The world of Ivalice was first featured in Final Fantasy Tactics, which was released in Japan 1997. It is a tactical roleplaying game where you have to plan where in the area to move and what job class to use for each character, which makes it pretty different from the recent Final Fantasy games.
This year Square Enix has decided to release a reworked version of the game on the Playstation Portable. It is part of the Ivalice Alliance campaign, a series of new games set in the world of Ivalice, and will feature Balthier as a new playable character!

The Tactics story is a serious and complicated one. It revolves around the Lion War, started when the late King Omdoria leaves Ivalice without a clear heir to the throne. Naturally, rivalry rises between two royale parts and so the battle for the title of King begins, splitting Ivalice in two.
In the beginning a scholar of acient Ivalice history, Alazlam, tells us that a boy named Ramza Beoulve, member of a noble family of Knights, was stamped as a heretic by the church but that he in reality was the true hero of the Lion War. After the prologue we are sent into the past to try and unviel what truly happened during the War through the eyes of Ramza.

Not much is yet known about what part Balthier will play but it is has been said that he will have an important role. It's also early to say whether this role will be part of the main storyline or perhaps an optional sidequest.
The official website states that Balthier is "another heretic" searching for the Treasure of Glabados, which he is supposedly also after in Revenant Wings.
Balthier will be the second gun-wielding character. The first one being Mustadio Bunanza.

Balthier gets a Tactics makeover, being stripped of a nose and his smug little smile in the corner of his mouth in the process. The latter for me is a little minus even though I really like Akihiko Yoshida's drawingstyle for FF Tactics.
The vest is also left at home and he sports a new shirt, unbuttoned at the colour revealing the neck and a necklace with a red stone.
The detailed patterns on the pants have been reworked and he has whole shoes, instead of slippers. The crossed belts and bags hanging at his sides are now white. Yoshida put a couple of black glows on him, too.
Overall it has most elements of the FFXII look. The Altair is still Balthier's default gun.