Old School Gamers: Your opinion of FFX?

I enjoyed FFX, and I have played all the way through and gotten all of the special weapons on three seperate occasions. The story, once you really decipher it, is probably the best and most satisfying out of any Final Fantasy story. What I love most is that Spira feels like a real place, with real people, and a real culture and real history all its own, not just another nameless, faceless Final Fantasy world that serves no purpose other than to give the characters something to walk around on. Really, the world of Spira and its history are inseparable from the story and gameplay. This has never happened in any other FF game that I have played, and that is why I love FFX.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spira_%...l_Fantasy_X%29

An article like that could never be written about any other Final Fantasy game.

Jam it back in, in the dark.

I loved FFX's battle system. It was sort of like FFT as far as the manner in which the time between your turn and the enemies turns are decided. Plus, you could actually sit and plan without being attacked. I liked the Sphere grid too. The story rocks, and most of the voices other than Tidus' and Yuna's were good.

There's nowhere I can't reach.

Once I found out that FFX-2's battle system is active time on crack and steroids, I decided that I would never play it. Enemies can even interrupt your attack if they attack at the same time you do. What kind of crap is that?

Conditional Turn-Based Battle for life.

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

Are you talking about Yu Yevon? Because that's just about the easiest boss ever.

I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?

Did you cast reflect on him?

I was speaking idiomatically.

Originally Posted by Forsety

I think it's pretty obvious the "last boss" is Sin, not Yu Yevon. It's the same as Xenogears, are you going to sit here and tell me that Urobolus was the last boss? No, it was Deus, they just threw that in for plot purposes. Impossible to lose boss fights are not really boss fights, just awkward story sequences in the form of combat imo.

You mean Jecht, correct?

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?

Originally Posted by Forsety

Same thing. Was it really necessary to clarify that? =P

Yes, because there is a battle with Sin on the outside just before that. The other battle is with Jecht personally.

How ya doing, buddy?

Originally Posted by SILBER-4

No, I didn't think of that, but instead I got all the Aeons to overdrive, as well as Yuna, and summoned each Aeon out one after the other to unleash their payload.

Hehe. Just cast reflect on him and he will heal your entire party when he uses Curaga.

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"Braska's Final Aeon".

That's what I thought. Just had to be sure though. "Braska's Final Aeon" means just that. Jecht became Lord Braska's Final Aeon, so that Sin could be defeated. That boss is Jecht's final Aeon form.

What, you don't want my bikini-clad body?

Originally Posted by Kostaki

Sure, I'll explain. People continually say they "loved FFX battle system" which is absolutely hilarious. The battle system is nothing more than the same generic battle system with a tag implementation that's already been done in several other RPGs, such as Dragon Quest IV.

Almost the entire timing structure of FFX's battle system was taken from Final Fantasy Tactics. The only real difference is that in FFX, you're not running around on a grid.

Originally Posted by Wikipedia

At its most basic, CTB is a turn-based system which does not operate in rounds. That is, though each character's turn is atomic, the order of the turns does not guarantee that each participant in a battle will have an equal number of turns. Characters with higher speed will be able to take more turns than slower characters, thus making speed much more important than in other turn-based battle systems. Furthermore, spells and abilities can modify the turn order (called the Act List), as some abilities require a longer cool down time. In general, weaker abilities tend to require less cool down time, thus introducing a trade-off between speed and power.

The system is distinguished from Square Enix's Active Time Battle system by the fact that when a character's turn begins, all action stops while the player decides upon an action. This shifts the focus from reflexes and quick decision-making to strategy and careful planning.

Final Fantasy X featured an augmented CTB system, allowing the player to substitute characters while in the middle of a battle (the "party interchange system".[1])

Basically, the difference between ATB and CTB is like the difference between dodgeball and chess. I prefer chess.

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Final Fantasy X-2 on the other hand, was pure chaotic bliss. You were not handed aeons to sacrifice.

Or hell, depending on how you view it. Honestly, I hardly ever even used my aeons. This is probably because I actually spent time levelling up my characters.

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You were not handed "turn orders" so you could basically sit there and decide what you wanted to do next with your Yuna turn 5 turns later.

Yes, God forbid we'd want to plan ahead and use strategy. Not everybody prefers harsh, panicky, think-on-your-feet style battling.

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It was fast paced, it was challenging, and it was brutal, the way playing a "game" is supposed to be.

Says who? I hope you never play any tactical RPGs.

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People call the plot of FFX-2 a joke. This is acceptable, considering it had to basically pick up the shitty pieces of and patch an already existing convoluted and monotonous story. It did quite well too. Of course, the entire plot as a whole between the two games blows, but what can you do?

Anyone who thinks the plot of FFX is bad clearly was not paying attention. But then again, I can't blame you, the execution wasn't the best and many of the plot pieces are never explained directly. If you're opening minded and willing to do some actual research, you'll find that FFX has a wonderful plot, one of the best, IMO.

Jam it back in, in the dark.

Originally Posted by Kostaki

I wouldn't worry about what I have and haven't played. I have more than enough experience to back up whatever I say.

As do I.

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Where you think you're getting that FFT's system had anything to do with FFX's system is beyond me. I don't particularly care where however, so let's move on.

From Wikipedia, and from my own experience. All conditional time battle systems are related to each other in one way or another. FFT uses an isometric grid to fight on, and FFX uses a field, but much of the programming behind how the flow of the battle works and how the batte mechanics function is very similar.

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The sole purpose of a challenging system is to never give the player too much information as to basically let the game tell you how to react. Every battle in the game is easily won because FFX divulges too much information, and allows you easy mode through tagging and aeon sacrifice.

Perhaps for you, but not for me. The only reason I tag out is to equally level up every character, and I never really used my aeons unless all of my other characters somehow died, or it was absolutely required. Many of the non-random battles in FFX were extremely challenging. On my first playthrough, I died many, many times fighting Evrae and Yunalesca, among others, until I planned out a strategy, implemented it, and won. (By the skin of my teeth, no less.)

Sure, the random battles were easy, (well, most of them) but I don't really care about that. They are a tool to level up with, not something to enjoy or add to the game's value or difficulty.

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I've played all the tactical RPGs I need to and then some. More than enough to make the statements I am. Every played through Suikoden V's tactical battles where the entire map is moving at once? That's what games like FFT and Disgaea are missing.

I've never played any Suikoden games, sadly.

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You're entitled to your opinion about FFX's story. Of course, you say you want me to be "open-minded" while I sit here and claim that FFX-2 is a good game. Saying that FFX's plot was "one of the best" is really treading thin ice though, considering all the games that have been made and released over the many decades.

I've put a tremendous amount of research into Final Fantasy X's story, and have even written and contributed to Wikipedia articles about it, and knowing what I know, I find it to be one of the best indeed. Perhaps you are thinking more about the execution of the story in-game, I am thinking more about the backstory and the information concerning how things got the way they are. It is all very interesting and well thought out, one of the most satisfying plots of any Final Fantasy game.

There's nowhere I can't reach.

Originally Posted by Kostaki

I usually don't dwelve that far deep, and simply compare the systems as they are. Since you've drawn that comparison, I'll agree to your point that FFX takes on a "board game" SRPG feel. Regardless, like the tactical systems, it becomes dry and stale quickly. Such allure makes sense in present day games where you can create units and level them up at your beck and call, but not for games with pre-determined characters.

Such made sense and was fun in simpler times with games such as Shining Force, Vandal Hearts, Final Fantasy Tactics, and the like. Doesn't anymore, though.

I guess it's just a matter of preference then. I personally will always prefer a slower, turn-based battle system to an active one, in any game.

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All battles can be easily won through the use of cheap tactics, even the ones you've outlined. If you didn't use them, congratulations on not taking the easy way out; however I do not believe that everyone else thought as you did.

My cheap tactic for Yunalesca was to leave all of my characters in zombie mode. I never figured out anything cheap for the wyvern.

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As much as I'd love to salute you for your approach in doing all that research, it's simply unnecessary for a game like that.

It kind of is. There are a lot of things about the story that are only revealed in untranslated Japanese guidebooks. Things that are never mentioned or even hinted at in-game.

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If you were to put something like Final Fantasy X side by side with Xenogears, which somewhat constitutes the same story derivative, Xenogears shatters the unholy hell out of FFX and it wasn't even completed properly. I assure you that I am thinking of all measures of the implementation of the story. There's only so much "history" you can absolve from Final Fantasy X both in mechanic and execution.

I truly don't doubt this. But Spira is still a world rich with culture and history, the reason I keep coming back to FFX at least once a year.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spira_%...l_Fantasy_X%29

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One should not have to do "tremendous amounts of research" in order to be able to grasp deep meaning in a game's storyline. It is commendable, but hardly need be mandatory.

Yeah, all of the proper information should have been revealed.

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.