8-25-2009		12-18-2008
	9-4-2009		9-4-2009

An endless battle between Cosmos and Chaos...the entire realm torn asunder from the war raging on.
Cosmos and her warriors of Light are searching in vain for a means to end the confilt, and stop Cosmos and his dark allies. When it is heard of a rift bringing about the horrid manequins, they set off to try and close it, and find their crystals. Will the Warriors be able to turn the tide of war? What awaits them on their journey? Together they must find a way to bring the balance of good and evil back.
A new journey has begun...

Final Fantasy games on the PSP no longer get points for being good. Now the bar's so high, gorgeous graphics are something that come with the game. Dissidia is not suffering in this department either. It has twice the content and grandure of the original. Though there is more thought of this being an expansion of Dissidia, rather than a true sequal/prequal.
Ok, I think I will get the bad thing out first...the story. This is, by far, the weakest part of the game. Sadly it is as badly written as it is executed. Prior to the events of Dissidia, Lightning and co. are trapped in the battle between Cosmos and Chaos. They are trying to end the conflict and back to their own worlds. Throughout cut-scenes a-plenty and horrble monologue after another, the story never really goes anywhere. Before too very long, you are finding yourself wanting to skip through it altogether.
And thus the story was about the only problem with the game. Now lets get to the good.
The average Final Fantasy fan might only care about additions like Lightning, Tifa Lockhart, and Aerith. There are plenty of new this and that to make them satisfied. The hardcore FF fans are going to get a whole lot more. Lesser known characters like Kain Highwind, and Laguna Loire make the character roster. The total of new and old characters rounds to about 30 characters. This also includes fighters that are "assist" types. Any fan of the series now has a favorite in 012. And even the voces for the characters are pretty close to good.
Instead of just moving from battle grid to battle grid like the original, you'll actually travel across a map as you move from one point to another. That being said, there is no random encounter. Similar to XII, you'll be able to see enemies coming, as well as search corners of the map for treasure.
Additionally the score of the game is great as well. The background soundtrack has remixes some of the franchise's best tunes represented throughout the journey. It is good enough to remind you of the great titles the characters and score are from, and make you want to go replay them.
A major change here is party battles. In this you lead a team into a tournament-style series of fights, either actively swapping fighters or sticking with each character until they eventually get KO'ed or victory is gained. The fighting engine looks just as polished as the last Dissidia did, and the new characters breathe some life into the combat. Zidane still flies around the expansive battlefields , while Yuna can gain assistance from her Aeon summons. Lightning, pretty well-balanced, has her trademark skills that let her alternate between long-range slashing attacks and area spells. Whoever you choose, there's something for everyone to enjoy in battle. That being said, the computer AI can anticipate your moves with a regularity that is almost unfair.
For Dissidia veterans, the small changes that have been added to the combat are nonetheless impressive, and there's not a great deal to relearn. Dealing damage is still done by removing the Bravery Points and then taking the enemies HP. Assist attacks give you another way to corner your opponent for the kill, or keep a distance if you are hurting. EX-Mode attacks are actually harder to to accomplish this time around as well. But if you keep working at it, you eventually gain high-leveled fighters with incredibly different skill sets. Battles can either end in seconds or take five minutes, and that is enough to keep people in suspense.
Dissidia 012: is a fantastic, never-ending great fighter game, as well s a welcome title to the franchise. Certainly there is something for everyone in this title, and despite the absolutely horrid storyline and some shady camera movement, this title is another amazing game for Square-Enix. Get it, and have a great time fighting your favorite characters from the series.