Final Fantasy X-2 North American Preview

Majestic Mog writes "FiringSquad somehow managed to score an advance copy of the English version of Final Fantasy X-2, the first REAL sequel in the long-running RPG series. They cover changes in the game over the first FFX, the English voice actors, and something about girls wearing short shorts." It looks like they took the best of FFX and combined it with the best of DoA Volleyball. In other words, this might be the perfect video game. I just wish it would come out before december since I just finished KotoR and need a new game.

Comments

Dont like this trend

[stratjakt]

After X comes XI, not X 2.

You start doing sequels in Final Fantasy, you blow the whole thing. Now you have to worry about continuity and whether it fits in character and whatnot. Blah.

I liked new, completely independant stories. I like that they could completely revamp the game engine, completely change the concept of "magic spells" and whatnot... Truly produce a brand new game that could be enjoyed on its own.

I could play FF8 without playing FF7, it didnt make a difference.

Oh well, as long as the carcass hasnt completely rotted, that horse is going to get beaten.

Re:Dont like this trend

[Anonymous Coward]

Well shit, why didn't you say that earlier? If you would have spoken up, I'm sure that SquareSoft would have been more than willing to scrap the project having heard your strong feelings against a sequel. But now that it's done anyway, I think SquareSoft should still go ahead an release it, despite your strong feelings.

Re:Dont like this trend

[alexmogil]

But this is really test, isn't it? I mean how many people have wanted to have Cloud, Sephiroth, Aerith, Cid, Cid, Squall, Cid, Cid, Cid or Cid in a game again (aside from Kindom Hearts... ick)?

Well, here's Square's offering to do just that with arguably some of the most popular characters in the franchise. Maybe they'll do this again, maybe they won't, but at least they're giving people the opportunity.

Re:Dont like this trend

[Anonymous Coward]

+1:ATHF reference. Well done, old bean.

Re:Dont like this trend

[OblvnDrgn]

From what I've heard, there was a huge clamor for a sequel to FFX. So they made one. FF XI is still coming out in America.. eventually, and they're working on XII right now. XII is actually a proper FF too, none of this sequel or MMORPG business. It's not really changing anything, it's just making a couple extra games along the way.

Re:Dont like this trend

[MunchMunch]

Yeah, I agree about FF having sequels. But also, realize that FFX was the most teen-centric, mainstream FF to date. Its obviously the biggest candidate for serialization thanks to that characteristic (thanks, PS2).

I mean, PS2's dominance of the game market isn't necessarily a bad thing, but earlier FF games were interesting because they didn't railroad you along a story with the same sort of annoying intensity that FFX did. In FF7 you could spend hours (and usually did spend hours) at the Golden Saucer, and work on perfecting the Materia system. In FF8, you could just fly around and kill time, beating up on Cactuar in the desert, and actually playing a FUN card game before going to fight Ultimecia, along with plenty of other diversions like the again new and interesting spell system.

In FFX, you couldn't even freely fly around the map. The upgrade paths were just that--linear systems where you could make certain choices, but for the most part just followed where you were supposed to go. Blitzball was a joke. The card game was a pathetic afterthought. And the characters were straight out of a rejected Dawson's Creek episode. True, more people played it and more people thought it was so much better than any other FF...but how many of those were around for the earlier FFs?

I for one am ready to skip FFX-2 and go straight to FFXII which looks more promising...

Re:Dont like this trend

[Sheeplet]

Uhmm, there's already a FFXI, I've been playing the beta for it for a few months now (and it's probably the best video game I've ever played, btw). FFXI has been out for a year and a half in Japan already (roughly), so what were they supposed to name this one, given it's ties to FFX? Final Fanatasy 10.5, Final Fantasy XII (that's already taken)? Final Fantasy X-2 seems like the logical name to me.

Re:Dont like this trend

[stratjakt]

Wow, a sequel! How innovative!

I have a feeling that this is all they'll ever do, just like everyone else. New ideas can fail, its safer to milk your last success.

Crystal Chronicles is more intriguing to me than this game, having not been so overwhelmingly impressed with FFX as everyone else. I didn't find it to be so much a game as a choose-your-own-adventure movie.

Re:Dont like this trend

[lazyl]

After X comes XI, not X 2.

You start doing sequels in Final Fantasy, you blow the whole thing. Now you have to worry about continuity and whether it fits in character and whatnot. Blah.

I liked new, completely independant stories. I like that they could completely revamp the game engine, completely change the concept of "magic spells" and whatnot... Truly produce a brand new game that could be enjoyed on its own.

I could play FF8 without playing FF7, it didnt make a difference.

And as I understand it, they are continuing that same tradition with FFXI. X2 is just 'an aside' of sorts, to the main series of games.

I can't get to the review right now becuase it's /.ed, but from what I recall of reading a review a few months ago of the japanese version, it's basically just fluff. An attempt to milk more money from the gamers with fancy graphics and some barely dressed CG hotties.

Re:Dont like this trend

[Anonymous Coward]

Me. I started playing Final Fantasy from the start on the NES. I've played through every game except 3 (Japanese) and 8. I couldn't get into 8. Just didn't like it...

But yes, I did like FFX a lot. I thought it was a gret rpg and I spent quite a bit of time with it.

Re:Dont like this trend

[Infernon]

It's actually not such a bad idea as long as the story is good...
I didn't really care for the characters in FFX. They were too cliche, standard, etc. I ended up not finishing the game because of them. IMO, Wakka was the closest thing to an original character, but still lacking.
Anyway, I guess I was saying that I wouldn't mind seeing sequels of FF installments that rocked.

Re:Dont like this trend

[JayBlalock]

Are they still going to bother releasing FFXI here? From what I understand, once the fervor of "Oh wow! MMORPG Final Fantasy!" died down, it was seen to be just another online RPG without too much to recommend it over any of the others, besides the name tie-in. Seems like, considering the trouble of setting up servers and localizations and whatnot in the US, it doesn't stand too much chance of being profitable...

Re:Dont like this trend

[DrEldarion]

Well, if you want something new, this game DOES have it. True, it has some of the same characters and areas, but from what I read, the gameplay HAS changed. They put in the JOB SYSTEM - probably one of the most universally liked systesm in all of RPGdom.

Anyways, why do people think FF is some sort of sacred ground that MUST REMAIN THE SAME NO MATTER WHAT.

I constantly hear people complaining "FFXI SHOULD BE FF:ONLINE, NOT FFXI!". Why does it matter?

They complain, "FF SHOULDN'T HAVE SEQUELS! IT'S JUST NOT RIGHT". Who cares?

As long as they're good games, why the hell does it matter whether they're a sequel or an MMORPG? Since when did the FF series become so completely sacred that they're not allowed to do things that they haven't done before?

-- Dr. Eldarion --

Re:Dont like this trend

[DrEldarion]

Yes, they are releasing them here.

The PC version is scheduled for an end of October release, and the PS2 version will be released sometime next year.

-- Dr. Eldarion --

Re:Dont like this trend

[wedgewu]

Agreed. Once Final Fantasy became so mainstream (right after FF7) the games have really gone downhill. They've lost their charm, hidden in the glitz of beautiful graphics, voices, and cookie-cutter characters. They feel like a showcase for Square to say "Hey look what we can do... oh yeah there's a game in here somewhere too." I liked the little sprites =( FF6 and FF4 were by far the best. Not sure why everyone loved FF7 so much, but to each their own....

Re:Dont like this trend

[Stonent1]

But this is really test, isn't it? I mean how many people have wanted to have Cloud, Sephiroth, Aerith, Cid, Cid, Squall, Cid, Cid, Cid or Cid in a game again (aside from Kindom Hearts... ick)?

Don't forget Wedge, or Wedge!

Re:Dont like this trend

[be-fan]

Seesh. X was the worst game in the recent history of the series. And people want another one...

Re:Dont like this trend

[Vainglorious Coward]

After X comes XI, not X 2. You start doing sequels in Final Fantasy, you blow the whole thing.

More annoying for me is the "Final" in "Final Fantasy". If a sequel is made to "Final Fantasy", surely that means the first one was "Penultimate Fantasy" ?

Re:Dont like this trend

[forgotmypassword]

Karma: +e^(pi*i), Euler

call it what you want, but I call -1 karma bad

Re:Dont like this trend

[toddestan]

I never really cared about the Final Fantasy games after they moved off of the Nintendo myself either. At times they just seemed like CG movies where you could take limited control of the characters for a little while. Though maybe I had just gotten older, and the magic of the games was gone. Though sometimes I wonder how well the FF7+ line of games would of done an their own without the momentum from FF1-FF6 to push them along.

Re:Dont like this trend

[Anonymous Coward]

Yet, sadly, Crystal Chronicals will probably sell very few copies in comparison. It just goes to show you how people loved cloned rehashes, including crappy RPGs from Square.

Re:Dont like this trend

[13Echo]

Agreed. I love 4 and 6 so much, that I can't decide which is my favorite. I still own the original carts (along with Chrono Trigger and Secret of Mana). I purchased my Playstation in 1997 so that I could enjoy FF7. In many ways, I did enjoy the seventh game, but there was something about it that just bothered me. The characters lacked the development of those in the old games. Character designs became cookie-cutter from one game to the next. Sure, the series has evolved. But it's lost a lot more than it has gained. I've played the last 3 games quite a bit and I thought that they were totally weak. Same goes for Chrono Cross and Legend of Mana. The Square franchises have really gone downhill over the last 4 years. The only real hope that I have is that their merge with Enix might bring back some of the teams that really knew how to work wonders with RPG design. The two companies can really use on another. Square needs to come back closer to the basics and Enix (in many ways) needs to start exploring some new territory. It's a perfect match. I have my hopes high for Crystal Chronicles. You couldn't pay me to take FF X2.

Re:Dont like this trend

[jafuser]

So is this a sequel or a side-quel?

Re:Dont like this trend

[Anonymous Coward]

Am I the only person outside Japan who prefers FF5, by far, to either of the other 16-bit FFs?

Re:Dont like this trend

[Anonymous Coward]

You must lose a lot of sleep over this.

Re:Dont like this trend

[minus_273]

the final in the name final fnatasy is becasue final fantasy (the original) was the final fantasy. around 1987 Square was about to go kaput after a bunch of crappy games on NES and this was their last shot last hope last idea.. their final fantasy. Funny how it turned out to ber one of the greatest games ever made

Re:Dont like this trend

[miu]

The only real hope that I have is that their merge with Enix might bring back some of the teams that really knew how to work wonders with RPG design.

I won't hold my breath waiting for good to come out of Enix, the last Dragon Warrior was bad - as in in not fun, ugly graphics, boring combat, and a poor menu system.

I did get Final Fantasy Tactics Advance the other day and it is actually pretty fun - but Tactics is not an RPG, it is basically Square and Enix using all the old fantasy RPG elements for a turn based strategy game.

Re:Dont like this trend

[_Splat]

From what I gathered, "Final" is generally used to mean "ultimate" in the series. For example, one of Rikku's mixes in FFX is the "Final Elixir", which doesn't really make much sense taken any other way. Also, in FF7, there is one point where what should have been "Megalixir" was translated as "Final Elixir".

Re:Dont like this trend

[News for nerds]

Then don't buy/play it. period. Or play FF11?

Re:Dont like this trend

[j3110]

In any given time line in which fantasy ceases, there can only be one "Final Fantasy", therefore there can be no sequals to a Final Fantasy game. I was angry that they were all called final fantasy when I first started playing them until I saw that they each were for different worlds and characters. Of course I started with the US2, then I went to US7, then back to US3, then I puked all over US8 and bitched that there were no English games I could play on my PC other than those. I played them in order from best to worst. I think at this rate though we are going to see the Final Final Fantasy which will iritate me even more to say. I don't know which make me more crazy, the wierd naming of the games or that damned chocobo song that I still can't get out of my head. It's worse that RedXIII (yes, they even name their characters with Roman Numerals) theme that I used to humm on the way to class back in my college years because that damned chocobo song makes you want to dance the chocobo dance.

Yeah, if you need any proof that FF will make you insane, you need look no further than http://www.flashplayer.com/music/chocoborobovoice. html

I will kill Nobuo because of his process of infusing music with crack.

If you would like to make your own crack infused music you probably want to go here http://www.nobuouematsu.com/main.html

Re:Dont like this trend

[Anonymous Coward]

Well, you COULD play FF8... but why the hell would you WANT to? Gawd, what a piece of utter crap.

X2 SCHMOO

[Ty]

This game is the biggest pile of crap Square has rolled out since their TOM SAWYER game for the Famicom. I picked up the Japanese version and played it for a whole 10 minutes before regretting buying it. It's total fanboy-catering - horrible story, and an abuse of the decent story that 10 had.

Re:X2 SCHMOO

[chef_raekwon]

wait till they make the movie version...

Re:X2 SCHMOO

[JayBlalock]

Hmm... You seem to be forgetting Final Fantasy Mystic Quest. I'd say THAT was Square's most blatant cash-in blunder. Even the not-actually Final Fantasy Game Boy games were at least pretty good titles.

Re:X2 SCHMOO

[Ty]

Yes but at least that was entertaining for it's "oh gaijin are stupid and can't play complicated games" value!

Re:X2 SCHMOO

[wondafucka]

Decent story....maybe. Pacing: Horrible. Cutscene. Wander. Fight. Wander. Cutscene. Wander. Fight. Cutscene. Wander. Fight. The interactivity is the same as it was a decade ago, but the storylines and cinematography have improved to the point of getting in the way of the game. I had the same feelings about Xenosaga. When you're watching a cutscene and you don't want it to end, it's interrupted by some pointless wandering and fighting. After you wander and fight for awhile the gameplay is interrupted by really long film clips.

If this were a novel and the author kept switching between different areas of the story, each time making you wish for more, then it would be a truly enjoyable. But instead, it just annoyed me. If you took the gameplay and stripped it of the cutscenes, the game would be played out and boring. If you took just the cutscenes the video would be breathtaking, but confusing and would encompass way too much continuous whining from the characters. Together it's a confused spastic mess. FFX2? Count me out.

(BTW if you absolutely loved the game, then good, you probably appretiated it in a way that I never can. Go ahead and counter me. I've had movies that I hated until someone pointed out the good points).

Re:X2 SCHMOO

[sonatinas]

heh, funny u mention that tom sawyer game, that game is one of the more racist looking games ive seen

even though it was from japan you would think they would have sense to make blackk people look real instead of jim crow shit

Re:X2 SCHMOO

[13Echo]

I kinda liked Mystic Quest. Sure, it was simple, but there was some mildly entertaining stuff in that game. The FF Legend Game Boy titles (SaGa games, really), were terrible... Final Fantasy Adventure was quite a lot of fun though, and was a great prequel to Secret of Mana.

Re:X2 SCHMOO

[Krilomir]

I lost you when you said Final Fantasy X had a decent story. Okay game, but story sucked - I liked Auron though, and some of the other characters were okay too. I'm going to buy FFX-2 since it looks like it'll be at least as good as FFX. If I wanted a great story, I've be watching anime instead :)
(or buying Homeworld 2 maybe)

Re:X2 SCHMOO

[Anonymous Coward]

Actually, I think they did that with "Final Fantasy II" (cough) first.

The fact that Mystic Quest was specifically made for Americans, then was later released in Japan as "Final Fantasy USA," was a nice touch, though.

Re:X2 SCHMOO

[JayBlalock]

To each his own, I suppose. I liked the FF/SaGa games. The whole meat-eating mutation thing was cool.

Re:X2 SCHMOO

[minus_273]

final fantasy mistic quest ishow igot lots of people hooked on final fantasy at an early age :)

Re:X2 SCHMOO

[Jenova]

>To each his own, I suppose. I liked the FF/SaGa games. The whole meat-eating mutation thing was cool.

especially when you gain that stone stare skill.

Re:X2 SCHMOO

[13Echo]

I'm not really sure why I didn't like it. I think that I was turned off by the poorly translated dialogue. For that time, the game had a lot more text than most games of the genre. I guess that it just got confusing at times. The mutations were cool though.

Re:X2 SCHMOO

[Anonymous Coward]

Also it apparantly made your spelling a total waste of digital space.

Re:X2 SCHMOO

[Ty]

HEY I cried at the end of FF10!@!

Three words:

[JayBlalock]

Final Fantasy Fanservice. And was it REALLY necessary to make Rikku look like Christina Aguliera? They already modeled the girls to look like various J-pop idols, but geez... Of course, it's also funny that they're releasing this, when the US hasn't gotten the "updated" FFX with the expanded ending that sets up the sequel.

Re:Three words:

[OblvnDrgn]

Yes, you're right, blatant fanservice. But so ya know, they're shipping the extra cd that came with FFX-International with FFX-2. It had something like another 10 minute movie that adds on to the original storyline by revealing what happened after the ending. It's probably going to be part of the intro of this one.

Re:Three words:

[JayBlalock]

True, but it's still odd the way they're handling it. Reportedly the "International" version was an improvement on the original in a number of ways.

And if you hunt around online it's not that difficult to find a rip of the new ending movie. I saw it shortly after International was released.

Considering how ludicrously short the original ending was, compared to the time invested in the game, it desperately needs to be reinserted. (but then the ending did have one of the single best tracks Uematsu has composed yet...)

Re:Three words:

[syle]

Maybe instead of posting a kneejerk reaction, you could read the reviews of people who have played the US localized version of it. They're almost entirely reviewers who expected to hate it, but ended up being won over.

An excerpt from the GameSpy review: "Although I was greatly looking forward to Final Fantasy X-2, I held a certain amount of apprehension because of all the changes Square was making to the game. After playing it for a spell, I needn't have worried..."

Don't like them? How about an IGN review: "Caveats aside, if Final Fantasy X-2 can manage to provide the same action, drama, and depth in its final four chapters that it did in the first, RPG nuts shouldn't have much to worry about come December..."

Still not good enough? Maybe the Gamespot review: "While we thought Final Fantasy X-2 would end up being viewed as an aberration in the Final Fantasy franchise, we're not so sure anymore."

Really, calm down. After all, you haven't actually played the game. Are ALL the reviewers wrong?

Re:Three words:

[JayBlalock]

Um... did I say *one word* about the gameplay? I was just griping about the blatant unnecessary sexualization of it. I don't see anything in those quotes talking about how having the cast running around in bras is essential to the engrossing story. Save your venom for someone who warrants it, 'kay?

Re:Three words:

[be-fan]

All the reviewers like FFX. So yes, they are *ALL* wrong.

PS> The IGN reviewer didn't sound like he played the game...

Re:Three words:

[damien_kane]

It wasn't the final cutscene that I wanted from FFX:Int...
Two Words: Dark Aeons
Even Nemesis was an easy (albeit long) battle. I want a challenge in a fight.
I mean come on, Dark Anima with 12 million hp and does > 9999 damage every hit? Bring it on!!!

Re:Three words:

[13Echo]

Do your really think that any of these "unbiased" sources of "information" are really going to pay someone to write something bad about Squaresoft? I seriously doubt it. Square could paint a turd gold and everyone would claim to love it.

Re:Three words:

[kfg]

All three of those sites are blatant industry whores whose job is to pump up the fanboys to buy games.

When they say a game sucks you know that, one, it's from an independant who doesn't advertise with them, and two, it really, really sucks.

When they say things like "We expected to be disappointed, but we were pleasantly surprised" it means it's pretty mediocre, they know you know it's pretty mediocre, at best, but need to pump up the volume somehow. It's their job.

I'll wait to see what Old Man Murray has to say about it.

Oh, wait. Nevermind. :(

I guess making snippy, but accurate, critiques doesn't pay as well as quote whoring.

KFG

Re:Three words:

[syle]

Quote whoring, huh? I imagine if I had posted my opinion on the matter without evidence, you'd have a l33t slashdotism to describe that too.

Your opinion on game review sites having sold out is completely worthless because it's inarguable. If they agree with you, they're right; if they don't, they've sold out. It must be convenient.

P.S. Gamespy has an article this month about how Halo sucks.

Re:Three words:

[Anonymous Coward]

The IGN preview stated at the beginning that they were still playing through it, and commented on what they had seen so far. It's very possible that the version that they have isn't fully localized yet...

Re:Three words:

[Kneht]

So you're saying you saw Final Fantasy: the Spirits Within?

Re:Three words:

[spoco2]

"P.S. Gamespy has an article this month about how Halo sucks."

How long after everyone has already bought it or not? Safely a long time ago, so now they can say whether they really didn't like it or not.

Re:Three words:

[Anonymous Coward]

Those are the three review sites that will feed off of Square's table scraps if given a chance. Come on, at least put up some credible links.

Re:Three words:

[Anonymous Coward]

Most of the Dark Aeons do 99999 damage on every hit, and unless you have a weapon giving you first strike, you might not have a single turn to try to damage them before they kill your entire party.

They are so ridiculously overpowerful that there isn't really any point to even try to kill them by actually draining their HP.

I forgot to pick all sorts of stuff when initially going through the world and ended up having to kill two of the Dark Aeons. Yojimbo was the only way to do it I could figure out, but it makes it kind of pointless.

Why Not FFVII?

[jwbrown77]

That's the game that most everyone agrees had the best characters and one of the better story lines.

My favorite was English III/Japanese VI, but most people loved VII.

Re:Why Not FFVII?

[stratjakt]

I'm probably the only person who liked VIII the best.

I loved the game engine, monsters that levelled up as you did, so it didnt bog down into "run around in this field killing the same imp until you've levelled up enough to finish the game without trying".

It was consistently challenging all the way through.

The plots are always hokey anyways so that part of it didn't bother me.

Re:Why Not FFVII?

[JayBlalock]

Probably just because it would be impossible to top. I mean, we had a planet bearing down on the world, and a final bad guy so powerful you had to harness the very powers of Gaea to stop him. And then the resolution is SO definitive that you have to skip hundreds of years into the future before anything interesting could possibly happen again.

There'd just be no way of making a sequel that would come close to living up to the original.

Re:Why Not FFVII?

[gid]

Indeed, that was actually the only one I played all the way through, I even started going thru it a second time. Of course, one of the reasons I actually got to play that one is because it was out for the PC as well. Too bad they stopped doing PC ports of their games... I started playing FFVIII for the PC, but all the spells took forever to cast because of the long ass animations, which pretty much killed it for me.

Re:Why Not FFVII?

[Squarewav]

FF XIII had to be the easyest FF, every fight was the same thing, summon, steal, summon,summon,summon,steal. weapons became worthless after about 15min, even the most powerfull weapon upgrades were crap compaired to to the summons you got at the start of the game, and becouse you could summon the same one over and over again, and there was so many of them, there was no reason to even use the fight command, if one died you still had plenty more to use. not to mention, having to sit and watch the summon every frigin time

Re:Why Not FFVII?

[seann]

I also loved FF8, howver, more of the story line. I first played it and gave up after the first cinematic fight. Then I picked it up a year and a half later, and used the game shark. Best few weeks of my life between work. It was a really long movie.

Re:Why Not FFVII?

[aardvarkjoe]

FF 13? Great, where can I get a copy?

BTW, I agree with your analysis. The only thing that made it tolerable was the ability to get rid of random battles completely after about the first 1/4 of the game. I would have quit long before the end if I actually had to fight anything more than the bosses.

Re:Why Not FFVII?

[jellisky]

Not quite. Actually, of the PS FFs, I also liked FFVIII the most. FFVII's plot was too cliche for my tastes in many points. FFIX lacked a certain emotional tone during it's middle section that ir ended up being boring. FFVIII's plot and characters are always unfairly portrayed, at least in my eyes, as shallow or predictable. But, I always felt that there was a little more adult tones to the whole storyline. It was refreshing. Squall doesn't "grow" as a person, and people find fault with that, but does every main character have to "grow" for the game to be good?

The battle system, while eventually degenerate at points, was refreshing in its own way. The limit breaks were lots of fun to play with and added some additional feedback and actual play into the battles. The difficulty of many of the bosses throughout the game were excellently balanced such that most of them were close and enjoyable. The game could be beaten WITHOUT having to spend a lot of time levelling or working through the sidequests (most annoying aspect of FF7, really... the world's on the verge of being destroyed and you're spending your time breeding chocobos!!!). The plot was interesting and had some nice facets... and had some good twists (granted, some of them were expected, but others were a little unexpected).

Yes, it wasn't perfect, but I would contend as a full game package, it was more enjoyable than either VII or IX. FFIX is still a minor disappointment to me. It's not bad, per se, but just a little underwhelming. VII's late game was ludicrous and annoying... I love VII's early and mid-game... but after the mid-point of Disc 2, it started bothering me just how much extra I had to do to keep up with everything. VIII, even though it's battle system was flawed because it "forced" you to lengthen battles and have more encounters, was just a more enjoyable package than the other two.

Granted, I'll gladly pick up games in either three at any time... and ChronoCross, too... but I also liked VIII the most of the PS era. (FFVI, though, is still the overall favorite... but that's almost universally true.)

-Jellisky

Re:Why Not FFVII?

[Durandal64]

I liked VIII the best for the opposite reason. I thought that it had excellent character development and a fantastic musical score, and the symphonic collection for it was a dream come true. I also loved the cut sequences. There was something about the characters' style that I just really found aesthetic, even if it isn't the most realistic compared to today's stuff.

Re:Why Not FFVII?

[JFMulder]

I never understood why people liked Sephiroth so much. In my own opinion, Kefka was the best bad guy ever in the Final Fantasy series. What was nice with is character was that when you saw him the first time you though that he was just a crazy freak that you'd beat to a bloody pulp early in the game, and he turned out to be a maniachal genius. Heck, he even wanted to destroy the world HIMSELF (and he could have done it) and create a monument to non-existance.

Oh, and Sephiroth's theme, while nice, doesn't even come close to the greatness that was Kefka's theme. I've rarelly seen a song that fitted so well with a character in a video game.

Re:Why Not FFVII?

[jonfelder]

Ugg...I hated FFVIII. One of the things I enjoy most about RPG's is exploring the game world and finding unexpected things.

FFVIII had very few items, so it was pointless to play the card game, do any of the side quests, or explore any of the dungeons. Even after completing an important part of the story there was little that happened to increase the character's abilities.

This combined with the fact that the game was linear, basically meant that the whole purpose of the game was just to click buttons until you got a cut scene. If I wanted to simply watch cut scenes I'd rent a movie.

I might have been able to finish the game if it just had the above problems, but it gets worse. The magic system was horrible. Every battle was a draw fest and since you often got so few magic points (or whatever they call'm) with each draw you had to do it over and over and over and over, this is particularly true with some spells that could only be gained from bosses or certain monsters... This was necessary because the magic you had played a critical role in your character's abilities. While the idea was neat (i.e. get magic from monsters, increase your abilities) the implementation sucked because drawing was so painful that once I accumulated 100 of a certain spell I didn't want to cast it (hence lowering your abilities).

Another thing FFVIII did was increase the levels of the monsters as you increased in level. Thus when you went on your draw fests, often when you came back you found that the monsters you were grabbing magic to beat were much harder than before. Personally I like being able to take advantage of my character's increased abilities in the form of kicking the crap out of monsters that were once difficult. It gives one a sense of progression throughout the game...like you're accomplishing something, getting stronger, preparing for that final battle.

Finally, FFVIII's characters sucked. They were whiney and unlikeable. After the millionth cut scene of seeing Squall's complete indifference to everything I simply got tired of him and really didn't care whether he made it or not.

RPG's aren't just about completing a single objective and then moving to the next, they are supposed to immersive. A good RPG will have you going over the next hill just to see what's there, not because you know some monster that you have to kill is over there. Likewise, a good RPG will have you talking to people; hoping to get info, maybe getting a new quest...in a sense you do things you don't have to do because you enjoy the game world and its mechanics. It'll also have you caring about the characters and the story line surrounding them.

FFVIII failed miserably at this, and while it may have had lots eye candy it was still a crappy RPG in my opinion.

Re:Why Not FFVII?

[DotWarner]

Don't think they haven't thought about it.

Re:Why Not FFVII?

[miu]

Agreed on Kefka. FF3 is probably my favorite of the series. Great characters, tons of hidden characters, wonderful music, tons of variety in character abilities, and free form without letting you get lost too easily, the game was a masterpiece.

The only thing I remember missing when I played it was the awkward phrasing sometimes used by the translators. C'mon kids how many of you had any idea what "spoony bard" meant? They did keep the "..." and *blink* *blink* from the previous games though.

Re:Why Not FFVII?

[voxlobster]

i can only agree with this. after FFVII I was really looking forward to the next one...but it was complete ass. There was absolutely no character development throughout the entire story. Stuff just happened to everyone and they didn't change their views or attitudes at all. And also like you said, magic draw, while innovative, isn't so great. the real killer was the whole junction implementation. You spend 2 hours drawing 100 fire, 100 blizzard and 100 bolt just so you can't use them. Then you get absolutely nothing from level ups, and have to spend more hours drawing more magic you'll never use....

Re:Why Not FFVII?

[xenoandroid]

The game becomes more difficult if you play it with the intent to see the story develop as fast as you can. It becomes boring if your intent is to fight as many battles as possible.

Re:Why Not FFVII?

[Anonymous Coward]

I think FF8's story was written by a 12 year-old.

It was some of the worst crap I've ever played.

Re:Why Not FFVII?

[jonfelder]

Junction wasn't so bad...it was the fact that you would draw and maybe get 2 or 3 points. If you got 100 so you only had to do it once in a while everything would've been ok, it's not like it's any harder to get 100 by 2s and 3s...just much more painful.

I've got nothing against junctioning and using magic provided you could replenish it in a reasonable manner. They could have even made exceptions for the most powerful spells like life 2 (or was it 3) and Ultima. In the special cases you should only be able to get draw points by finding draw points, thus encouraging a bit of exploration. However, it would be nice if in the special cases they implemented it more as a cap that slowly replenished itself so that you could use the spells without regretting it, but you couldn't just use them continuously. Finding draw points would increase this cap, both making your character stronger through junctioning and allowing you to cast the spell more times before having to replenish.

Re:Why Not FFVII?

[aardvarkjoe]

A little more difficult, yes, although not too much so (with the exception of the final battle; if I remember correctly, that took me several tries.) I've pretty much played all of the FF games straight through, without fighting anything I didn't have to, and only occasionally does that cause any problems.

As I see it, none of the FF games have particularly good gameplay, but a halfway decent storyline makes them fun to play. FF8, however, had worse-than-average gameplay and an uninspired plotline.

Of course, maybe it says something about me that I found a free thirty hours to actually play the thing through anyway.

Re:Madden?

[Anonymous Coward]

Not only that, he's more than familiar with most football terminology:

- Tight ends and wide recievers

- Backfield in motion

- Too many men on the field

- Getting "sacked" by a big black man

And the characters in this game are men who pat each other on the ass!

Fantastic!

(Football is so, so, so fucking gay)

Perfection...

[Kedisar]

In other words, this might be the perfect video game.

There's NEVER going to be a game that is even near perfect in everybody's eyes. Someone is always going to gripe about it, and I, for one, am not a big FF nut myself... oh dear, a /. reader who doesn't like FF? Can't be true...

Re:Perfection...

[dalutong]

I have a different idea of perfection.

My favortive game ever was Final Fantasy III on SNES (in the U.S. It seems to have been something like IV in Japan.) I have only played some of the subsequent FF games (well, really only watch a friend play one or two...), but none of them kept my interest. I would love to see FFIII redone (with a GNU/Linux release, since I don't have Windows or MacOS) with modern graphics, an extended story (that is very well thought out) and (even) more variables.

I still play the original SNES game. I feel like I can happily walk around the FFIII world for hours and still find interesting things to do.

People talk about "scripted" games and "open-ended" games, and which are better. I think FFIII was a perfect combination.

My .02.

Re:Perfection...

[pmz]

oh dear, a /. reader who doesn't like FF? Can't be true...

Actually, it's more like a vi vs. emacs discussion:

"VII is the best!"
"No! IV is!"
"The girl in VIII is pretty hot, though!"
"Only the first one really got it right!"
"VIII sucks!"
"VII sucks!"
"VII rocks!" ...(thud)

Re:Perfection...

[13Echo]

I would LOVE to see a 3D remake of FF IV or FF VI, as long as they could keep the dialogue and story intact for the most part. I wouldn't mind a music synthesis upgrade as well, as long as it wasn't butchered.

Such a game would really show us how an RPG could stand the test of time. It would be much easier to compare it to a newer games, like FFX. Which one would come out on top if FFIV had the graphics of FFX?

Re:Perfection...

[filth grinder]

The re-released it for the playstation. It's on a disc with another final fantasy game. It is called Final Fantasy Anthology, or something like that. Final Fantasy Orgins was a playstation release of FF1 and FF2.

Re:Perfection...

[proj_2501]

FF3US = FF6Japan

the whole seris
USFF1 = JapanFF1
USFF2 = JapanFF4
USFF3 = JapanFF6
JapanFF5 came out as something over there on a Final Fantasy anthology for psx I thought?

Re:Perfection...

[li99sh79]

FF5 officially came to the states as part of the Final Fantasy Anthology. Also included was FF6. FF4 and Chrono Trigger were bundled together as Final Fantasy Chronicles. And finally FF1 and FF2 were recently released as Final Fantasy Origins. Keen huh? -sam

Re:Perfection...

[claud9999]

But it's the perfect game for the teenage boys that are the editors of /. (whether physically or mentally.) ;^O (There goes my good Karma! Not like it's gotten me anything...)

The rest of us will play grownup games that have gameplay, not 10-minute cutscenes. (Sadly, very few of this sort of game have come out recently!)

Re:Perfection...

[Aeonsfx]

> My favortive game ever was Final Fantasy III on
> SNES (in the U.S. It seems to have been
> something like IV in Japan.)

Final Fantasy I US was I in Japan

Final Fantasy II JP never had a US release

Final Fantasy III JP never had a US release

Final Fantasy II US was IV in Japan

Final Fantasy V was released only in Japan (well and PSX)

Final Fantasy III US was VI in Japan

> (with a GNU/Linux release since I don't have
> Windows or MacOS)

I call it zsnes. supports frameskipping and save states, enhanced graphic engine etc....

There are PS1 remakes, as well.

--Tim

Re:Perfection...

[dalutong]

Yeah... I have the zsnes version. I would just like to support them and buy their wonderful product. (Not to mention that I wouldn't mind it redone with modern graphics... though I don't know if they could manage it as well as they had.)

Thanks for the correction on the numbering.

Sequels can be a good thing

[jbellis]

(Hollywood not withstanding...)

I really don't think think X-2 is going to be much of a sequel though. More like a completely different game with some characters that look the same as in X. Certainly Yuna seems to have had a personality transplant along with her costume change. (GUNS???)

I'll probably get a used XBox to play SW:KOTOR [and Fable, if it ever comes out] rather than waste time on X-2.

Re:Sequels can be a good thing

[ajservo]

KOTOR was lame. I bought an xbox and returned it the next day. As an RPG, it was too actiony. As an action game, it was to much of an RPG. I would've preferred it to be one or the other. Not both. Very pretty game, though.

Anyone want to buy my copy of KOTOR?

Best Buy wouldn't take it back.

Re:Sequels can be a good thing

[Anonymous Coward]

Just scratch up the disk and say it came that way? If they question you about it just say that they're about 5 seconds away from losing a customer. After all. Customer's always right.

Re:Sequels can be a good thing

[Anonymous Coward]

How is losing someone who wants to get money FROM you losing a CUSTOMER?

Re:Sequels can be a good thing

[xenoandroid]

The concept of having the Sequal here (story side of it) is that now that Titus has both helped her save the world and protected her, now it's Yuna's turn to protect Titus.

This reminds me of the MegaMan naming

[192939495969798999]

Remember how Megaman came out in a million different versions, but once they got to x, they started doing x^2, etc.?
I still remember playing Final Fantasy (version 1)... but alas, I haven't played any of the other versions. I think I'll wait for FFX2.1.X3_40.

Re:This reminds me of the MegaMan naming

[stratjakt]

But Megaman and Megaman X were two different series, the X never stood for 10... It was a whole new game.

This is just obsession with the letter X, and Square conforming to the rest of the industry - new ideas are dangerous, better off to rehash your last success with a sequel.

Xtreme Xboxes with X-Factor X-treme X X X X XX

I hate the letter X so very very much.

Re:This reminds me of the MegaMan naming

[Houn]

Incorrect. The Megaman series of games and the Megaman X series of games are seperate and distinct from one another. The X in Megaman X is the letter X, not the Number 10.

The Classic Megaman series deals with Dr. Light's Boy Robot Megaman taking on the evil Dr. Wily's henchmen to save the world.

The Megaman X series takes place 100 years later, and details the adventures of X, the successor to Megaman who was sealed in a capsule for 100, and is the first robot with true free will, as he battles against Sigma and his henchmen.

While the games are structurally similar in gameplay and concept, the environments and storylines are distinctly different.

For more info, check The Megaman Network, quite possibly the most extensive source of Megaman info on the 'net.

Re:This reminds me of the MegaMan naming

[DrEldarion]

Well, the MegaMan series is a bit different.

Mega Man X isn't supposed to be Mega Man 10. That's what the version of MM in the game is called - X. So, it makes sense to name it X1, X2, etc. rather than 11, 12.

Final Fantasy games have always been using roman numerals, so X IS supposed to be 10, and this new version of FFX is FFX2, said "F F ten two", not "F F X two".

-- Dr. Eldarion --

Old news

[FzBravozF]

Gamespot and IGN both have had previews out for the US version of FFX-2 for weeks.

Re:Old news

[Anonymous Coward]

Yeah and it was reported back then too.

Re:Madden?

[MoneyT]

or you could go outside like any normal person and play real football.

Tidus swimming like a fish

[Anonymous Coward]

I think that there is plenty of set up for a sequal if you actually play the game and read the conversations. If you look at it like the other FF games, this isn't really a sequel, but rather the second disc of the game. All the others kept you shuffleing with 3+ discs.

Besides with the decision to make XI a MMPORG and release it only in Japanese ruined the whole FF idea for me. I started playing the series again recently (from VII on) and I am amazed at the reduction in quality of gameplay. IX was good but X is like playing a movie, almost totaly passive. I am cooling to the idea of shoveling out another 50 bucks not because it is a sequel, but rather because what can be left to remove that I love?

Re:Madden?

[Anonymous Coward]

There is an outside?

Disappointed

[Infernon]

While I don't have anything against skin, it's much better on a REAL chick. I remember when the FF series was all about the story and not so much about short shorts, small shirts-- and that's what this looks like. TNA in games is cool as long is it isn't in your face and part of every scene or character, but I guess that's just one guys' opinion...
I hope that this isn't the direction that the next FF installment is going in.

Re:Disappointed

[Anonymous Coward]

In all truth, real chicks don't look as good. After playing some of these games you walk around and notice that someone stole all the hot chicks and replaced them with gritty hags. Which in itself is beginning to sound like a good plot for another RPG.

Re:Disappointed

[Anonymous Coward]

This is proof that if you do it too much you will go blind...

Simple

[jbellis]

FFX is still fresh in peoples' minds.

Incidently I'm still not sure why everyone raves about FFVII. Nostalgia seems the best explanation to me -- when it came out I could see it seeming really cool as one of the first 3d RPGs. But, I played it for the first time a few months ago and got maybe 2/3 through before deciding I was wasting my time. It doesn't have anything going for it that would make it a classic, like just for instance the RP in RPG. :P

The original Baldur's Gate dates from about the same time as FFVII and stands the test of time much better IMO. Yes, I know these are apples and oranges; I'm just pointing out that not every game is as completely obsoleted by better fx as FFVII. (And FFX, lest you FFVII fanboys think I'm singling you out unfairly. :)

Will it run on pc

[LocalHero]

Will this run on pc. I remember back when ff7 was new and you could run it on pc. Actually i bought my first 3d card just to play the game. Nowdays you are forced to buy a ps2 :(

Re:Will it run on pc

[Anonymous Coward]

on the bright side, a PS2 will set you back less than a top-end video card... and it will play DVD movies to boot!

Re:Will it run on pc

[Kedisar]

Of course it will run on PC! But only if you download my alpha-version spyware-infested non-existent PS2 emulator from www.haxxorps2.com.de.

And while you're at it, check out the full line of free pr0n passwords that format your ha-, um, give you XXX access instantly!

Re:Will it run on pc

[greymond]

All FInal Fantasy's from 7 and on run on windows. However there will be "minor" differences between the 2 versions. For example in 8 you can rename your characters on the PC version - in 8 on the PS2 you cannot rename them.

Re:Will it run on pc

[PhoenixFlare]

There are no PC versions of any FF games (aside from ROMS) except for FF7, FF8, and FFXI. Spend the money for a PS2 if ya really want to play it.

Or buy a Gamecube and get FF: Crystal Chronicles in February.

Re:Will it run on pc

[Anonymous Coward]

You could by a video card that is immensely more powerful than the PS2 for $50-$100, and add a $30 DVD drive as well.

The PS2 is like the "S3 ViRGE" of modern gaming machines... In all of its beautiful 16-bitish CLUT splendor. Ah. Beautiful shades of green and brown.

Re:Will it run on pc

[gid]

Funny how once Sony bought Square all the sudden their games are Playstation only, I've never owned a playstation 1 or 2 and nor will I probably ever, well see what the PS3 looks like when it comes out. Last console I bought as a DreamCast and look what happened there. Sure FFXII is PC, but that's just because it's online. Screw that wussy MMORPGWTFOMG with your damn subscription fee and the horse it rode in on.

No, really, I'm not bitter.

Re:Will it run on pc

[Anonymous Coward]

Actually, there are only PC versions of FFVII, FFVIII, and FFXI.

But if you count emulation, you can play FFI - FFIX on a computer with NES, SNES, and Playstation emulators installed.

Re:Will it run on pc

[Anonymous Coward]

All it is is mainly a multi-player interface for Final Fantasy Tactics Advance, in wich the game is LOUSY. IMO, this is what's happening Sony-Bony owned Squareenix's attempt at coming up with a game and slapping the name "Final Fantasy" on it,

1. Sony-Bony owned Square-Enix's attempt at coming up with a game and slapping the name "Final Fantasy" on it, to please fans
2. It doesn't sell because it's lousy
3. Fans demand Real Final Fantasy for the Game Cube
4. Sony-Bony owned Square-enix claims it didn't sell on Gamecube, and Final Fantasy remains a Pixelation Station x Exclusive
5. ????
6. Sony-Bony Profits

Re:Will it run on pc

[Anonymous Coward]

NO, their ARE PC versions of 7,8,9,10, and 11

Re:Will it run on pc

[PhoenixFlare]

All it is is mainly a multi-player interface for Final Fantasy Tactics Advance, in wich the game is LOUSY

I'm not sure which game you're referring to...If you mean FFXI, then no. It's more like Everquest, not FFTA. Much more. If you meant FF:CC, then no again. If anything, it resembles Secret of Mana/Seiken Densetsu 2, an old SNES RPG.

Really, though, it doesn't sound like you've played Tactics Advance, FF:CC, FF XI, or any other video games in quite a while.

IMO, this is what's happening Sony-Bony owned Squareenix's attempt at coming up with a game and slapping the name "Final Fantasy" on it,

Are you retarded? First of all, it's just "Sony", and secondly, they don't own any part of Square's Final Fantasy franchise. The idea that Sony is somehow funding a game for the Cube to directly compete with the PS2 is so stupid it's funny.

1. Sony-Bony owned Square-Enix's attempt at coming up with a game and slapping the name "Final Fantasy" on it, to please fans
2. It doesn't sell because it's lousy
3. Fans demand Real Final Fantasy for the Game Cube
4. Sony-Bony owned Square-enix claims it didn't sell on Gamecube, and Final Fantasy remains a Pixelation Station x Exclusive
5. ????
6. Sony-Bony Profits

Stop eating so much sugar, step away from the keyboard, and never post again. You quite obviously have no clue whatsoever about what you're saying. Even if this is just a troll, it's still not believable at all.

wow

[IIRCAFAIKIANAL]

I just wish it would come out before december since I just finished KotoR and need a new game.

I wish I had that problem... I have about 5 games on the go right now, and I just found out about Disgeae and Temple of Elemental Evil, not to mention the new non-sucking simpsons game Hit & Run.

It's gotten to the point where I tend to buy only the best games available, where the best >= 90% average on gamerankings.com and I still can't keep up. I used to buy games like it was a buffet - now i'm a gourmet. :)

Re:wow

[bonovoxpsu]

you might like this.

Re:wow

[shadowcabbit]

Seriously. It doesn't help that other people are recommending games to me that actually turn out to be pretty good... Let's see, Tactics Advance, Advance Wars, KotOR, I still haven't finished Halo, I started a trip through Wild ARMs, I'm in the "I don't want to advance the plot anymore" phase of Pokemon Sapphire... and then there's CSI, Neverwinter Nights, Black & White, Diablo II, and Starcraft, many of which I haven't even touched in months...

On a related note, Hit & Run was good? Really?! I'll have to check that out.... eventually.

TNA/Re:Disappointed

[Anonymous Coward]

Any TnA ia GREAT!! I am deprived and need all that I can get!!

Not the first Square sequel period though...

[Zergwyn]

Though Square is best know for Final Fantasy, and I will admit a certain special fondness for FF6 in particular as it was the first realy RPG I ever played through and what got me hooked on the genre (for better or worse), they have made a lot of other terrific games as well. In particular, I am thinking of Chrono Trigger, which was one of the last games they came out with on the SNES and also one of the best. That one actually got a sequel, or perhaps a side story at any rate, called Chrono Cross for the Playstation. These games were both interesting, and especially Chrono Trigger at the time, because they did away with the whole 'Random Encounters on World Map' thing that virtually every other RPG I can think of up until that time had. This made it a lot more fun to just explore around, as there wasn't any annoyance or penalty for doing so.

I personally have mixed feelings about the latest, FFX. It certainly has fantastic graphics, and I have really found myself getting into it at times. I have had a bunch of fun in many pieces, which I guess is the ultimate test for any game. But, I personally find some of the voices somewhat gag inducing or just jarring to the experience at points. I know people complain about too much angst or whatever, but personally I kind of like having my main character be a bit of a bad-ass, someone who at least at first isn't super interested in running out and saving the world, who has emotional conflicts and doesn't have an easy time dealing with it. In FF7, for instance, I liked Cloud's opening attitude, though I may be one of the few if FFX fans are to be believed. And I really _liked_ the first opening city, which is where the game starts right off (not really a spoiler to talk about it, but stop reading if you don't want some suspense taken out of your first 5 minutes of the game). It is really cool looking and well designed, and, well, if I lived in a place like that and it, and all my friends, was blown up, I would be really f@&^!ng pissed. Instead, we get a quick "oh well, it's all good." *Shrug*. Harder to get into the a character (ie, to role-play, to feel and empathize with) who sounds just like a California surfer stereotype, and I certainly found myself rolling my eyes or thinking 'stop being such a whiny loser and get fighting already,' during some of the drawn out dialog. Given these things are on DVDs, would it kill them to include the original japanese sound track as well?

Re:Not the first Square sequel period though...

[Jasin Natael]

You're also forgetting the penultimate Square game series, Seiken Densetsu (which means "Legend of Saints and Sages"). SD2 ("Secret of Mana" here in the states) was one of the best RPG's ever. It was only available on SNES, but you can find it as a ROM image or on eBay. If you look in the right places, you can also track down a fansubbed version of SD3 for play on your PC, which was never released in the US.

Secret of Mana: Imagine playing a realtime fighting RPG (like Zelda), but with 8 weapons to share among the 3 members of your party, weapon levels & skill levels, character levels, and as a team with up to three human players. It also had a pretty good plot, and took a while to beat (70+ hours). That was one fun game, lo these many years ago. Especially with 3 human players at once.

Seiken Densetsu 3: SoM without nearly as much button-holding, this game featured 6 main characters -- you choose three to balance your party, and as the characters evolve over the course of the game, you can choose different classes to mold each one into. Rather similar to its predecessors, but still a lot of fun once you start wishing you had another SoM-type game to play.

--Jasin Natael

Re:Not the first Square sequel period though...

[AndyS]

And shortly out will come Crystal Chronicles, which, if we're lucky will be a Gamecube SOM :)))) [we can dream...]

Re:Not the first Square sequel period though...

[Mandoric]

the penultimate Square game series, Seiken Densetsu (which means "Legend of Saints and Sages")

No it doesn't. comes out as "Legend of the Holy Sword", which makes quite a bit of sense considering the significance of the Mana Sword in each.

Re:Not the first Square sequel period though...

[Mandoric]

... And Slashdot ate the Japanese text "seiken densetsu" in there. Ah well.

Re:Not the first Square sequel period though...

[Jasin Natael]

Ah, the errors one can make when one hasn't seen the Kanji. A quick Google Image search turned up the box front and, lo and behold, you were right. It is not the character for wisdom that follows holiness, but that of a sword.

--Jasin Natael

Re:Not the first Square sequel period though...

[Anonymous Coward]

Chrono-Cross started out interesting, but quickly devolved into a quicksand of character after character after character, until you just didn't give a shit anymore.

RockMan (MegaMan) titles

[extrarice]

[geek hat on]

Actually, the first RockMan X title was released before RockMan 6 was out. The X series and the original RockMan series have a completely different "RockMan" as the main character. Also, there was never a "RockMan 9" game released. There was Rockman 1-8, then "RockMan & Forte".

Man, I am such a dork.

[/geek hat on]

Re:RockMan (MegaMan) titles

[Anonymous Coward]

I thought rockman 8 was "rockman and forte"

Oh and there were 2 rockman "fighting games"
Rockman power battles.

Re:RockMan (MegaMan) titles

[Anonymous Coward]

Actually, there's still some doubt as to the situation of X and Rock. I personally still think there's a good chance X may just be an upgraded Rock chassis.

I'm getting too old... or something.

[MuckSavage]

I used to spend hours playing FF games. Hours. FF 7 was the reason I bought a playstation. I must have put 200 hours into that game.

But it seems that the last few FF titles that have been released are just long movies, with little spots in between where you kill shit. You don't really play these games as much as watch them.

Like I said, maybe I'm getting old, but FF games these days are all glitz and no guts. And why do we need to dress the girl characters up like whoors? Meh.

Re:I'm getting too old... or something.

[Trigun]

In addition, why can't we pick our own characters? The original was great, I played nearly every combination of characters possible (although I gave up on the four white mages, the ogres slaughtered me every time).

Re:I'm getting too old... or something.

[aliens]

I agree 100%. I stopped playing X because out of 90minutes of playing I'd actually play for 20-30, if I was lucky.

The rest of the time I sat and watched. Very boring.

I kept thinking, ok now I'll get more freedom.

Why was this such a highly rated game??? To me it was just a FMV game, you're stuck on one track the whole time. ::(

Re:I'm getting too old... or something.

[DroopyStonx]

I agree.

However, Part 9... that was amazing. It's like a mixture of 6 and 7. Very good stuff.

8 was very out of place and 10 was okay. They certainly aren't as fun as the older FF games.

They might make better games now that they're paired up with Enix. Ever play Dragon Warrior 7? Good god that's a long game... and it keeps the traditional battle sequence, which is great, I think.

Re:I'm getting too old... or something.

[Giggles Of Doom]

AHAHA! I did that too. I had the thought of "We 4 will cleanse the world with our goodness!" but, the orges didn't listen. Stupid ogres.

Re:I'm getting too old... or something.

[xaaronx]

Well, barring use of the job system, though some posts seem to say that X-2 has that, it makes it rather difficult to have an involving story. I mean, Cecil and Rosa had to be the specific people they were or the game fell apart story-wise and wouldn't draw you in.

Re:I'm getting too old... or something.

[AvengerXP]

If you think 4 white mages are hard, try 4 thieves. It's insanely sucky. Even in Ninja form.

Re:I'm getting too old... or something.

[the_ed_dawg]

True, virtually every area in FFX began and ended with a cut-scene, but I have to say that the animation was so good that I hardly cared. I would say that it was one of Square's best games, on par with FF7 and Chrono Trigger.

As long as the story keeps moving along and gets fixed up with striking animation and grand soundtracks, I think Square's going to be in good business. When it starts turning into Metal Gear Solid 2, where you go through a room and get to watch 10 minutes of the main character talking on the radio, then I'll start complaining a little louder.

With regards to the skin factor, if it is in context with a character, then it doesn't really bother me. The Ah Bhed in FFX were a desert people, so skimpy outfits made sense. Pop stardom may bring with it a new sense of style, but I trust Sakaguchi and the gang with will keep it respectable above the level of Christina Aguilera, who has somehow managed to turn herself from one of the most beautiful females on the planet to the image of a low-budget smut peddler.

In short, Square has impressed me too much for me not to be stoked about the release of FF-X2.

Re:I'm getting too old... or something.

[Trigun]

I played as two thieves, and two red mages, but never four thieves. Time to break out the ol' NES roms.

Re:I'm getting too old... or something.

[aliens]

Keeping the story moving is good, but there was no freedom? I liked RPG's when you could decide where to go and actually do things.

The animations were very nice, but I found myself running back and forth between spots just so I could fight guys rather than do nothing.

Re:I'm getting too old... or something.

[AvengerXP]

Might i suggest Final Fantasy Origins for PSX? It's a graphics enhanced FF1.

Re:Madden?

[Kedisar]

Ok... SOMEONE doesn't seem to realize that /.ers are vampires.

Sun = bad! :P

no one heeds the bad impressions posted so far

[tloh]

the site is already slashdoted.

More likely

[AndyChrist]

People like it because was the first one that most current Final Fantasy fans played. Or barring that, the EARLIEST one.

Whether (or how much, at least...even I won't say it was BAD, just disappointing) people like newer Final Fantasy games, or FF7 in particular tends to depend pretty heavily upon whether they had ever played a Final Fantasy game before 7.

Re:More likely

[JayBlalock]

Jeez, then I guess I'm one serious old geezer since I remember playing the original Dragon Warrior and Final Fantasy on the NES.

It's funny, though how much the genre has changed. Have you tried playing Dragon Warrior recently? That game was EVIL. Random encounters every step, and monsters guaranteed to kick your ass a hundred times over. Looking back, I can't believe I actually struggled through it. And FF was in some ways worse, considering some of the absolutely random subquests you had to go on - collect 99 potions to get into a cave? Huh? I wonder if anyone ever got through it without the Nintendo Power guides...

Square's hand-holding in the newer FF games has really shifted things.

Re:More likely

[damien_kane]

I beat FFI without the Nintendo Power guide, then went through it with one afterwards.
I don't remember needing 99 potions to get into a cave though.
I do remember going to get the tail and getting bumped up to Master level before chapter 3 where you fight Lich (you technically weren't support to do the temple of ordeal and the dragons until Chapter 5, after you killed Kary at the volcano).

Re:More likely

[JFMulder]

Exactly, I was really disappointed by FF7, and never played a Final Fantasy game after (thing is, I didn't have a PS1, and I don't own a PS2 now.) Thing is, FF seems to be all about FMV's now and gameplay in between. I really miss the good old days of FF3 and FF6.

Re:More likely

[miu]

Random encounters every step, and monsters guaranteed to kick your ass a hundred times over.

I'll see your Dragon Warrior woes and raise you Phantasy Star II. You had to level for more than an hour before you could leave the area of the first city and there were a couple dungeons where you had a fight every third step.

And as far as geezerism goes I bought the first Zelda game the day it came out with my paper route money :)

but?

[AchmedHabib]

Who wears short shorts?

Great, if you was not 100% sure the site would get /., just mention "girls,,, short shorts".

Re:but?

[The Evil Couch]

*sings the reply*

she wears short shorts

mod parent up, grandparent down

[Anonymous Coward]

FFXI is already out in japan. FFXII is a totally different game from FFX, FFXI, and FFX-2. FFX-2 is only related to FFX.

Anime Influence

[FreedomOfSpea-MMNnnf]

I was in a comic shop this summer listening to an Asian chic explaining Anime to her white male friend.

She was saying how most of the Anime out there is marketed to young boys (10-14) and that's why there are always the DVD cases with the school girls and the panties showing.

I don't know but most of the people I've seen buying those are the basement dwelling pasty faced 30 year old balding white dudes.

Re:Anime Influence

[Anonymous Coward]

~~~~~~~"basement dwelling pasty faced 30 year old balding white dudes."~~~~~~~~~~

True dat!

If a game needs T&A to sell...

[goldspider]

...I wouldn't bank much on it being a very good game.

Re:If a game needs T&A to sell...

[Elwood P Dowd]

I feel the same way about porn.

Wait...

Re:If a game needs T&A to sell...

[pmz]

Let's see:

"Spike TV"...check
"Star Trek Enterprise"...check
California canidates...check
The MSN Butterfly...check
New "Final Fantasy" game...check
Any RIAA-signed pop-star...check
Basically anything that is popular...check

Yeah, pretty much everything now-a-days is crap.

Re:If a game needs T&A to sell...

[DeadScreenSky]

And just because a game (movie, book, etc.) has T&A doesn't mean it was a requirement for its success. Good art can still possess sex appeal.

(Not that I am personally interested in this game.)

Re:awesome

[Anonymous Coward]

Hey, clownshoes, Final Fantasy != X-Men, ok?

I wouldn't mind being rogued, too.

Astro Glass

Combined it with the best of DOA Volleyball?

[DeadScreenSky]

It looks like they took the best of FFX and combined it with the best of DoA Volleyball.

So this is a Final Fantasy where the characters actually respond to you radically differently depending on how you treat them, instead of doing the same linear dialogue they do every time you play (relationship sim)? It is an easy-going 'chill game', where there is no danger and no real ending? Westerns get the original Japanese dub, complete with very famous voice talent? It will include a kickass trailer for Ninja Gaiden? :P

DOAXBV didn't invent sex appeal in gaming, and it does have some very good game qualities besides the obvious. :)

The Perfect Game is already out...

[Sophrosyne]

it's called pac-man and has been available since 1980! (and I'm not trying to be funny...I'm serious!)

Re:The Perfect Game is already out...

[Matrix272]

So Pac-Man is the perfect game, is it? Why isn't it in the top 10 still then? Why aren't we discussing Pac-Man X-2, or (probably more accurately) Pac-Man 18?

Re:The Perfect Game is already out...

[Sophrosyne]

because sadly pac-man was exploited with poor sequels and faded into antiquity....hmm what does that remind you of?? *cough cough* FF X-2?

Re:The Perfect Game is already out...

[AuMatar]

Because they got it right the first time.

Re:The Perfect Game is already out...

[Matrix272]

They didn't get it right. The game WAS fun in 1981, but it isn't anymore. The graphics suck, the sound is horrible, and it's the same thing over and over and over again. If you can beat the first 2 levels without any problem, you don't have to develop any new skills or techniques to beat the next 10 levels. In effect, the gameplay consists of using the same methods to beat every level, and those methods don't change over time. The gameplay only has 4 buttons (up, down, left and right).

Before I get flamed, I should say that yes, it's simplistic, but that's not necessarily good. To be the "perfect" game, it doesn't mean it should be the most played over 20 years. Remember, the definition of "perfection" isn't what's the most popular for the longest amount of time. By that logic, Windows would be the "perfect" OS, but we all know better.

The Perfect game would have graphics that never appear to age, sounds that never get repetitive, and gameplay that changes with every single level, just enough to keep the player occupied and entertained. It would NEVER get boring, old, or stale. The player could be anyone between the ages of 3 and 120, and no explanation of the goal in the game would be necessary, yet the story would be engrossing enough to even the most nit-picky of people. The Perfect Game does not, will not, and CAN NOT exist because perfection requires so much more than just being around for 20 years. The most we can ask for is the best game available... and THAT is debatable.

Re:The Perfect Game is already out...

[Matrix272]

because sadly pac-man was exploited with poor sequels and faded into antiquity...

The Perfect Game wouldn't require sequels because every possible ending would already be taken into account... thus creating an endless supply of replay value. It also wouldn't fade into antiquity because the Perfect Game would be ... duh ... Perfect. You would NEVER look at it and ask why the graphics/sounds/levels haven't been updated. The Perfect Game isn't possible with current technology... and given the state of most humans, it won't ever be possible because people will always find something wrong with whatever you give them.

By the way, $PERFECT != $BEST_AT_THE_TIME...

Re:Madden?

[Anonymous Coward]

You mean Sun == bad. Assigning Sun = bad could have devastating effects on life as we know it.

Re:Madden?

[fenix down]

But real football could damage our delicate organs!
And we need our organs to survive.

lousy joke?

[Anonymous Coward]

I guess you were intending to show some kind of humor skills regarding the "X" in final fantasy X?.. whatever.. I was just going to poit out that Boromir was not _king_ of Minas Tirith. And no, his father wasn't king either. Read the^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H Watch the films again...

Re:lousy joke?

[xenoandroid]

Not funny, go back to your corner.

Was totally impressed with KotOR

[ScottGant]

Knights of the Old Republic was bought for my wife, who is really into RPG's. I'm not a big fan of console games having grown up using a keyboard...then a keyboard/mouse combo to control games...never got the feel for the controller.

But I started playing KotOR and thought, eh...not bad...but then the story got more and more involved...and there were so many side quests that were just as interesting as the main one. Pretty soon I was hooked.

I played 70+ hours to get the special item!

[ImNotThatSmart]

It was commented that this game is a mix of DOA Volleyball and FFX. In each FF game, there is usually an item or spell that takes the player several hours to obtain. In FFX2, I overheard that the item will be a baby-blue lip gloss applicator.

you think you're in the minority?

[Artifex]

oh dear, a /. reader who doesn't like FF? Can't be true...

If you think that's bad, I don't play any first-person shooter games. Never have.

FFXI on PC

[phorm]

I don't know about FFX-2, though I'd lean towards "not right now" possibly just plain "no" as I've yet to see either FF9 or FFX come out on PC (could just be that I wasn't looking hard enough, but pretty sure they are console only) - and why create a sequel on PC when the original is not?


On the bright side though, the FFXI (FF11) beta is out on PC, as will be the actual game, so if you want to see how Final Fantasy does in the land of MMORPG then perhaps you'd like to check that one out.

Re:FFXI on PC

[LordLucless]

What I wanna know in regards to FFXI, is what the hell is it doing with all them ports? Look at this page. They want access to ports 25, 80 and 110 among others. Huh? Webpage and email servers? What gives?

Unnecessary & contrived to the point of annoya

[cryptochrome]

Am I the only person that wishes games/anime would cut back on the gratuitous fanservice? It makes gamers look bad. OK, it makes gamers look even more pathetic than they already do, especially when the wife/girlfriend/mom comes home. I watch that DOA commercial and I'm like "Dudes, get some lives, this is stupid." Kinda like how I felt every time Liv Tyler showed up in LOTR for her extremely padded scenes - is there a digital effect for "vaseline on the lense" or do they do it the old fashioned way?

Bouncing computer generated boobs can be titillating for all of about 15 minutes, then you've seen them from every worthwhile angle, and it's just silly. Unnecessary and contrived to the point of annoyance. At the very least, they could produce equivalent games for girls.

Will there be much killing?

[Not_Wiggins]

So I expose my nephews to the game, have them go out and murder their classmates and sue for millions to ala the GTA lawsuit? ;)

Video games... the witch hunt for the new century! 8P

desktop background goodness

[trmj]

Yep, just a bunch of Fanservice. Which I will now help. Here's that pic of Yuna in a nice desktop background size, for the masses:

1024x768

Re:desktop background goodness

[JayBlalock]

And here are a bunch more: http://www.animewallpapers.com/wallpapers/ffx2/ Having expressed my moral outrage, I can go back to a semi-meditative state of "mmmm... bouncccyyy..." ;-)

The CD ROM Killed the RPG

[TexVex]

Back in the day, when computers and consoles were 8- and 16-bit, and nobody would ever need more than 640K of RAM, and CD ROMs were a futuristic marvel that would allow you to store an entire encyclopedia on one third of a disc, RPGs rocked. With such limited resources on the available gaming platforms, game designers were forced to tell their story using this nifty trick called "gameplay".

Then cheaply duplicated mass storage hit the scene, and all of a sudden every RPG became a movie that requires the watcher to hit a button on the controller every now and then. Back in the day these games gave you a free-form feeling of being able to explore the world. Now, with the ubiquitous Cut Scene, the gameplay has to force you down a linear path, because the cut scenes have to play in order for the "game" to make any sense.

That's why I play RTS games, shooters, Diablo II, strategy games, and online poker today. "Play" a Final Fantasy game? Why, when I can just rent some anime and push "play" on my remote once?

Re:The CD ROM Killed the RPG

[cje]

I'm not sure this is entirely fair. It's true that FF7+ is heavy on FMV and animated cut-scenes, and some of them are tedious to sit through during repeated trips through the game (i.e., "Cloud's Past" in FF7.) However, there's a lot of shit to do in these games. I am currently replaying FF7 just for the hell of it, and I'm still finding things that I didn't know were there (case in point: this was the first run through the game that I discovered the Group Room in the Honey Bee Inn, and I rather wish that I hadn't.) You have two optional characters that you would probably miss on the first run through the game if you didn't know about them, lots of optional side-quests, and then other activities such as Chocobo raising (which gives you access to tons of hidden items and magic, such as the Knights of the Round materia.)

Gameplay doesn't necessarily have to suffer when cinematics are introduced. For example, the materia system in FF7 is probably the most interesting, customizable, and powerful features found in the series (and if you know what you're doing with it, you can make yourself obscenely powerful.) Some of the cinematics are distractions, but others actually add to the gameplay. I remember watching some of the FMV in FF7 for the first time in 1997, and my jaw literally dropped. It takes the player out of a pixellated 2-D world and puts them into a world that really feels alive. And there's something to be said for that.

Having said that, the cinematics can be overdone, as you note. FFX is probably the worst offender in this category. While the graphics, sound, and music were great, the sheer linearity of FFX shocked me. I had hoped that Square would harness the power of the PS2 to create a world that was at least as open as the world of FF7 was. Instead, they created a world where you really weren't free to travel at will until the end of the game, and even then you could only travel to certain spots on the world map .. no open overworld to explore! What's up with that?

Re:The CD ROM Killed the RPG

[PhoenixFlare]

Then cheaply duplicated mass storage hit the scene, and all of a sudden every RPG became a movie that requires the watcher to hit a button on the controller every now and then. Back in the day these games gave you a free-form feeling of being able to explore the world. Now, with the ubiquitous Cut Scene, the gameplay has to force you down a linear path, because the cut scenes have to play in order for the "game" to make any sense.

You're not playing the right games, or at least not any very good ones. Try (for example) the Arc the Lad collection, Legend of Mana, Final Fantasy Tactics, Chrono Cross, Lunar: Silver Star Story Complete, Lunar 2: Eternal Blue Complete, or Xenogears (replaces cut scenes with everlasting dialogue, though).

Tales of Symphonia and Final Fantasy: Crystal Chronicle should be quite good when they come out for the Gamecube later this year, as well. FF: CC looks to be very much like Secret of Mana, if you like that style.

Re:The CD ROM Killed the RPG

[brkello]

I think you suffer from "things aren't as good as they used to be" syndrome. Play Final Fantasy and compare it with FFX. Is the first one that much more fun to play? Not even close, there is so much less to do and experience. I think games are a lot more fun when you are younger, not that games have gotten worse. So you think game designers back then had to focus on gameplay because they had less space? Give me a break, they had plenty of space. They had less sophisticated grapics and music. But keep in mind that their graphics and sound were cutting edge at that time, so it was all about glitz and glamour for them too. Gah, but why should I bother saying anything, you think Diablo 2 is a good game when the whole thing is just a click fest. Hmm, should I left click or right click? The possibilities are endless.

Re:The CD ROM Killed the RPG

[saladpuncher]

I agree with you for the most part, but there is some good stuff out there.
For story try Planescape:Torment. Yes, they use CDs and play a few movies but the story is incredible (I consider it the best RPG plot ever made) and there is a lot to do. Let me repeat that: A LOT!
If you want a dungeon hack that just happens to have a story then grab Wizardry 8. Very complex game with over 11 races and 15 character classes.
There are quality RPGs being made...just not as often. After a while gamers will not be wowed anymore by pretty graphics and FMV and video game makers will have to return to gameplay.

Money/Upsetting the Fans

[ChibiTaryn]

FFVII is arguably the most popular of the FF series overall, although FFX has been the most popular recently. And cause it has so many fans, if it was done badly, it would piss a lot of people off, which is one of the reasons the Square-Enix guys stated.

The other is that FFVII uses what is now very old game data. It is not possible for Square-Enix to create a sequel to FFVII with the old game data; they'd have to start development from scratch. Which is expensive.

One of the deciding factors in the making of FFX-2 was the fact that they could use game data from FFX to make the game -- so in effect they were just adding some extra features to an existing Final Fantasy, rather than developing a new one from scratch. If it hadn't been possible to make the game "on the cheap" like that, I am not so sure they would've done it...

Re:Money/Upsetting the Fans

[Jenova]

Its a good thing they didnt do a sequel to FF7. It just wouldnt be right. The story was pretty much closed by the end of the game( Red13 looking down at a decaying Midgar City).

Dissapointed..

[attackiko]

When I saw the news I thought they were anouncing Final Fantasy 2 the movie.

You can imagine how dissapointed I am at this moment..

VII was cliche!?!

[porkchop_d_clown]

I'm sorry, I missed all the other games where the hero was actually a delusional second-rater who was blocking the memory of how big a loser he actually was, and who was secretly being baby sat by the woman who loved him (and knew the truth) while he wandered around mooning over another chick...

Re:VII was cliche!?!

[jellisky]

That part was original, yes... but it's pretty simple to draw the parallels between FFVII's plot and FFVI's plot, at least the basic ones. Disgruntled underling gets more and more powerful thanks to magical powers that he seeks out or gains and ends up wanting to start the world over as, essentially, its god. The vehicles getting to that point are different, yes, but FFVI did the basic premise better than FFVII.

The characters, though, were interesting in FFVII. That's why VII isn't that far behind VIII for me. 'Course, I've heard arguments that Cloud was just a re-packaged Locke, only taking the submissive role rather than the obsessive protective role. In fact, it's not too much of a stretch, if you ignore the setting and "occupation" of both, that Locke is nothing but Cloud, advanced about five to ten years.

-Jellisky

Re:VII was cliche!?!

[xenoandroid]

Yeah, I guess none of the character conditions in that game affected you at all, I bet you have that same reaction to real people who are in similar socal situations and that's sad. To tell you the truth, you still don't know wether he knew that Quistis loved him. Between his personality, her never being direct about it, it's quiet possible. Though I think if square put a memory sequence of Squall's with a conversation with Quistis that would give him more reason to expect her not to love him, then that would have at least smacked those who pay less attention to detail in the face with a man-eating fish.

Re:Madden?

[FunkSoulBrother]

Do YOU have a Regulation football field and equipment for a Football game?

The is a big difference between the gameplay in Madden 2004 and Six guys with a football at the park and no pads.

More than one Final Fantasy???

[lyberth]

How can there be more than one Final Fantasy?
Tell me how, please.
If the first Final Fantasy was the last and final then there couldnt have been a second, much less a 12th Final Fantasy.
If the second Final Fantasy is the final one, then the first one would not have been final...

Re:More than one Final Fantasy???

[wanderers_id]

Nonsense! It is the final fantasy for the cast of characters involved it it's story. FFX differs in the fact that it's Titus' story or Titus' final fantasy. Or even this: titus is the final fantasy of the fayth. FFX-2 is Yuna's "final fantasy".

Or you could go with the "it was the last option for a failing game producer in the eighties" option. It's just a name. And it sells.

You're not funny. Ass.

-Fanboy

On the othe side of the coin, what would you have called Final fantasy 2US, 3US, 7, 8, 9, and X respectivly?

Re:More than one Final Fantasy???

[Anonymous Coward]

Crystal Quest, MagiTek, Materia, Causality, ????, and Otherworld respectivly. And those names suck!

Re:More than one Final Fantasy???

[Anonymous Coward]

Different world every time - for each one it HAS been the final fantasy. This is the first true sequel - the first time they've done one in the same world.

Re:More than one Final Fantasy???

[mktong]

According to Wikipedia, Final Fantasy was named by Squaresoft head designer Hirobonu Sakaguchi, who intended to make the game his last for the company, which was in danger of bankruptcy at the time. It had no relation to the game's storyline.

X-2

[Exploded Fiber]

I have my copy reserved for December and I will play it to the last even if it turns out to be crap. I'm not the type of person to hate a game before I finish it or a least make a good attempt. However my one real concern is the talk that there will be no Aeons. I also think Yuna's Pistols are a bit 'Tacky'..... but I'll wait and see. If I'm disapointed with it you'll find me here on the day of its release bitching :)

DOA XBV + FFX = ?

[M3wThr33]

A cheap knock-off, plus a derivative title(FF8) of a derivative title(FF7) is hardly a perfect game. I'd say it's the ultimate rehash if anything.

And any relation to XBV automatically lowers my interest in the game by half because I detest crap-games that are mispromoted. If they called it DOA:Date Fantasy that would be another ball of wax.

my take

[wuice]

I can't RTFA as it is /.ed. I will say this though. The Final Fantasy franchise will win my heart back (it's been lost since 8) when they release a game where you have more than three people in a combat. I know VII only had 3 characters at a time active, but the awesome materia system and the great story made up for it. X was obnoxious because the bulk of gameplay seemed to revolve around juggling characters in and out and making sure everyone gets a hit.

Final Fantasy has lost a lot of the tactical flair that made it great. I think the storylines have gone to crap too but that's just a personal opinion.

Re:my take

[LordLucless]

Like Final Fantasy IX?

For Slashdot/FFX/Anime fans

[animenext]

If you happen to be a Slashdot reader who is also an Anime Fan or Final Fantasy Fan, you should check this event out: http://www.animenext.org October 3-5, 2003 in New York. Guests include CmdrTaco and James Arnold Taylor, voice of Tidus in FFX

Get a life.

[Anonymous Coward]

"I just wish it would come out before december since I just finished KotoR and need a new game."

There's a big world out there. Go out and use it.

Why this sequel is not a bad thing

[AdamHaun]

SPOILERS

(not like they'll hurt any more than the ending will)

FFX was a pretty good game, with decent story and voice acting. The gameplay was far less annoying than FFIX(30 seconds to start a battle? Come on!), and even the puzzles were interesting. I thought it was the best FF game since VII.

The ending, however, was a horrible horrible mistake that never should have been allowed to happen. Rather than stick with the workable format of previous games(produce an enemy character that eventually becomes the last boss), the FFX team decided that their final enemy should be a monstrous, inhuman force of nature. All well and good so far, but the plot "twists" near the end transformed this enemy from something to be feared to something to be laughed at. The last boss is a floating cockroach, with no personality or motivation. Couple that with a five minute long ending, and the entire game is shot.

A sequel will give Square a chance to pull an otherwise interesting story out of its own ashes.

Oh yeah, and fanservice. Some of that, too. :)

Re:Unnecessary & contrived to the point of ann

[Anonymous Coward]

I'm with you 95% on this one. Gratuitous fanservice bores me to death too, and I think overdoing it is a clear sign that the well of good ideas for gameplay has run dry (or the well of plot in the case of anime). Oh, I'll still buy it anyway because I am Square's b----, but I worry that it'll detract from the game.

However, I really don't think the solution is to produce equivalent games for girls. Oh, the horrors that my mind conjures at that suggestion! I don't even want to know what you'd have bouncing and waving around in the place of breasts!

Hey Now!

[Ultra64]

There is nothing "unnecessary" about sexualization.

Re:awesome

[u4eahh]

Sorry for the off-topic but wasn't Boromir son of Denethor

and umm Faramir being his brother?

I know that Boromir was also know as a son of Gondor.

Re:Madden?

[Anonymous Coward]

only on slashdot could this shit get modded up as funny - you fucking faggots are so sad. you know, being a fat pile of shit but being able to write C, does not make you cool - you're still going to have a heart attack. i, on the other hand, am a fuckload better than you because i know C and can kick the shit out of all of you. i spit on pasty little faggots like the majority of you.

here's a test: did you get laid in high school? if not, you're one of the faggots who i am going to beat the shit out of.

sssslaaaashdotted

[Anonymous Coward]

the websites down.. /. does it again

But what about the soundtrack=

[Kassiopeia]

The music in an FF has always been what's drawn me in, if all else fails. FF VIII for instance had some rock solid tracks which more than offset my slight dislike of the characters. Nonetheless, I have listened to the FFX-2 soundtrack, and let me tell you, it's total rubbish. Full of dull, boring techno-esque rhymes and melodies that are but a shadow of what the former games used to have. Granted, the fact that Nobuo Uematsu is retiring from composing means that quality is certain to change (FF IX already abused a single melody to the point of agony, FFX and FFXI have been tolerable), but I wasn't expecting for it to plummet like this. FFX-2 will have to have some serious redeeming qualities for me, for it will have the first FF soundtrack ever to make me hit the mute button on my remote, should I venture to buy a PS2 and the game.

Acronyms?

[Anonymous Coward]

FFX? DoA? KotoR? WTF?

Obligatory Simpson's Quote

[babyrat]

FINAL Fantasy X-2????

"this is the most blatant case of fraudulent advertising since my suit against the film, The NeverEnding Story."

Lionel Hutz
Attorney
I Can't Believe It's a Law Firm

FFX + DOAXBV = Best Game? Are you nutz!?

[illumina us]

Ok first of FFX has to be one of the very worst FF installments. The only reason I can see why people liked it was because it used voice acting and people didn't have to read. Yes, the sphere grid system was interesting, but it was just the interesting. The main character lead was more annoying than Cloud's inept personality. All the character in FFX were poorly developed and the gameplay was extremely linear. DOAXBV isn't even a good volley ball game. Most of the players are hormone driven teenage males. Hell, I'm one of them, but just because a game has cyber-babes doesn't mean it's a good game.

Disappointing IMHO

[Anonymous Coward]

Hah, it's funny to see everyone discussing this as though it were a new game, when I got this on the release date in Japan several months ago :-).

In short, it's not the worst Final Fantasy but, having liked FFX a lot and expecting more of the same, I was sorely disappointed by FFX-2. I'm not the only one: my friends in Japan have had similar comments, and I've noticed that the price of FFX-2 has shot down fast after its release in game stores, showing that the demand isn't meeting the supply. Today it actually sells for less than several-year-old FFX.

A lot of people are speculating as to why this is the first "real" sequel in the FF series. If you play the game you'll immediately see why. Shameless graphics re-use. FFX-2 uses the same engine as FFX, and the vast majority of terrain and monsters have been ripped right out of FFX. You are just revisiting the same old places again, in a different order. Some of the models for the bosses in FFX-2 are just ordinary monsters in the final dungeon of FFX! When you do see new graphics, they can be astonishingly low-quality compared to the re-used stuff. Some of the new caves are just blatant Wolfenstein-3d style rectangles with ugly brown textures linked together. It seems clear the budget was much lower for this game.

What characterization and drama FFX had is completely gone in FFX-2. The timid Yuuna has magically turned into a swashbuckling adventurer in a skimpy costume in the interval between the two games. Instead of genuinely good character design like FFX's stoic one-armed Auron, FFX-2 settles for cheap sexy costumes. And the plot is completely nonlinear and disjointed --- basically, "collect the spheres because Yuuna feels like it".

The battle system would be the high point of FFX-2. To my surprise, they decided not to re-use FFX's pure strategic turn-based system, and instead go for pure real-time. FFX-2's battle system is possibly the most fast and frantic of any FF, with features like Yuuna's "quick-trigger", where you have to slam L1 fast to machine-gun enemies. An FF5-type job system is back (now called "dress"es), without learnable abilities but with the twist that you can change job in mid-battle. Instead of summons, each character has a super job (Yuuna turns into a great big flower of doom in 3 parts with like 5x HP, Ryukku rides a robot), which is pretty neat, but so powerful it almost feels like cheating.

So, on its own FFX-2 is not really that bad --- the battle system is pretty neat --- but it frequently feels unpolished and lame. On the whole, it didn't have enough to keep my interest, so I eventually just stopped playing without finishing it. If you're a dedicated FF fan, get it, but don't expect another FFX.

GAMESPY, IGN, & GAMESPOT: 3 OF THE WORST...

[Anonymous Coward]

...So Called "Gaming" Sites On The Internet. If You Trust Those Places For Accurate Reviews May I Kindly Suggest That You Suck On My Penis And Gently Caress My Balls.

Beotch.

does X mean X-Rated

[Anonymous Coward]

It's a joke, but man the screen shots are getting kinda racy. they might as well just make it explicit, then they can call it FFX3.

Sci-Fi Fantasy

[Anonymous Coward]

Now why can't they make a sci-fi role playing game? It seems to me that all of the interesting (or even mildly interesting) sci-fi inspired video games are focused on the annihilation of "life forms".

Maybe they can even recruit Aki Roos, the starr of that unlamented box office flop.

One Word:

[Rocky]

PENANCE!

back in the day with NES FFI

[Anonymous Coward]

I found a fantastic game. I was also entertained by many of the later renditions but quickly grew tired of the repetitive characters, ideas, and terms. Had they been actual sequels and tied together then those things would be great. Instead, I just rolled my eyes and said "drive on."

One other thing many people mention on the various boards is about the decreasing character player control over development, direction, plot and story involvement (and "solving"). It seems more like a slightly interactive movie (with ultra-hokey love scenes and dour, dejected sociopathic lead characters).

Now, many people like this which then asks the question of, "Is it wise to change this pattern and risk alienation of those devoted fans?" Personally I greatly respect the FF "purity" in the sense that they stuck to their niche and didn't resort to the all too common game design tactic of (obviously) throwing in popular "mass market attracting" elements without a real care of balance and actual belonging of those elements. I don't find myself a fan of the modern FF renditions but nostalgia keeps me tuned just in case a real modernized version of the FFI ever comes about. However, I don't want to see any characters named Sid, anything about floating airships, nothing about crystals of magic/ether bound to certain spirits that have really overblown effects, and no more "stumbling" across the next great weapon, armour, loin cloth, ammo, etc that ONLY works for one character. I would like to see less of the item collection and more of the immersion and problem solving through multiple means (which means I don't want to see linear plots either).

Am I barking up the wrong tree? Would current FF fans rather peel off their own flesh than see those things that define the game as a modern FF be dropped?

SS made every freakin character try to be a badass

[UltimaL337Star]

I almost never hear anyone blam FFVI and I don't see why anyone would, it's probably one of the biggest favorites of the hardcore FF fans. One thing unique about it was that there was no one single main character that the story focused on. There were many characters all with their own story to explore in a literrally changing world. Every character had a somewhat deep history and being able to choose your whole party most of the time added a little to the "Make your own story" factor, sometimes you would get slightly different comments from people if you took certain characters with you. They really need another final fantasy like this, and even better, just games in general, have alot of characters that all have their part in the story, but no one character to RULE THEM ALL!

Super Mario Bros 3 Superplay

[Anonymous Coward]

http://www.emptylogic.com/suprnova/torrents/299/sm b3.torrent Bittorrent file for an amazing video of Super Mario Bros 3. It's pretty sweet, I'm spreading the .torrent link everywhere that I can.