Customer Ratings & Reviews

Final Fantasy XII was a game that was ahead of its time when it was originally released in 2006. A large scale Japanese RPG with continuous world map, and real-time combat was unheard of. XII met with a strange reception: some cheered its unique approach to the FF formula, some hated it, and many simply gave the game a casual pass. 11 years later, FFXII is returned in a remastered format, and it's arriving in a gaming scene that should more receptive to its style thanks to the the huge popularity of MMORPGs and series such as Xenoblade. FFXII tells a story of war and political intrigue that deviates from the traditional bombastic anime style tales that are contained in most JRPGs. There are questionable motives, deceptions, and moral gray areas on all sides. The narrative's maturity is complimented by the game's thoughtful mechanics. The Gambit system allows the user to dictate how their allies behave in combat with an interface that resembles writing a basic level computer program. It's a system that rewards logic, strategy, and careful planning as opposed to reflexes. The Zodiac Age edition includes several modern "quality of life" improvements that make the FFXII experience even better. An auto-save features makes dying out in the wild alot less stressful. A handy speed-up button makes long-distance travel less tedious. This new edition also includes an enhanced version of the Zodiac Job System that lets players develop their characters in new ways. It's the first chance that Western fans have had to enjoy this new system in English. Overall, FFXII Zodiac Age is a tremendous investment. It's a huge world to explore, with a unique story artfully told and beautifully presented. It'll take an enterprising gamer hundreds of hours to collect every weapon, make a pact with every summon, max out every job class, and tinker with ever gambit strategy. It's hard for me to recommend a title more.

This JRPG is a classic, first released on the ps2, now HD remastered for the ps4. It has a good story and characters but it's the gameplay that sets it apart from other Finely fantasy games. You can choice which party member you want to play as any time outside combat while the Ai controls the other party members during combat. You can give out orders to your party members during fights. Combat is now real time and not turned based. It's a lot fun once you get a hang of it (which doesn't take that long). This version of the game includes new features and a new soundtrack. The original soundstrack can still be selected if you prefer that. If you are new or a fan of the original the small changes and improved image quality makes this game a must buy for fans alike.

This is my favorite FF game, which was never super popular. Glad to see renewed attention to this gem with great HD visuals, remastered score, and tweaks like double speed to make traversing the world faster. As always, great story and amazing translation and VO. New with this version is the need to choose a job/class for each character, which is a permanent choice, unlike the original where all characters shared a generic job board.

The new job system in Zodiac Age (I say new because it was never ported over to the United States) makes developing each character into something unique be an interesting part of the overall experience. The enhanced soundtrack is beautiful and the visuals are nice, but they are not amazing. Still, it's a good game and a quality remaster and offers a great experience for fans of the Final Fantasy franchise.

Final Fantasy XII: The Zodiac Age is an amazing remaster of a PS2 classic. Right away, the significantly improved graphics are mindblowing. It's hard to believe this was once a PS2 game. As well as the graphics, the remastered soundtrack is a joy to listen to. The tracks have all been rerecorded in greater detail with a cleaner sound and have had additional instrumentation added to give them a fuller sound. The gameplay is very unique for the Final Fantasy series. It takes a departure from the traditional turn-based battle systems the series is known for, and replaces it with MMO-like combat that one would find in something like World of Warcraft. I'm personally not a fan of this battle system, but the games trademark Gambit System which allows you to program your characters makes it a much more enjoyable experience. As far as stories go, it gets a pass. It's nothing to write home about, but it's a well executed, no-fluff political story with some fantasy and sci-fi elements thrown in. From my experience with the game, the story tends to take a backseat to the gameplay, as much of the game is spent traversing the world, navigating dungeons, and fighting against enemies. Final Fantasy XII: The Zodiac Age is still the same Final Fantasy XII that was released more than a decade ago at it's core, but the prettied up visuals and redone music as well as the few changes made to the gameplay such as the inclusion of a job system makes this the defacto definitive version of the game. I would highly recommend this to all Final Fantasy fans, and I'd recommend all RPG fans to give it a shot, especially those who are looking for a single-player MMO type of experience.

The game is amazingly remastered with new soundtracks for each area. Everything looks great and the job system offers alot more strategy for how you want your characters to play. A challenging mode is added for those looking for it as well.

Final Fantasy XII: The Zodiac Age is essentially a localized version of FFXII: IZJS with new additions and "improvements." The story and characters are unchanged. The main changes are the graphics (it doesn't even look like a remaster of a PS2 game due to the textures), orchestrated soundtrack, and many gameplay changes. The gameplay changes make the game too easy compared to the original version(s). With 4x speed toggle and decent gambits, you can fast forward your way through most of the game. Overall it's a solid remaster. The steelbook is beautiful.

With the 2x/4x speedup, you can avoid all the boring parts of jrpgs (traveling/holding analog stick, and especially grinding) and get to the fun parts quicker. This is a great edition to the game and really helps make it more fun.

My favorite Final Fantasy game of them all! I really do wish they could make another or remake the rest of the story that was in the gba game.

Different from other FF games and very divisive views of original game. I love it. New zodiac version of liscence board. Is much better than original. Good story, great graphics, fun combat. Word is a little sparse when not in towns or dungeons but that is my only complaint, a minor one. Double speed feature is great when going through low level groups of monsters or traveling through deserts. Really fun game.

Just like the original but alot better and more fun. alot more has been added to it to make it fresh for returning gamers. Love it.

I remember playing this game when I was much younger on the original PS2 and I did struggle tremendously with it. Now I'm able to understand the game much better and see the beauty in the gambit system. That remastered looks and hears amazingly. New soundtrack and the graphics are up to par. The story plot is pretty good as well.

I loved the original FFXII when it came to PS2, and this is easily the best version of the game. It looks and sounds better and the fast forward function really helps if you can't commit the time to complete it anymore. And there's a proper job system along with new features like a trail mode and new game+. Highly recommended.

Beautiful remaster of a beautiful classic. I only wish I could turn the Job System on or off. But I can't argue. It makes it pretty difficult. Like the difficulty of the first playthrough of the original. The option for Japanese gives the characters more life and personality. The option for new Orchestrated music makes the music pop. Not to mention the new Trial Mode gets intense and some random steals for pretty rare stuff is fantastic.

The graphical updates are great to Final Fantasy XII! The unique battle system takes a little getting used to, yet is solid, and has been improved upon. The story draws the player in from the start with great cinematics, and what may be a seemingly common fantasy tale, unwinds into a great story and an epic adventure. There's plenty of content in the game, especially with the hunts & side quests.

The remaster is very good. the music is great and the graphics are very clean considering they are a upscale form the PS2. Also the 4 times speed was a great addition for those of us who are always busy.

As a long time fan of the series and traditional RPG lover, when this game first released on the PS2, I was skeptical. Designed using the same engine as Square's online series in an attempt to give an MMO type single player experience. I fell in love after my first play. The story is fantastic with incredible graphics (the HD upgrade looks and runs great), as one might expect from the series. With new added features for this release it's great to have a more fine tuned experience. So wether you have played it before, or you somehow missed this one, now is a wonderful opportunity to experience the world of Ivalice.

Although I never beat the final level in the original version, I decided to give the HD remaster a fair shot. At about 4 hours into the game, I can say that this is the definitive version of the game. I hope this is one of the last HD remasters we get from Square Enix for a while, given the history of re-released games with additional content from the PlayStation 2 era that never made its way to the US. The game itself comes in a limited edition steelbook case that contains original game artwork and a DLC download code to unlock the original soundtrack in-game. Aesthetically, the game has never looked sharper and more polished. Character models and objects look sharper and more refined than the original. Colors and textures seem to pop and stand out more. The world of Ivalice has never looked better. It also has never sounded better, with a new re-orchestrated soundtrack. It may be off-putting to loyal fans that the game doesn't offer the original soundtrack in-game unless you purchase the steelbook version or download the original soundtrack as paid DLC. A note to PS4 Pro owners: Playing on a PS4 or PS4 Slim provides a seamless 1080p experience, but PS4 Pro owners will find the game does not get the premium 4K quality. That doesn't mean that the game looks bad on a UHD 4K television; my understanding is that the game is rendered at 1440p on the Pro as opposed to 4K. As far as gameplay is concerned, the original system of learning new abilities put every character on the same board with the same abilities to unlock, leading to an overpowered party that offered little variety and incentive to use other party members. With the Zodiac Job System, characters are permanently assigned to a job class that offers varied abilities and equipment that incentivize players to carefully consider how they are used in battle. The added ability to speed the pacing of the game (2x or 4x) helps to better pace long drawn out battles. One of the new additions to the game is Trial Mode, which puts you and your party members through battles starting from the easiest enemies to the toughest while earning loot along the way. I wish I could say more about it, but there's not much to say since I haven't had a chance to try it for myself. The plot, without spoiling anything, is engaging, but I feel it lays the politics on a bit too thick at times. It follows the typical ragtag team on a quest to reclaim their homeland after a devastating war. Overall, Final Fantasy XII: The Zodiac Age provides the most definitive way to experience an underrated game that went by the wayside at its release. Veteran players will appreciate the gameplay refinements, and new players will appreciate some of the additions like adjusting the gameplay speed.

Like Final Fantasy? Like RPG's? You'd be a fool to pass this up. I put almost 200 hours into the original release on PS2 and the PS4 version will probably get even more of my time. The story is just as good as I remember and the game play just as fun. After over 10 years, the game still holds up as one of the best in the franchise. The only problem I can even pick out (and it's not a big one) is the voice acting, though not bad, would probably be a little better had it been an original release today. The voice acting still isn't that bad, however, and remains passable.

So this is a remake of a PS2 game, and let me say, it holds up very well. The combat is much different than a traditional final fantasy game, it is closer to that of an MMO. I know that sounds weird, potentially even difficult, but its actually a lot of fun. I am not an MMO gamer so the combat scared me too but it really is a lot of fun. It takes awhile to get used to, and longer to perfect, but it is a blast once we figure it out. And then the story is immersive and will drive you to play the game till its conclusive. This is definitely a great game.