Unlike some DS titles, Final Fantasy Tactics A2 provides controls that incorporate the stylus but doesn't force you to use them. Classic d-pad controls are still available to those who prefer them and offer a bit more accuracy as the squares on the grid map are quite small and difficult to hit with the stylus.
The dual screens of the DS are put to very good use and help to clean up the interface a little from previous iterations of the series. You no longer have to enter a menu to see what laws govern the current battle or what the victory condition is, because all of this information (in addition to the initiative order of participating characters) is helpfully displayed on the top screen. As such, the lower screen is free to provide an uncluttered view of the action, a distinct benefit considering the graphically improved spell effects. (The Doom spell, for example, causes grim reapers to circle their target ominously before harvesting their soul.)
Long Arm of the Law
As opposed to the rigid law structure of the original Tactics Advance, A2 seems much more lenient. A judge still presides over each battle and ensures that the laws governing that battle are observed and obeyed, but characters that break a law are no longer whisked off the battlefield for a minor infraction. Instead, A2 gives you special privileges (earned by beating Clan Trials, special battles that grant your band unique rewards and titles) which it can take away if you break a law. (You can also lose the ability to revive felled friends.) In addition, once you break a law, the judge leaves the battlefield which means that you can't break the same law over and over again in an individual fight.
Characters who break a law don't suffer any specific punishment, unlike in Tactics Advance, which would require a trip to jail that would remove your character from your roster for awhile. If you manage to abide the law throughout an engagement with enemies, you are rewarded with a few extra monster bits, items or weapons (and in some very lucky circumstances, all three).
Although improved, however, there's still the possibility to inadvertently break a law through no fault of your own, which is annoying. Some laws simply don't make any sense as they aren't things that fall within your direct control, like "No Stealing," which requires that you not allow enemies to steal money from you... really, if you could stop them, why wouldn't you?
Graph Paper of Glory
The production values in Final Fantasy Tactics A2 are top-notch and Square Enix has really punched up the graphics and sound. Many spells and summons are glitzy affairs, particularly the spells of the Illusionist Job, which affect every enemy on the screen. While the soundtrack is made up of mostly remixed tunes from the first FFTA, they have undergone significant improvement in their clarity as well as the number of instruments used to create them.
As it relates to its predecessors, A2 is essentially more of the stuff we loved from the last game with a bit of the bothersome stuff neatly excised. It's not a perfect game by any means, but that shouldn't make it any less welcome in your DS.
