First of all this is the coolest fucking setting ever, and I can 100% see another studio fumbling the ball. However, monolith soft is the best in the business when it comes to environment design and they knocked it out of the park here. The soundtrack fits this immensely well, the grand themes help to make traversing the huge world a joy. The combat, while not quite as in depth as XBC2, is still pretty unique and fun even if it gets a bit old. The writing is solid, I especially love all the dialogue from your party members, and where the story goes in the final few chapters. The only qualms I have are that the side quests are terrible even by MMO standards and the resolution makes the game look like it's coated in vaseline.