There's a lot I like about this game. The gambits system is cool, graphically it's leaps and bounds ahead of the previous titles (in particular is the facial animation. I'm not sure I've seen another game use micro expressions as well as this game) and the characters are nuanced and endearing.

However, the gambits system (while interesting) turns the combat into a complete bore. It's neat setting up your gambits and seeing it all play out once or twice... but then it just becomes a monotonous bore. I shouldn't get to a boss fight and think 'ah, I can just leave this running while I look at my phone, or grab a drink, or use the toilet'. It wasn't until the very last boss that actually forced me to rethink the tactics that had gotten me through 90% of the game (and even that was only because I ran out of Phoenix Downs).

I also found the story to be quite underwhelming. It lacks any sort of momentum until the final couple of hours. Also there's hardly any comradery building between the party members. My favourite moments were the times Vaan / Penelo were sharing some light hearted moments with the team but I could count on a single hand how many times that occurs.

Ultimately it's very ambition, and I appreciate that it does have it's fans, but for me this ranks towards the bottom of the mainline Final Fantasy games.