Now,I'm a huge fan of the Final Fantasy games,but Final Fantasy XII has a mixed bag of reactions,most people say this game is terrible and is the worst game in Final Fantasy history (those people probably never played Final Fantasy Mystic Quest).but I honestly think FFXII is under rated to some degree.
The story is about Vaan,who dreams of being a airship pilot,the story is more detailed then that,but in all honesty,I couldn't tell you without pointing out how flawed the story is,the story is boring and I honestly didn't care about it's characters (with a few exceptions).
The games has a lovely atmosphere,it's like the love child of Stars Wars and Aladdin,and unlike FFX,the graphics still look good by today's standard (to some degree).the gameplay is also good as it has a real time battle system instead of the usual turn based style we expect from Final Fantasy,but it does it well.
in conclusion,the story is boring and very flawed in both main plot and main characters (though Balthier was pretty cool) but the creepy sci fi/disney hybrid atmosphere and unique real time gameplay make up for it.
I say give it a try at least,if you don't like it,then that's problem...I mean opinion...
(I personally prefer the older games like 7,8,6,9,the all stars of Final Fantasy)