livvyplaysfinalfantasy:

FFXII WEEK – DAY TWO

Favorite Location: Bhujerba & The Imperial Capital of Archades

(Artwork is official scenery concept art by Isamu Kamikokuryo.)

This one was a tie. Bhujerba has everything I could ever want in a Final Fantasy location: crystals, airships, political intrigue… and on top of that, it’s got some of the most enjoyable hunts in the game. It’s a place I always enjoy coming back to.

But over the years, I’ve come to appreciate more and more the sheer amount of detail that went into Archades. The chop quests throughout the different districts, the NPCs you meet, even the relatively advanced but still often grubby scenery – all of it helps to put a face on the entity that has been such a strong antagonistic presence throughout the plot. It would have been easy for XII’s writers to demonize the citizens of Archades by making them all obsessed with wealth and status… but every visit to the capital makes it more and more clear that its residents are, despite their numerous privileges, honest and hardworking people who face much the same everyday problems as the rest of Ivalice. At a moment in the plot when Ashelia B’nargin Dalmasca is well on her way toward revenge, Archades challenges the player to consider who and what is really at fault for the Empire’s misdeeds, and it provides a completely new perspective to many of the game’s social and political themes.

I have posters of both the above Kamikokuryo concept arts hanging on my bedroom wall, and I have no intention of taking them down anytime soon.

For more XII commentary, check out my completed IZJS playthrough at Livvy Plays Final Fantasy!