For those of you about to play it for the first time, I envy you.
Back in 2011 when it came out here in PAL Land I was initially hesitant to buy it, because I generally don't like JRPGs, but footage online of its sprawling, majestic worlds intrigued me, and people insisted that it got rid of a lot of the problems common to the genre at that time.
So I decided to try something outside my comfort zone and give it a go, and within the first few hours, I was blown away and completely hooked. My first playthrough is still one of my most memorable gaming experiences.