And into the sewers we go...I was happy to see the gameplay systems start to come into their own here with the Gambit system, which is a fascinating mechanic. It definitely seems that the team was looking to recreate some of that FFXI MMO charm here in a local single player title. And you know what? For the most part I think they've done it right.

I was also happy to see a litany of random mini-games that were used to sneak around the castle. Here's hoping this keeps up a similar ratio as FFVII did.

The usage of the initial city in FFXII is very much how I was expecting/wanting it to be handled in a next-gen RPG. Walking around Rabanastre is a genuinely fun and interesting experience. The whole city feels lived in and checking out random paths and chatting with NPCs somehow makes the feel more alive than FFX. The fact that we actually start off small, by just doing some basic questing, makes it feel all the more engaging than some previous titles.

Finally made it out of the sewers. The bosses in this game are going to be a total trip based on what I've seen so far. I do fear the chance that they may become too difficult to manage without having some very good planning, but we'll have to see.