Battle system I'd say is the best part of the game hands down. Square finally found that perfect balance in between the systems of X and XII I feel, and hopefully it is something they build upon in the future.

Not a big fan of the level system, to me it's like a lame version of the sphere grid from X.

Story isn't bad, as people have said, it is presented in such a linear fashion, it is hard to get any scope or magnitude of it. The game almost feels like a race to the finish line down a straight line.

For me the characters are depressingly average when it comes to Final Fantasy's. I think they have more identity than XII's characters, but still pale compared to that VII-X group.

And yeah the linear story/nature of the game I think is kind of a buzz kill. Kinda causes you to zip through an area, and you never really get to go back to explore what could be a really cool world. There is one open area in the game, but it comes pretty late, and is filled with side quests analogous to XII's hunts.