[Fimbulvetr]

It doesn't have to be a FPS-type protagonist bordering on parody (e.g. Marcus Fenix), but the main character should be strong and brave. I would wager that the majority of people who grew up playing Final Fantasy games during the SNES/PS1 eras are now well into their 20s and 30s. They don't want to play as an effeminate teenager. A character like Basch would have been great as the main character of XII. Most of the points are just individual aspects of what made Final Fantasy great. The main point is that Square-Enix is out of touch and the series is on the decline.

I assume by effeminate you are talking about physical features? In which case, how are that and being "strong and brave" mutually exclusive?

[Perfo]

It doesn't have to be a FPS-type protagonist bordering on parody (e.g. Marcus Fenix), but the main character should be strong and brave.

Doesn't Noel qualify as one?

Anyway I don't have any problems with the stories or characters of Final Fantasy, at least they give me something rather unique compared to all the rest of products published in the west. Not better, but at least different. I don't need clones of Bioware or Bethesda's games sincerely.

[teh_pwn]

They make games infrequently and seem to target the 12-18 year old demographic. That and they've lost their best talent, so good luck with that. Maybe they'll do something different than teen angst punk anime.

[luca1980]

The long wait between ff10 and ff12 killed part of the offline fanbase. I knew people which played all squaresoft gems that after a while in he wait started to shift their interest on other games and after skipping one or two ff they lose track of the franchise.
Plus their target demographics is more distinct and clear than before.

[encephalon]

I've never really seen the FF mains as effeminate. Kuja, yes.