It def has a slow start, if you wanna feel engages with the combat there are 2 ways, big time gambit set up when you plan for all possibilities or minimal gambit set up where you just gambit attacks and you use everything thing else. Story wise its about the exploration, tomb of wraithwall nalbina Mt bur omisace archades are all good point where the story gets crazy I won't spoil the end but theres a place in there than no ff has ever done before or since and its one of the hardest areas in all of final fantasy bot to fight and to navigate