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X-Box and Game Cube put 2 shame....

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 6 / 14
Date: December 17, 2001
Author: Amazon User

First of all, let me start by saying that this is the BEST rpg EVER in the whole history of RPGs... the lush sceneries, the crisp sounds, the captivating characters, and the unforgettible graphics are really something that has not been found in many RPGs. When i was 9 or so, i had purchased a super NES.. i loved it.. so i followed in Nintendos footsteps, thinking that Nintendo ruled the gaming industry. Play Station came out, but i didnt care too much, cause i beleived in nintendo. of course all of my friends bought it because it was new. The very first chance i got to play final fantasy 7 i ran home and threw my NES into the trash. I begged my parents to buy me a PSX and Every Final Fantasy game that ever came out. Little did they know, there were going to be more than just 2 FF games! From that time on, i SPIT on X-box and Game Cube because it will never have true RPGs on it...... and now with FFX coming out, Microsoft and Nintendo will be slaughtered thanks to the best game series ever to hit the PSX and the PS2!

The longest movie currently on DVD

1 Rating: 1, Useful: 14 / 47
Date: January 04, 2002
Author: Amazon User

I have logged several hours "playing" this game, I threw in the game watched videos for 20 minutes, pushed the x button a couple times and did it all over again and again and again. This game looks great, but it is not 3d rendered it is pre-rendered cgi. All the fight scenes, video and everything is this game is not controlled by the player it is all pre recorded video. I have read hundreds of reviews of people who love this "game". I love PS2 and have waited over a year for this game, but am extremley disappointed there is NO game play at all, I have logged about 8 hours of play and the actual control time has be around 30 minutes the rest is watching "Lame Storyline Videos" I dont want to care about some caracter or his dead dad, or hope he hooks up with some chick in the end. I want to roam around a 3d world discovering secrets and PLAYING a video game. DONT WASTE YOUR TIME OR MONEY, get a video game like Metal Gear Solid or Devil May Cry. Yes the video looks nice but so does ToyStory 2

Perspectives from a Guy Who Never Plays Role Playing Games

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 5 / 11
Date: May 09, 2002
Author: Amazon User

I have never played a role playing game ever. The closest I came was Zelda on the Super Nintendo. When I think of role-playing games, I think of games designed for losers living in their mother's basement watching Star Trek reruns and playing Dungeons and Dragons. At some points of this game, I felt I was way off, and some points I thought I was right. Everyone said this is one of the greatest games ever created, so I had to at least play it before dismissing it to the realms of geeks and nerds.

This game is gorgeous, long, annoying, yet ultimately rewarding. At some points of the game, I wanted to throw this game away, while at other points I wanted to play it non-stop. Throughout this game I wondered why I bothered buying it, and other times I wondered why I hated earlier.

The first thing people notice is that in the beginning and throughout many places, this game represents more of an interactive movie than a game. The first two hours consist of like 10 minutes of game play. I initially hated this game. The scenes seemed garish, puzzling, and long, and worst of all, could not be skipped. You have to watch all the movies, no X-button skip here. Then about five hours into it, when the game play showed itself, and my eyes grew accustomed to the garish Japanese anime type movies, I started to slowing get engrossed in it. After a while, I got annoyed when the movies started to become less frequent. The puzzling story and environment slowly becomes unraveled, along with the histories of the characters. What ensues is an engrossing, lavish, spectacular story full of good twists and animations. One of the main pluses is that it takes places on a group of lush tropical islands, instead of the depressing typical dungeons and/or medieval town that I associate with RPGs. The only thing that annoyed me was the somewhat ambiguous ending. I played this game for a long time - I wanted a concrete ending that was worth my time.

What makes this game enjoyable is the lush tropical surroundings and imaginative characters. The scenery itself is worth the price of the game. The backgrounds are spectacular and really shows what a game could do. One major gripe I had was the Japanese anime stuff, especially the females. It seems like they were designed by frustrated perverts who flunked out of art school. It's embarrassing having someone walking in while I'm playing this game. They could have dressed the girls in a more conservative costume, and made some of them not speak like junior high school dropouts.

The fighting sequences are the meat of the game. Though monotonous at some points, it's still pretty good for what it is. It's turn-based, which seems almost sacrilegious to me, but after I while I really started to appreciate the use of strategy involved. The fact that the fights are really won by good reasoning as opposed to a quick thumb is pretty cool. Though some of the bosses are pretty hard, with help from the internet, I never had to fight a boss more than three times.

What was really enjoyable was that it took into account one thing that hardly any other game does - fair progression. If you work hard and fight all the monsters in the beginning, it pays off in the end. Though some bosses seemed impossible, the fact that you progressed steadily, along with the continuos learning of the gameplay nuances, really comes out. Many games start out easy, with the only way to win at the end is to go through some cheap trick, cheat, or pass some impossible jump. This doesn't rely on that annoying formula at. Also, when bosses seem impossible, going to the internet can offer many hints on the bosses weaknesses and strengths, and can aid you, but not win it for you.

Unfortunately, this game has many flaws. The most noticeable is you can't save it any point in the game. Since you don't know when you?ll be able to save it, you don't know if you can go to sleep within a few minutes, or within an hour. I really hate that. My schedule is sometimes tight. I don't want to block out a two hours of my time and only play for ten minutes.

Another thing is that it's just way too long for a normal game. I've got a job. This is not the type of exciting game that can be played for ten hours straight. If you play for an hour every night, it would take two months to pass this game. I have a job and a life. If I didn't have an injury that kept me indoors, I would have never finished this game.

One thing that annoyed me was that you'd have to talk to someone or walk into a room for the game to continue, and many times the game won't say what to do. It's a minor annoyance, but really got on my nerves since I spent time unrelated to the gameplay or movie.

The last gripe I have is that the game also tries to incorporate other things into it. Most notably puzzles and blitzball. The puzzles are dull and boring and don't fit into the game. Unfortunately, you have to go through them to continue. Blitzball is terrible. It's some futuristic turn-based made up game that is just plain stupid. A turn-based sport is pretty lame by itself. A made up game is even worse.

Did I enjoy this game? Yes, very much so. Would I play it again? Not on your life. Would I get the next game in the series? No way. This game is not a mainstream game, and it shows. Too long and too weird for most people's taste. Unless Final Fantasy 11 is more in tune with the average gamer, Squaresoft will still be bleeding money.

Pros:
Gorgeous - bright and imaginative
Long story is gripping, actually worth it.
Progression is fair - no cheap tricks or cheats required
Extremely polished, professional

Cons:
Puzzles are worthless
It's really too long of a game
Newbies struggle for a little while
Blitzball is the lamest thing on earth
The females should be better represented
Can't save at any point
Ambiguous ending
Not designed for normal gamers

Hours to pass: 60-70 hours

Difficulty: Medium to Hard

Annoyance Level: High

The worst RPG ever made? Probably not, but close...

2 Rating: 2, Useful: 5 / 11
Date: March 11, 2005
Author: Amazon User

Wow, was this game a waste of time. Watching my brother play it, I didn't think it looked all that great, but the music was catchy and the battle system looked interesting so I bought it...

WHAT A MISTAKE THAT WAS...

...Well, the music is allright at times, but only at few certain times. Most of the time it is standard at best, and that's the games high point, along with graphics of course.
I won't lie, the graphics are great, but who cares about graphics in an RPG? I dont... The storyline was where the horror all started...Blitzball? Please...couldn't they have come up with anything better? This game is a prime example that SquareSoft (now "Square Enix") is horribly running out of ideas and is seeking the road of desperation. Surprisingly, this game is made by the team who made 8, which is amazing. I mean, 8 is my favorite FF game next to 6, and I cant believe that team made such a horrid RPG. Sure, there are similarities, such as realistic characters and a story that is more involving of the characters themselves, but come'n, FFX is a tragedy. The worst part of the game, the part that killed it for me, was the Sphere Grid. Oh man, where do I start? Basically, you sit there for long periods of time moving a cursor around this big dark grey/blue "sphere grid". It is incredibly boring, making you constantly click on different "nodes" and move there, and then use certain items to gain abilities. And what happened to leveling up? I guess the geniuses decided to take that out as well. It is really pointless, because now EXP is taken place by AP, which is a substitute in disguise. Battling seems much more tedious now, and you never truly feel that your characters are getting better, especially when you consider how long it takes to master this game. The sphere grid is just TOO big, and too boring. If I wanted to be bored I would play Mist or Halo, or some other computer game. It was cool to be able to play as summons, I will give them that, but when its better playing as a summon than the actual character you know something has got to be wrong...Just avoid this game at all costs, unless you want to waste a bunch of your life moving a cursor around a sphere grid...

How can you call this garbage a "game"?

1 Rating: 1, Useful: 8 / 23
Date: January 10, 2002
Author: Amazon User

This is possibly the worst game I have ever played (and we're talking going all the was back to the Atari 2600). There is nothing in this cheesy after-school-special movie that even resembles a game.

Don't get me wrong, the graphics are excellent. However, the graphics get boring after about 5 minutes of "gameplay" and there is absolutely nothing to support this "game" after that. I don't understand how you can have two hours of some kid looking startled by every sound and call it a story.

I have played this game for about 2 hours and have absolutely no desire to play it any longer. If I wanted to look at pretty scenery for 40 hours I'd sit through "Dances with Wolves" 13 times, it's just about as interactive.

Defintely One of the Best Final Fantasy Games

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 2 / 2
Date: December 26, 2001
Author: Amazon User

Squaresoft is known mostly for their work on the Final Fantasy series, which has just come to the Playstation 2 in North America. Square has shown that it's on top, and has superiority over the mass market once again.

Well, here's the breakdown:

Graphics: This game is probably the most appealing visually. It's not prerendered, as FF7-FF9 were. The colors are rich, it's not all dark, environments have been so well done that it is truly amazing. For those of you who have played previous FF games, mainly on the PSX, you either got great out of battle graphics, and rough in battle ones, or vice versa. X has ensured that you'll get the same effect throughout the game.

Controls: Don't really need to say anything here. Controls are simple, easy, and don't require need much hand-eye coordination to get through. Vibration function makes the experience a lot better.

Music: Hmmm...There are not too many memorable songs, yes there are a couple that stand out, but most are just above average. (For those of you who don't know, Square is known for great music)

Plot: In general it's not that much new, defeat the guy who's trying to destroy the world, but new twists have been added, which will make it much different than one would think. All the characters are well developed and unique, and the story stays true to the focus. There is, as always, the romance, comedy, intrigue, that makes RPG's what they are.

Battle System: Excellent. One word. Traditional levels gained by experience points are no more. Instead, you win AP (Ability Points) at the end of battles, which you can use on the "Sphere Grid" the way that you can improve statistics for characters.
Characters can be switched in the middle of battle, without using a turn, and since the game is now using CTB (Conditional Turn Based) as opposed to ATB (Active Time Based) it will involve more strategy. i.e. turns are decided by speed, and the more speed, the quicker someone can recover from attacking and get another turn. (turn being chance to attack) The best part of all is that there isn't so much of a focus on leveling up.

Miscellaneous: For here, I'll just put mini games. There are quite a few of these, optional boss fights, items, etc. but a couple are very challenging, patience is a requirement is you like getting everything.

I do have a few disputes however. To begin, some fights can be overly challenging, Square went without mercy more than once on this project. Secondly, the traditional world map is gone. The way it was done is really good, but it's tough to get used to not having one.

It should also be known that since this game is RPG, it usually only has the lasting appeal on those who like those types of games. Even so, this game is defintely worth trying at the very least.

where is the game

2 Rating: 2, Useful: 4 / 8
Date: February 20, 2002
Author: Amazon User

I don't know what I am mising but I am about 5 hours into the game. and I am still waiting to play a game, This is more like watching a movie and having to press the x button a couple of times just to keep things rolling. The fight scenes are just thrown into the game and seem more like an interuption than an addition to the game.The gameplay is as follows I wander around a predetermined path with no options for adventure at all and press the x button a few times when a battle screen appears randomly on the screen. no gameplay/skill involved. the only reason I gave it 2 stars was because it is very pretty with excellent graphics, but lets face it pretty doesn't make for a great game and I think the Final fantasy crew spent too much time on the cut-scenes and graphics of this game and no time on gameplay. save your money, If someone sent me a video tape of them playing the game I would get the same level of satisfaction from watching the tape as playing the game myself thats how much control I feel like I have in my surroundings.

What a great game!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 2 / 2
Date: December 24, 2001
Author: Amazon User

I just got this game and I have been playing it like crazy. This game is simply amazing. I love how fast-paced it is and the voices are great. It gives the game the feel of a great movie. I also like the talking during battles, it makes the game seem more real(who would fight in silence?) The graphics are amazing, and no I don't miss the world map. You get to explore the world later in the game. The game has an objective and that objective is to explore the temples around the world. That is why the characters can't wander around freely on the world map at first. One of the biggest changes I noticed was how hard the little map battles are! I died twice fighting three little enemies! This game really forces you to use all of your characters and not pick a favorite. All other enemies are about as difficult as other FF games. The music for this game is also awesome!!!!!!!! What a great game!!! Squaresoft has really done a wonderful job with this one and it will make my Christmas even better.

Couldn't put it down!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 2 / 2
Date: January 24, 2007
Author: Amazon User

I actually have about 3 other games for the PS2, and 5 for PS1 that I'm playing on this thanks to having memory cards of both types. So far no problems with the system which I got for Christmas, though PS2 does have a reputation for a few bugs. But rather than play those other games, for the last few days straight whenever I put in a game it ends up being this game?

Why? Well... it has nonstandard level up system, you can fight in an arena (not a new idea, but they actually allow the entire party to fight, not under handicap, against enemies caught yourself), you customize aeons and weapons yourself, the plot is engaging, and the bosses require strategy beyond "this enemy is weak to fire" (though some of them have simple strategies, they are often nonstandard such as one battle requires you provoke an enemy and then all its attacks give damage equal to 1/2 hp). Honestly, I first tried this game checking out from the video store, but ultimately I bought it a week later.

Now for the cons: the encounter rate is too high, the levels needed are too extreme, and some of the key spheres are rare. That's about it.

Breath-taking graphics

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 2 / 2
Date: January 04, 2004
Author: Amazon User

I'm not your typical gamer - in fact, Final Fantasy is just about the only thing you'll ever see me put into PS2. But there is just something about the Final Fantasy games that's got me hooked. I don't know if it's the amazing graphics and movie-like story lines, or the Japanese Anime style that I love so much, but I know that I'm as hooked to the story and as dedicated to saving Spire from Sin as Tidus is.

I have not played all the previous FF games - only one or two - but what struck me about this game is the new layout and development of it. In previous games, I often found it hard to keep track of what I had to do or where I was supposed to be going, and some of the side-games drove me insane. Here, the story is somewhat more linear, with a neat little red arrow showing you the way ... don't follow it too fast though, or you'll miss out on some key stuff as I found out later from a walk-through website.

As with all such games, you really need to be an expert to enjoy it to its fullest. I made a couple of very basic, and very stupid mistakes in the game that have cost me part of my character's development or building up weapons efficiently, and without going back to the beginning, I doubt that I can ever catch up enough to end the game succesfully. I've been playing nearly 60 hours and am still only about 3/4 of the way through (a previous reviewer finished the game in under 30 hours, which I find mind-blowing!).

What I particularly like about the game: the aeons, swimming/blitzball, the Al Bhed dictionary (you don't need all the primers, it's pretty easy to figure most of what they say out), the voice overs (fantastic! just like Japanese Anime cartoons), and, of course, all the different characters and their skills. And the movie bits with the breathtaking graphics provide a nice interlude that allows you to rest your eyes for a bit. What's particularly neat is the Sphere Grid which allows you to build up your characters in a particular way; it's also pretty annoying, however, as it has locks on it in places, and I don't seem to be getting hold of many of those locks, or indeed any of the super power weapons!

What's not so great about this game: the fact that I'm constantly back on the internet to refer to the walkthrough in order to make it through the game. The temples are particulary annoying, because you keep running back and forth to move spheres around and sometimes you can't clearly see the recepticles. I also agree with a previous reviewer that there are rather too many battles - you need to do a lot, to build up characters. I'd prefer fewer battles that gained more points and were harder to win. I also wish there'd be more save points. Sometimes I've had to continue playing at least 30 minutes to hit the next save point - not great if you have other things to do, and actually puts me off playing unless I really have a good couple of hours free.

In the end, I cannot but give this game five stars. It supercedes just about any other game out there (in my mind) for entertainment, strategy and interesting play. If only I'd get a hint now and again from the game itself to, say, deathproof one of Yuna's items ... well, then, that would be perfection.

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