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Engrossing, poetic, epic and Deja vu: four words that describe Final Fantasy IX perfectly. It has all the hallmarks of a great game, terrific presentation, great story, a ton of stuff to see and do and the undoubted potential to take over your life.
You might think that this was a sequel, number nine in fact, but you'd be wrong. It's actually part of a series, a series where every game is a separate Fantasy, a self-contained adventure where the characters and the story are totally different from one instalment to the next. Or at least that's the idea. In reality, every Final Fantasy game is almost exactly the same. Here's the formula: make the lead character a young boy with problems - either he doesn't know who he is or he's misunderstood by his peers (usually both). Then you need a love interest: a princess (or someone important) is always good but she doesn't fancy the lead character (or at least she doesn't admit it) until the love triangle is introduced. This involves another female character that worships the lead character and makes the princess realise her true feelings. Set all this against a background of saving the world from certain destruction and you've got yourself a Final Fantasy game.
And so it goes with Final Fantasy IX. The young boy in question is a guy called Zidane (his real parents rejected him), the princess is called Garnet (she's not a real princes) and together you have to save the world from the ever-so-slightly effeminate but deeply evil Kuja, your archetypal villain on a massive power trip. Naturally this doesn't happen straight away - if it did the game would be over in a few hours rather than the 60+ that it took me to complete. Instead, the plot meanders from place to place and from situation to situation - this enables each of the games characters to go on a journey of discovery and sort their problems out. So, if you've played any of the other Final Fantasy games you will get the definite feeling of
Deja vu.
This isn't necessarily a bad thing; it just depends largely on if you manage to empathise with the characters. Fortunately, this is made pretty easy by some good Japanese character design. It's hard not to like Zidane the thief (he's also a boy monkey) and his compatriots like Vivi the black mage, and Steiner the dedicated misunderstood knight. The excellent translation avoids the trap that most Japanese games full into when they come over here, namely laughably literal translation. This helps enormously to convey emotion and character without any speech and it even manages to be funny at times. It's not Shakespeare, but rather an entertaining comic-style story with character's emotions represented in a rather simple, but attractive, manner.
Looks-wise, Final Fantasy IX eschews the two previous games cyber punk style in favour of something more traditional, like a tolkien novel. Gone are the laser guns and the spaceships and in their place are magical castles, flying ships and silver dragons. And it does look good. In fact it looks absolutely stunning – paintings rather than the usual computer-generated backgrounds have been used and the cut-scene footage is quite incredible. This is rather handy because if you want to be pedantic about the whole thing, there isn’t much of a game in here. Like the other two games Final Fantasy IX is more interactive movie than game and as such has a very linear structure. Thankfully there are a number of side plots that you explore if and when you feel the need of a break from the main game.
If you haven’t played one of the Final Fantasy games before, then they work like this. There are two main parts to the gameplay: the story parts and the fighting parts. In the story parts you generally explore towns, cities, woods, temples and anything else that can be explored, you also have to solve puzzles and talk to the local inhabitants. It’s all good fun. Then there are the fighting bits or “active time battles” as Developers Square like to call it. Here the game cuts into a battle scene, your team against the attacker. Each team member (you can have up to four) has a time bar. When this reaches the top you can do a move: attack with a weapon, cast a spell or use an item.
Compared to the over-complicated system in FFVIII, this is much easier to use and understand. Each character has different specialties: Zidane's a thief and the only character who can steal objects from enemies. Vivi ia a mage (a dark wizard) and the only character that can cast attacking magic such as fire spells. Garnet, being a 'good' mage can cast white magic such as cure to heal your team. In previous games, all characters could use magic and any skill could be equipped to anyone, but FFIX's specialised characters makes team selection much more tactical.
Another noticable difference is a change to the use of guardian forces or Eidolons as they are now known. These are huge spells that call up giant and powerful gods to do your dirty work. In FFIX they are less powerful (but you can call on them as much as you like during battle) and the animations are mercifully shorter. Also, you don't get to use these until well into the second disc, forcing you to learn how to use the other magic properly, and saving some of the best visual treats for later.
However, the random battles (every 30 seconds or so you'll get into a fight) that plagued every other FF game are still in place. They serve the important function of building up characters' experience in learning new abilities and increasing their health and magical powrs. But, in reality, they're just plain annoying - especially when you're trying to explore an area for the first time or just to go from A to B. This problem is alleviated somewhat later in the game with the introduction of various vehicles to get you around the sprawling world of FFIX, but it's still irritating.
But if you can put up with this, then FFIX is a great, without an equal on the playstation in terms of role-playing games - except for maybe FFVII. The story is gripping and has more twists and turns than spaghetti, the characters are great and it's one massive, seamless adventure. Playing through the game will take nigh on 60 hours, but if you want to find all the hidden extras and bonus games then you're looking at 100 hours of gameplay. This game has enough in it to have even gamers who aren't RPG fans sitting on the edge of there seats.
VERDICT
-------
Hugely enjoyable, amazing visuals, Final Fantasy IX is an epic adventure that will take a lot of enjoyable weeks to master. One of the best looking playstation games ever.
You might think that this was a sequel, number nine in fact, but you'd be wrong. It's actually part of a series, a series where every game is a separate Fantasy, a self-contained adventure where the characters and the story are totally different from one instalment to the next. Or at least that's the idea. In reality, every Final Fantasy game is almost exactly the same. Here's the formula: make the lead character a young boy with problems - either he doesn't know who he is or he's misunderstood by his peers (usually both). Then you need a love interest: a princess (or someone important) is always good but she doesn't fancy the lead character (or at least she doesn't admit it) until the love triangle is introduced. This involves another female character that worships the lead character and makes the princess realise her true feelings. Set all this against a background of saving the world from certain destruction and you've got yourself a Final Fantasy game.
And so it goes with Final Fantasy IX. The young boy in question is a guy called Zidane (his real parents rejected him), the princess is called Garnet (she's not a real princes) and together you have to save the world from the ever-so-slightly effeminate but deeply evil Kuja, your archetypal villain on a massive power trip. Naturally this doesn't happen straight away - if it did the game would be over in a few hours rather than the 60+ that it took me to complete. Instead, the plot meanders from place to place and from situation to situation - this enables each of the games characters to go on a journey of discovery and sort their problems out. So, if you've played any of the other Final Fantasy games you will get the definite feeling of
Deja vu.
This isn't necessarily a bad thing; it just depends largely on if you manage to empathise with the characters. Fortunately, this is made pretty easy by some good Japanese character design. It's hard not to like Zidane the thief (he's also a boy monkey) and his compatriots like Vivi the black mage, and Steiner the dedicated misunderstood knight. The excellent translation avoids the trap that most Japanese games full into when they come over here, namely laughably literal translation. This helps enormously to convey emotion and character without any speech and it even manages to be funny at times. It's not Shakespeare, but rather an entertaining comic-style story with character's emotions represented in a rather simple, but attractive, manner.
Looks-wise, Final Fantasy IX eschews the two previous games cyber punk style in favour of something more traditional, like a tolkien novel. Gone are the laser guns and the spaceships and in their place are magical castles, flying ships and silver dragons. And it does look good. In fact it looks absolutely stunning – paintings rather than the usual computer-generated backgrounds have been used and the cut-scene footage is quite incredible. This is rather handy because if you want to be pedantic about the whole thing, there isn’t much of a game in here. Like the other two games Final Fantasy IX is more interactive movie than game and as such has a very linear structure. Thankfully there are a number of side plots that you explore if and when you feel the need of a break from the main game.
If you haven’t played one of the Final Fantasy games before, then they work like this. There are two main parts to the gameplay: the story parts and the fighting parts. In the story parts you generally explore towns, cities, woods, temples and anything else that can be explored, you also have to solve puzzles and talk to the local inhabitants. It’s all good fun. Then there are the fighting bits or “active time battles” as Developers Square like to call it. Here the game cuts into a battle scene, your team against the attacker. Each team member (you can have up to four) has a time bar. When this reaches the top you can do a move: attack with a weapon, cast a spell or use an item.
Compared to the over-complicated system in FFVIII, this is much easier to use and understand. Each character has different specialties: Zidane's a thief and the only character who can steal objects from enemies. Vivi ia a mage (a dark wizard) and the only character that can cast attacking magic such as fire spells. Garnet, being a 'good' mage can cast white magic such as cure to heal your team. In previous games, all characters could use magic and any skill could be equipped to anyone, but FFIX's specialised characters makes team selection much more tactical.
Another noticable difference is a change to the use of guardian forces or Eidolons as they are now known. These are huge spells that call up giant and powerful gods to do your dirty work. In FFIX they are less powerful (but you can call on them as much as you like during battle) and the animations are mercifully shorter. Also, you don't get to use these until well into the second disc, forcing you to learn how to use the other magic properly, and saving some of the best visual treats for later.
However, the random battles (every 30 seconds or so you'll get into a fight) that plagued every other FF game are still in place. They serve the important function of building up characters' experience in learning new abilities and increasing their health and magical powrs. But, in reality, they're just plain annoying - especially when you're trying to explore an area for the first time or just to go from A to B. This problem is alleviated somewhat later in the game with the introduction of various vehicles to get you around the sprawling world of FFIX, but it's still irritating.
But if you can put up with this, then FFIX is a great, without an equal on the playstation in terms of role-playing games - except for maybe FFVII. The story is gripping and has more twists and turns than spaghetti, the characters are great and it's one massive, seamless adventure. Playing through the game will take nigh on 60 hours, but if you want to find all the hidden extras and bonus games then you're looking at 100 hours of gameplay. This game has enough in it to have even gamers who aren't RPG fans sitting on the edge of there seats.
VERDICT
-------
Hugely enjoyable, amazing visuals, Final Fantasy IX is an epic adventure that will take a lot of enjoyable weeks to master. One of the best looking playstation games ever.
If this was a gameaday attempt then bad luck because we have all been told on this board that you can't win by posting reviews on in the forums, they go in the reviews section http://ukreviews.co.uk
you may be lucky if you copy this to the right place though!
you may be lucky if you copy this to the right place though!
Engrossing, poetic, epic and Deja vu: four words that describe Final Fantasy IX perfectly. It has all the hallmarks of a great game, terrific presentation, great story, a ton of stuff to see and do and the undoubted potential to take over your life.
You might think that this was a sequel, number nine in fact, but you'd be wrong. It's actually part of a series, a series where every game is a separate Fantasy, a self-contained adventure where the characters and the story are totally different from one instalment to the next. Or at least that's the idea. In reality, every Final Fantasy game is almost exactly the same. Here's the formula: make the lead character a young boy with problems - either he doesn't know who he is or he's misunderstood by his peers (usually both). Then you need a love interest: a princess (or someone important) is always good but she doesn't fancy the lead character (or at least she doesn't admit it) until the love triangle is introduced. This involves another female character that worships the lead character and makes the princess realise her true feelings. Set all this against a background of saving the world from certain destruction and you've got yourself a Final Fantasy game.
And so it goes with Final Fantasy IX. The young boy in question is a guy called Zidane (his real parents rejected him), the princess is called Garnet (she's not a real princes) and together you have to save the world from the ever-so-slightly effeminate but deeply evil Kuja, your archetypal villain on a massive power trip. Naturally this doesn't happen straight away - if it did the game would be over in a few hours rather than the 60+ that it took me to complete. Instead, the plot meanders from place to place and from situation to situation - this enables each of the games characters to go on a journey of discovery and sort their problems out. So, if you've played any of the other Final Fantasy games you will get the definite feeling of
Deja vu.
This isn't necessarily a bad thing; it just depends largely on if you manage to empathise with the characters. Fortunately, this is made pretty easy by some good Japanese character design. It's hard not to like Zidane the thief (he's also a boy monkey) and his compatriots like Vivi the black mage, and Steiner the dedicated misunderstood knight. The excellent translation avoids the trap that most Japanese games full into when they come over here, namely laughably literal translation. This helps enormously to convey emotion and character without any speech and it even manages to be funny at times. It's not Shakespeare, but rather an entertaining comic-style story with character's emotions represented in a rather simple, but attractive, manner.
Looks-wise, Final Fantasy IX eschews the two previous games cyber punk style in favour of something more traditional, like a tolkien novel. Gone are the laser guns and the spaceships and in their place are magical castles, flying ships and silver dragons. And it does look good. In fact it looks absolutely stunning – paintings rather than the usual computer-generated backgrounds have been used and the cut-scene footage is quite incredible. This is rather handy because if you want to be pedantic about the whole thing, there isn’t much of a game in here. Like the other two games Final Fantasy IX is more interactive movie than game and as such has a very linear structure. Thankfully there are a number of side plots that you explore if and when you feel the need of a break from the main game.
If you haven’t played one of the Final Fantasy games before, then they work like this. There are two main parts to the gameplay: the story parts and the fighting parts. In the story parts you generally explore towns, cities, woods, temples and anything else that can be explored, you also have to solve puzzles and talk to the local inhabitants. It’s all good fun. Then there are the fighting bits or “active time battles” as Developers Square like to call it. Here the game cuts into a battle scene, your team against the attacker. Each team member (you can have up to four) has a time bar. When this reaches the top you can do a move: attack with a weapon, cast a spell or use an item.
Compared to the over-complicated system in FFVIII, this is much easier to use and understand. Each character has different specialties: Zidane's a thief and the only character who can steal objects from enemies. Vivi ia a mage (a dark wizard) and the only character that can cast attacking magic such as fire spells. Garnet, being a 'good' mage can cast white magic such as cure to heal your team. In previous games, all characters could use magic and any skill could be equipped to anyone, but FFIX's specialised characters makes team selection much more tactical.
Another noticable difference is a change to the use of guardian forces or Eidolons as they are now known. These are huge spells that call up giant and powerful gods to do your dirty work. In FFIX they are less powerful (but you can call on them as much as you like during battle) and the animations are mercifully shorter. Also, you don't get to use these until well into the second disc, forcing you to learn how to use the other magic properly, and saving some of the best visual treats for later.
However, the random battles (every 30 seconds or so you'll get into a fight) that plagued every other FF game are still in place. They serve the important function of building up characters' experience in learning new abilities and increasing their health and magical powrs. But, in reality, they're just plain annoying - especially when you're trying to explore an area for the first time or just to go from A to B. This problem is alleviated somewhat later in the game with the introduction of various vehicles to get you around the sprawling world of FFIX, but it's still irritating.
But if you can put up with this, then FFIX is a great, without an equal on the playstation in terms of role-playing games - except for maybe FFVII. The story is gripping and has more twists and turns than spaghetti, the characters are great and it's one massive, seamless adventure. Playing through the game will take nigh on 60 hours, but if you want to find all the hidden extras and bonus games then you're looking at 100 hours of gameplay. This game has enough in it to have even gamers who aren't RPG fans sitting on the edge of there seats.
VERDICT
-------
Hugely enjoyable, amazing visuals, Final Fantasy IX is an epic adventure that will take a lot of enjoyable weeks to master. One of the best looking playstation games ever.
You might think that this was a sequel, number nine in fact, but you'd be wrong. It's actually part of a series, a series where every game is a separate Fantasy, a self-contained adventure where the characters and the story are totally different from one instalment to the next. Or at least that's the idea. In reality, every Final Fantasy game is almost exactly the same. Here's the formula: make the lead character a young boy with problems - either he doesn't know who he is or he's misunderstood by his peers (usually both). Then you need a love interest: a princess (or someone important) is always good but she doesn't fancy the lead character (or at least she doesn't admit it) until the love triangle is introduced. This involves another female character that worships the lead character and makes the princess realise her true feelings. Set all this against a background of saving the world from certain destruction and you've got yourself a Final Fantasy game.
And so it goes with Final Fantasy IX. The young boy in question is a guy called Zidane (his real parents rejected him), the princess is called Garnet (she's not a real princes) and together you have to save the world from the ever-so-slightly effeminate but deeply evil Kuja, your archetypal villain on a massive power trip. Naturally this doesn't happen straight away - if it did the game would be over in a few hours rather than the 60+ that it took me to complete. Instead, the plot meanders from place to place and from situation to situation - this enables each of the games characters to go on a journey of discovery and sort their problems out. So, if you've played any of the other Final Fantasy games you will get the definite feeling of
Deja vu.
This isn't necessarily a bad thing; it just depends largely on if you manage to empathise with the characters. Fortunately, this is made pretty easy by some good Japanese character design. It's hard not to like Zidane the thief (he's also a boy monkey) and his compatriots like Vivi the black mage, and Steiner the dedicated misunderstood knight. The excellent translation avoids the trap that most Japanese games full into when they come over here, namely laughably literal translation. This helps enormously to convey emotion and character without any speech and it even manages to be funny at times. It's not Shakespeare, but rather an entertaining comic-style story with character's emotions represented in a rather simple, but attractive, manner.
Looks-wise, Final Fantasy IX eschews the two previous games cyber punk style in favour of something more traditional, like a tolkien novel. Gone are the laser guns and the spaceships and in their place are magical castles, flying ships and silver dragons. And it does look good. In fact it looks absolutely stunning – paintings rather than the usual computer-generated backgrounds have been used and the cut-scene footage is quite incredible. This is rather handy because if you want to be pedantic about the whole thing, there isn’t much of a game in here. Like the other two games Final Fantasy IX is more interactive movie than game and as such has a very linear structure. Thankfully there are a number of side plots that you explore if and when you feel the need of a break from the main game.
If you haven’t played one of the Final Fantasy games before, then they work like this. There are two main parts to the gameplay: the story parts and the fighting parts. In the story parts you generally explore towns, cities, woods, temples and anything else that can be explored, you also have to solve puzzles and talk to the local inhabitants. It’s all good fun. Then there are the fighting bits or “active time battles” as Developers Square like to call it. Here the game cuts into a battle scene, your team against the attacker. Each team member (you can have up to four) has a time bar. When this reaches the top you can do a move: attack with a weapon, cast a spell or use an item.
Compared to the over-complicated system in FFVIII, this is much easier to use and understand. Each character has different specialties: Zidane's a thief and the only character who can steal objects from enemies. Vivi ia a mage (a dark wizard) and the only character that can cast attacking magic such as fire spells. Garnet, being a 'good' mage can cast white magic such as cure to heal your team. In previous games, all characters could use magic and any skill could be equipped to anyone, but FFIX's specialised characters makes team selection much more tactical.
Another noticable difference is a change to the use of guardian forces or Eidolons as they are now known. These are huge spells that call up giant and powerful gods to do your dirty work. In FFIX they are less powerful (but you can call on them as much as you like during battle) and the animations are mercifully shorter. Also, you don't get to use these until well into the second disc, forcing you to learn how to use the other magic properly, and saving some of the best visual treats for later.
However, the random battles (every 30 seconds or so you'll get into a fight) that plagued every other FF game are still in place. They serve the important function of building up characters' experience in learning new abilities and increasing their health and magical powrs. But, in reality, they're just plain annoying - especially when you're trying to explore an area for the first time or just to go from A to B. This problem is alleviated somewhat later in the game with the introduction of various vehicles to get you around the sprawling world of FFIX, but it's still irritating.
But if you can put up with this, then FFIX is a great, without an equal on the playstation in terms of role-playing games - except for maybe FFVII. The story is gripping and has more twists and turns than spaghetti, the characters are great and it's one massive, seamless adventure. Playing through the game will take nigh on 60 hours, but if you want to find all the hidden extras and bonus games then you're looking at 100 hours of gameplay. This game has enough in it to have even gamers who aren't RPG fans sitting on the edge of there seats.
VERDICT
-------
Hugely enjoyable, amazing visuals, Final Fantasy IX is an epic adventure that will take a lot of enjoyable weeks to master. One of the best looking playstation games ever.