One of the best RPG games ever on the PS2! A must have.
Gameplay: Just getting rid of the random encounter/separate screens fights makes the gameplay better than its predecessors ( I really hated that aspect of older FF games). Instead, now you get to choose who you want to fight and know what you are up against. For example, if there is a certain creature that carries items you want, you can now seek them out without having to wander aimlessly until they magically appear. The gambit system is also great as now you can micro-manage your characters instead of repeating their actions over and over again. It does take your hand off controlling a bit, but you can always experiment with your gambit strategies. The License Board is also very innovative and keeps you training and leveling up your characters to get what you want. While some say since everyone has the same board that characters loses their uniqueness, I would have to say that is not entirely true as you can mix and match your characters whatever way you want. Only near the end of the game do all the characters start being similar in ability, but you would have to get a lot of LPs. And who is to say have 3 tank characters is such a bad thing if you want a team of beaters? Point is FF12 lets you do whatever you want. That being said, I can't say the License Board was better than the Sphere grid system (still love the FF7 materia system the best).
Graphics: Don't understand how ppl say this game falls behind FF10 in this department. First of all, we now have a free-moving camera that lets us see the whole environment instead of selected shots. This works especially well with the cities since you really get a sense of the massive scale. Also, the game has amazing environmental affects, such as sandstorms and reflective mists. All this really sets the mood of the level. There are some levels that were poorly designed (the jungle and forest city of the Viera come to mind), but on a whole the level designs are outstanding. The characters also look great, though it would have been nice to see them wear the different armor and accessories that you give them. Also since you don't really get a good look at them up close, the weapons aren't as memorable as say FF7 or FF8 (Gunblades still rock!). Sound: This is the only place I would have to say FF12 fell short from the other FF games. Just nothing memorable, though the scores do capture the mood and action. Value: There is just so much to do in this game aside from the main story line. Bounty hunting is a lot of fun, though I find all the backtracking really annoying, especially when you have to find the practitioner after to get your reward. There are also little sidequests like finding hidden espers to add to your collection (they are pretty useless though unless you just want to take them out for a spin and beat up groups of weaker monsters). I have clocked around 60 hours and still haven't finished alot of the sidequests.
Conclusion: On a whole, it was a brilliant game. Only negative thing I had to say was the finale was quite disappointing. The end boss was not memorable and the story in the end fell real short of expectations. Still, it was refreshing from the past FF that explored young love and stuff. As a fan of Star Wars, I really appreciated how the game does parallel the Star Wars universe so I liked that aspect. Either way, FF12 is definitely a game to add to your collection.