the insurgents storming the castle, making them seem to be involved in the attack. This eventually brings the three face to face with Ashe, the deposed princess of Dalmasca and the leader of the resistance faction.

Balthier, Vaan and Fran are sent to a dungeon from where they escape bringing Basch, who had been in the dungeon since the war, with them. Headhunters looking for Balthier kidnap Vaan's best friend Penelo in the hopes that the always gallant Balthier will try to free the girl. Vaan, Fran, Basch and Balthier head to Bhujerba to free Penelo and meet Larsa in their adventures there. Larsa is travelling under the name "Lamont" and is seeking what eventually turns out to be manufacted Nethicite. Larsa is revealed to be a royal heir, the second in line for the throne of Archadia. He helps the party rescue Penelo and later keeps her and the party safe from the Archadian troops. At Bhujerba the party meets Ashe again and she requests Balthier's aid to retrieve a proof of her royal blood: The Dawn Shard.

The party heads to the Dynast King Raithwall's Tomb to retrieve the Dawn Shard and are subsequently captured by Judge Ghis upon leaving the tomb. A large, mysterious explosion provides opportunity for the party to escape. During their escape they discover - to their horror - that Judge Ghis Ship and the Entire Archdian 8th fleet was destroyed by the power of the Dawn Shard, which is composed of a powerful substance called Deifacted Nethicite. Bent on wielding that power to free Dalmasca and avenge her fallen comrades Ashe heads to a place where she can learn more about the Stone. By chance they meet Larsa again, who persuades them to join him and another mysterious enemy/ally at Mt. Bur-Omisace to plan on how to stop the imminent war.

Disgraced by the 8th fleet's destruction, Vayne is called back to Archadia and starts suspecting that his father and the Archadian Senate will bypass him for King, giving the throne to his brother Larsa instead. Unwilling to risk being bypassed to the throne Vayne murders his father and dissolves the Senate and immediately sends a ship to Mt. Bur-Omisace to capture the Dawn Shard from Ashe. His envoy, Judge Bergan, arrives too late: Ashe and Larsa heard of the events and Ashe has obtained the Sword of Kings (which has the ability to destroy Nethicite). An enraged Bergan kills the holy man Gran Kiltias Anastasis and bombs Mt. Bur Omisace but is unable to get the shard or the sword. Larsa is taken back to Archades.

Ashe and her party decide it is time to destroy all the Nethicite available in Ivalice and head to Draklor Labs at the heart of the Archadian Empire, where the last shard is, to destroy it and the lab where Dr. Cid is successfully using what he has learned from that nethicite shard to manufacture artificial nethicite.

They are unsuccessful in destroying the Nethicite in Draklor Labs, and are instead left with information pointing them to the ancient city of Giruvegan. Dr. Cid is supposedly going there to retrieve more Deifacted Nethicite. The party enters the city and fights to the center of the Great Crystal, an incredibly large and powerful piece of Nethicite in which the Occurians live. There, the history of Raithwall and Nethicite is revealed. Ashe is given the Treaty blade so that she can carve out additional pieces of Deifacted nethicite in order to achieve greater power. She is conflicted as to her course of action.

Ashe and the party leave Giruvegan with the knowledge that Dr. Cid has used them to retrieve the Treaty blade, and had no intention of traveling to Giruvegan. They return to Balfonheim and Reddas joins the party to travel to Ridorana, where the Sun Cryst is housed in the lighthouse Pharos. In the lighthouse Ashe Realizes that all of the appearances of Lord Rasler are images constructed by the Occurians. Judge Gabranth arrives and fights the party. Upon his Defeat, Dr. Cid appears and banishes him back to the fleet. Cid wants to use the power of the Sun Cryst to make himself a God before Ashe destroys it. Upon defeating Dr. Cid, the Sun Cryst begins generating so much power that there is no way that the party could survive, until Reddas sacrifices himself to destroy the Sun Cryst with the Sword of Kings.

Vaan's party travel back to Balfonheim and learn that the discharge of power activated the largest airship ever built, Bahamut, and the resistance armies have staged a battle in the skies above Rabanastre. They travel to Bahamut to land and kill Vayne before he can destroy the country of Dalmasca, and all of the ships in the fleet. Before they can reach Vayne, Gabranth arrives to stop them. This time, Gabranth appears to have given up everything except his need to destroy his own brother. The party defeats Gabranth and leave him beaten in the elevator. Vayne attacks, and Larsa helps the party to fight him. As Vayne is beaten down, his Manufacted Nethicite sucks power from Larsa, and the ship around him. Gabranth joins the attack against Vayne, but is struck down, just as Vayne loses his greater power. The rogue Occuria Venat fuses with Vayne granting him more power, and the party once again attacks him.

Vayne is eventually defeated by the party, and, unable to control his new powers now, explodes into a cloud of mist. Before the party can relax, they must stop the two warring factions from killing each other and damaging Rabanastre. Boarding the Strahl, the party makes its escape, and using Larsa, Ashe and Basch, manage to get both sides to stand down. Just as everything looks like it's going to be fine, the Bahamut starts to fall from the sky, onto Rabanstre. Judge Zargabaath starts to put the Alexander on a collision course, hoping to ram it out of the way. However, Balthier manages to stop him. To the party's surprise, Balthier and Fran are still on the Bahamut. While Ashe tries to convince him to get off the falling fortress, Balthier reminds her that he's the leading man, and the leading man can never die. Managing to restart the engines, Balthier starts to leave, with a wounded Fran in his arms. Before communications with the Strahl dies, Balthier tells Vaan to look after the Strahl whilst he's gone. Vaan assures Balthier, before the Strahl flies away.

A year later, Penelo is writing a letter to Larsa. There is no war, and Archadia and Rozarria are currently at piece. A month from now, Ashe will be crowned Queen of Dalmasca, so they won't be able to see each other anymore. A few months prior to this event, the Strahl was stolen. Of course, Penelo note that it isn't really stealing if it was the original owner taking it back. Basch is now a Judge Magistre, wearing his brother's armor, and is in charge of protecting Larsa. The final scene shows Vaan flying his new airship to Archadia, to pay Larsa a visit.

While this story may be over, a new one is just beginning.

Characters
Final Fantasy XII has a cast of six main characters. Unlike other Final Fantasies, this team, once formed, is never changed at all. However, there are also three special guest characters, and the player plays a different character during the prologue.


 * Vaan is the main character, but not in the traditional sense. While he is the character the player is first introduced to, he is actually just caught up in the events of the game, and actually has very little involvement. A street rat, he lives on the streets of Rabanastre with his friend Penelo.


 * Penelo is Vaan's closest friend. Like Vaan, her involvement is very limited, but she is still important to the team none-the-less.


 * Balthier is the real main character in most player's eyes. Cool and sophisticated, he is a sky pirate, on the run from his past. He usually refers to himself as the "Leading Man", further cementing his role as the real main character.


 * Fran is Balthier's partner, and the only non-Hume main character. Like Balthier, she is trying to shake off the past. She rarely speaks, but she usually has words of wisdom to offer.


 * Basch fon Ronsenburg is a disgraced knight, who wants to protect his homeland at all costs. He has a brother who hates him for what he does.


 * Ashelia B'nargin Dalmasca is the princess of Dalmasca. She is doing everything in her power to rebuild her fallen kingdom.

Locations


The World map of Ivalice actually does not appear to cover the entire world. Instead it shows an area roughly equivalent to Europe in a world map. This map Shows the area once under the control of Raithwall the Dynast King, but now under the control of the Archadian Empire.

On the map are the kingdoms of Dalmasca, Archadia,Bhujerba and the area once controlled by Nabradia including Nalbina Fortress. Also the characters can visit ancient temples like the Stillshrine of Miriam, Mt. Bur-Omisace, and Raithwall's Tomb, as well as the village of indigenous peoples like the Garif and the Viera. Between all of these civilized locations are the zones patrolled and populated by various monsters. Each location is separated into zones, to allow players to elude monsters, and to allow for variations in terrain even in the same area.

Gameplay
As with each title in the Final Fantasy Series the specifics of each aspect of game play are different. Like all of the other games in the series the player characters will level, gain skills, cast magic, use Summons, Limit Breaks and fight Monsters. There are also some fairly obvious differences in the game play of Final Fantasy XII.

Gaining levels and skills
Levels are gained through Experience points. These points are all earned through battles with monsters, but never through battles with a boss or an Esper. Only characters in the party who are conscious will gain Exp after the battle. Exp appears to be divided amongst active party members.

Skills (called Technicks), abilities, magic, accessories, weapons and armor upgrades are all governed by obtaining Licenses. Like the Sphere Grid in Final Fantasy X the player has complete control over the character's development. The player can use license points to purchase whatever ability or item they want the character to be able to use. License points are earned through killing all creatures, bosses and Espers in the game. Most creatures provide 1 LP, whereas rarer mobs, bosses and Espers provide 2 or more LP. All conscious characters whether in the active party or in reserve will gain LP from the victory.

Magic
In Final Fantasy XII magic is purchased from vendors, similar to Final Fantasy XI. The magic is learned and can be utilized by all characters that have paid the LP to gain that level of magic. MP or Mist points are restored through movement, or activating a Save Crystal. Some abilities allow a character to gain MP through causing or receiving damage. Some items also restore MP.

Summons/Espers
Summons, called Espers, are obtained through battling and defeating them throughout gameplay. There are 13 Espers in the game. 5 are found through normal game play, and the other 8 can be found in hidden areas after completing specific actions in the game.

Each Esper can be purchased on the License Board after the player has defeated them. Only one character can purchase any specific Esper, and that Esper is then linked to that character, effectively removing its sqaure from the License Board of the other characters. When the character summons the Esper, it takes the place of the other 2 members of the party. The Esper will remain and fight independent of the character for a short amount of time, as long as the summoner is still conscious. Once the time is up, the Esper will unleash a special attack, given that the requirements for the attack are met, and disappear. The Summon uses up a full segment of the MP bar.

Quickenings / Concurrences
The Limit Breaks in Final Fantasy XII are known as Mist Quickenings in the English version, or Mist Knacks in the Japanese version. Each Quickening is available on the License board for purchase by any character. Once a character has purchased a Quickening, that space is removed from all other character's boards. Each character can purchase up to 3 quickenings. There are 18 quickenings on the board. When a character uses a quickening, one segment of their MP is completely used up. Upon purchasing the second quickening the character's MP bar doubles and is segmented in 2, and finally another segment is added, tripling the available MP when the character purchases their third Quickening. You can create a specific combination of Quickenings to open a Concurrence, which deals heavy damage to the target and all those nearby.

Battle
Final Fantasy XII has similarities to Final Fantasy XI in the way that monster battles are handled. There are no longer random monster battles. The monsters are freely moving across the landscape, and rarely surprise the characters. Sometimes flying creatures will attack from a lower or higher area, and other creatures will spring out of the water or grass to attack the characters. Additionally, the monsters will aggro on the characters as they move past, or attack creatures of the same genus.

Combat can be controlled manually or programmed via the use of Gambits. The gambit system is used for the first time in this game. It is slightly similar to the Macro system found in FFXI. Like simple computers, the player can create a list of commands and dependencies to be carried out automatically by the characters to simplify the combat system. All commands relate to the character itself, the character's allies, or the enemies on screen.

Reception
In Japan, FFXII was the sixth game to receive a score of 40/40 in the gaming magizine Famitsu, as well as the first Final Fantasy game and the first PlayStation 2 title to do so.

Final Fantasy XII was voted number one for Best Art Style on IGNs weekly Top Ten. IGN also gave the game a 9.5. FFXII also recieved a 10/10 in the November 2006 issue of Official PlayStation Magazine, a 10/10 in the November 2006 issue of Play Magazine, an 8.5, 9.0, and 9.5 in the November 2006 issue of Electronic Gaming Monthly, a 9 from GameSpot, a 9.25 in the November 2006 issue of Game Informer, a 9.5 in the October 2006 issue of Independent PlayStation Magazine, and a 5/5 on X-Play.