LogFAQs > #876503719

I don't think people had issues with FF12's setting. There's a reason Square keeps bringing back Ivalice! FF12's environments were dripping with atmosphere and the more political-oriented style is nice.

I think FF12 failed (in the eyes of the fans) in three ways:

1. No Nobuo Uematsu. He brought the series to life more than people realize and there's something about the FF12 soundtrack that's missing without him.
2. The story is muddled and the characters are underdeveloped. This gets progressively worse as the game goes on to the point where you can't care anymore. Doesn't help that Vaan is the main character and he really sucks.
3. This is the biggest reason I think - the gambit system. Square shot themselves in the foot with this. The funny thing about FF12's battle system is that if you remove the gambit system, it's basically just an ATB battle system that lets you move around for funsies. Square realized that in most of those battles you're just mashing Attack, so they tried to streamline things and let your characters do simple actions automatically. This was a big mistake. People LIKE mashing attack. The big running joke of FF12 is that it plays itself, and that stigma has never gone away.
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Black Turtle did a pretty good job.