Ah, but the PS2 era games are my very favorites. So I think we may have different ideas about what makes a complex and interesting storyline. That's not to say that I won't fall in love with FF13's story when it all comes together, of course -- I am reserving final judgement until it's done. And I won't try to claim that other games haven't also telegraphed their secrets with bullhorns. ;)

So far, I think I agree with you about the ensemble working really well as a group, although I don't have them all together yet. I'm looking forward to that for many reasons.

Are you one of those gamers who prefers free development?

I didn't think I cared until I played FF12. The flexibility of that system blew me away. You mean I'm not forced to have one (female) white mage, one (male) tank, one black mage, one thief, etc.? I can mix and match and give everyone basic cure and elemental magic? I really loved that aspect of it, especially on my second play-through when I payed more attention to how I was developing the characters. That said, I don't mind deterministic development, but I wish I could have some better idea of what was coming next. I would like the Crysterium much better if I could get a big-picture overview of the whole thing.

I also really enjoyed Chapter 7; it's probably my favorite part so far.