Final Fantasy X

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Mr Ixolite
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Re: Our next Final Fantasy podcast recording (8.6.19) - 373: Final Fantasy X

Post by Mr Ixolite »

I will join the chorus who had no problem with the Voice Acting of Final Fantasy X, and didn’t find Tidus annoying. The fact that I end up moved by Tidus and Yunas relationship and a feeling of melancholy must mean its done its job. I also found the fish-out-of water angle refreshing for the series, as it allows for a thorough exploration of Spira and its culture, by having someone challenge its rigid religious dogmas. This may be the series most fully-realized, or at least thematically commited world yet, and getting a guided tour of it means that I honestly don’t mind the linearity at all. Theres certainly enough setpieces and side-quests along the way to keep you invested. And though nothing can quite match the lavish pre-rendered backgrounds of the PSX games, every place in FFX still feels meticulously crafted and full of personality and history.

I’m a huge fan of the conditional turn based combat system. The appeal of the series turn-based roots has to me always been the feeling of intimate control you had over your characters, defeating enemies with clever strategy and timing. The CTB system cranks that feeling up to 11, and though it can’t quite compete with Grandia, delaying or denying enemies their turn creates a similar endorphine rush as in that series. Every set of enemies becomes a puzzle to solve most efficiently, which does mean that regular encounters can turn routine once you’ve figured out “the solution”, but the game compensates with a slew of memorable bosses, including a ludicriously deep well of optional encounters. I went all-in on these, maximizing my characters to the point where Yuna could deal 99.999 points damage with a satisfying thwack of her staff. This meant that I was grossly overlevelled for the final boss, but on the flip side I managaed to defeat Dark Bahamut by the skin of my teeth.

The game is chock full of other content besides fighting, which ranges from boring to mildly pleasant…but the problem is that obtaining the best gear for the post-game battles requires not just engagement with, but complete mastering of the minigames. Some of these become absurd, like the butterfly hunt or the Chocobo race. Others, like Blitzball, are just, tedious. Playing it is a requirement for Wakkas ultimate weapon, which can deal more than a million unblockable damage in one go, a borderline necessity for the worst superbosses. Now, heres my comprehensive guide to beating any Blitzball game ever: Learn Jecht shot. Recruit Brother as a goalie. Now you just need to play for hours upon hours to get a chance of getting Wakkas weapon. And finally theres the absurd AND tedious challenge of dodging 200 lightning bolts in a row, something I’m not sure why my younger self ever considered worthwhile. I don’t think I could do any of those things again, and still cling to my ancient 200+ hour PS2 save file. One day I’m gonna beat those final Dark Aeons! Surely! Definetely! Probably!

Still, my memories of FFX are positive ones, and though I could never dive as deep as I once did, I’m sure I’ll replay it just for the cinematic road trip alone. A worthy end to an era for the series.


3 word review
200 Lightning Bolts??????!?!?!?!
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Will
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Re: Our next Final Fantasy podcast recording (8.6.19) - 373: Final Fantasy X

Post by Will »

For me, FFX is inextricably linked to the changing fortunes of Square in the early 00s. Sakaguchi’s decision to set up shop in Hawaii and double down on photorealistic graphics came to define X, just as the catastrophic release of The Spirits Within would define the hubris that effectively ended his role with the company. Between that loss and the reduced roles of Amano and Uematsu, I really feel that IX was the swan song of “classic” Final Fantasy while X is the first title in a fundamentally new series.

As first games go, X is a doozy. Especially on an initial playthrough the graphics are stunning, the characters are colorful and dynamic, and Spira is an eye-popping, deeply realized world that it is just plain fun to be in. People who watched the film Avatar in 2010 reported experiencing “Avatar blues” after leaving the theater because the real world seemed dull and grey by comparison, and I had exactly that experience with Spira.

FFX also tells a compelling story and has streamlined gameplay that keeps the pace going and creates a sense of momentum only halted by the overly complicated Cloisters of Trials. The genius of X is how it makes the world feel huge while leading you down a single path, makes combat feel creative even though the core is built around matching specific attackers to specific enemy types, and makes character development feel customizable even though sphere grid advancement follows a mostly predetermined path. It certainly worked for me in 2002, drawing me back to RPGs after some PS1-era burnout.

Returning to the game today, I still found a lot to love but really missed a sense of discovery and exploration. I already knew the story beats, when to swap Wakka in to attack flying enemies, and what my Al Bhed captors were shouting about, so I found myself impatiently skipping through cutscenes that had thrilled me the first time and sleepwalking through long sections of linear gameplay. Maybe the issue is that I'm just a jaded old bastard now, like poor Auron; the most grizzled 35-year-old in video games history.

For a new player, however, I can't imagine a better introduction to the series. Tidus is a strong POV character and his relationship with Yuna is genuinely moving throughout, with a gut-punch of a final scene that still takes my breath away almost twenty years later. Yuna's journey provides a compelling spine for her character growth and for a story that carries two outstanding games. However you feel about the stilted voice acting, the hunger dunger dang electric guitars, or Tidus' canary yellow overalls, those characters exploring this world are timeless and make X one of the greats of the PS2 era. Given the lack of replay value and rocky road ahead for Square and the series, FFX feels a bit like Tidas himself: ephemeral and living on borrowed time, but what magic while it lasted!
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Heavener
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Re: Our next Final Fantasy podcast recording (8.6.19) - 373: Final Fantasy X

Post by Heavener »

Hi all. I'm new here and I'd like to share my memories of the game, too!

- The most important aspect of the story that stayed with me even after I finished the game was the whole reveal around Yunalesca and the Yevon religion. I was 13 when the game released and growing up as a Catholic, I had never questioned my faith. Then I played FFX and it showed me how the world religion of that fantasy world is not only extremely corrupt, but just an illusion - a false hope to keep the masses at bay and from despair. It was shocking to me at the time and I remember adopting a more critical view of (also my own) religion in general. Today, I can also appreciate the tragedy surrounding Yunalesca's character.

- My favorite character was Lulu. I loved her looks and her fighting style. But above all, her doll weapons were too adorable to ignore. For a FF series fan, seeing cactuars or moogles as walking dolls was so much fun. I hated the lightning mini-game that required you to dodge 200 lightning bolts in a row in order to get a Venus sigil and improve Lulu's final weapon (Onion Knight).

- Kimahri had such a great design and story... it was so disappointing that he sucked in combat. He was the only one who did not have a truly individualised sphere grid path. After a while, he could just follow Tidus' or someone else's. In the end, he always lagged behind someone else in terms of abilities or fighting role. Furthermore, his Ronso Rage Overdrive (basically Blue Magic) was cool, but so much weaker than Quina's Blue Magic in FFIX due to it being an overdrive and therefore only rarely available.

- Another interesting observation: In 2003 I played "Tales of Symphonia". A game that also had a story about a chosen maiden who was ready to sacrifice herself to save the world. I wonder whether it was a popular motif at the time? Also, of course, in 2016 "I am Setsuna" copied FFX's story almost to the letter, which annoyed me.
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Mr Ixolite
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Re: Our next Final Fantasy podcast recording (8.6.19) - 373: Final Fantasy X

Post by Mr Ixolite »

Heavener wrote: June 6th, 2019, 2:49 pm - Another interesting observation: In 2003 I played "Tales of Symphonia". A game that also had a story about a chosen maiden who was ready to sacrifice herself to save the world. I wonder whether it was a popular motif at the time? Also, of course, in 2016 "I am Setsuna" copied FFX's story almost to the letter, which annoyed me.
I'd arguaby lump Grandia 2 into that category of "pure maiden devoted to world-ruling religion learns of its dark secrets". That one is pretty great - you get to fight Satans body parts!
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