On this topic, I feel like XII gets too much of a pass.
Sure, it did some great things. The gambit system, the NPCs that react to changes that happen in the world constantly, Balthier and a couple other characters, the open world design, etc...
But the story itself is boring af. A snooze fest that's just very well voice acted, that's all it is. And the gambit system is fun to tinker with but more often than not I find my party in combat situations to be on auto pilot.
And the main character is the worst in all of the FF games I've played. XIII and XV MCs drive circles around Vaan. Literally the only nuance to his character is that he's this little shit who keeps talking about becoming a sky pirate.
And the soundtrack... I know some people like it but I think it is mediocre at best. Run of the mill vg music. X, XIII, XV all have their unique flair and quality melody composition. Music doesn't have to be catchy to be good. But XII does absolutely nothing. Just nothing in this regard.
Overall, it's a better game than XIII and XV, I'll give it that much. The judges as villains and their armor, some top notch character design right there. But the potential is spoiled, and to me it's not how a FF title should ever be handled again.
Simple fixes like a more interesting mc, a soundtrack on par with the rest of the series, some improvements to the gambit system and a plot that deviates from the serious tone every other mission at least would've probably made this one of my fav entries. But alas.
XIII was supposed to be a return to the sentimental storytelling style of older games, but I think that's when SE started to lose the plot big time. They gradually became more and more reliant on fan feedback, and I'm sure combined with a dwindling creative drive, they started to make games that give off the illusion of grandeur when they're just shallow romps through shallow worlds. But the music was excellent, and the battle system was kind of fun until you learn Libra. Once you've learned it you could almost Libra your way through the critical path to the end credits.
I actually have a hard time deciding which is worse, XIII or XV. Both do things very differently, but are equal in how underwhelming they are.
