Galvanizer said:
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Bex said:
Vaan didn't influence my opinion of Final Fantasy XII to the extent that he ruined the game for me on any level, I just didn't care that he was there. Basch and Ashe, as well as Balthier and Fran, resonated with me more. Also, why is it a good thing that I'm supposed to dislike him? I don't remember anything about him other than that he was there. I played up to getting the Sword of Kings or the fight against Cid, whichever follows the other, so I know nothing of Vaan's character beyond that point.
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The fact you don't regard Vaan having any important relevance to the story of FFXII, even up to the part you stopped playing, is a testament to how well written FFXII is. It's a very complex script with a lot of depth and ramifications.
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Scoobes said:
I didn't say the story was poor, I said it was told poorly. Two different very different things. There was a lot of potential in the story but when the main characters at the start are effectively bit parts it becomes difficult to care about the events that are happening later in the game. They should have just had Balthier or Basch as the main character from the start, telling the story from their POV from the very start of the game. Or alternatively, pulled a FFVI and presented the game as a full ensemble and shown multiple POVs in great depth.
Instead, I was left thinking "this is a pretty deep and involved storyline" but combined with "I'm completely detached from this story because the POV is removed from the core of this storyline".
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The thing is, the story wasn't even told poorly. Far from it, actulally. FFXII probably has the most well writen script to ever appear in a video game, yet alone a FF game.
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The script is the story, not how it was told, but I dare say the script would have been a lot better if Basch and Balthier were the main POV characters, or Ashe who is actually pivotal to the main plot. Everything seems to be told through Vaan, but that diminishes the important events that occur because Vaan is so far removed from most of the plot.
Vaan is easily the most uninspiring character in the game and was blatantly added in the game to be a typical androgynous male protagonist. A character for Japanese teens to relate to because that's what SE marketing found the demographic preffered. Vaan doesn't develop much as a character either over the course of the game. In fact, his actual influence and importance diminishes as the game goes on.
The use of Vaan as the token main character also meant that the other characters didn't get as much development time as they deserved with minimal interaction between party members (I actually can't remember Basch ever mentioning or talking to Fran). As it's his POV, nearly all the character development is seen through his eyes which is a shame because as I said above, he's too far removed from the plot for me to care.
I acknowledge the depth and complxity of the story, but it was told poorly. Having Vaan as the main character in FFXII was like adding Justin Bieber as the lead in Shawshank Redemption. Great story, but seen through the eyes of an uninspiring character far removed from the actual events.
