Final Fantasy XII Preview

While it wasn’t easy finding an open couch among the many perched in front of playable demos for Final Fantasy XII at this year’s E3, I was lucky enough to be walking by as someone hopped off. So, as you can imagine, I quickly took his place before anyone else could notice an open machine.

Immediately I was taken in by the graphics; they are just as amazing as X and X-2’s. Another thing I noticed right away was the full 3D backgrounds. The environments look just as good as the previous games, but now they once again have much more of a fantasy feel than sci-fi (which I welcomed with open arms). As you walk around towns, dungeons, or anywhere else the game takes you, you have full control of the camera with the ability to zoom in and out a bit and rotate 360 degrees. This gives the game a completely different look and feel, setting it far apart from the rest of the series – but in a good way.

Since the game is being directed by Yasumi Matsuno, known for titles like the Final Fantasy Tactics series and Vagrant Story, and is set in the world of Ivalice, there are a lot of creatures that players of Final Fantasy Tactics Advance may recognize.

The biggest, and most surprising change, is the way combat is handled now. Enemies can be seen on the screen, so no more random battles, and are fought right then and there. No more separate battle scenes; instead, much like Chrono Trigger, you fight them right there in the hallway, jungle, prairie, or wherever you may be. Unlike Chrono Trigger, however, you have full control over each character throughout the battle. There are still ATB bars that fill as you wait for your turn, but in the meantime you can run around. When you are in range of an enemy they are targeted, and you can then bring up the menu and select what you would like to do. You can give each character commands, or choose one command for the whole group to do. A nice new feature of the battles now is that you don’t have to continue choosing attack, all you have to do is choose attack once and until you give another order they’ll attack every turn. This was something that I was personally waiting for, and I’m glad they implemented it.

The story follows a young boy named Vaan who lost his family when the empire of Archadia attacked and took over the kingdom he lived in, the Kingdom of Dalmasca. Upon occupation of the Rabanastre, Dalmasca’s royal city, Vaan decides to sneak in and cause a bit of mischief, but as he does, a Dalmascan resistance launches an attack on the castle. With the company of his girlfriend, Penelo, and the heir to the Dalmascan throne, Ashe, the adventure begins. Belthier, a sky pirate, and Fran, his lovely partner, are just a couple of the many characters that will join Vaan’s party throughout the game.

Currently the date for Final Fantasy XII is 2005. Yeah, I know that’s just a year, and that it’s too far away. Hopefully they won’t make us wait long, because this Final Fantasy is sounding really really good.       

For All E3 2004 Previews