The old dog that is the PS2, still has fight in it.
Recently playing FF7 and FFX, FFXII is a fine installment to the long running series. Using a combat system, almost like that of Guild Wars, it feels a bit more immersive. The gambit system is also has a nice kick to it also. Instead of commanding all of your comrades, you "program" to certain moves like "attack leader's target" or "cast heal on party members below 25% health." For lazy people like me, this is a god send. Also a big plus is that the random battles are gone. No more sweating bullets that you might run out of potions or MP in the next battle. No more "not this again..." feelings when a monster pops out of nowhere. The graphics are sharp and crisp, whether it be the movie-like quality of the cutscenes or the lime-injecting in-game engine. The engine does a marvelous job of devolping cities alive with the hustle and bustle of all the races that inhabit the land. The sound is also superb, delivering in spades.
From a Final Fantasy gamer point of view, this is not the best the final fantsy out there. First off the characters, save for maybe three, are characters not fleshed out as well as the other final fantasy series. The frustrating point is really the running around and the unclear objectives. These instances sent me running for walkthroughs all the time, as well as pulling my hair out. Event though battle system is fleshed out well, there are some instances, where you want battles that you want to pull you hair out over. "Seymour Flux" anyone?
All in all, this is a game worthy of the name "Final Fantasy." But Vaan, is no Cloud, and thus FFXII is not the worst it's still not the best either