What is the deal with White Knight Chronicles?

This game is rather critically panned, yet when I hear peoples' play times on the game, I get numbers in the hundreds. I'm curious, what makes this game get panned by most critics yet loved by fans?

Well, my guess would be that the turn based rpg genre is a dying breed these days. Thats why its a fan loved game. Plus you can play online with friends with the character you made and do quests and upgrade armor and weapons.

But I found the game mediocre at best. Story is over the top ridiculously boring and characters are dumb. I beat #1, played #2 and thought the story got worse so I quit playing.