Update TWO HUNDRED!!!!…. and One: 1 August 2018
Final Fantasy 12: the Zodiac Age
83 hours, 41 of 41 achievements
10/10
☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆
EDIT: for posterity’s sake - I fucked up my numbering and this is NOT my 200th review! I sure don’t know how to fuckin count!
Ohhh, that was fun.
I’m a little unsure how to conduct this review, mostly because it’s a big big big one - not just for a huge huge huge game that I love, but because it’s been my 200th review(!!!) on this site. It’s come not too long after my first anniversary on this site, and I got stupid mushy then. I have a #hard and #edgy persona to maintain and I can’t go squandering it!
I can take the time, I guess, to reflect on my output rather than what I’ve gotten from the community - what I’ve given rather what I received. I don’t know if I can’t be truthful and not kind of a downer at the same time. Of late I feel like my reviews aren’t particularly informative - they’ve never been standard game reviews but they’ve gotten more anecdotal and fast-and-loose. I’m constantly looking at others’ reviews and going ‘oh, man, look how in depth and detailed and to the point and logically paced these are, what inspirations!’ …and then turning around and slappin at keyboardt, writing whatever for my own.
On the one hand, I do this for funsies and it’s important for me to be natural and not forced. I’ve picked up a lot more outside of gaming than I had when I started - a demanding but fulfilling job, a team sport (I’m practicing with the full team now!!!), and a certificate course, all cutting into my writin’ energy. …On the other hand, I have my pride, I do, and some things require - nay, deserve! - some extra focus. Let’s get all logically-paced in this bitch - or look good trying!
Final Fantasy 12 is my favorite Final Fantasy installment, and while it loses out to Final Fantasy 10 against its color palette and strong visual, aural, and thematic throughlines, it ultimately emerges victorious because it’s one of the few games that feel like a real whole huge world. I first played it as a young teenager and playing it again now (on a kickass machine) is a joy.
The cities are lived in and diverse (in architecture if not in skin tone), the world is varied and interesting, the lore is wide and bountiful. I loved then and I loved now just looking at everything, at finding quiet corners and watching the NPCs in them, tracing scrollwork in flagstones, at reading entries in the bestiary, looking at the map and coming with up stories at how different little sections got their names. There’s a sense of wistfulness in the game that I find utterly enchanting - a sense that the world is bigger than I can reach to, older than I can touch, a breathing, sleeping, dreaming giant I get to sit with for a while.
There was a lot I missed to the story the first time around, and putting the lines together more competently this time was enjoyable. The English translator, constrained in FF10 was able to let loose and go bonkers in funcking Yonkers for this game, and the whole thing is Star Wars as a Shakespeare play by way of a Greek Tragedy. The language in this game is at once archaic and super fancy and, in the case of Vaan and Penelo, pretty modern and plain. It’s used to heighten the fantasy, making it more mythic, as well as build in culture differences between the different characters depending on their stations.
Like a lot of Final Fantasy games, there are very strong moments and beats that unfortunately are kind of strung together with rather tenuous connective tissue. Yeah, some things are too abrupt, and yeah, some things don’t make a lot of sense. There’s delivery problems, pacing problems, and some things just kind of fall flat. Youse might not forgive them, but I sure as hell do. It works and it’s fun.
A huge strength of the game is its cast of characters - yes, even Vaan and Penelo count, though their place in the party is one of the more tenuous suspensions of disbelief. Ashe is a really underrated character filled with quiet strength, something I appreciate now as an adult. Basch’s arc is great, and he’s both a masculine and gentle presence at once. And, you guys… Balthier and Fran are the best FF characters, period. Period! I could have a whole spin-off about these two. Balthier was my first real hardcore video game crush, and he’s still magnetizing now (though, to my horror, I’m now three years older than he is). (Oh, and for all my other Balthier fans in the audience, one of the best things I discovered is that the singer of the band the Stranglers sounds RIDICULOUSLY similar to Gideon Emery’s performance as our sky pirate leading man. For your consideration, Strange Little Girl, Always the Sun, and Golden Brown, which is undeniably about Fran.)
The character design in this game is up there with my favorites in all games, balancing… frankly really annoying lingerie armor on Fran with male characters also having random midriffs and chests and thighs exposed. Basch’s rainbow potholder above his exposed abs? Lovely. Reddas’s bright pink pants? Groundbreaking. Cid’s Dolce and Gabbana F/W 3047 thigh high white boots? Impeccable? Balthier’s ornate vest and fucking ruff cravat and scrollworked black leather pants? God, the whole design is just a gift.
… where was I? Right - being logical and straightforward.
Beyond the soundtrack, which I haven’t mentioned yet as being gorgeous and evocative and varied and ohhh just lovely, I think I’ve covered everything major. Yep, everything of any importance to a game. I sure talked about what I gave a shit about.
…
Oh! Yeah! Gameplay! It had some.
I do like the ATB system - it’s the perfect balance, I feel, of having speed and precision in your JRPG. The gambits are nice once you get used to them, and I liked being able to fucking autopilot grinding and fine-tune control when I had to. The license board is still as crazytown bananapants as it ever was, though the ‘job’ system helped streamline it a little. The RNG (or pseudoRNG) elements were pretty aggravating, which is why I just feckin cheated my way through. Beyond the gorgeousness of the remaster, that was one of the reasons why I was most excited to replay on PC - the ability to tailor my own experience to minimize the shit I cared about the least so I could focus on what I cared about the most (exploring and vaccuuming the story and seeing everything I could). It helped me appreciate this game in full, my way.
If you never got a chance to play through this game in the PS2 era, tried it and lost steam, or want to relive a story you played before, I’d heartily recommend to pick it up - so it can find a place in your heart the way it found a place in mine.
Happy 200th! Thanks for reading all of my dumb little reviews. Here’s to 200 more!
Next up: A few days ago I was lucky enough to win a Playing Appreciated giveaway! It’s time to -
See you soon!
What an amazing amount of games you’ve played and reviews you’ve written. And I see, your 200th review is a very special and unique game, so that’s fitting too.
I agree with JaffaCaffa and I may just repeat it, but: BLAEO is not the place for standard reviews only. BLAEO is a place were you find all different kind of reviews, that’s what makes it unique. Some people use it for very technical reviews, some focus more on their emotions, some go into every detail, some only give a short opinion and some use it to talk about their RL. And everyone has a place here. That’s the beauty of a (somewhat smaller) community driven site: You get to shape it yourself.
Apart from that, I enjoy your reviews, as I said before. You write anectodal, true, but you always comment on the art, on the aural parts, on the story. And that’s what “proper” reviews do as well, isn’t it? In addition you write very lively and eloquent. You should be proud of that. That said, reflecting over your writing is never a bad thing to do in order to improve. But I don’t think you should be too harsh to yourself ;)
As it’s happening it doesn’t seem like all that much, yeah, but looking back on it - 200? Phew! It’s become a really nice habit.
Oh man, absolutely. Sometimes that ‘space for everyone’ becomes a bit of a case of ‘the grass is greener’, u feel me? It’s good to have helpful voices to course correct. After sleeping on it, I think I want to make more of an effort to cite my sources and give more concrete examples of the game, when I can. Not when it’d spoil any surprises or anything, but after awhile I fear it’ll be just the same, I don’t know, sixteen adjectives over and over again without getting real meat in.
No harsh, just hard thinking, I promise! Considering I have a scratchbook next to my bed now, I think I’ll start taking notes on things in each game I want to specifically talk about, because so often I forget by the time I finish.
Your kind words are, as always, appreciated <3
Happy 200th \o/
Yeah!!! Thank you for making all 200 a fun journey
Congrats on 200!
Looking forward to hearing your thoughts on RiME we’ll be able to compare
Thank you!
Yeah, your cooler-than-expected review has given me a little pause, but now I’m excited to feel the game out myself and see how we differ.
The thought you put in your reviews and how meticulous and methodical you are with them really inspire me to put more of the same effort in my own stuff.
Aww thanks! I feel the quality of my reviews went down in the last two though.
Not at all! (This may be the pot calling the kettle black, but) Don’t be hard on yourself - the work you put in shines through
Oh, tsuper…why are you so hard on yourself? You said it best yourself: “I do this for funsies and it’s important for me to be natural and not forced.” There you go– end of story. I mean, feel free to read other reviews and incorporate ideas from others– we all do that– but please don’t compare your reviews to others’ and conclude there’s something wrong with yours, because there isn’t. So there. :p
And as far as the “#hard and #edgy persona to maintain,” in my experience most people in that situation are kind and interesting inside, if not downright sweethearts, but for one reason or another life has taught them not to be that way. But that can be changed…or not! It’s up to them and there’s no right or wrong choice.
BTW, congrats on Number 200!!!
Trent u always come out here with the dad talk realness and it makes me tear up a little bit every time (like, in a nice way). Thank you for looking out for me.
Trent you ray of sunshine that was 95% a joke XDD - I come from a long, aggravating line of motherfuckers with hard outer shells and big squishy hearts, but time has turned my outer shell into, like, paper mache. Now I’m aggressively squishy and okay with being emotionally vulnerable… a good amount of the time. Knowing when to be tough and when to be soft is something I’m glad I learned, even if it wasn’t until recently.
Thank you for keeping my journey positive and supportive!
Happy 200th! :) I’m glad that you enjoyed the game you played for your 200th update.
I’m glad, too! It’s also satisfyingly symbolic - playing games I loved as a young teenager again now as an adult invites a lot of self-reflection that fit with a big milestone like this.
Thank you for sticking through them!
Yes, I know what you mean :D
btw I like your reviews the way they are!
Aww, I’m glad! I’m glad they’re useful
Just write the way you want. Unless you’re getting paid to write reviews, no one should be able to dictate how you write them. There’s no “proper” way to write a review here, and there shouldn’t be. Ultra-detailed reviews are fine, but so are shorter anecdotal ones. Just an example, I’ve read some detailed reviews for NieR:Automata but the review that convinced me to buy it was just one short paragraph.
No shit? That must have been a hell of a paragraph.
I get a little down in my cups sometimes, but I get that, say, technically perfect ‘omg these aren’t photographs they’re’ paintings are as important and worthy as impressionistic or heavily stylized ones. I need to remember more often that the same goes for impressionistic reviews.
No single review could give the complete picture. Even the most detailed review won’t contain everything about the game. Hell, sometimes, you end up still not knowing everything about a certain game even after actually playing it.
It just happened that a single paragraph review contained something that I considered enough to convince me to buy the game. That’s also why I prefer reading several reviews, rather than a single ultra-detailed review when deciding on whether or not to buy a certain game.
Congrats!! :D What a grandiose game for the ‘ol 200! You should be proud for keeping up with all your reviews, that’s a whole lotta consistency!
I get what you mean about writing “proper” reviews. I look at mine and think the same thing sometimes. Or I’ll read a review and not post one anymore, because “they wrote it better than I could”. But I also know that I get a lot out of others when they write anecdotes and have their own personal touch to ‘em, just as much as incredibly formal, detailed reviews (and anywhere in between). I think they all have a place and in the end you’re writing from your own experience. Who’s to say yours isn’t just as great as everyone else’s!
That said, I do think yours are generally detailed enough to really get a gist of it and apply it to my own tastes. Even if not “standard”, they’ve got life to ‘em and give people a glimpse into why you felt the way you did. Your reviews make me excited about the games or get me thinking. Basically your reviews are fantastic, that is all. Seeing yourself improve at writing feels great, but I completely agree about having other things as more of a priority sometimes. :)
I’m super duper proud of you for coming so far with roller derby! That’s honestly so freaking cool and I’m totally cheering from the sidelines! Kudos on all your hard work, continue kicking ass + having fun!!
p.s. Can’t wait to hear your thoughts on Rime. That’s one I’ve heard a bunch of mixed things, but still feel like I’ll love? Fingers crossed you do too!
Jaffa…! Thank you for taking the time to say all this, it’s really nice to hear. I hope that you always post your reviews, because what you say for me is true for you, too! Your perspective, perseverance, and general pep-filled attitude is charming and worthwhile.
Also, awww, shuuucks! I think I still have a few months before I play in a game, but I’m getting there. I’m certainly way, WAY better than I ever thought I would be. It feels great. I even got my first derby injury (it’s minor!!) and it bruised up all cool like. Battle scars!
Yeah, you know, me too! I’ve tempered my expectations for it, but I think it’ll be at least an okay time!
<3 <3
You’ll definitely have to let us know how the game goes when it happens! It really is amazing how much more capable we all are at things we had no idea about. My favourite thing about sports. :) I’d always wear bright neon coloured band-aids when I got hurt from roller-blading and imagine I was in some rockin’ 80s film. haha There is something rewarding about the battle scars afterwards, should definitely feel badass! (just don’t kill urself pls :P)
It’s fairly short and looks gorgeous, so it can’t be all bad, right? The characters and artwork are still drawing me in, look so endearing. Will have to see!
Yeah, it’s definitely a part of sports/physical activity I just never got until now.
I will definitely post about it, though I’m getting nervous just thinking about it. It’s some pressure! I hope I do well, but everyone’s supportive and I’ll be ready when I’m ready.
Since I’m getting into the actual contact part of the sport now, it is getting a bit more risky. I’m going to do my best and fall as good as I know how - I just have to fall forward OR twist to land on my hip rather than my tailbone if I somehow fall backwards. I promise to do my best not to get hurt!
I hope to dig into RiME over the weekend (though I do want to put some effort into making progress in Black Mesa, too). We’ll see indeed!
It’s definitely scary and intimidating, but I’m sure it’ll get a bit easier once you’re even more confident and have more experience under your belt. It’s hard retraining your brain to do the opposite of what it naturally wants to!