FFXII - LLDLBEBS - The Experimental Challenge - INTRO

Channel:

MoogleBoss

Subscribers:

6,670

Published on January 14, 2008 8:57:23 PM ● Video Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BvhKNE437go

Game:

Final Fantasy XII (2006)

Duration: 2:34

5,068 views

2

An experimental challenge's intro calls for experimental editing! I recently started working on my videos in Sony Vegas 8.0 and, while making the challenge's intro, toyed around with various effects and ideas. The first 8 seconds were complicated as hell to produce, and I had a good laugh at the absurd result.

What is LLDLBEBS? The abbreviation stands for 'Low Level Divided License Board Extreme Battle Settings'(to be elaborated below). This challenge is my experiment and an attempt to capture the most exciting experience of playing Final Fantasy XII.

Having played some challenges and observed others, I tried to think critically what makes a challenge 'fun' and think of a 'perfect' game of some manner. Unlike the commonly used 'perfect game' that forces the player to get multiple copies of every weapon, often as early as possible, the one I came up with signified enjoyment of an intense gaming experience and nothing else.

Before coming up with the rules, I had spent some time thinking of pros and cons of most well-known challenges so that the experiment would share as many pros as possible and learn from what makes the other challenges simple, tedious and so on. In short:

Low Level Game (LLG)
+ the difficulty of the challenge allows the player to choose the degree to which he prepares for specific bosses and hunts. e.g. you can chain Dustia with Penelo Mk I and have a collection of Heavy Lances and Kotetsu before going to the Palace or you can rush with 10 Potions in your pocket to fight Firemane.
- the challenge, with the exception of its very beginning and the optional 'super' bosses, is just easy. The damage a low level party deals with Fomalhauts more often than not surpasses the damage most people do with whatever they're equipped with in their first playthrough.

No License Board (NLB)
+ With your equipment becoming literally ancient by around midgame, you are forced to seek means of attacking and defending alternative to the ones accessible in a normal game.
- Preparation is the key to get through the challenge and you often spend way too much time completing repetitive tasks than actually playing the game. In addition, you are too greatly reliant on guests' (especially Reddas') strength due to the lack of your own.

Solo No Revives
+ With only one life to worry about, you have to be more careful than you are in a normal game.
- On the other hand, making sure one character survives is more convenient than having to keep an eye on numerous people at once. Moreover, no matter how hard you try not to overprepare, you will still gain 4 times more experience, levelling up far more quickly, and will have exceedingly overpowered equipment.

Dual Character Half License Board (DCHLB)
+ Two characters, each unable to face bosses on his/her own, co-operate together, complementing each other's strength to form unique strategies.

In the end, I came up with a challenge restricted by the following rules:

LL -- Low Level.

The party's levels should remain as 1, 2, 2, 3, 3, 3 -- the lowest possible.

DLB -- Divided License Board.

You divide the license board unto six parts: weapons, armour, magicks, technicks, augments and accessories. You then choose three characters, not necessarily from a practical point of view, and assign two license board parts to each (example in the video). Once all three chosen characters are permanent party members, no other characters, guests included, may participate in battles.

GUNS ARE BANNED.

EBS -- Extreme Battle Settings.

You play the battles in active mode, at the fastest battle speed and with gambits turned off.

These rules apply to bosses and hunts only and do not apply to anything else. That way, things that should be fun will be fun and non-combat processes won't suffer and become tedious or frustrating.

The video contains a sample of what the fighting is like in the challenge. The EBS rule makes battles extremely fast-paced and action-packed, and controlling three characters' actions at once is extremely hard. Fortunately, Ghis only hits Ashe and is not a big trouble.


Will the experiment turn out to be the "perfect" challenge everyone's been striving for, or will it be a grand failure? We'll just play and see.

Other Statistics