If you didn't like FC then don't play this-- it's a lot more of the same but digs a lot deeper into the game's world, the main conflict, and the partys' characterizations. I personally loved FC and found it super cozy, so going into this was really exciting. The story picks up directly where the first game leaves off and the gameplay does too, carrying over your levels and data including everything you interacted with or didn't. Seeing the payoff of sidequests I did in the first game and even the continuing stories of random NPCs I talked to absentmindedly was rewarding in such a mundane but satisfying way.
The gameplay itself improves decently from FC. I don't see people talk about it much but the dungeon design in this is pretty significantly improved; it's still Falcom jank but it's not nearly as mind-numbing as FC's dungeons (the final one in that game made me wanna kms). Re-exploring the areas between cities and dungeons might get kinda tiring depending on how long ago you played the first game, because they're largely the same, but as always the constantly evolving city dialogue and fun sidequests keep things engaging. As for the combat itself, the game gives you much more options now as you continue to level your characters and progress through the game (the first game capped at around the 40s, this game goes from 40 to the 90s). The amounts of crafts you have on each character doubles and the amount of abilities you have like... triples. There's a shit ton of new orbments, causing your orbment set-up to feel like it really matters and it can completely change the tide of boss battles for you. The dude a few reviews below me complaining about bosses being too tanky and getting instakilled was just preparing for fights incorrectly, orbments are very accessible and the game gives you a surplus of gear and accessories to take on the tough fights even without having to buy any. There's also a ton of party members you can use, whose crafts have a pretty big effect on battles, but seeing as how dialogue changes based on what party members you have you'll prolly end up just rocking with the characters you like the most (Agate and Olivier the GOATs). The amount of options you have actually kinda gets pretty annoying at the end since the final stretch gives you a handful of cool new party members to use, but you can't really use them since a few climatic scenes in the final dungeon require specific party members to see.
I can't say much about the story without spoiling stuff, if you played the first game you know what it's gonna be about and what you're getting into, but the twists and surprises the plot has in store are absolutely mindblowing and several of them end up recontextualizing the first game entirely. All of the mysteries shot off in the first game land on their feet with perfect precision and do a double fucking somersault in the middle of it. The weakest part of the story is prolly the Enforcers that serve as the main group of antagonists throughout the game, they feel pretty one-note monster of the week-y and their backstories are way too "tell don't show" for me to care about them besides Loewe and Renne. This is a pretty big problem since some of the party members' arcs are paired with the Enforcers' stories that aren't very relevant to the world and don't even go anywhere, at least in this game, causing characters like Zin and Schera who were already on the weaker end of the cast in terms of substance not really coming out of this game feeling any stronger.
Overall it was a fantastic and memorable ride that honestly has me itching to start 3rd already, but I'm gonna force myself to take a break so I don't get burned out. Dunno what to expect from the rest of the series, but if it has as many beautiful, awesome, and emotional moments as the first two then it may grow to be one of my favorites.
The gameplay itself improves decently from FC. I don't see people talk about it much but the dungeon design in this is pretty significantly improved; it's still Falcom jank but it's not nearly as mind-numbing as FC's dungeons (the final one in that game made me wanna kms). Re-exploring the areas between cities and dungeons might get kinda tiring depending on how long ago you played the first game, because they're largely the same, but as always the constantly evolving city dialogue and fun sidequests keep things engaging. As for the combat itself, the game gives you much more options now as you continue to level your characters and progress through the game (the first game capped at around the 40s, this game goes from 40 to the 90s). The amounts of crafts you have on each character doubles and the amount of abilities you have like... triples. There's a shit ton of new orbments, causing your orbment set-up to feel like it really matters and it can completely change the tide of boss battles for you. The dude a few reviews below me complaining about bosses being too tanky and getting instakilled was just preparing for fights incorrectly, orbments are very accessible and the game gives you a surplus of gear and accessories to take on the tough fights even without having to buy any. There's also a ton of party members you can use, whose crafts have a pretty big effect on battles, but seeing as how dialogue changes based on what party members you have you'll prolly end up just rocking with the characters you like the most (Agate and Olivier the GOATs). The amount of options you have actually kinda gets pretty annoying at the end since the final stretch gives you a handful of cool new party members to use, but you can't really use them since a few climatic scenes in the final dungeon require specific party members to see.
I can't say much about the story without spoiling stuff, if you played the first game you know what it's gonna be about and what you're getting into, but the twists and surprises the plot has in store are absolutely mindblowing and several of them end up recontextualizing the first game entirely. All of the mysteries shot off in the first game land on their feet with perfect precision and do a double fucking somersault in the middle of it. The weakest part of the story is prolly the Enforcers that serve as the main group of antagonists throughout the game, they feel pretty one-note monster of the week-y and their backstories are way too "tell don't show" for me to care about them besides Loewe and Renne. This is a pretty big problem since some of the party members' arcs are paired with the Enforcers' stories that aren't very relevant to the world and don't even go anywhere, at least in this game, causing characters like Zin and Schera who were already on the weaker end of the cast in terms of substance not really coming out of this game feeling any stronger.
Overall it was a fantastic and memorable ride that honestly has me itching to start 3rd already, but I'm gonna force myself to take a break so I don't get burned out. Dunno what to expect from the rest of the series, but if it has as many beautiful, awesome, and emotional moments as the first two then it may grow to be one of my favorites.