Squaresoft - 2002

The first FF on the PS2 may also be the best of the whole series. Don't worry, FFVIII -- I still love you more, but I have to give credit where it's due, and, as a total game, X takes the cake. Gone are the deformed little muppet characters of IX, with their paper-thin emotions and ultra-weak combat abilities. We've reclaimed all that was great about VIII without the stupidity of the magic-junction system or the enemies that level along with you. True, it continues the trend begun in FFVII of increasingly linear game progression, but what it lacks in side-quest quantity it more than makes up in quality. More on that later.

The basic breakdown is this: You're Tidus, a champion Blitzball player from a city in the present. Something catastrophic happens and you're flung back in time, to a place where, apparently, your father was flung sometime after you last saw him (years earlier in your life). Anyway, you meet some folks who're going to help you (and by "folks", I mean real, live human beings - and one Ronzo - because the graphics are THAT #*$&*@ good) or who you're going to help. You're recruited for the local blitzball team by Wakka, who comes from a clearly Polynesian background. He is one of the guardians of Yuna, a sweet young summoner who always wears a bikini under her sacred robes. I'm pretty sure she's the reason you're going along with this whole "let's play Blitzball in the damned Stone Age" idea. She is also protected by Kimahri, a Ronzo (read: big, blue, lion-humanoid) and Lulu, who is my #1 pick for Sexiest Video Game Vixen of All Time. And yes, she actually beats the whole cast of DOA2, by virtue of her skirt alone (which is made from about a hundred interwoven black belts), to say nothing of her other assets. Later, you meet the nymphette-ish Rikku, and, of course, Auron, the classic samurai persona who traveled with you through time (and your father) to this era. Together, you will all attempt to stop the catastrophe, a behemoth called Sin, that destroyed your future and is destroying this past.

Ok, why did I even try to explain an FF plot, you may be asking (I know I am). I'm just making the point that this FF title actually has one (a real one, I mean, unlike some... *cough, cough* IX *cough*...). While I wasn't as wrapped up in the characters here as VIII, it was close. The difference is that, though this game sacrificed a lot of the development of its main characters, it spent that time making the other characters much more engaging and lifelike.

Also, as the game itself advertises, the whole character-building system has been redone. You no longer have character "levels". Instead, you get a "sphere grid" (which the game advertisers horribly overuse; hence, I will not refer to it as such even once more). Basically, this is a map of your stats AND special abilities, with paths to improved stats (like, you get to a "Strength +4" spot) or techniques (like, you get to a "Quick Hit" spot). Enemies give you a certain amount of experience, and every thousand EXP translates into a single move forward, or four moves backtracking to places on that map you've already been. To keep the game fair for the monsters, you have to find certain items to unlock the routes to some of your better abilities and higher stat boosts, and these items only become available at appropriate points in the game progression. It's involved, but easy to understand once you've actually seen it, and it makes the game just as fun for more advanced players as for novices. Overall, I give it a thumbs-up.

Summons have been redone also. Your one summoner, Yuna, may call about eight or nine special beasts to help out in the battle. These creatures actually have stats of their own (basically Yuna's times 10, plus whatever amount you have added from their special, summon-stat-boosting items), which is important because they completely take the place of your party while they're summoned. It's like FFVIII, except they don't only stay summoned as long as it takes to do their one attack. Instead, they have a choice of attack, defend, a special move, or limit break attack, and they can stay in the fight until it ends, they run out of HP, or you recall them. In the new FF tradition, the full summons animations are exchanged for shorter ones after the first time they are used, though for what reason I cannot tell, since the length of time it takes to summon continues to outweigh the usefulness of having this more powerful character replace your whole party at any time throughout the whole game. To their credit, however, the summons are finally very distinct from one another, with some of the rare ones (Yojimbo, Anima, and especially the Magus Sisters) are so original, awesome, and hilarious, respectively, that you may actually enjoy doing them every so often.

Finally, the side-quests. While I favor massive amounts of diverse side adventures in RPG's, FFX took a rather different approach. It took two complete games in their own right, and made them side-quests. Monster capturing is, of course, POKEMON. You run around the world with special capture weapons, getting a collection, basically, of ten of every enemy in FFX. Since some are very rare, you have to hang out in specific places and really try your patience, but the rewards are the ability to have a readily available source of enemies that supply you with all the special items you'll need to customize your weapons and armor (oh, I forgot to mention that earlier) and the chance to fight the real bosses of the game. Seriously, if you spend any time trying to get your best weapons, customizing your characters, or improving your stats, you'll be wasting your efforts unless you do the monster capturing, because only the unique monsters you get as a result are worthy of your hard-won combat prowess. The actual game bosses are a joke.

The other side-quest is, naturally, that "blitzball" thing I mentioned. This is an underwater rugby/basketball/soccer game, complete with a roster of sixty players and free agents who, by the end of the game, are all available to be made part of your team. You, Tidus, are the blitzball GOD, by the way. Just a note for the uninitiated: don't leave the first ship on which you travel until you have SUCCESSFULLY gotten your "Jecht Shot" ability. You'll know what I mean when you find yourself kicking the ball at a sail for some strange reason. This is the second-most powerful skill in all blitzball, and you only get this one chance to acquire it. Thought you should know. Some people don't get it, don't like it, whatever. I think I may actually have enjoyed it as much, or, at times, more than the whole game. I would love to explain it all to you, but seriously, there's too much. The amount of information I could impart would be better as an FAQ. Hey, have we ever done an FAQ on this site? Anyway, the point is there's a good chance you'll find blitzball the best FF side-quest ever. On to the Q&A.

What I liked: Gorgeous graphics, universal abilities, cool summons, customizable EVERYTHING, actually worthwhile hard-to-acquire weapons and abilities, available but optional challenges, ability to SURPASS 9,999 damage and 9,999 HP, engrossing and comprehensible story, excellent ending, BLITZBAAAAALLLLLLL!!!!!

What I disliked: call me a snob, but I thought the english voice acting took a lot away from some characters, particularly Seymour and Yuna (Waka, on the other hand, was hilarious); also, jumping away from lightning probably sucked (but I couldn't tell because my perception of horribly repetitive and painful activities is skewed after JUMP ROPE IN FFIX

What to expect: a brand new, all different FF, with a linear story and two very healthy sidequests

What not to expect: a cool-as-hell hero, a plotline that changes according to your decision, any actual "Role-playing"

What sets it apart: the "Sphere Grid" is a real innovation in the world of RPG's, in addition to providing the only real freedom of choice anywhere in this game

Ratings On:

Controls: 8 - I know, my rule was to give all RPG's a 10, since controls are never an issue, but that was before I experienced Suikoden III and the miracle of one-handed, ambidextrous control, which would have had to be about a 15 by my previous 1-10 scale. See Hawke's review for the description.

Graphics: 10 - Sundu and I are still locked in debate over best graphics ever, between FFX and Onimusha 2.

Sound: 6 - It mirrored the musical stylings of VIII, but the chief theme song got REALLY old (it's the choral one) and the big vocal debut was less inspiring, or less relevant to the characters, than the one in VIII.

Style: 8 - Moved pretty quickly, even when just leveling-up, the story was coherent and fun, the FMV's were beautiful and often very dramatic, and it really lent itself to players who, like me, will sometimes forego the actual plot in pursuit of building character specs and meeting game challenges.

1st hour: Oh my god, I think I'm actually weeping at the sheer beauty of this game.

5th hour: Hey, this "sphere" thingee's not so complicated.

10th hour: I'll be damned if I'm gonna lose my first blitzball game ever.

1st week: Let's see... this armor let's me exceed 10,000 HP, and casts Haste, Shield, and Protect automatically; this sword lets me break 10,000 damage, convert the damage I do into my limit break meter ("overdrive" in this game), counterattack, and gives me the first attack of the fight... ok, I think I'm ready for the final boss now--whoops, he's dead...

1st month: I WILL acquire EVERY skill in Blitzball.

#1 thing I hate about this game: FFX gives you a chance, if you reset enough times and study patterns of movements and learn the intricacies of the new sport, to win your first and ONLY story-related blitzball game, but absolutely REFUSES TO CHANGE ANYTHING, even in the simple character dialogue outside the FMV, when you actually succeed in doing so.

by Ari