231-572: Final Fantasy XII is a 2006 role-playing video game developed and published by Square Enix . The twelfth main installment of the Final Fantasy series, it was first released for the PlayStation 2 in March 2006. It introduced several innovations to the series: an open world ; a seamless battle system; a controllable camera; a customizable " gambit " system, which lets the player control
462-446: A battalion of cloned super-soldiers , robots and paranormal creatures . The AI uses a planner to generate context-sensitive behaviors, the first time in a mainstream game. This technology is still used as a reference for many studios. The Replicas are capable of utilizing the game environment to their advantage, such as overturning tables and shelves to create cover, opening doors, crashing through windows, or even noticing (and alerting
693-548: A featurette , "History of Final Fantasy ", which gives a brief overview of Final Fantasy games. On January 26, 2007, Square Enix Product Blog revealed full-color Gabranth, Ashe, Balthier, and Vaan figures . In 2007, Balthier was featured in Final Fantasy Tactics: War of the Lions as a playable character. Final Fantasy XII received "universal acclaim" according to review aggregator Metacritic . It
924-490: A party , and attain victory by completing a series of quests or reaching the conclusion of a central storyline. Players explore a game world, while solving puzzles and engaging in combat. A key feature of the genre is that characters grow in power and abilities, and characters are typically designed by the player. RPGs rarely challenge a player's physical coordination or reaction time, with the exception of action role-playing games . Role-playing video games typically rely on
1155-476: A previous Yasumi Matsuno game , with its localization also receiving high praise. Producers of The Zodiac Age said that they were considering another game set in the Ivalice universe, adding that earlier projects faded away due to original development members working on other games. Role-playing video game A role-playing video game , role-playing game ( RPG ) or computer role-playing game ( CRPG )
1386-681: A GAN on a thousand human-created levels for Doom ; following training, the neural net prototype was able to design new playable levels on its own. Similarly, researchers at the University of California prototyped a GAN to generate levels for Super Mario . In 2020 Nvidia displayed a GAN-created clone of Pac-Man ; the GAN learned how to recreate the game by watching 50,000 (mostly bot-generated) playthroughs. Non-player characters are entities within video games that are not controlled by players, but instead are managed by AI systems. NPCs contribute to
1617-458: A Mist Chain reaches a certain length, a final strike will be initiated at the end of the Quickening cycle, called a Concurrence. As in many role-playing games (RPGs), characters " level up " each time they earn a set number of experience points from defeating enemies; each level gained increases the character's statistics and improves performance in battle. Statistics include hit points ,
1848-401: A Rabanastre street urchin, ignores his friend Penelo's objections and infiltrates the palace during a dinner celebrating the appointment of Archadian prince Vayne Solidor as consul . In the treasury he finds a piece of magicite, a powerful magical crystal. He is discovered by Balthier and Fran, a pair of sky pirates looking for the magicite. The three escape as Dalmascan Resistance forces assault
2079-450: A big open world , and let you do whatever you like [which makes it] difficult to tell a compelling story." Hironobu Sakaguchi noted that "users like to categorise" WRPGs as "a sort of different style, born from first person shooters." In recent years, some have also criticized WRPGs for becoming less RPG-like, instead with further emphasis on action. Christian Nutt of GameSpy states that, in contrast to JRPGs, WRPGs' greater control over
2310-465: A certain way. For example, if the AI is given a command to check its health throughout a game then further commands can be set so that it reacts a specific way at a certain percentage of health. If the health is below a certain threshold then the AI can be set to run away from the player and avoid it until another function is triggered. Another example could be if the AI notices it is out of bullets, it will find
2541-700: A collection of artworks and illustrations, the complete play guide, and a novella written by Benny Matsuyama, author of Hoshi wo Meguru Otome from the Final Fantasy VII Ultimania Ω Guide . Another Ultimania edition, the Final Fantasy XII International Zodiac Job System Ultimania , was released on September 6, 2007, as a guide book for the International Zodiac version of the game. The game was re-released as part of
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#17327828898242772-406: A concept later introduced to the action role-playing game genre by Secret of Mana (1993). Games like Madden Football , Earl Weaver Baseball and Tony La Russa Baseball all based their AI in an attempt to duplicate on the computer the coaching or managerial style of the selected celebrity. Madden, Weaver and La Russa all did extensive work with these game development teams to maximize
3003-549: A cover object and hide behind it until it has reloaded. Actions like these make the AI seem more human. However, there is still a need for improvement in this area. Another side-effect of combat AI occurs when two AI-controlled characters encounter each other; first popularized in the id Software game Doom , so-called 'monster infighting' can break out in certain situations. Specifically, AI agents that are programmed to respond to hostile attacks will sometimes attack each other if their cohort's attacks land too close to them. In
3234-649: A curious boy who is Vayne's younger brother, Larsa, in disguise. After they rescue Penelo, Basch confronts the Marquis over his lies, but the party is captured and detained aboard the Archadian airship Leviathan , headed by Judge Ghis. On the Leviathan , the party is reunited with Amalia, who is revealed to be Princess Ashe. Ghis takes the magicite, which is revealed to be a royal Dalmascan artifact, "deifacted nethicite". The party escapes, but as Ashe had planned to use
3465-476: A description and analysis of the new battle system and its components, and developer interviews. The Scenario Ultimania describes the main scenarios in the game, profiles on the characters and areas in Ivalice, developer interviews, and details on each location. The last guide, the Ultimania Ω , includes voice actor interviews, the complete story of Final Fantasy XII including additional character profiles,
3696-649: A determined princess of Dalmasca who lost her father and her husband in the Archadian invasion; Basch ( Keith Ferguson / Rikiya Koyama ), a disgraced knight of Dalmasca charged with treason for slaying the king; Balthier ( Gideon Emery / Hiroaki Hirata ), a gentlemanly sky pirate who pilots his airship, the Strahl ; Fran (Nicole Fantl/ Rika Fukami ), Balthier's partner and a Viera exile whose knowledge extends to legends and myths; and Penelo ( Catherine Taber /Marina Kozawa), Vaan's childhood friend who accompanies him on journeys to "keep an eye on him". The Archadian Empire
3927-432: A difficult task. NPCs must be able to handle both scripted interactions and unscripted scenarios where players may behave in unexpected ways. Designing NPCs capable of adapting to such variability requires complex AI models that can account for numerous possible interactions, which can be resource-intensive and time-consuming for developers. Gamers always ask if the AI cheats (presumably so they can complain if they lose) In
4158-433: A distinct subfield of AI. In particular, the ability to legitimately solve some AI problems in games by cheating creates an important distinction. For example, inferring the position of an unseen object from past observations can be a difficult problem when AI is applied to robotics, but in a computer game a NPC can simply look up the position in the game's scene graph . Such cheating can lead to unrealistic behavior and so
4389-409: A finite number of points to the attributes of their choice. Gaining experience will also unlock new magic spells for characters that use magic. Some role-playing games also give the player specific skill points , which can be used to unlock a new skill or improve an existing one. This may sometimes be implemented as a skill tree. As with the technology trees seen in strategy video games , learning
4620-549: A gamemaster. Exploring the world is an important aspect of many RPGs. Players will walk through, talking to non-player characters , picking up objects, and avoiding traps. Some games such as NetHack , Diablo , and the FATE series randomize the structure of individual levels, increasing the game's variety and replay value. Role-playing games where players complete quests by exploring randomly generated dungeons and which include permadeath are called roguelikes , named after
4851-449: A greater degree in the early 1990s. As console RPGs became more heavily story-based than their computer counterparts, one of the major differences that emerged during this time was in the portrayal of the characters. Console RPGs often featured intricately related characters who had distinctive personalities and traits, with players assuming the roles of people who cared about each other, fell in love or even had families. Romance in particular
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#17327828898245082-536: A highly developed story and setting, which is divided into a number of quests. Players control one or several characters by issuing commands, which are performed by the character at an effectiveness determined by that character's numeric attributes. Often these attributes increase each time a character gains a level , and a character's level goes up each time the player accumulates a certain amount of experience. Role-playing video games also typically attempt to offer more complex and dynamic character interaction than what
5313-647: A hold as they had in the West due to their cost; there was little market for Western-developed games and there were a few Japanese-developed games for personal computers during this time such as The Black Onyx (1984) which followed the Wizardry / Ultima format. With the release of the low-cost Famicom console (called the Nintendo Entertainment System overseas), a new opportunity arose to bring role-playing games to Japan. Dragon Quest (1986)
5544-815: A large number of Western indie games are modelled after JRPGs, especially those of the 16-bit era , partly due to the RPG Maker game development tools . Another oft-cited difference is the prominence or absence of kawaisa , or "cuteness", in Japanese culture, and different approaches with respect to character aesthetics. WRPGs tend to maintain a serious and gritty tone, whereas JRPG protagonists tend to be designed with an emphasis on aesthetic beauty, and even male characters are often young, androgynous , shōnen or bishōnen in appearance. JRPGs often have cute characters, juxtaposed with more mature themes and situations; and many modern JRPGs feature characters designed in
5775-641: A little box doesn't mean it belongs there." Nick Doerr of Joystiq criticizes the claim that JRPGs are "too linear", pointing out that non-linear JRPGs are not uncommon—for instance, the Romancing SaGa series. Likewise, Rowan Kaiser of Joystiq points out that linear WRPGs were common in the 1990s, and argues that many of the often mentioned differences between Eastern and Western games are stereotypes that are generally "not true" and "never was", pointing to classic examples like Lands of Lore and Betrayal at Krondor that were more narrative-focused than
6006-423: A major challenge in order to progress to the next area, and this structure can be compared to the boss characters at the end of levels in action games . The player typically must complete a linear sequence of certain quests in order to reach the end of the game's story. Many RPGs also often allow the player to seek out optional side-quests and character interactions. Quests of this sort can be found by talking to
6237-459: A mixed class, such as a fighter who can cast simple spells. Characters will also have a range of physical attributes such as dexterity and strength, which affect a player's performance in combat. Mental attributes such as intelligence may affect a player's ability to perform and learn spells, while social attributes such as charisma may limit the player's choices while conversing with non-player characters. These attribute systems often strongly resemble
6468-486: A more immersive experience, as NPCs are now able to "learn" from player behavior, which provides a greater sense of realism within the game. Despite all of these advancements in NPC AI, there are still significant challenges that developers face in designing NPCs. They need to balance realism, functionally, and players expectations. The key challenge is to make sure that NPCs enhance the players experience, rather than disturb
6699-419: A non-player character, and there may be no penalty for abandoning or ignoring these quests other than a missed opportunity or reward. Players can find loot (such as clothing, weapons, and armor) throughout the game world and collect it. Players can trade items for currency and better equipment. Trade takes place while interacting with certain friendly non-player characters, such as shopkeepers, and often uses
6930-466: A number of user-configurable settings. Fallout Tactics: Brotherhood of Steel and Arcanum: Of Steamworks and Magick Obscura offered players the option to play in either turn-based or RTwP mode via a configuration setting. The latter also offered a "fast turn-based" mode, though all three of the game's modes were criticized for being poorly balanced and oversimplified. Early Ultima games featured timed turns: they were strictly turn-based, but if
7161-442: A particular action will increase. Many role-playing games allow players to play as an evil character. Although robbing and murdering indiscriminately may make it easier to get money, there are usually consequences in that other characters will become uncooperative or even hostile towards the player. Thus, these games allow players to make moral choices, but force players to live with the consequences of their actions. Games often let
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7392-483: A particular skill in the tree will unlock more powerful skills deeper in the tree. Three different systems of rewarding the player characters for solving the tasks in the game can be set apart: the experience system (also known as the "level-based" system), the training system (also known as the "skill-based" system) and the skill-point system (also known as "level-free" system) Older games often separated combat into its own mode of gameplay, distinct from exploring
7623-556: A pathway yielding the next obstacle for the player. In complex video games, these trees may have more branches, provided that the player can come up with several strategies to surpass the obstacle. Academic AI may play a role within game AI, outside the traditional concern of controlling NPC behavior. Georgios N. Yannakakis highlighted four potential application areas: Rather than procedural generation, some researchers have used generative adversarial networks (GANs) to create new content. In 2018 researchers at Cornwall University trained
7854-474: A peace treaty between Dalmasca and the empire. The group and Larsa go to Mt. Bur-Omisace to seek the Gran Kiltias Anastasis, Ivalice's religious leader, and beg his approval of Ashe as queen of Dalmasca. There they also meet Al-Cid Margrace, who is in talks with Larsa to avert a war between Rozarria and Archadia. Their plans are curtailed when Anastasis is killed by Archadia, and soon afterwards
8085-581: A positive-feedback cycle that is central to most role-playing games: The player grows in power, allowing them to overcome more difficult challenges, and gain even more power. This is part of the appeal of the genre, where players experience growing from an ordinary person into a superhero with amazing powers. Whereas other games give the player these powers immediately, the player in a role-playing game will choose their powers and skills as they gain experience. Role-playing games usually measure progress by counting experience points and character levels. Experience
8316-440: A predetermined and limited set of responses to a predetermined and limited set of inputs. Many industries and corporate voices argue that game AI has come a long way in the sense that it has revolutionized the way humans interact with all forms of technology, although many expert researchers are skeptical of such claims, and particularly of the notion that such technologies fit the definition of "intelligence" standardly used in
8547-525: A reasonable way for all the NPCs to evade a thrown grenade; rather than allow the NPCs to attempt to bumble out of the way and risk appearing stupid, the developers instead scripted the NPCs to crouch down and cover in place in that situation. Many contemporary video games fall under the category of action, first-person shooter , or adventure. In most of these types of games, there is some level of combat that takes place. The AI's ability to be efficient in combat
8778-402: A result, Japanese-style role-playing games are held in disdain by some Western gamers, leading to the term "JRPG" being held in the pejorative. Some observers have also speculated that JRPGs are stagnating or declining in both quality and popularity, including remarks by BioWare co-founder Greg Zeschuk and writing director Daniel Erickson that JRPGs are stagnating—and that Final Fantasy XIII
9009-480: A series of menus, and include Attack, Magicks, Technicks, Mist, Gambits, and Items. The player may switch any active character with an inactive character at any time, unless the active character is targeted by an attack or ability. Characters who are knocked out may also be substituted. A new feature in the game is the "gambit" system, which allows the player to program each character to perform certain commands in battle in response to specified conditions. Using gambits,
9240-442: A side-scrolling view. Most notably since Ultima Underworld (1992), role-playing games started implementing true three-dimensional (3D) graphics, where players typically navigate the game world from a first or third-person perspective. However, an isometric or aerial top-down perspective is common in party-based RPGs, in order to give the player a clear view of their entire party and their surroundings. Role-playing games require
9471-494: A single paragraph) spread across 13 booklets, while the second contains 50,000 paragraphs spread across 14 booklets. Most of the games from this era are turn-based, although Dungeon Master and its imitators have real-time combat. Other classic titles from this era include The Bard's Tale (1985), Wasteland (1988), the start of the Might and Magic (1986–2014) series and the continuing Ultima (1981–1999) series. Later, in
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9702-409: A smaller set of possible actions, since computers can't engage in imaginative acting comparable to a skilled human gamemaster. In exchange, the typical role-playing video game may have storyline branches, user interfaces, and stylized cutscenes and gameplay to offer a more direct storytelling mechanism. Characterization of non-player characters in video games is often handled using a dialog tree . Saying
9933-401: A source of inspiration for its gameplay system. The Diofield Chronicle used the game as one source of inspiration for its controls and player movement. The localization of Final Fantasy XII was praised as a high point of the series and video games as a whole. Lead localizers Alexander O. Smith and Joseph Reeder went on to collaborate again on Tactics Ogre: Wheel of Fortune , the remake of
10164-503: A special Final Fantasy XII package, which contained a PlayStation 2 game system, the Final Fantasy XII game, a standard DualShock controller, and a vertical console stand. The Japanese third-party manufacturer Hori also released Final Fantasy XII memory cards on the day of the game's release; stickers of Final Fantasy XII characters are included. Game peripheral maker Logicool ( Logitech 's Japanese branch) released
10395-475: A special edition Final Fantasy XII controller on the same day. Suntory produced "Final Fantasy XII Potion"—a drink containing such ingredients as royal jelly , chamomile, sage, thyme, and marjoram. The drinks became commercially available in Japan on March 7. Suntory also released a Final Fantasy XII Premium Box, which came with a Final Fantasy XII collector's card. The Potion was a limited edition product and
10626-415: A specialized trading screen. Purchased items go into the player's inventory. Some games turn inventory management into a logistical challenge by limiting the size of the player's inventory, thus forcing the player to decide what they must carry at the time. This can be done by limiting the maximum weight that a player can carry, by employing a system of arranging items in a virtual space, or by simply limiting
10857-463: A spell, as ammunition is consumed by a gun, most games offer players a finite amount of mana which can be spent on any spell. Mana is restored by resting or by consuming potions. Characters can also gain other non-magical skills, which stay with the character for as long as the character lives. Role-playing games may have the player focus only on a single character throughout the game; the character may be joined by computer-controlled allies outside of
11088-460: A unique soundtrack in his own way. "Kiss Me Good-Bye" was performed in both English and Japanese by Angela Aki . Aki's style of playing the keyboard while singing reminded Uematsu of his childhood idol, Elton John , which was one of the reasons he chose her. The English version of the song was featured in both the Japanese and North American versions of the game. In addition to the theme song, violinist Taro Hakase co-composed, arranged, and performed
11319-436: A wide variety of quite disparate fields inside a game. The most obvious is in the control of any NPCs in the game, although "scripting" ( decision tree ) is currently the most common means of control. These handwritten decision trees often result in "artificial stupidity" such as repetitive behavior, loss of immersion, or abnormal behavior in situations the developers did not plan for. Pathfinding , another common use for AI,
11550-403: Is Ubisoft's 2017 tactical shooter Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Wildlands . Developers used a pathfinding algorithm trained with a data set of real maps to create road networks that would weave through handcrafted villages within the game world. This is an intelligent use of PCG as the AI would have a large amount of real world data to work with and roads are straightforward to create. However,
11781-595: Is a video game genre where the player controls the actions of a character (or several party members) immersed in some well-defined world, usually involving some form of character development by way of recording statistics. Many role-playing video games have origins in tabletop role-playing games and use much of the same terminology , settings , and game mechanics . Other major similarities with pen-and-paper games include developed story-telling and narrative elements, player character development, complexity, as well as replay value and immersion. The electronic medium removes
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#173278288982412012-452: Is a foundational example. Players are tasked with descending through the increasingly difficult levels of a dungeon to retrieve the Amulet of Yendor. The dungeon levels are algorithmically generated at the start of each game. The save file is deleted every time the player dies. The algorithmic dungeon generation creates unique gameplay that would not otherwise be there as the goal of retrieving
12243-415: Is a sub-field of Game AI focusing on giving NPCs the capability to navigate in a dynamic environment, finding a path to a target while avoiding collisions with other entities (other NPC, players...) or collaborating with them (group navigation). Navigation in dynamic strategy games with large numbers of units, such as Age of Empires (1997) or Civilization V (2010), often performs poorly; units often get in
12474-425: Is a well-known fact that many AIs 'cheat' (or, at least, 'fudge') in order to be able to keep up with human players". For example, if the agents want to know if the player is nearby they can either be given complex, human-like sensors (seeing, hearing, etc.), or they can cheat by simply asking the game engine for the player's position. Common variations include giving AIs higher speeds in racing games to catch up to
12705-507: Is applied to the grid. Instead of just a rigid grid, some games use irregular polygons and assemble a navigation mesh out of the areas of the map that NPCs can walk to. As a third method, it is sometimes convenient for developers to manually select "waypoints" that NPCs should use to navigate; the cost is that such waypoints can create unnatural-looking movement. In addition, waypoints tend to perform worse than navigation meshes in complex environments. Beyond static pathfinding, navigation
12936-476: Is divided into three continents: Ordalia, Valendia, and Kerwon. Ordalia is located in the western part of Ivalice. The Rozarrian Empire makes its home in the vast inland plains of this continent as the eastern portion of it is largely desert and "jagd"—lawless regions so rich in Mist, the ethereal manifestation of magicite, that airships cannot function. Valendia is the home of Imperial Archadia, where lush highlands dot
13167-484: Is found in other video game genres. This usually involves additional focus on the artificial intelligence and scripted behavior of computer-controlled non-player characters . The premise of many role-playing games tasks the player with saving the world, or whichever level of society is threatened. There are often twists and turns as the story progresses, such as the surprise appearance of estranged relatives, or enemies who become friends or vice versa. The game world
13398-408: Is important in these genres. A common goal today is to make the AI more human or at least appear so. One of the more positive and efficient features found in modern-day video game AI is the ability to hunt. AI originally reacted in a very black and white manner. If the player were in a specific area then the AI would react in either a complete offensive manner or be entirely defensive. In recent years,
13629-496: Is largely predefined for the sake of telling a specific story, many role-playing games make use of a character creation screen. This allows players to choose their character's sex, their race or species, and their character class. Although many of these traits are cosmetic, there are functional aspects as well. Character classes will have different abilities and strengths. Common classes include fighters, spellcasters, thieves with stealth abilities, and clerics with healing abilities, or
13860-563: Is no longer available. Final Fantasy XII was also adapted into a manga by Amou Gin [ jp ] . Square Enix published the series in a total of five tankōbon volumes from December 22, 2006, to August 22, 2009. Studio BentStuff published three Ultimania books in 2006: Final Fantasy XII Battle Ultimania and the Final Fantasy XII Scenario Ultimania on June 16, and Final Fantasy XII Ultimania Ω on November 24. The Battle Ultimania provides
14091-487: Is not about intelligence , and shares few of the objectives of the academic field of AI. Whereas "real AI" addresses fields of machine learning, decision making based on arbitrary data input, and even the ultimate goal of strong AI that can reason, "game AI" often consists of a half-dozen rules of thumb, or heuristics , that are just enough to give a good gameplay experience. Historically, academic game-AI projects have been relatively separate from commercial products because
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#173278288982414322-454: Is not always desirable. But its possibility serves to distinguish game AI and leads to new problems to solve, such as when and how to cheat. The major limitation to strong AI is the inherent depth of thinking and the extreme complexity of the decision-making process. This means that although it would be then theoretically possible to make "smart" AI the problem would take considerable processing power. Game AI/heuristic algorithms are used in
14553-492: Is not even really an RPG; criticisms regarding seemingly nebulous justifications by some Japanese designers for newly changed (or, alternately, newly un-changed) features of recent titles; calls among some gaming journalists to "fix" JRPGs' problems; as well as claims that some recent titles such as Front Mission Evolved are beginning to attempt—and failing to—imitate Western titles. In an article for PSM3 , Brittany Vincent of RPGFan.com felt that "developers have mired
14784-423: Is not true intelligence, but an advertising buzzword used to describe computer programs that use simple sorting and matching algorithms to create the illusion of intelligent behavior while bestowing software with a misleading aura of scientific or technological complexity and advancement. Since game AI for NPCs is centered on appearance of intelligence and good gameplay within environment restrictions, its approach
15015-492: Is notable for introducing automapping and in-game scrolls providing hints and background information. They also released Pool of Radiance in 1988, the first of several " Gold Box " CRPGs based on the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons rules . These games feature a first-person display for movement, combined with an overhead tactical display for combat. One common feature of RPGs from this era, which Matt Barton calls
15246-621: Is often rooted in speculative fiction (i.e. fantasy or science fiction ), which allows players to do things they cannot do in real life and helps players suspend their disbelief about the rapid character growth. To a lesser extent, settings closer to the present day or near future are possible. The story often provides much of the entertainment in the game. Because these games have strong storylines, they can often make effective use of recorded dialog and voiceover narration. Players of these games tend to appreciate long cutscenes more than players of faster action games . While most games advance
15477-406: Is ruled by House Solidor, headed by Emperor Gramis ( Roger L. Jackson / Hidekatsu Shibata ). The emperor's sons are Vayne (Elijah Alexander/ Nobuo Tobita ) and Larsa (Johnny McKeown/ Yuka Imai ), the former a military genius and the game's main antagonist, and the latter a charismatic seeker of peace. Judge Magisters, upholders of Archadian law, protect House Solidor and execute every command issued by
15708-481: Is the use of Sanskrit in the city of Bhujerba. Phrases such as "svagatam" (welcome) and titles like "parijanah" (guide) are lifted directly from Sanskrit. Minaba mentions that the team tried to bring out Arabic culture in the design of the game. War is a prominent theme of the game and the developers stated that the cutscene battles are influenced by Ancient Rome . When asked to comment on the fan observation of Star Wars similarities, Minaba replied that although he
15939-455: Is used to generate responsive, adaptive or intelligent behaviors primarily in non-playable characters (NPCs) similar to human-like intelligence . Artificial intelligence has been an integral part of video games since their inception in 1948, first seen in the game Nim . AI in video games is a distinct subfield and differs from academic AI. It serves to improve the game-player experience rather than machine learning or decision making. During
16170-406: Is usually divided so that each game location is an opportunity to reveal a new chapter in the story. Pen-and-paper role-playing games typically involve a player called the gamemaster (or GM for short) who can dynamically create the story, setting, and rules, and react to a player's choices. In role-playing video games, the computer performs the function of the gamemaster. This offers the player
16401-451: Is usually earned by defeating enemies in combat, with some games offering experience for completing certain quests or conversations. Experience becomes a form of score , and accumulating a certain amount of experience will cause the character's level to go up. This is called "levelling up", and gives the player an opportunity to raise their character(s)'s attributes. Many RPGs allow players to choose how to improve their character, by allocating
16632-420: Is very different from that of traditional AI. Game playing was an area of research in AI from its inception. One of the first examples of AI is the computerized game of Nim made in 1951 and published in 1952. Despite being advanced technology in the year it was made, 20 years before Pong , the game took the form of a relatively small box and was able to regularly win games even against highly skilled players of
16863-411: Is widely seen in real-time strategy games. Pathfinding is the method for determining how to get a NPC from one point on a map to another, taking into consideration the terrain, obstacles and possibly " fog of war ". Commercial videogames often use fast and simple "grid-based pathfinding", wherein the terrain is mapped onto a rigid grid of uniform squares and a pathfinding algorithm such as A* or IDA*
17094-468: The Ivalice Alliance series, which also includes International Zodiac Job System . Fortress , an action game developed by Grin , was to have been a spin-off game that took place following the events of Revenant Wings . Square Enix cancelled the project after six months of development. In July 2017, Square Enix released Final Fantasy XII: The Zodiac Age , a high-definition remaster of
17325-584: The Dungeons & Dragons ruleset. Some role-playing games make use of magical powers , or equivalents such as psychic powers or advanced technology. These abilities are confined to specific characters such as mages, spellcasters, or magic-users. In games where the player controls multiple characters, these magic-users usually complement the physical strength of other classes. Magic can be used to attack, defend, or temporarily change an enemy or ally's attributes. While some games allow players to gradually consume
17556-581: The Final Fantasy 25th Anniversary Ultimate Box Japanese package in December 2012. For the North American release, a "Collector's Edition" was available through GameStop and EB Games . This edition includes the original game packaged in a metallic case along with a special bonus disc, which contains Final Fantasy XII developer interviews, an art gallery, U.S. and Japanese trailers , and
17787-517: The Ivalice universe with Yasumi Matsuno as a guest creator. Michael-Christopher Koji Fox, the translation director of Final Fantasy XIV indicated in an interview that the team have a lot of people who worked on Final Fantasy XII and "is one of the games they wanted to borrow heavily from because they thought it was really cool, and they really liked the imagery and lore that it had". Astria Ascending used its job system seen in later re-releases as
18018-543: The Nintendo DS have had more original and experimental Japanese RPGs released in recent years. Western RPGs have also received criticism in recent years. They remain less popular in Japan, where, until recently, Western games in general had a negative reputation. In Japan, where the vast majority of early console role-playing video games originate, Western RPGs remain largely unknown. The developer Motomu Toriyama criticized Western RPGs, stating that they "dump you in
18249-577: The Nintendo Switch and Xbox One were released on April 30, 2019. The gambit system inspired similar systems used in other games such as Dragon Age: Origins and Pillars of Eternity II . Final Fantasy XIV also used the gambit system as a base for its "Trust System", a mechanic that pairs online players with story characters controlled by artificial intelligence . The game also incorporated several regions and characters from Final Fantasy XII into its game world, alongside other games from
18480-621: The PlayStation Awards 2006 bestowed the "Double Platinum Prize". It was selected for the list "Top 100 New Japanese Styles", a list of "products and services originating in Japan to serve as a mark of excellence". Final Fantasy XII also received nominations in such categories as best RPG, story, art direction, character design and original musical score at the AIAS ' Interactive Achievement Awards , Game Developers Choice Awards , BAFTA Video Games Awards , Spike Video Game Awards , and
18711-500: The Satellite Awards . Final Fantasy XII sold more than 1,764,000 copies in its first week in Japan, almost equaling the sales of Final Fantasy X in its first week. A Square Enix conference report stated that Final Fantasy XII sold more than 2.38 million copies in Japan in the two weeks since its March 16, 2006, release. In North America, Final Fantasy XII shipped approximately 1.5 million copies in its first week. It
18942-727: The Sharp X1 computer in 1983 and later ported to the MSX in 1984, the NES in 1985 and the Sharp X68000 as New Bokosuka Wars . The game laid the foundations for the tactical role-playing game genre, or "simulation RPG" genre as it is known in Japan. It was also an early example of a real-time , action role-playing game . In 1986, Chunsoft created the NES title Dragon Quest (called Dragon Warrior in North America until
19173-552: The Sphere Grid in Final Fantasy X , all characters may obtain all licenses on the board, but each Quickening and Esper license may only be activated by a single character. Final Fantasy XII is set within the land of Ivalice during an age when "magic was commonplace" and "airships plied the skies, crowding out the heavens". At this time, magicite, a magic-rich mineral, is commonly used in magic spells and in powering airships—a popular form of transportation in Ivalice. Ivalice
19404-499: The Turing test or an artificial general intelligence . The term game AI is used to refer to a broad set of algorithms that also include techniques from control theory , robotics , computer graphics and computer science in general, and so video game AI may often not constitute "true AI" in that such techniques do not necessarily facilitate computer learning or other standard criteria, only constituting "automated computation" or
19635-504: The Ultima series, employed duplicates of the miniatures combat system traditionally used in the early role-playing games . Representations of the player characters and monsters would move around an arena modeled after the surrounding terrain, attacking any enemies that are sufficiently close. Earlier role-playing video games used a two-dimensional top-down view or tile-based first-person view. Early action-based role-playing games often used
19866-640: The arcade appeared in 1974: the Taito game Speed Race ( racing video game ) and the Atari games Qwak (duck hunting light gun shooter ) and Pursuit ( fighter aircraft dogfighting simulator ). Two text-based computer games, Star Trek (1971) and Hunt the Wumpus (1973), also had enemies. Enemy movement was based on stored patterns. The incorporation of microprocessors would allow more computation and random elements overlaid into movement patterns. It
20097-435: The artificial intelligence (AI) of characters in battle; a "license" system, which determines what abilities and equipment can be used by characters; and hunting side quests , which allows the player to find and defeat increasingly difficult monsters in the game's open world. Final Fantasy XII also includes elements from previous games in the series, such as Chocobos and Moogles . The game takes place in Ivalice , where
20328-403: The cognitive sciences . Industry voices make the argument that AI has become more versatile in the way we use all technological devices for more than their intended purpose because the AI allows the technology to operate in multiple ways, allegedly developing their own personalities and carrying out complex instructions of the user. People in the field of AI have argued that video game AI
20559-500: The eighth game ), which drew inspiration from computer RPGs Ultima and Wizardry and is regarded as the template for future Japanese role-playing video games released since then. Also in 1986 The Legend of Zelda was released for the NES , while not generally considered an RPG itself did inspire many aspects of future action-RPGs. In 1987, the genre came into its own with the release of several highly influential console RPGs distinguishing themselves from computer RPGs, including
20790-401: The golden age of arcade video games the idea of AI opponents was largely popularized in the form of graduated difficulty levels, distinct movement patterns, and in-game events dependent on the player's input. Modern games often implement existing techniques such as pathfinding and decision trees to guide the actions of NPCs. AI is often used in mechanisms which are not immediately visible to
21021-476: The regional differences in pronunciation found in the Japanese version. He also tried to distance the game from the "flat reads" found in other dubbed work by casting voice actors who had experience in theatre work. In terms of general changes, the localization team introduced widescreen 16:9 ratio support and reinserted scenes that were left out of the original Japanese version for political reasons and to preserve an "All Ages" CERO rating. A playable demo of
21252-436: The " Golden Age " of computer RPGs, is the use of numbered "paragraphs" printed in the manual or adjunct booklets, containing the game's lengthier texts; the player can be directed to read a certain paragraph, instead of being shown the text on screen. The ultimate exemplar of this approach is Sir-Tech 's Star Saga trilogy (of which only two games were released); the first game contains 888 "textlets" (usually much longer than
21483-416: The 1980 video game Rogue . The game's story is often mapped onto exploration, where each chapter of the story is mapped onto a different location. RPGs usually allow players to return to previously visited locations. Usually, there is nothing left to do there, although some locations change throughout the story and offer the player new things to do in response. Players must acquire enough power to overcome
21714-422: The 1990s, and became known for being more heavily story and character-based, American computer RPGs began to face criticism for having characters devoid of personality or background, due to representing avatars which the player uses to interact with the world, in contrast to Japanese console RPGs which depicted characters with distinctive personalities. American computer RPGs were thus criticized for lacking "more of
21945-399: The AI from point A to point B, usually in the most direct way possible. State machines permit transitioning between different behaviors. The Monte Carlo tree search method provides a more engaging game experience by creating additional obstacles for the player to overcome. The MCTS consists of a tree diagram in which the AI essentially plays tic-tac-toe . Depending on the outcome, it selects
22176-498: The AI would likely miss nuances and subtleties if it was tasked with creating a village where people live. As AI has become more advanced, developer goals are shifting to create massive repositories of levels from data sets. In 2023, researchers from New York University and the University of the Witwatersrand trained a large language model to generate levels in the style of the 1981 puzzle game Sokoban . They found that
22407-594: The Archadian Empire invades the two countries. Rasler is killed in the war, the city of Nabudis is destroyed in a single explosion, and the Dalmascan King Raminas is assassinated moments after signing a treaty of surrender. Marquis Ondore announces that the assassin was Dalmascan captain Basch, who has been sentenced to death, and that Princess Ashe has committed suicide. Two years later, Vaan,
22638-461: The Archadian emperor Gramis dies and Vayne ascends the throne. The party journeys to Archadia, where they discover Doctor Cid, the creator of manufacted magicite, who directs them to go to Giruvegan to find the source of nethicite. In Giruvegan, Ashe encounters the makers of nethicite, the immortal Occuria, who "pull the strings of history"; they give her the Treaty Blade to cut new pieces from
22869-610: The Japanese-only International Zodiac Job System for the PlayStation 4 . It adds trophy support , a remastered soundtrack with a few new tracks, and improved technical performance. The Zodiac Age was nominated for "Best Remake/Remaster" at IGN ' s Best of 2017 Awards, and won "Best Remaster" at Game Informer ' s Best of 2017 Awards and 2017 RPG of the Year Awards. The remaster also received favorable reviews. The Zodiac Age
23100-856: The Occuria's wishes, but instead destroy the Sun-cryst. The party defeats Gabranth, who reveals that he killed King Raminas, and destroys the crystal. Al-Cid tells them that the Dalmascan Resistance, led by Ondore, is about to fight Archadia in Rabanastre, but the Archadian forces now include the Sky Fortress Bahamut . They infiltrate the Bahamut , and find Larsa failing to dissuade his brother Vayne from his plans for war. They defeat Vayne and Venat, and Ashe and Larsa announce
23331-451: The PCs enter these locations or perform certain actions. Combat options typically involve positioning characters, selecting which enemy to attack, and exercising special skills such as casting spells. In a classical turn-based system, only one character may act at a time; all other characters remain still, with a few exceptions that may involve the use of special abilities. The order in which
23562-574: The Ravager and Menzoberranzan , transferred the AD&;D license to several different developers, and eventually gave it to BioWare , who used it in Baldur's Gate (1998) and several later games. By the 2000s, 3D engines had become dominant. The earliest RPG on a console was Dragonstomper on the Atari 2600 in 1982. Another early RPG on a console was Bokosuka Wars , originally released for
23793-413: The Sun-cryst, the source of all nethicite and its power. She learns that Venat, one of the Occuria, has defected to put the "reins of History back in the hands of Man", manipulating Vayne in his quest to conquer Ivalice and leading Cid to create manufacted magicite to reduce the relative power of the Occuria. Ashe and the party journey to the Sun-cryst, where she decides not to take her revenge by following
24024-589: The ability to pause the game and issue orders to all characters under his/her control; when the game is unpaused, all characters follow the orders they were given. This "real-time with pause" system ( RTwP ) has been particularly popular in games designed by BioWare . The most famous RTwP engine is the Infinity Engine . Other names for "real-time with pause" include "active pause" and "semi real-time". Tactical RPG maker Apeiron named their system Smart Pause Mode (SPM) because it would automatically pause based on
24255-519: The academic approaches tended to be simple and non-scalable. Commercial game AI has developed its own set of tools, which have been sufficient to give good performance in many cases. Game developers' increasing awareness of academic AI and a growing interest in computer games by the academic community is causing the definition of what counts as AI in a game to become less idiosyncratic . Nevertheless, significant differences between different application domains of AI mean that game AI can still be viewed as
24486-455: The accuracy of the games. Later sports titles allowed users to "tune" variables in the AI to produce a player-defined managerial or coaching strategy. The emergence of new game genres in the 1990s prompted the use of formal AI tools like finite state machines . Real-time strategy games taxed the AI with many objects, incomplete information, pathfinding problems, real-time decisions and economic planning, among other things. The first games of
24717-454: The added quirk of different personalities for each enemy. Karate Champ (1984) later introduced AI patterns to fighting games . First Queen (1988) was a tactical action RPG which featured characters that can be controlled by the computer's AI in following the leader. The role-playing video game Dragon Quest IV (1990) introduced a "Tactics" system, where the user can adjust the AI routines of non-player characters during battle,
24948-555: The algorithms into making content for them. PCG offers numerous advantages from both a developmental and player experience standpoint. Game studios are able to spend less money on artists and save time on production. Players are given a fresh, highly replayable experience as the game generates new content each time they play. PCG allows game content to adapt in real time to the player's actions. Generative algorithms (a rudimentary form of AI) have been used for level creation for decades. The iconic 1980 dungeon crawler computer game Rogue
25179-437: The ambitious scope of Final Fantasy VII raised the possibilities for the genre, with its dozens of minigames and much higher production values. The latter includes innovations such as the use of 3D characters on pre-rendered backgrounds, battles viewed from multiple different angles rather than a single angle, and for the first time full-motion CGI video seamlessly blended into the gameplay, effectively integrated throughout
25410-464: The amount of damage a character can receive; strength, the power of the character's physical attacks; and magic, the potency of the character's magical spells. In addition to leveling up, players may improve their characters via the License Board. The License Board is an array of panels that contain "licenses" which allow a character to perform certain actions. The board is split into two parts;
25641-401: The amulet is the same each time. Opinions on total level generation as seen in games like Rogue can vary. Some developers can be skeptical of the quality of generated content and desire to create a world with a more "human" feel so they will use PCG more sparingly. Consequently, they will only use PCG to generate specific components of an otherwise handcrafted level. A notable example of this
25872-401: The bazaar. Excluding the massively multiplayer online role-playing game Final Fantasy XI , Final Fantasy XII is the first entry in the main Final Fantasy series not to include random encounters . Instead, enemies are visible in the overworld and the player may choose to fight or avoid them. Battles unfold in real time using the "Active Dimension Battle" (ADB) system. Battles begin when
26103-460: The case of Doom , published gameplay manuals even suggest taking advantage of monster infighting in order to survive certain levels and difficulty settings. Procedural content generation (PCG) is an AI technique to autonomously create ingame content through algorithms with minimal input from designers. PCG is typically used to dynamically generate game features such as levels, NPC dialogue, and sounds. Developers input specific parameters to guide
26334-544: The category," pointing to Chrono Trigger (which he also worked on) and the Mana games. He further noted that there have been "other games similar to the style of Chrono Trigger ," but that "it's probably because the games weren't localised and didn't reach the Western audience." Xeno series director Tetsuya Takahashi , in reference to Xenoblade Chronicles , stated that "I don't know when exactly people started using
26565-643: The characters act is usually dependent on their attributes, such as speed or agility. This system rewards strategic planning more than quickness. It also points to the fact that realism in games is a means to the end of immersion in the game world, not an end in itself. A turn-based system makes it possible, for example, to run within range of an opponent and kill them before they get a chance to act, or duck out from behind hard cover, fire, and retreat back without an opponent being able to fire, which are of course both impossibilities. However, tactical possibilities have been created by this unreality that did not exist before;
26796-460: The characters within a tile-based graphics system . Dragon Quest was highly successful in Japan, leading to further entries in the series and other titles such as Final Fantasy that followed the same simplifications made in RPGs for Dragon Quest . Because of these differences, the role-playing genre began to be classified into two fairly distinct styles: computer RPG and console RPG . By
27027-526: The computer was almost as good as humans in using them, which caused players to think that the computer was cheating. Developers say that most game AIs are honest but they dislike players erroneously complaining about "cheating" AI. In addition, humans use tactics against computers that they would not against other people. In the 1996 game Creatures , the user "hatches" small furry animals and teaches them how to behave. These "Norns" can talk, feed themselves, and protect themselves against vicious creatures. It
27258-503: The context of artificial intelligence in video games, cheating refers to the programmer giving agents actions and access to information that would be unavailable to the player in the same situation. Believing that the Atari 8-bit could not compete against a human player, Chris Crawford did not fix a bug in Eastern Front (1941) that benefited the computer-controlled Russian side. Computer Gaming World in 1994 reported that "It
27489-627: The creation of custom tools used for the development of the game. It was also listed as 8th on the Guinness top 50 games of all time in 2009. Hitoshi Sakimoto composed and arranged most of the game's soundtrack, with Hayato Matsuo and Masaharu Iwata creating seven and two tracks respectively. Nobuo Uematsu , following his departure from Square Enix in 2004, only contributed the ending song, " Kiss Me Good-Bye ". Sakimoto experienced difficulty following in Uematsu's footsteps, but he decided to create
27720-440: The current mood of the environment. The algorithm is able to assess the current mood of the game state through "mood tagging". Research indicates that that there is a significant positive statistical correlation regarding player rated game engagement and the dynamically generated musical compositions when they accurately match their current emotions. Game AI often amounts to pathfinding and finite state machines. Pathfinding gets
27951-416: The defeat of Garry Kasparov by IBM 's Deep Blue computer in 1997. The first video games developed in the 1960s and early 1970s, like Spacewar! , Pong , and Gotcha (1973), were games implemented on discrete logic and strictly based on the competition of two players, without AI. Games that featured a single player mode with enemies started appearing in the 1970s. The first notable ones for
28182-408: The development and customization of playable characters has come at the expense of plot and gameplay, resulting in what he felt was generic dialogue, lack of character development within the narrative and weaker battle systems. He also states that WRPGs tend to focus more on the underlying rules governing the battle system rather than on the experience itself. Tom Battey of Edge Magazine noted that
28413-401: The development of "survival instinct". In-game computers can recognize different objects in an environment and determine whether it is beneficial or detrimental to its survival. Like a user, the AI can look for cover in a firefight before taking actions that would leave it otherwise vulnerable, such as reloading a weapon or throwing a grenade. There can be set markers that tell it when to react in
28644-433: The difficulty level is set to its highest) use combat tactics and behaviors such as healing wounded allies, giving orders, out-flanking the player and using weapons with pinpoint accuracy. The 2010 real-time strategy game StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty gives the player control of one of three factions in a 1v1, 2v2, or 3v3 battle arena. The player must defeat their opponents by destroying all their units and bases. This
28875-422: The earlier Final Fantasy games, every area is represented proportionally. The player navigates the overworld on foot, Chocobo , or by airship. Players may save their game to a memory card using save crystals or gate crystals, and may use the latter to teleport between gate crystals. An in-game bestiary provides incidental information about the world of Final Fantasy XII . Final Fantasy XII restructures
29106-520: The earliest role-playing video games on a microcomputer was Dungeon n Dragons , written by Peter Trefonas and published by CLOAD (1980). This early game, published for a TRS-80 Model 1, is just 16K long and includes a limited word parser command line, character generation, a store to purchase equipment, combat, traps to solve, and a dungeon to explore. Other contemporaneous CRPGs (Computer Role Playing Games) were Temple of Apshai , Odyssey: The Compleat Apventure and Akalabeth: World of Doom ,
29337-437: The early 2000s, the distinction between platforms became less pronounced as the same games appeared on both console and computer, but stylistic differences between Western role-playing games (WRPGs) and Japanese role-playing games (JRPGs) remained, rooted in the earlier distinctions. Though sharing fundamental premises, WRPGs tend to feature darker graphics, older characters, and a greater focus on roaming freedom, realism, and
29568-519: The effect is not obvious to the player. While cheating refers only to privileges given specifically to the AI—it does not include the inhuman swiftness and precision natural to a computer—a player might call the computer's inherent advantages "cheating" if they result in the agent acting unlike a human player. Sid Meier stated that he omitted multiplayer alliances in Civilization because he found that
29799-414: The empires of Archadia and Rozarria are waging an endless war. Dalmasca, a small kingdom, is caught between the warring nations. When Dalmasca is annexed by Archadia, its princess, Ashe, creates a resistance movement. During the struggle, she meets Vaan , a young adventurer who dreams of becoming a sky pirate in command of an airship. They are quickly joined by a band of allies; together, they rally against
30030-499: The end of the conflict to the battlefield. Larsa becomes the Archadian emperor and Ashe the Queen of Dalmasca; Basch replaces his brother Gabranth as Larsa's protector; Vaan and Penelo fly an airship to meet Balthier and Fran for another adventure. Development for Final Fantasy XII began in December 2000 and was headed by Final Fantasy Tactics director Yasumi Matsuno and Final Fantasy IX director Hiroyuki Ito . Matsuno provided
30261-539: The field, NPCs in modern video games can now react to player actions with increased sophistication, such as adjusting their tactics in combat or changing their dialogue based on past interactions. By using deep learning algorithms these systems emulate human-like decisions-making, thus making NPCs feel more like real people rather than static game elements. Another advancements in NPC AI is the use of natural language processing , which allows NPCs to engage in more realistic conversations with players. Before this NPC dialogue
30492-455: The final boss of Final Fantasy IV . Final Fantasy XII introduces "Quickenings", a new Limit Break system unique compared to those in previous games in the series. Characters learn Quickenings by progressing to specific panels on the License Board. Each character can learn three Quickenings, which are unique to that character. Characters may string together Quickenings into large combo attacks, called Mist Chains, via timed button presses. If
30723-542: The final version of the game. Ito drew inspiration for gambits from plays in American football where each team member has a specific job to do based on the conditions and desired outcome. As for the license system, he explained that needing "licenses" to perform certain actions was a natural extension of the rigid structured society of Archadia, as epitomized by its Judges. At the early stages of development, Minagawa revealed that numerous ideas and features were planned for
30954-448: The focus to a younger protagonist as a result. Vaan's early designs were described as effeminate, but with the casting of Kouhei Takeda as his voice and motion capture actor, Vaan became less feminine and more "active, upbeat, bright and positive". Comments were made about the similarity between character designer Akihiko Yoshida 's creations and those of Tetsuya Nomura , another Square Enix character designer. Yoshida felt this comparison
31185-409: The forces of Rozarria and Archadia. Caught between the two powerful Empires, Dalmasca and a number of smaller nations have already been subjugated by Archadia two years before the game begins. The six main playable characters in Final Fantasy XII are Vaan ( Bobby Edner / Kouhei Takeda ), an energetic orphan of Rabanastre who dreams of becoming a sky pirate ; Ashe ( Kari Wahlgren / Mie Sonozaki ),
31416-583: The fray, the development phase took longer than expected, causing delays. Design inspiration came from a mix of medieval Mediterranean countries as demonstrated by the architectural styles found throughout Ivalice along with many of the races populating the region. The art team, led by art directors Hideo Minaba and Isamu Kamikokuryō, visited Turkey , which influenced the game's Mediterranean-style setting. The developers also used styles and deco from other sources including areas in India and New York City . Of note
31647-456: The future. The musical score of a video game is an important expression of the emotional tone of a scene to the player. Sound effects such as the noise of a weapon hitting an enemy help indicate the effect of the player's actions. Generating these in real time creates an engaging experience for the player because the game is more responsive to their input. An example is the 2013 adventure game Proteus where an algorithm dynamically adapts
31878-484: The gambit system would "let the game play itself", countering that gambits do not function without a player. However, IGN wrote that while "still extremely strong", Final Fantasy XII has one of the series' weaker soundtracks. Executive producer Akitoshi Kawazu was pleased by Famitsu 's rating but admitted that he thought the game was not perfect; he felt that the storyline did not meet some fans' expectations. Kawazu expressed his frustration and regrets regarding
32109-591: The game was shipped with the North American release of Dragon Quest VIII in November 2005. To commemorate the release of Final Fantasy XII , playable demos of the English version were available at DigitalLife's Gaming Pavilion in New York City on October 11, 2006, a day dubbed " Final Fantasy XII Gamer's Day". Additionally, Square Enix gave fans the chance to cosplay as characters from XII . Each person
32340-435: The game world. More recent games tend to maintain a consistent perspective for exploration and combat. Some games, especially earlier video games, generate battles from random encounters ; more modern RPGs are more likely to have persistent wandering monsters that move about the game world independently of the player. Most RPGs also use stationary boss monsters in key positions, and automatically trigger battles with them when
32571-510: The game's ending credits theme, Symphonic Poem "Hope" , along with Yuji Toriyama. Two promotional soundtracks were released before the original soundtrack, Symphonic Poem "Hope" and The Best of the Final Fantasy XII Soundtrack , on March 1 and 15, 2006, respectively. The former contains all the music used in the game's trailer performed by Taro Hakase, including Symphonic Poem "Hope" . The original soundtrack itself
32802-435: The game, but were dropped from the final stages due to certain constraints and hardware limitations. Some of these included the ability for a second player to join in the gameplay, enabling a two-player mode. Another idea that was given a considerable amount of thought was the ability to recruit non-player characters to join in the mob hunts. Due to the technical limitations of the console and multiple number of characters joining
33033-509: The game. In 1951, using the Ferranti Mark 1 machine of the University of Manchester , Christopher Strachey wrote a checkers program and Dietrich Prinz wrote one for chess . These were among the first computer programs ever written. Arthur Samuel 's checkers program, developed in the middle 1950s and early 1960s, eventually achieved sufficient skill to challenge a respectable amateur. Work on checkers and chess would culminate in
33264-521: The game. The game was soon ported to the PC and gained much success there, as did several other originally console RPGs, blurring the line between the console and computer platforms. Computer-driven role-playing games had their start in Western markets, with games generally geared to be played on home computers. By 1985, series like Wizardry and Ultima represented the state of the art in role-playing games. In Japan, home computers had yet to take as great
33495-519: The gameplay. Overly realistic NPCs that behave unpredictably can frustrate players by hindering progression or breaking immersion. Conversely, NPCs that are too predictable or simplistic may fail to engage players, reducing the overall effectiveness of the game's narrative and mechanics. Another factor that needs to be accounted for is the computation cost of implementing advanced AI for NPCs. The use of these Advanced AI techniques requires large amount of processing power, which can limit its usage. Balancing
33726-504: The genre had notorious problems. Herzog Zwei (1989), for example, had almost broken pathfinding and very basic three-state state machines for unit control, and Dune II (1992) attacked the players' base in a beeline and used numerous cheats. Later games in the genre exhibited more sophisticated AI. Later games have used bottom-up AI methods, such as the emergent behaviour and evaluation of player actions in games like Creatures or Black & White . Façade (interactive story)
33957-537: The genre-defining Phantasy Star , released for the Master System . Shigeru Miyamoto 's Zelda II: The Adventure of Link for the Famicom Disk System was one of the earliest action role-playing games , combining the action-adventure game framework of its predecessor The Legend of Zelda with the statistical elements of turn-based RPGs . Most RPGs at this time were turn-based. Faxanadu
34188-463: The idea of "hunting" has been introduced; in this 'hunting' state the AI will look for realistic markers, such as sounds made by the character or footprints they may have left behind. These developments ultimately allow for a more complex form of play. With this feature, the player can actually consider how to approach or avoid an enemy. This is a feature that is particularly prevalent in the stealth genre. Another development in recent game AI has been
34419-514: The immersion, storytelling, and the mechanics of a game. They often serve as companions, quest-givers, merchants and much more. Their realism has advanced significantly in the past few years, thanks to improvements in AI technologies. NPCs are essential in both narrative-driven as well as open-world games. They help convey the lore and context of the game, making them pivotal to world-building and narrative progression. For instance, an NPC can provide critical information, offer quests, or simply populate
34650-452: The in-game engine, and was voted number one for Best Art Style on IGN ' s weekly Top Ten. Newtype USA named Final Fantasy XII its "Game of the Month" for November 2006, praised the gameplay, graphics, and story, and called it "the best RPG to have been released for any Sony platform". Although GameSpot lauded the gambit and license systems as an innovative and in-depth way for
34881-401: The individuals, so certain enemies flee when their leader dies. Attention is paid to the little details, with enemies notably throwing back grenades or team-members responding to being bothered. The underlying " behavior tree " technology has become very popular in the games industry since Halo 2 . The 2005 psychological horror first-person shooter F.E.A.R. has player characters engage
35112-439: The integration of deep learning and reinforcement learning techniques has enabled NPCs to adjust their behavior in response to player actions, creating a more interactive and personalized gameplay experience. One such development is the use of adaptive behavior models. These allow NPCs to analyze and learn from players decisions in real time. This behavior allows for a much more engaging experience. For example as said by experts in
35343-539: The key features of RPGs were developed in this early period, prior to the release of Ultima III: Exodus , one of the prime influences on both computer and console RPG development. For example, Wizardry features menu-driven combat, Tunnels of Doom features tactical combat on a special "combat screen", and Dungeons of Daggorath features real-time combat which takes place on the main dungeon map. Starting in 1984 with Questron and 50 Mission Crush , SSI produced many series of CRPGs. Their 1985 game Phantasie
35574-520: The label "JRPG" is most commonly used to refer to RPGs "whose presentation mimics the design sensibilities" of anime and manga, that it's "typically the presentation and character archetypes" that signal "this is a JRPG." Modern JRPGs are more likely to feature turn-based battles; while modern WRPGs are more likely to feature real-time combat. In the past, the reverse was often true: real-time action role-playing games were far more common among Japanese console RPGs than Western computer RPGs up until
35805-474: The landscape. Central to the story is Dalmasca, a small kingdom between the two continents and empires. Located in the middle of the Galtean Peninsula of Ordalia, Dalmasca is surrounded by an expanse of desert. The temperate climate of Dalmasca differs from the cold environs of Kerwon to the south and the lush plains of Valendia and Ordalia. During this time, Ivalice is beset by the pending war between
36036-437: The late 1990s had become more cinematic in style (e.g. Final Fantasy series). At the same time, WRPGs started becoming more novelistic in style (e.g. Planescape: Torment ), but by the late 2000s had also adopted a more cinematic style (e.g. Mass Effect ). One reason given for these differences is that many early Japanese console RPGs can be seen as forms of interactive manga or anime wrapped around Western rule systems at
36267-415: The late 1990s have had a stronger focus on extensive dialog tree systems (e.g. Planescape: Torment ). On the other hand, JRPGs tend to limit players to developing pre-defined player characters , and often do not allow the option to create or choose one's own playable characters or make decisions that alter the plot. In the early 1990s, JRPGs were seen as being much closer to fantasy novels , but by
36498-934: The late 1990s, due to gamepads usually being better suited to real-time action than the keyboard and mouse. Some journalists and video game designers have questioned this cultural classification, arguing that the differences between Eastern and Western games have been exaggerated. In an interview held at the American Electronic Entertainment Expo , Japanese video game developer Tetsuya Nomura (who worked on Final Fantasy and Kingdom Hearts ) emphasized that RPGs should not be classified by country-of-origin, but rather described simply for what they are: role-playing games. Hironobu Sakaguchi , creator of Final Fantasy and The Last Story , noted that, while "users like to categorise" JRPGs as "turn-based, traditional styles" and WRPGs as "born from first-person shooters ," there "are titles that don't fit
36729-428: The late 1990s, which saw the rise of optical disks in fifth generation consoles. The implications for RPGs were enormous—longer, more involved quests, better audio, and full-motion video . This was first clearly demonstrated in 1997 by the phenomenal success of Final Fantasy VII , which is considered one of the most influential games of all time. With a record-breaking production budget of around $ 45 million,
36960-495: The magicite as proof that she was the princess, the group journeys to collect another of the pieces of nethicite, the Dawn Shard. They are again captured by Ghis; when he tries to use the Dawn Shard in the Leviathan rather than the "manufacted" (artificially made) magicite it normally uses, his entire airship fleet is destroyed in a mirror of the destruction of Nabudis, and the party flees again. They encounter Larsa, who seeks
37191-461: The mid-1970s, as an offshoot of early university mainframe text-based RPGs on PDP-10 and Unix -based computers, such as Dungeon , pedit5 and dnd . In 1980 , a very popular dungeon crawler , Rogue , was released. Featuring ASCII graphics where the setting, monsters and items were represented by letters and a deep system of gameplay, it inspired a whole genre of similar clones on mainframe and home computers called " roguelikes ". One of
37422-591: The middle to late 1990s, isometric, sprite-based RPGs became commonplace, with video game publishers Interplay Entertainment and Blizzard North playing a lead role with such titles as the Baldur's Gate , Icewind Dale and the action-RPG Diablo series, as well as the dialogue-heavy Planescape: Torment and cult classics Fallout and Fallout 2 . This era also saw a move toward 3D game engines with such games as Might and Magic VI: The Mandate of Heaven and The Elder Scrolls: Arena . TSR , dissatisfied with SSI's later products, such as Dark Sun: Wake of
37653-445: The model excelled at generating levels with specifically requested characteristics such as difficulty level or layout. However, current models such as the one used in the study require large datasets of levels to be effective. They concluded that, while promising, the high data cost of large language models currently outweighs the benefits for this application. Continued advancements in the field will likely lead to more mainstream use in
37884-576: The modern JRPG in unoriginality", citing Square Enix CEO Yoichi Wada who stated that "they're strictly catering to a particular audience", the article noting the difference in game sales between Japan and North America before going on to suggest JRPGs may need to "move forward". This criticism has also occurred in the wider media with an advertisement for Fallout: New Vegas ( Obsidian Entertainment ) in Japan openly mocked Japanese RPGs' traditional characteristics in favor of their own title. Nick Doerr of Joystiq noted that Bethesda felt that JRPGs "are all
38115-421: The more fantasy novel approach of Squaresoft console RPGs such as Final Fantasy IV . However in 1994, game designer Sandy Petersen noted that, among computer gamers, there was criticism against cartridge-based console JRPGs being "not role-playing at all" due to popular examples such as Secret of Mana and especially The Legend of Zelda using "direct" arcade-style action combat systems instead of
38346-656: The more "abstract" turn-based battle systems associated with computer RPGs. In response, he pointed out that not all console RPGs are action-based, pointing to Final Fantasy and Lufia . Another early criticism, dating back to the Phantasy Star games in the late 1980s, was the frequent use of defined player characters , in contrast to the Wizardry and Gold Box games where the player's avatars (such as knights, clerics, or thieves) were blank slates. As Japanese console RPGs became increasingly more dominant in
38577-503: The music based on the angle the player is viewing the ingame landscape from. Recent breakthroughs in AI have resulted in the creation of advanced tools that are capable of creating music and sound based on evolving factors with minimal developer input. One such example is the MetaComposure music generator. MetaComposure is an evolutionary algorithm designed to generate original music compositions during real time gameplay to match
38808-427: The necessity for a gamemaster and increases combat resolution speed. RPGs have evolved from simple text-based console-window games into visually rich 3D experiences. Role-playing video games use much of the same terminology, settings and game mechanics as early tabletop role-playing games such as Dungeons & Dragons . Players control a central game character, or multiple game characters, usually called
39039-459: The number of items that can be held. Most of the actions in an RPG are performed indirectly, with the player selecting an action and the character performing it by their own accord. Success at that action depends on the character's numeric attributes. Role-playing video games often simulate dice-rolling mechanics from non-electronic role-playing games to determine success or failure. As a character's attributes improve, their chances of succeeding at
39270-477: The original concept and plot but was forced to bow out a year before release due to health concerns. The team was restructured as a consequence: the new directorial duo consisted of Ito and Hiroshi Minagawa , while Akitoshi Kawazu of SaGa series fame became the game's executive producer. Series creator Hironobu Sakaguchi was disappointed by Matsuno's departure and declined to play the game beyond its introduction. The desire to move away from random encounters
39501-484: The palace, and in the sewers they meet the Resistance leader, Amalia, before being captured by Archadian forces. In the dungeons they meet Basch, who was imprisoned but not killed, and who states his twin brother Gabranth was the one to kill the king. The four then escape together back to Rabanastre. There they discover Penelo has been kidnapped and taken to the floating city of Bhujerba. In Bhujerba, they meet Lamont,
39732-489: The party comes within range of an aggressive enemy, the party attacks an enemy, or a story event initiates a confrontation. When a character or enemy begins an action, target lines connect characters to other party members or enemies; different colors represent the different types of action. The player may swap to and issue commands to any of the three characters in the party, but guest characters are controlled by artificial intelligence (AI). Battle commands are initiated through
39963-506: The party or standing idle while the summoned creature fights. An Esper will leave the battle if either the summoner or itself is knocked out, its time limit expires, or it executes its special attack. Some Espers have origins in Final Fantasy Tactics and Tactics Advance and others are derived from the final bosses of previous Final Fantasy games such as Chaos , the final boss of the first Final Fantasy , and Zeromus,
40194-439: The performance of AI-driven NPCs with the game's overall technical limitations is crucial for ensuring smooth gameplay. Experts mentioned how developers must allocate resources efficiently to avoid overburdening the game’s systems, particularly in large, open-world games where numerous NPCs must interact with the player simultaneously. Finally, creating NPCs that can respond dynamically to a wide range of player behaviors remains
40425-610: The platform divide between consoles and computers , respectively. Finally, while the first RPGs offered strictly a single player experience, the popularity of multiplayer modes rose sharply during the early to mid-1990s with action role-playing games such as Secret of Mana and Diablo . With the advent of the Internet, multiplayer games have grown to become massively multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPG), including Lineage , Final Fantasy XI , and World of Warcraft . The role-playing video game genre began in
40656-579: The player and in-game systems. Academics say the interactions between players and NPCs are often designed to be straightforward but contextually relevant, ensuring that the player receives necessary feedback or resources for gameplay continuity. Recent advancements in artificial intelligence have significantly enhanced the complexity and realism of NPCs. Before these advancements, AI operated on pre-programmed behaviors, making them predictable and repeatable. With AI developing NPCs have become more adaptive and able to dynamically respond to players. Experts think
40887-424: The player control an entire party of characters. However, if winning is contingent upon the survival of a single character, then that character effectively becomes the player's avatar . An example of this would be in Baldur's Gate , where if the character created by the player dies, the game ends and a previous save needs to be loaded. Although some single-player role-playing games give the player an avatar that
41118-547: The player determines whether the loss of immersion in the reality of the game is worth the satisfaction gained from the development of the tactic and its successful execution. Fallout has been cited as being a good example of such a system. Real-time combat can import features from action games , creating a hybrid action RPG game genre. But other RPG battle systems such as the Final Fantasy battle systems have imported real-time choices without emphasizing coordination or reflexes. Other systems combine real-time combat with
41349-402: The player hunts monsters in 100 different maps to gain items and money. The game also includes the western version's English voices and widescreen 16:9 support, and a bonus DVD. A sequel , Final Fantasy XII: Revenant Wings , was released for the Nintendo DS in 2007. It takes place one year after the events of Final Fantasy XII and follows the adventures of Vaan. The game is one of four in
41580-406: The player may set reactions to different stimuli for each character. Each gambit consists of three parts: a target, an action, and a priority. The target specifies which ally or foe to act on and the condition for applying the action. For example, the target "Ally: HP < 70%" causes the character to target any ally whose hit points have fallen below 70%. The action is the command to be performed on
41811-463: The player or spawning them in advantageous positions in first-person shooters. The use of cheating in AI shows the limitations of the "intelligence" achievable artificially; generally speaking, in games where strategic creativity is important, humans could easily beat the AI after a minimum of trial and error if it were not for this advantage. Cheating is often implemented for performance reasons where in many cases it may be considered acceptable as long as
42042-549: The player to change the party's character classes during the course of the game. Another "major innovation was the introduction of day/night cycles; certain items, characters, and quests are only accessible at certain times of day." In 1989, Phantasy Star II for the Genesis established many conventions of the genre, including an epic , dramatic, character-driven storyline dealing with serious themes and subject matter. Console RPGs distinguished themselves from computer RPGs to
42273-450: The player to control the characters, it criticized them for being too complicated and difficult to adjust to, especially for newer players of the series. The reviewer also criticized the sometimes tedious back and forth travel. On the other hand, GameSpot took particular note of the "excellent" voice cast. IGN praised the game's rich storyline and artistic direction, shown through its "sheer depth of character". It also assuaged criticism that
42504-896: The player to manage a large amount of information and frequently make use of a windowed interface. For example, spell-casting characters will often have a menu of spells they can use. On the PC, players typically use the mouse to click on icons and menu options, while console games have the player navigate through menus using a game controller. The role-playing video game genre began in the mid-1970s on mainframe computers , inspired by pen-and-paper role-playing games such as Dungeons & Dragons . Several other sources of inspiration for early role-playing video games also included tabletop wargames , sports simulation games, adventure games such as Colossal Cave Adventure , fantasy writings by authors such as J. R. R. Tolkien , traditional strategy games such as chess , and ancient epic literature dating back to Epic of Gilgamesh which followed
42735-435: The player waited more than a second or so to issue a command, the game would automatically issue a pass command, allowing the monsters to take a turn while the PCs did nothing. There is a further subdivision by the structure of the battle system; in many early games, such as Wizardry , monsters and the party are arrayed into ranks, and can only attack enemies in the front rank with melee weapons. Other games, such as most of
42966-425: The player will be able to summon it to the battlefield. Similar to Final Fantasy X , the summoned creatures become active participants in battle, as opposed to the cinematic attacks seen in previous games in the series. Unlike X , however, Espers follow hidden gambits, rather than the player's direct command. The summoner remains an active member in the fight, able to attack and cast support magic, instead of leaving
43197-406: The player's control. Other games feature a party that the player can create at the start or gather from non-player characters in the game, coming into partial or full control of the player during the game. Although the characterization of the game's avatar will develop through storytelling, characters may also become more functionally powerful by gaining new skills, weapons, and magic. This creates
43428-461: The players, to be as exciting as the Japanese imports", and lacked the arcade and action-adventure elements commonly found in Japanese console RPGs at the time. In the early 1990s, American computer RPGs also began facing criticism for their plots, where "the party sticks together through thick and thin" and always "act together as a group" rather than as individuals, and where non-player characters are "one-dimensional characters", in comparison to
43659-410: The plot when the player defeats an enemy or completes a level, role-playing games often progress the plot based on other important decisions. For example, a player may make the decision to join a guild, thus triggering a progression in the storyline that is usually irreversible. New elements in the story may also be triggered by mere arrival in an area, rather than completing a specific challenge. The plot
43890-437: The precursor to Ultima . Some early microcomputer RPGs (such as Telengard (1982) or Sword of Fargoal ) were based on their mainframe counterparts, while others (such as Ultima or Wizardry , the most successful of the early CRPGs) were loose adaptations of D&D . They also include both first-person displays and overhead views, sometimes in the same game ( Akalabeth , for example, uses both perspectives). Most of
44121-549: The problems often cited against JRPGs also often apply to many WRPGs as well as games outside of the RPG genre. BioWare games have been criticized for "lack of innovation, repetitive structure and lack of real choice." WRPGs, such as Bethesda games, have also been criticized for lacking in "narrative strength" or "mechanical intricacy" due to the open-ended, sandbox structure of their games. Artificial intelligence (video games) In video games , artificial intelligence (AI)
44352-509: The rest of their comrades to) the player's flashlight. In addition, the AI is also capable of performing flanking maneuvers, using suppressing fire, throwing grenades to flush the player out of cover, and even playing dead. Most of these actions, in particular the flanking, is the result of emergent behavior. The survival horror series S.T.A.L.K.E.R. (2007–) confronts the player with man-made experiments, military soldiers, and mercenaries known as Stalkers. The various encountered enemies (if
44583-409: The right things to the right non-player characters will elicit useful information for the player, and may even result in other rewards such as items or experience, as well as opening up possible storyline branches. Multiplayer online role-playing games can offer an exception to this contrast by allowing human interaction among multiple players and in some cases enabling a player to perform the role of
44814-425: The ruling family. The technological marvels of airships and synthetic nethicite—a form of magicite that absorbs Mist—are thanks to Doctor Cid ( John Rafter Lee / Chikao Ōtsuka ), a prominent researcher from Archadia. The Resistance against Archadia includes Dalmascan knight Vossler ( Nolan North / Masaki Terasoma ), an ally of Basch; Marquis Halim Ondore IV ( Tom Kane / Akio Nojima ), the game's narrator and ruler of
45045-436: The same basic structure of setting off in various quests in order to accomplish goals. After the success of role-playing video games such as Ultima and Wizardry , which in turn served as the blueprint for Dragon Quest and Final Fantasy , the role-playing genre eventually diverged into two styles, Eastern role-playing games and Western role-playing games , due to cultural differences , though roughly mirroring
45276-492: The same style as those in manga and anime . The stylistic differences are often due to differing target audiences: Western RPGs are usually geared primarily towards teenage to adult males, whereas Japanese RPGs are usually intended for a much larger demographic, including female audiences , who, for example, accounted for nearly a third of Final Fantasy XIII 's playerbase. In 2015, IGN noted in an interview with Xenoblade Chronicles X 's development team that
45507-598: The same" and "too linear", to which he responded that "[f]or the most part, it's true" but noted there are also non-linear JRPGs such as the Romancing SaGa series. Such criticisms have produced responses such as ones by Japanese video game developers , Shinji Mikami and Yuji Horii , to the effect that JRPGs were never as popular in the West to begin with, and that Western reviewers are biased against turn-based systems. Jeff Fleming of Gamasutra also states that Japanese RPGs on home consoles are generally showing signs of staleness, but notes that handheld consoles such as
45738-429: The series, the player can also control the camera with the right analog stick, allowing for a 360° view of the surroundings. While in towns and cities, the player may only see from the perspective of Vaan, but any character may be controlled in the field. The world of Final Fantasy XII is rendered to scale relative to the characters in it; instead of a caricature of the character roaming around miniature terrain as seen in
45969-655: The skycity Bhujerba; Reddas ( Phil LaMarr / Takayuki Sugo ), a sky pirate based in the port at Balfonheim; and the Rozarrian Empire, of which Al-Cid Margrace (David Rasner/ Norio Wakamoto ) is a prince of the ruling family. The mythos of Final Fantasy XII revolves around a character known as Dynast-King Raithwall, a man who once united Ivalice to create the Galtean Alliance in ages past. In Dalmasca's capital city of Rabanastre, Princess Ashelia (Ashe) of Dalmasca and Prince Rasler of Nabradia have just wed, as
46200-578: The storyline, citing creative differences between the PlayOnline and Final Fantasy Tactics members of the development team. Final Fantasy XII was named best PlayStation 2 game and best RPG by numerous video game journals and websites, including GameSpot , GameSpy and IGN . Both Edge and Famitsu awarded it Game of the Year 2006. The Japan Game Awards 2006 honored Final Fantasy XII with their "Grand Award" and "Award for Excellence" and
46431-414: The system of earning gil, the currency of the Final Fantasy games; instead of gil, most enemies drop "loot" which can be sold at shops. This ties into a new battle mechanic which rewards the player with improved loot for slaying a particular type of enemy multiple times in a row. Selling different types of loot also unlocks a bazaar option in shops, which provides items at a lower cost, or items exclusive to
46662-420: The target. The priority determines which gambit to perform when multiple gambits are triggered. These heuristics guide the characters when acting autonomously, though player-directed commands are always given top priority. In Final Fantasy XII , a mysterious phenomenon known as "Mist" is the key energy which allows characters to cast summoning magic and perform "Quickenings". After defeating an Esper in combat,
46893-402: The team's previous game, as development progressed. Basch was the first character designed and the developers considered him the "hero" of the story at the time. Vaan and Penelo were added last and became the heroes in the final version of the plot. The developers were motivated by the commercial failure of Vagrant Story , which featured a "strong man in his prime" as the protagonist, and switched
47124-400: The team. Scenario writer Daisuke Watanabe in turn fleshed out Shoda's plot into a script. During the English localization process, Alexander O. Smith , who had previously worked on Vagrant Story and Final Fantasy X , acted as producer and translator. While still preserving the meaning behind the Japanese script, Smith made the decision to use different dialects of English to reproduce
47355-496: The term 'JRPG,' but if this game makes people rethink the meaning of this term, I'll be satisfied." The writer Jeremy Parish of 1UP.com states that " Xenoblade throws into high relief the sheer artificiality of the gaming community's obsession over the differences between" Western and Japanese RPGs, pointing out that it "does things that don't really fit into either genre. Gamers do love their boundaries and barriers and neat little rules, I know, but just because you cram something into
47586-503: The time, in addition to the influence of visual novel adventure games . As a result, Japanese console RPGs differentiated themselves with a stronger focus on scripted narratives and character drama, alongside streamlined gameplay. In recent years, these trends have in turn been adopted by WRPGs, which have begun moving more towards tightly structured narratives, in addition to moving away from "numbers and rules" in favor of streamlined combat systems similar to action games. In addition,
47817-583: The traditional role-playing " offered by Japanese console RPGs, which instead emphasized character interactions. In response, North American computer RPGs began making a comeback towards the end of the 1990s with interactive choice-filled adventures. Several writers have criticized JRPGs as not being "true" RPGs, for heavy usage of scripted cutscenes and dialogue, and a frequent lack of branching outcomes. Japanese RPGs are also sometimes criticized for having relatively simple battle systems in which players are able to win by repetitively mashing buttons. As
48048-513: The typical Western-style RPGs of the time. Due to the cultural differences between Western and Japanese variations of role-playing games, both have often been compared and critiqued by those within the video games industry and press. In the late 1980s, when traditional American computer RPGs such as Ultima and Defender of the Crown were ported to consoles, they received mixed reviews from console gamers, as they were "not perceived, by many of
48279-505: The tyranny of the Archadian Empire. Final Fantasy XII was both a critical and commercial success, earning several Game of the Year awards and selling over six million copies on the PlayStation 2 by November 2009. In 2007, a sequel titled Final Fantasy XII: Revenant Wings was released for the Nintendo DS and, in that same year, an expanded version of Final Fantasy XII , titled Final Fantasy XII International Zodiac Job System ,
48510-448: The underlying game mechanics (e.g. "rules-based" or "system-based" ); whereas JRPGs tend to feature brighter, anime -like or chibi graphics, younger characters, turn-based or faster-paced action gameplay, and a greater focus on tightly-orchestrated, linear storylines with intricate plots (e.g. "action-based" or "story-based" ). Further, WRPGs are more likely to allow players to create and customize characters from scratch, and since
48741-409: The upper part comprises Magick, Technick, Accessory, and Augment ( stat increases and other permanent buffs ) licenses, and the bottom part comprises mostly Weapon and Armor licenses. To use a Magick, Technick , or piece of equipment, the character must obtain its corresponding license by spending the required amount of LP (License Points). LP are earned in battle along with the experience points. Like
48972-399: The user, such as data mining and procedural-content generation . One of the most infamous examples of this NPC technology and gradual difficulty levels can be found in the game Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!! (1987). In general, game AI does not, as might be thought and sometimes is depicted to be the case, mean a realization of an artificial person corresponding to an NPC in the manner of
49203-455: The way of other units. Rather than improve the Game AI to properly solve a difficult problem in the virtual environment, it is often more cost-effective to just modify the scenario to be more tractable. If pathfinding gets bogged down over a specific obstacle, a developer may just end up moving or deleting the obstacle. In Half-Life (1998), the pathfinding algorithm sometimes failed to find
49434-462: The world to add a sense of realism to the game. Additionally, their role as quest-givers or merchants makes them integral to the gameplay loop, giving players access to resources, missions, or services that enable further progression. Additionally, NPCs can be designed to serve functional roles in games, such as a merchant or to provide a service to the player. These characters are central to facilitating game mechanics by acting as intermediaries between
49665-476: Was a fan of the series, it was not necessarily an influence to the game's designs. It has also been noted that the similarities originate from The Hidden Fortress , the 1958 Akira Kurosawa film that inspired Star Wars . The developers initially planned to return to the "big-headed" character designs of previous Final Fantasy games, but settled on similar proportions as characters in Vagrant Story ,
49896-446: Was a theme that was common in most console RPGs at the time but absent from most computer RPGs. During the 1990s, console RPGs had become increasingly dominant, exerting a greater influence on computer RPGs than the other way around. Console RPGs had eclipsed computer RPGs for some time, though computer RPGs began making a comeback towards the end of the decade with interactive choice-filled adventures. The next major revolution came in
50127-451: Was another early action RPG for the NES, released as a side-story to the computer action RPG Dragon Slayer II: Xanadu . Square 's Final Fantasy for the NES introduced side-view battles, with the player characters on the right and the enemies on the left, which soon became the norm for numerous console RPGs. In 1988, Dragon Warrior III introduced a character progression system allowing
50358-645: Was asked to show Square Enix three photos of his or her costume for a chance to win a trip to New York and participate in the Final Fantasy XII Gamer's Day event. Final Fantasy XII once held the Guinness World Record for longest development period in a video game production, with a total of five years, spanning from 2001 until its release in 2006. At a Final Fantasy XII "postmortem" at MIT in March 2009, Hiroshi Minagawa mentioned that several years of production were devoted to
50589-506: Was during the golden age of video arcade games that the idea of AI opponents was largely popularized, due to the success of Space Invaders (1978), which sported an increasing difficulty level, distinct movement patterns, and in-game events dependent on hash functions based on the player's input. Galaxian (1979) added more complex and varied enemy movements, including maneuvers by individual enemies who break out of formation. Pac-Man (1980) introduced AI patterns to maze games , with
50820-408: Was largely developed by Virtuos , who previously developed Final Fantasy X/X-2 HD Remaster for Square Enix. A version for Windows was released via Steam on February 1, 2018. The port included support for higher display resolutions and 60 frames-per-second rendering, options to switch between three different versions of the soundtrack, and immediate access to the post-game modes. Versions for
51051-634: Was limited to a fixed set of responses. It is said that NLP has improved the fluidity of NPC conversations, allowing them to respond more contextually to player inputs. This development has increased the depth and immersion of player-NPC interactions, as players can now engage in more complex dialogues that affect the storyline and gameplay outcomes. Additionally, deep learning models have allowed NPCs to become more capable of predicting players behaviors. Deep learning allows NPCs to process large amounts of data and adapt to player strategies, making interactions with them less predictable and more varied. This creates
51282-476: Was present since the beginning of development. This desire fueled the development of the Active Dimension Battle system so players could seamlessly move from battle to exploration. The gambit system was conceived early on as a way to facilitate this change. Battle system designer Hiroshi Tomomatsu said that it gradually moved away from a complex and rigid formula to the more flexible form seen in
51513-502: Was released in 2005 and used interactive multiple way dialogs and AI as the main aspect of game. Games have provided an environment for developing artificial intelligence with potential applications beyond gameplay. Examples include Watson , a Jeopardy! -playing computer; and the RoboCup tournament, where robots are trained to compete in soccer. Many experts complain that the "AI" in the term game AI overstates its worth, as game AI
51744-414: Was released in Japan on August 10, 2007. It includes twelve license boards (instead of the original game's one), each corresponding to a different Zodiac sign and job . The player can control guest characters and summons, and hold L1 to double the game's running speed. There is also a " New Game+ " option, a "New Game- (minus)" option (in which characters do not gain experience), and a "Trial Mode" in which
51975-728: Was released on the PlayStation 2 exclusively in Japan. A high-definition remaster of the International Zodiac Job System version, The Zodiac Age , was released worldwide for the PlayStation 4 in July 2017, for Windows in February 2018, and for the Nintendo Switch and Xbox One in April 2019. Throughout the game, the player directly controls the on-screen character from a third-person perspective to interact with people, objects, and enemies. Unlike previous games in
52206-531: Was released two months later in Japan on May 31. It consists of 4 CDs with 100 tracks, and includes promotional tracks not in the final version of the game. The CD single for "Kiss Me Good-Bye" was released on the March 15, 2006. A limited edition was also released, featuring a DVD containing the music video for "Kiss Me Good-Bye". Tofu Records has released an abridged version of the original soundtrack, which contains 31 songs, including "Kiss Me Good-Bye". On March 16, 2006, Sony Computer Entertainment Japan released
52437-432: Was sparked by the choice of color used by both artists, which was based on maintaining consistent color between the characters and the environments. Non-human characters and races play a prominent role in the game, which was influenced by an interest in history among the developers. Miwa Shoda wrote a storyline for the game premised on the basis of the cutscenes and world setting that had already been finished when she joined
52668-622: Was the first popular application of machine learning in an interactive simulation. Neural networks are used by the creatures to learn what to do. The game is regarded as a breakthrough in artificial life research, which aims to model the behavior of creatures interacting with their environment. In the 2001 first-person shooter Halo: Combat Evolved the player assumes the role of the Master Chief, battling various aliens on foot or in vehicles. Enemies use cover very wisely, and employ suppressing fire and grenades. The squad situation affects
52899-541: Was the first such attempt to recreate a role-playing game for a console, and requires several simplifications to fit within the more limited memory and capabilities of the Famicom compared to computers; players in Dragon Quest controlled only a single character, the amount of control over this character limited due to the simplicity of the Famicom controller, and a less-realistic art style was chosen to better visualize
53130-407: Was the fourth best-selling PlayStation 2 game of 2006 worldwide. As of March 2007, the game had shipped over 5.2 million copies worldwide. By November 2009, over 6 million copies of the game were sold worldwide on PlayStation 2. As of October 2017, the PlayStation 4 remaster shipped over one million copies worldwide. An expanded version of the game, Final Fantasy XII International Zodiac Job System ,
53361-402: Was the sixth game to receive a perfect score from the Japanese gaming magazine Famitsu . It is also the second Yasumi Matsuno game to garner a perfect score, the first being Vagrant Story . The game was praised for its graphics, scenarios, game system, and the freshness it brought to the Final Fantasy series. It was praised for its seamless transitions between full motion video segments and
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