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| Adventure, Romance, and Blitzball! |
Final Fantasy X was the tenth entry and the first full 3D game in the Final Fantasy series released for the PlayStation 2 released way back in 2001. A massive success, Final Fantasy X sold over $6.6 million copies worldwide on a $32.2 million dollar budget and spawned a direct sequel, the first ever for the series. Final Fantasy X was famously known for introducing voice acting and navigating through full 3D environments, both aspects new to the series. The game also abandoned the ATB (Active Time Battle) system of prior games to a "Conditional" turn-based one. Also, the leveling system was omitted for "Sphere Grid" system. Over the years Final Fantasy X was regarded as one of the PS2's signature RPGs and a decent installment in the series. In 2014, both Final Fantasy X and its sequel, Final Fantasy X-2, were remastered in HD by Shanghai-based studio, Virtuos for the PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Vita. In 2015 and 2016, it was released for the PlayStation 4 and Microsoft Windows, respectively. After recently finishing the long adventure, it's time for a review of one of Square's best games made, Final Fantasy X.
STORY- The plot follows Tidus, a Blitzball star who finds himself transported 1000 years into the future after a creature known as Sin destroyed homeland, Zanarkand. He wakes up in Spira, where he meets and accompanies Summoner Yuna, who is on a pilgrimage to destroy Sin. Along his journey, Tidus will visit new places and learn of many revelations of what happened to him and Zanarkand. Despite its super slow beginning, I found the story, which had a nice mix of romance, adventure, mystery to be engaging and kept me hooked till the end. The supporting cast was great as well. Auron, Rikku, Wakka were memorable and interesting characters.
GAMEPLAY- Final Fantasy X has you controlling Tidus from the third person perspective and navigating through mainly linear areas interacting with NPCs and doing side-quests. Like previous games, encounters with enemies are random and upon encountering them, you will be transported to the battle area where the meat of the game happens. The Active Time Battle system of previous games has been changed for a more traditional turn-based one. In battle, you can control up to three party members at once, however, you can swap any character by pressing the R1 button. The combat has a rock, paper, scissors style to it. Using his sword, Tidus can easily take out light enemies, Wakka can take out flying enemies using his Blitz ball, and Lulu can damage elemental-based enemies with magic. Upon taking set amount of damage, characters can access their "Overdrives", think of them as "Limit Breaks" from previous games. Overdrives can give characters an added boost by giving them access to more powerful techniques.
Battles take a shift when "Aeons" or summons are used. Aeons are magical creatures that Yuna obtains over the course of the story, though an additional three can be obtained via side-quests. Upon summoning an aeon, the party takes a seat back and let the aeon take care of the enemy. Aeons have their own special attributes such as HP, MP, strength and so on. Their attributes are highly influenced by Yuna's stats, so it's advised to level Yuna up throughout the journey.
Speaking of leveling, there's no such thing as that in FFX. The "Sphere Grid" is where you'll be upgrading your characters. Upon finishing a battle, you'll obtain experience which will give you AP (Ability Points) which will allow you to advance in the grid. At the start of the game, each character has their pre-determined path, however, using items such as Teleport Spheres can allow you to wrap to another section of the grid. For example, Auron is a powerful physical attacker, depending on your choice he can either be an additional healer or mage, or both! It's a flexible and engaging system that encourages you to try out different play-style for all of the cast.
There are various mini-games in FFX. The first one you'll notice in that awesome cut-scene in the beginning is Blitzball, the sport played all over Spira. To put it simply, Blitzball is a combination of water polo and football. Recruiting members, training them, and scoring shots is what makes Blitzball a fun distraction from the depressing doom that's floating all over Spira. Chocobo Racing has you attempting to beat challenges and races while using your own chocobo. Using specific weapons, You hunt for monsters and later battle them anytime in the Monster Arena, for a fee. There are also other small mini-games such as collecting a group of hidden cactuars, butterfly hunting, and lighting dodging for some reason.
Despite it being a fun and engaging adventure, Final Fantasy X has it's fair share of flaws. First of all, the cut-scenes can't be skipped. While it may sound like a minor complaint, it can get pretty annoying when a boss defeats you and your forced to wait through those often long cut-scenes to initiate the battle. Secondly, I wasn't a fan of the Cloister of trials sections of the game. Basically, the cloisters has you entering a chamber and solving puzzles by using sphere various spheres located inside. While it sounds straightforward, I found it too slow and often broke the pace of the game. Lastly, the battles can become monotonous since there's not much strategy other than the rock, paper, scissors one, but that could be just me though.
Despite it being a fun and engaging adventure, Final Fantasy X has it's fair share of flaws. First of all, the cut-scenes can't be skipped. While it may sound like a minor complaint, it can get pretty annoying when a boss defeats you and your forced to wait through those often long cut-scenes to initiate the battle. Secondly, I wasn't a fan of the Cloister of trials sections of the game. Basically, the cloisters has you entering a chamber and solving puzzles by using sphere various spheres located inside. While it sounds straightforward, I found it too slow and often broke the pace of the game. Lastly, the battles can become monotonous since there's not much strategy other than the rock, paper, scissors one, but that could be just me though.
PRESENTATION- For its time, Final Fantasy X boasted some lavish production values on the PS2 when it was shown in various trailers. While certain animations can be a bit stiff, the backgrounds and character models are both detailed and looking good for a PS2 game. Additionally, the full motion videos (FMV) scenes were super slick and complimented the game well. Virtuos' HD treatment gives the game an enhanced, modern look; it's more colorful and vibrant than before. As the first game in the series to feature voice acting I have to say, it's pretty good despite some awkward silent pauses during, it's not that bad as many would say. Moreover, the best aspect of the presentation is the soundtrack, which is stellar. While the new, arrangements are nice, nothing tops off the original tracks. Tracks such as "Prelude", "Otherworld", "Blitz off!", and "Spira Unplugged" were great to listen to and memorable. Long time composer Nobou Uematsu and fellow composers Junya Nakano and Masashi Hamauzu all did a terrific job on the soundtrack.
OVERALL- Final Fantasy X is one of the best Final Fantasy games made and is among my favorites as well. While it has its share of flaws, I found lots of enjoyment in the basic but fun gameplay, interesting narrative, and slick presentation. Those interested in exploring the world of Spira should definitely check out the HD remaster, which includes loads of new content for newcomers and veterans alike.
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