The player is able to see every normal enemy on the field when walking around, including inside the dungeons as well. Whenever you run into an enemy (or one runs into you), a battle will start. At first, only Oliver and his companions will be on the battle map.
At the start of the battle, you will decide on which Familiar to summon into battle. You have a choice of three you can set before battles. The battles themselves are a mix between turn-based and action-based. You can control whoever you want in battle, by holding L1 and selecting the character/Familiar you want to control.
You will be able to control that one character/Familiar until you choose an attack. When that attack is in progress, you will see a little clock in the lower left part of the screen. You will not be in direct control of that character until the attack is finished or cancelled, which can be done at any time during the attack. Defending also follows these same rules.
