Does anyone else feel like the Pandaemonium story was rushed in Abyssos?

(6.2 spoilers, duh)

Back in Asphodelos, we were given a slower but steadier storyline that set up things but didn't try to get too far ahead of itself. The Abyssos storyline on the other hand, seems to me like it took the Pandaemonium story and rushed it to a conclusion. Yes, I know that the story isn't actually done yet, but it feels like we have accomplished everything that we set out to do, and that the third tier is just going to be figuring out why Pandaemonium is in the aetherial sea)

Asphodelos gave us one area of Pandemonium to explore and took the time to set up things and characters properly. Erichinthos, Themis, and even Hesperos all felt like actual characters in the Asphodelos storyline. Meanwhile, while Abyssos did reintroduce Lahabrea and his other half well enough, it feels like every other new character wasn't really given the proper time they needed. Hegemone literally is just not a character, Agdistis could be any other random NPC and it would change nothing about her, and Athena has the motivation of 'because I wanted to'. While in Athena's case, it is very possible that they reveal her motivation in the third act, I doubt the other two will be receiving that treatment, especially seeing that Agdistis is now dead. Does every character need to have their own cutscene explaining their deepest darkest motivations? No, but at least Hesperos was given the time to have a basic character set up.

But let's say that there was proper character development. The story and raids themselves are still rushed. Asphodelos had four entire raids take place in it, while Abyssos has share its screentime with Tartaros. Asphodelos built up to Hesperos, with said keyward being a major threat we needed to defeat. In Abyssos, we defeat not one, but TWO keywards consecutively, and neither are the last boss or treated as a big threat to be built up to, they just get introduced as the next thing to kill, which we proceed to just do.

I do like the gameplay aspect of each raid, (personally my favorite is P6, which ironically I believe has the worst story in Abyssos behind it) but after going through Asphodelos, I just don't think this part of the raid series should have been this early on. Abyssos itself seems more like an act 3 finale than the middle chapter which is what it should have been. I don't have major issues with the direction the story went, but I think that if the Abyssos story was split up between Abyssos and a third raid tier, (Tartaros) the story would have the time to set up the things it wanted to.

They only ever want to throw curveballs, so they had to wrap up Eric and Lahabread's story so we can be extra surprised next time.

To me it didnt feel rushed but it did feel disjointed from the actual gameplay we get. Like they created a storyline and then went "oh right we forgot to actually add the raid fights so uh.... heres a couple of assistants" before you get to the one that matters.

Obviously Spoiler as well

No, I think it was planned.

Pandemonium, in FF 2, is a location tied to the afterlife. I was actually surprised it took place in Elpis and not the Aetherial Sea. (It's also a location in IX but the themes are completely different)
It was actually a pleasant surprise to see that twist. The story in Elpis was done but not the story of Pandaemonium as a whole.

Let's imagine it was rush, what do you think there would be between? Additionnal Pandaemonium experiments?
Wouldn't it be also lame to just see the big bad and to actually fight it 8 months later? Or perhaps still don't show the big bag and keep it for the last tier?
Eden did so the same way, all elements were rebalanced after E8. There was no twist but a simple "let's wait&see how this goes".

Since it's raiding content, the story is difficult to implement and it has limitations. If I'm not mistaken, Omega had a solo duty but that's as far as they went.

And that twist could lead us to very interesting content.
Maybe justice for Nabriales and Igheyorm?

I just felt the last boss was a bit...random...no pun intended. Really didn't felt epic at all, not even a bit. P4 was way way better, especially the bgm. Like really why an anamnesis anyder remix? I don't get it, it just felt anticlimactic that way.

Proto carbuncle was the true gem tho...again no pun intended!

The story itself is a bit too much family drama for my taste, feels a bit like a badly written and action heavy sitcom with way too much exposition right and left from random characters who die in the next second anyways.

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Originally Posted by Fawkes

They only ever want to throw curveballs, so they had to wrap up Eric and Lahabread's story so we can be extra surprised next time.

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You mean how Lahabread's wife will be the big bad in P12, and inhabiting a crystal similar to his other half?

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Originally Posted by Avatre

You mean how Lahabread's wife will be the big bad in P12, and inhabiting a crystal similar to his other half?

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Don't forget father and son overcoming their weakness together. The son probably dying and Lahabread getting mad and turning into what we know and love, the crazy ascian scientist who gets murdered by a pope with a big eye sword. After he did the merge souls thing that is just to really point out that he used that knowledge in the crystal in the end anyways.

Since there can't be any other outcome than setting Lahabread up for becoming what he is meant to be in our future the plot can't really develop into unforeseen ways. Or maybe Hermes is just throwing Kairos down into pandemonium and we all get amnesia and everything will have no meaning anyways.

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Originally Posted by Ranaku

Don't forget father and son overcoming their weakness together. The son probably dying and Lahabread getting mad and turning into what we know and love, the crazy ascian scientist who gets murdered by a pope with a big eye sword. After he did the merge souls thing that is just to really point out that he used that knowledge in the crystal in the end anyways.

Since there can't be any other outcome than setting Lahabread up for becoming what he is meant to be in our future the plot can't really develop into unforeseen ways. Or maybe Hermes is just throwing Kairos down into pandemonium and we all get amnesia and everything will have no meaning anyways.

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I think the biggest curveball they could possibly throw at us is that Lahabread doesn't have anything from P9-12 actually affect him in any way, and that his wife is actually part of him. The half he removed was him trying to separate their souls and keep her alive...even that is easily foreseen as a possibility.

Probably they went with amamnesis anyder remix because nothing else would really fit fighting the whole lahabrea clone type thing ( not really sure what would be appropriate description for abyssos final boss)

I can see why people see it as rushed, I was surprised by how much actually happened between those four fights, but I do not personally think it was rushed. I thought the character stuff was very well-done and interesting. I preferred it overall then Asphodelos. It will be interesting when we can look back after the Raid Story and see the whole story. That would be the best time to judge how each part went. I still think there is a lot to learn about Athena, though I agree I doubt we will see the Keywards. It could end up that this was perhaps too big a story to tell using the format, but so far I am enjoying it.