Immersive, deep, witty and charming, Final Fantasy Tactics Advance 2 is a game that will keep you coming back for more.
The campaign isn't too long by itself, able to be finished in just under a few hours if you do absolutely no sidequests and skip all the major dialogue. However, you are missing out on a massive chunk of the game if you are doing this. The game's greatest strength is that when you are thrust into this unknown world, you can learn all about it and its histories, and believe me, it has a long history. Fans of the Final Fantasy series and owners of the original game will have memories flood back about people, places abilities, classes etc. The game boasts a massive array of weapons, abilities, equipment and classes, and if this is the first time you play one of these games, you will probably have a hard time catching on.
Nonetheless, there is a massive array of 400 quests here to be completed, as well as many extras such as characters, classes and hidden items. The quests are all linked to one another, with massive quest-lines that can span nearly 20 quests, each developing the story of certain characters or regions. You'll discover the history of the Judges, your original actions in FFTA1, and so much more.
Those returning to the series will find familiar classes and abilities, but certain changes have revolutionized the game. First and foremost, you will now earn AP (or ability points) for all your characters after successfully completing a mission. This means no more crappy stat growth while trying to learn certain abilities. Secondly, the law system is now different. Replacing the old (and much hated) system of Yellow/Red Cards, Judges now confer bonuses to your troops while you obey the law, there is no more instantly losing the game by accidentally breaking a law while charmed. What's more, they even have a backstory to how and why this change occurred, which adds to the immersive feel.
Even the system of how you unlock new items (and thus abilities) has been redone. Instead of items magically appearing in stores once you had reached a certain stage in the main storyline, you unlock new items by visiting a new 'Bazaar' in the shop, where you can exchange hard-earned loot gained from killing monsters for new equipment. While this is new and exciting for a while, and the one-purchase unique items add a whole new element of what weapons are more valuable than others, it seems little thought has been put over what happens late game when you've unlocked nearly every weapon in the game. You'll constantly be scrolling through pages of loot trying to find different combinations of loot only to see you've already unlocked all the possible items on this particular group. The game would've been a lot less clunky if loot which you couldn't use for the particular selection wasn't displayed.
If you find yourself baffled and bewildered by the massive array of quests, equipment and classes, never fear. Completing each and every quest is a marathon upon itself, and by the end you'll have mastered every nook and cranny of your characters and their abilities. Some quests require simple deliveries, some quests only require you to visit several locations, and some quests involve your classic fighting action. It is the same sort of system as before, each character moves and makes an action. However, two things are different. First and foremost, you no longer act in turns. Each character has a different speed stat, which allows them to take their turns earlier and in greater frequency. Often late game you will find yourself making several actions before the weaker characters even get off the starting block. Second, is mp. Instead of starting off with full mp, you now start off with 0. You still have the same 10mp per turn regeneration, so now mp is a lot more scarce.
The new Auction system to control territory is also a great addition. Here you go up against several opposing clans in a free for all real time bidding game where you use coins to purchase blocks of land. If you ever gain control of all the territories in one area (controlled by one single Auction House, usually 3 to 4 territories large), you become the champion for life. From then all, taking part in that auction is only for netting you cool items and equipment, and is a fun and pleasing way to spend time between battles. Controlling territories gives a small discount to quests and items, but by the end you'll have more than enough gold anyway. However, it is also critical for one other thing: random encounters. Winning big at auctions or just simply controlling territories gives a chance of enemies appearing in certain areas who challenge you to a fight. Some may demand a ransom if you wish to avoid a spectacle, but others will engage you directly. This is important because random encounters are significantly less than before, and enemy clans no longer attack your territories to try and steal it, which is quite an improvement because of the old annoyances of having to spend 2/3 of my time defending my territories.
Other new ideas are that of Scions. Instead of the old system where each race had an Ultima ability, which was an insult because of the blatant lopsidedness of their effectiveness, you now have items which can be used once per battle to devastating effect. They have also changed how the direction you are facing affects combat. Instead of increasing the chance to hit, attacking from the sides and behind now increases the damage you deal, with very little damage for attacking from the front and massive damage for back attacks.
Overall, FFTA2:GotR is a great game with lots of depth and story, and while the combat can get a bit repetitive, the game is so addictive you'll keep coming back for more.