Eu te amo Final Fantasy IX
Eu te amo muito
Eu te amo muito
zidane.
garnet.
kuja.
C I N E M A.
garnet.
kuja.
C I N E M A.
Shelved due to being underleveled for final boss, intend to pick up and finish soon. A charming and addictive game with some cut down systems from the first two PS1 FF games that still manages to stand with them in quality.
O primeiro final fantasy que eu zerei, gostei de tudo que esse jogo fez, principalmente a história e o estilo de arte, o vivi mora no meu coração.
Vivi is baby boy
I am praying to the almighty that this game continues to be as good as it has been so far.
I think this game is very good. The characters are great and the setting is super unique, but I think the overall RPG gameplay is still a bit confusing and could be better.
This review contains spoilers
Following up on the more scifi and daring FF7 and 8, Final Fantasy IX takes a very different direction with its traditional FF, arguably Ghibli-inspired fantasy style. It’s not particularly subtle in its homages to the pre-PS1 era Final Fantasy games—heck, it even has an antagonist called Garland and a dungeon that’s basically a reimagining of FF1’s Mt Gulg. The world is wonderful and whimsical, reminiscence of FF5 imo, and the cast tick a lot of traditional fantasy archetype boxes and overall are a bit of a motley crew. It also tells a fairly focused story with evocative and consistent themes, contrasting the more ambitious storytelling in FF7 and especially FF8, which is a welcome change of pace after how out of hand the latter got for me.
Basically it’s a pretty great game that knows what it wants to be and does it very well, and thankfully stands on its own with its unique identity rather than feeling like an attempt to copycat the classic FF for nostalgia’s sake. The gameplay is also fairly traditional, reigning things in significantly from FF8’s both wonderful and awful mishmash of disparate mechanics, and instead opting to take notes from FF4/6. Each character has a clearly defined role, with their own specific uses, for the most part being pretty immutable compared to the job systems and their adjacents present in other games in the series.
To dig deeper into that, I actually found this FF to be one of the best in giving each character value without being overly situational (as FF6 tended to be). There’s few of them enough to not be overwhelming, while still being a good amount to allow for a good bit of party customisation later into the game. The ability system is also pretty good, giving more use to the equipment in the game by tying specific skills to learn on them, and for the most part offering the same ones to every party member. It manages to allow just enough customisation while also not being overwhelming and dominating all other systems (e.g. FF8’s junctioning).
Sadly, the Trance mechanic is a pretty big blunder. While in theory it’s fun and reminiscent of limit breaks, further enhancing each party member’s role, it’s too situational and out of the player’s control to feel valuable. At least it’s not intrusive—something I can’t say for the poor battle pacing this game suffers from. I was fortunate to be able to avoid most of these problems thanks to the remaster’s battle speed up option (which granted are pretty tedious to trigger), but the battles are painfully slow, with unnecessarily long animations and frustratingly lengthy load times in and out of battle screens. Sure, the battles look pretty for a PS1 game, but I don’t think this was worth the massive hit in QoL and clunkiness we end up having to deal with.
To finish up this gameplay section, I really appreciated how challenging this game was! It reminded me a lot of FF5, with how each boss presents different gimmicks that force you to deeply consider your battle strategy and keep you on your toes, while also having glaring weaknesses that reward players for experimenting. Bosses also don’t have all that much HP compared to other FF games, which makes the slow battles more bearable.
As for the cast, well they’re simply great. Each one has a clearly defined arc and purpose, and for the most part, these are executed well and integrated into the story. They also have pretty good chemistry with each other, and you get a solid idea of their dynamics early on. Vivi was unsurprisingly an easy favourite for me, his arc digging deep into what it means to live and die, exist and perish, with no cop-outs to be seen. He’s also adorable! Zidane is a good competent protagonist who holds the party together without overshadowing them, teaching them life lessons while also having his own struggles that the party help him through—the fabled Not Alone segment did not disappoint.
Garnet is not a heroine I held much interest in before playing, as she seemed like your typically plot-important princess learning life lessons through travelling with the common rabble… which is exactly what she is. The thing is though, they also execute this amazingly and she ended up being my second favourite behind Vivi. It’s hard not to get invested in her struggle to gain more control over her life, deal with the loss of family (through both death and turning rotten), forgive herself for her failures, overwhelmed by responsibility at a young age, and mourn the life that was taken from her to make her a replacement for another (I was not prepared for that horn mutilation revelation).
Steiner and Beatrix share fairly similar arcs surrounding duty and suppressing one’s own will to serve, which both take different angles and end up being quite good. The similarity might be why Beatrix isn’t a playable character, but I’m really sad she isn’t, she would fit in perfectly with the gang. Quina is funny comic relief while getting some nice stuff, such as his surprisingly connection to Vivi. Eiko is very sweet and you can’t help but feel bad for all she’s had to endure in her teeny tiny six years of life, and I quite liked her sister relationship with Garnet—though I can’t say I cared for her crush on Zidane.
Unfortunately I do think Freya and Amarant get the short end of the stick. Freya gets a pretty interesting and tragic arc with her kingdom being destroyed and her beloved losing his memories, but for the rest of the game she kinda drops off, until it’s all suddenly resolved in the ending credits. Amarant joins a little too late to provide much value, and his rebellious lone-wolf attitude feels a bit undercooked and out of place for so late in the game, even if I appreciate character development occurring lategame in theory.
The story itself can be summed up as your usual fantasy JRPG narrative done pretty cleanly. Kuja is a good villain and ends up working pretty well as a mirror of Zidane, while also staying the villain throughout the entire story. When I realised he was simply a child given much too powerful toys to play with and not given the support he needed in life, he grew on me more than I expected. Garland himself fulfills his role well, though I would’ve appreciated spending more time with him. The pacing isn’t perfect, with the middle dragging a fair bit and the finale feeling a bit rushed, but I think it has the best of the PS1 games, which all felt like they were fighting against their limitations. I also liked the strong relevance of summons in the story, though I would have appreciated the concept introduced in a lategame sidequest of summons being born from legends getting further exploration in the main story.
This leads onto I guess a common issue people have with the finale, Necron. Firstly, I think it was a mistake to not preserve his Japanese name ‘Darkness of Eternity’, as 'Necron' makes him seem more like an actual character rather than the Cloud of Darkness-adjacent thematic final boss he is. I get the feeling that he was maybe supposed to be a summon born from Kuja’s strong will, but if that truly was the case, it was conveyed pretty poorly. All in all, I don’t have particularly strong opinions on Necron, he’s a decent but somewhat botched thematic final boss that doesn’t change my view on much of anything.
Garnet’s mother is a little weirdly handled, I got the impression that her sudden greed was a result of external influence, but in the end it seemed like she just became that way naturally and Kuja took advantage of that? Perhaps it would have been beneficial to explore this further, like having Garnet say how her father’s death affected her rather than just “she suddenly changed”. The twin jesters were also weird, I’m not sure what they were and why they flip-flopped their allegiances at the drop of a hat.
As for the ending, well that really made my day. It resolves things quite nicely for all the characters, even ones who felt forgotten for most of the story, and finally seeing the context for Behind the Door was really rewarding for me, I actually cried. Garnet and Zidane’s romance was very sweet.
I think that sums everything up for me. FF9 might not be the most daring game ever, but it has a lot of soul to it and tells a pretty great narrative with excellent theming, while tying said themes to the cast with finesse. It’s the best looking of the PS1 games, the chibi-style characters having aged pretty well and giving the game a cohesive style, and as always, Uematsu does not disappoint with his brilliant soundtrack. It might not be my favourite FF ever, but it’s high up there and I can see why this game gives so many such happiness—it sure did for me!
Pros
+ Well-crafted gameplay system mixed with challenging gameplay
+ Evocative themes tied heavily into the story and characters
+ Focused and well-executed character arcs
+ Art style that has aged surprisingly well
+ Uematsu does it again
+ Vivi, Garnet and Zidane are very strong characters
+ Really good cast chemistry with nice romances
+ Kuja is a great villain
+ Charming world inspired by classic FF games without making nostalgia its identity
Cons
- Freya and Amarant get the short end of the stick
- Battles are painfully slow
- Final act could use more fleshing out
- A lot of minor antagonists are undercooked
- Trance system is poorly executed
- Beatrix really should've been playable
Basically it’s a pretty great game that knows what it wants to be and does it very well, and thankfully stands on its own with its unique identity rather than feeling like an attempt to copycat the classic FF for nostalgia’s sake. The gameplay is also fairly traditional, reigning things in significantly from FF8’s both wonderful and awful mishmash of disparate mechanics, and instead opting to take notes from FF4/6. Each character has a clearly defined role, with their own specific uses, for the most part being pretty immutable compared to the job systems and their adjacents present in other games in the series.
To dig deeper into that, I actually found this FF to be one of the best in giving each character value without being overly situational (as FF6 tended to be). There’s few of them enough to not be overwhelming, while still being a good amount to allow for a good bit of party customisation later into the game. The ability system is also pretty good, giving more use to the equipment in the game by tying specific skills to learn on them, and for the most part offering the same ones to every party member. It manages to allow just enough customisation while also not being overwhelming and dominating all other systems (e.g. FF8’s junctioning).
Sadly, the Trance mechanic is a pretty big blunder. While in theory it’s fun and reminiscent of limit breaks, further enhancing each party member’s role, it’s too situational and out of the player’s control to feel valuable. At least it’s not intrusive—something I can’t say for the poor battle pacing this game suffers from. I was fortunate to be able to avoid most of these problems thanks to the remaster’s battle speed up option (which granted are pretty tedious to trigger), but the battles are painfully slow, with unnecessarily long animations and frustratingly lengthy load times in and out of battle screens. Sure, the battles look pretty for a PS1 game, but I don’t think this was worth the massive hit in QoL and clunkiness we end up having to deal with.
To finish up this gameplay section, I really appreciated how challenging this game was! It reminded me a lot of FF5, with how each boss presents different gimmicks that force you to deeply consider your battle strategy and keep you on your toes, while also having glaring weaknesses that reward players for experimenting. Bosses also don’t have all that much HP compared to other FF games, which makes the slow battles more bearable.
As for the cast, well they’re simply great. Each one has a clearly defined arc and purpose, and for the most part, these are executed well and integrated into the story. They also have pretty good chemistry with each other, and you get a solid idea of their dynamics early on. Vivi was unsurprisingly an easy favourite for me, his arc digging deep into what it means to live and die, exist and perish, with no cop-outs to be seen. He’s also adorable! Zidane is a good competent protagonist who holds the party together without overshadowing them, teaching them life lessons while also having his own struggles that the party help him through—the fabled Not Alone segment did not disappoint.
Garnet is not a heroine I held much interest in before playing, as she seemed like your typically plot-important princess learning life lessons through travelling with the common rabble… which is exactly what she is. The thing is though, they also execute this amazingly and she ended up being my second favourite behind Vivi. It’s hard not to get invested in her struggle to gain more control over her life, deal with the loss of family (through both death and turning rotten), forgive herself for her failures, overwhelmed by responsibility at a young age, and mourn the life that was taken from her to make her a replacement for another (I was not prepared for that horn mutilation revelation).
Steiner and Beatrix share fairly similar arcs surrounding duty and suppressing one’s own will to serve, which both take different angles and end up being quite good. The similarity might be why Beatrix isn’t a playable character, but I’m really sad she isn’t, she would fit in perfectly with the gang. Quina is funny comic relief while getting some nice stuff, such as his surprisingly connection to Vivi. Eiko is very sweet and you can’t help but feel bad for all she’s had to endure in her teeny tiny six years of life, and I quite liked her sister relationship with Garnet—though I can’t say I cared for her crush on Zidane.
Unfortunately I do think Freya and Amarant get the short end of the stick. Freya gets a pretty interesting and tragic arc with her kingdom being destroyed and her beloved losing his memories, but for the rest of the game she kinda drops off, until it’s all suddenly resolved in the ending credits. Amarant joins a little too late to provide much value, and his rebellious lone-wolf attitude feels a bit undercooked and out of place for so late in the game, even if I appreciate character development occurring lategame in theory.
The story itself can be summed up as your usual fantasy JRPG narrative done pretty cleanly. Kuja is a good villain and ends up working pretty well as a mirror of Zidane, while also staying the villain throughout the entire story. When I realised he was simply a child given much too powerful toys to play with and not given the support he needed in life, he grew on me more than I expected. Garland himself fulfills his role well, though I would’ve appreciated spending more time with him. The pacing isn’t perfect, with the middle dragging a fair bit and the finale feeling a bit rushed, but I think it has the best of the PS1 games, which all felt like they were fighting against their limitations. I also liked the strong relevance of summons in the story, though I would have appreciated the concept introduced in a lategame sidequest of summons being born from legends getting further exploration in the main story.
This leads onto I guess a common issue people have with the finale, Necron. Firstly, I think it was a mistake to not preserve his Japanese name ‘Darkness of Eternity’, as 'Necron' makes him seem more like an actual character rather than the Cloud of Darkness-adjacent thematic final boss he is. I get the feeling that he was maybe supposed to be a summon born from Kuja’s strong will, but if that truly was the case, it was conveyed pretty poorly. All in all, I don’t have particularly strong opinions on Necron, he’s a decent but somewhat botched thematic final boss that doesn’t change my view on much of anything.
Garnet’s mother is a little weirdly handled, I got the impression that her sudden greed was a result of external influence, but in the end it seemed like she just became that way naturally and Kuja took advantage of that? Perhaps it would have been beneficial to explore this further, like having Garnet say how her father’s death affected her rather than just “she suddenly changed”. The twin jesters were also weird, I’m not sure what they were and why they flip-flopped their allegiances at the drop of a hat.
As for the ending, well that really made my day. It resolves things quite nicely for all the characters, even ones who felt forgotten for most of the story, and finally seeing the context for Behind the Door was really rewarding for me, I actually cried. Garnet and Zidane’s romance was very sweet.
I think that sums everything up for me. FF9 might not be the most daring game ever, but it has a lot of soul to it and tells a pretty great narrative with excellent theming, while tying said themes to the cast with finesse. It’s the best looking of the PS1 games, the chibi-style characters having aged pretty well and giving the game a cohesive style, and as always, Uematsu does not disappoint with his brilliant soundtrack. It might not be my favourite FF ever, but it’s high up there and I can see why this game gives so many such happiness—it sure did for me!
Pros
+ Well-crafted gameplay system mixed with challenging gameplay
+ Evocative themes tied heavily into the story and characters
+ Focused and well-executed character arcs
+ Art style that has aged surprisingly well
+ Uematsu does it again
+ Vivi, Garnet and Zidane are very strong characters
+ Really good cast chemistry with nice romances
+ Kuja is a great villain
+ Charming world inspired by classic FF games without making nostalgia its identity
Cons
- Freya and Amarant get the short end of the stick
- Battles are painfully slow
- Final act could use more fleshing out
- A lot of minor antagonists are undercooked
- Trance system is poorly executed
- Beatrix really should've been playable
It can be pretty slow sometimes, but this game has heart. I'm guessing this is the type that I will appreciate more upon replay.
A pesar do proposta interessentatisima da volta aos classicos que é este final fanrtasy que eu n tive contato, o jogo peca nisso e muito na visao do Sakguchi, eles tentavam evitar o maximo pra evitar furos narrativos e na reta final o jogo vira o livro da malafia, pra que vcs colocam aquele negocio de evento que vc ve detalhes da historia pra no final vc falar aquela proposta maluca?
O jogo é lento, combate da vontade de bater na testa com um prego, apesar de que tem as trapacas continua problematico e lentinho e a ordem de turnos é muito confuso e ruim
O jogo é lento, combate da vontade de bater na testa com um prego, apesar de que tem as trapacas continua problematico e lentinho e a ordem de turnos é muito confuso e ruim
this game is my shit. its equal parts entertaining, cute, and depressing. the story's conclusion feels a bit undercooked and i feel like some of the characters are a bit underdeveloped by games end, but the overall experience was such a blast for me.
A fantasy masterpiece. Pretty slow but charming and a treat for high fantasy fans. Play on newer hardware so you can get the speed up bonus.
And for gods sake don't get the platinum...freakin' rope jumps...
And for gods sake don't get the platinum...freakin' rope jumps...
not as good as everyone says
This was the very first FF game that I ever played (back in elementary school). I loved it then and I still love it now!
Blog post - https://jessjustplay.tumblr.com/post/692234658129281024/final-fantasy-ix-game-archive-1
Blog post - https://jessjustplay.tumblr.com/post/692234658129281024/final-fantasy-ix-game-archive-1
i'm not sure what they were thinking with tetra master.
Final Fantasy IX has always been a game that has been widely regard in the Final Fantasy community as one of the best, and thankfully it holds up to that exact expectation. Not only is it the best of the PS1 trio, but it's above and beyond the majority of the series, and stands out due to it's presentation and battle system.
While I certainly wouldn't call FF9 a hard game, it is a game that lends itself well to building your characters how you want without losing the uniqueness of each character. While the story does lose a bit of focus, it stays ground it what it wants to set up and do. Plus the way the game constantly switches the cast point of view is so well done that I just can't express how much I want more of that in other Final Fantasy game. Not only is the party treated as more of an ensemble, but it's also something that they constantly focus on and give themes too. Not all the themes are done well sadly, and out of all the good games you could remake, FF9 would probably stand to benefit the most out of it. Most of the problems really just rely on the 2nd half of this game going into a bunch of odd stuff, and honestly it just doesn't work well compared to the first half. I feel like a lot of FF9's problems are just not having enough time to focus on the themes as much, and some characters coming in far later in the game just don't get the screen time they need.
I don't want my criticisms to see too much though. In a lot of ways, the fact the game just goes to the end may be seen as a pace saver or at least, not dragging the game too much. Still if there could be some nice mix of cutting down certain fat, adding more story quests, or just expanding the story to the post game, I feel FF9 could immensely benefit. Considering the problem tho? FF9 not having enough for a player to chew on, already kind speaks levels in which it's story and characters engage you.
I wouldn't call FF9 the best Final Fantasy out there, but it certainly takes a lot from what made other final fantasies good, retools them, uses them more, or even makes new ones to really hit home the quality of this game. If you wanted to start out playing the Final Fantasy series, I'd honestly suggest 9 as a good starting point. Simple, easy, and really engaging.
While I certainly wouldn't call FF9 a hard game, it is a game that lends itself well to building your characters how you want without losing the uniqueness of each character. While the story does lose a bit of focus, it stays ground it what it wants to set up and do. Plus the way the game constantly switches the cast point of view is so well done that I just can't express how much I want more of that in other Final Fantasy game. Not only is the party treated as more of an ensemble, but it's also something that they constantly focus on and give themes too. Not all the themes are done well sadly, and out of all the good games you could remake, FF9 would probably stand to benefit the most out of it. Most of the problems really just rely on the 2nd half of this game going into a bunch of odd stuff, and honestly it just doesn't work well compared to the first half. I feel like a lot of FF9's problems are just not having enough time to focus on the themes as much, and some characters coming in far later in the game just don't get the screen time they need.
I don't want my criticisms to see too much though. In a lot of ways, the fact the game just goes to the end may be seen as a pace saver or at least, not dragging the game too much. Still if there could be some nice mix of cutting down certain fat, adding more story quests, or just expanding the story to the post game, I feel FF9 could immensely benefit. Considering the problem tho? FF9 not having enough for a player to chew on, already kind speaks levels in which it's story and characters engage you.
I wouldn't call FF9 the best Final Fantasy out there, but it certainly takes a lot from what made other final fantasies good, retools them, uses them more, or even makes new ones to really hit home the quality of this game. If you wanted to start out playing the Final Fantasy series, I'd honestly suggest 9 as a good starting point. Simple, easy, and really engaging.
zidane.
garnet.
kuja.
C I N E M A.
garnet.
kuja.
C I N E M A.
This game makes me so mad on levels I didn't even know were possible
Final Fantasy IX is the culmination of JRPGs, plain and simple.
Developed by the last of the old guard at Squaresoft in 2000, Final Fantasy IX stood as a love letter to every single game that came before it. Seeing as how it was a bit of a watershed moment for Squaresoft mainstays like Hironobu Sakaguchi, who was planning to leave to engage in other ventures during the development of this game, it is truly the Final Fantasy game of Final Fantasy. It's most potently-FF game imaginable.
You have high fantasy, lovable characters, and cartoonish delight that make this game the most lovingly characterized video game of the 1990s. Few video games hold a candle to FFIX's truly unique identity. And as you can imagine, that identity not only extends from its legendary... uh, legacy, but also to the experience of playing it.
I had a bit of trouble following IX once I got to the third disc. Like with VIII, the first and second discs are AMAZING. AMAAAZING!!!! It reminded me almost of the extremely well-designed pacing of The Witcher 3, which is in my opinion the greatest RPG experience available. But FFIX's genius focus on cities/locations to create memorable story moments out of them allowed for an intriguing story to unfold almost flawlessly. It wasn't until the third disc, or rather, when the party arrived at Conde Petie that the pacing started to take... well, a nosedive.
One of FFIX's greatest strengths was its worldly plight. To me, the firstly-developed antagonist was much, MUCH better than the bait and switch typical of FF storytelling that is given to players around the 2/3s mark of the story. This is unfortunate, as the gameplay experience for me, especially as someone who had played EIGHT of the series' games up until this point, made playing the game exhausting.
It wasn't until the very end of FFIX where I felt it had came all together. Something about its ending made it feel like a closing-of-the-book to the old era of FF, and into its middle period. For someone like me who has now fully finished the NES, SNES, and PS1 era of FF, that felt like an amazing release of the ATB system, into new and rockier territory. As a player of these games, I truly do appreciate left turns artistically and mechanically.
But considering the previous entry, VIII, and its incredibly deviating junction/GF system, something about IX's simplicity was appreciated. The most complex the gameplay gets is with item-abilities, which at first seem interesting, but get very annoying to deal with as crucial spells like float, protect, shell, and thundaga are locked behind items that you don't know even hold them when purchasing them from vendors. I did not like this feature. It led to me choosing to use this version's special features to make every battle a cakewalk.
Still, had the game literally done one thing and showed item descriptions in vendor screens, literally all of this would go away. I just hate the hassle of going into your cluttery item screen only to realize the hat you just bought has a completely useless ability for your playstyle.
And whats more -- FFIX has the slowest combat ever in the series. I am not joking about that. Even I-III were quicker considering its turn based combat systems. The ATB bar fills soooooo slowly in FFIX that it might as well be considered a complete design misstep. Had the porting devs changed up this stuff, and somehow optimized FFIX's offensively slow pre-battle load times, we would have one of the best FF combat systems imaginable. No joke! Literally all it would take for me to love this game's combat are:
1.) Show item abilities on purchase screen
2.) Speed up ATB bar filling even past the max battle speed option
3.) OPTIMIZE LOADING TIMES!!!
But other than these undeniably harsh gripes, I have to be honest. FFIX's story was second to none in the entire series. It may not have a Kefka-quality villain, and its mid-story switchup may be undesirable, but what this game has to say about life, what it means to live, and love, is simply some of the best storytelling in video game history.
I will not go into detail about it, but just know -- the characters of Steiner, Garnet, Eiko, Freya, (definitely not Amarant), Brahne, Beatrix, ViVi, and of course, ZIDANE!, are now my favorites in the series. Not in JRPGs, because DQXI still takes that cake... but for what its worth, this game's story is the most heartfelt in the entire series up until this point. And for that, I have to give it chops. Had the game's combat system been tweaked, and its story quality improved upon its second half, we would truly have an all-timer contender when it comes to deciding the best RPG.
But for now, I have to give it its rating.
FFIX gets...
a 95/100
Developed by the last of the old guard at Squaresoft in 2000, Final Fantasy IX stood as a love letter to every single game that came before it. Seeing as how it was a bit of a watershed moment for Squaresoft mainstays like Hironobu Sakaguchi, who was planning to leave to engage in other ventures during the development of this game, it is truly the Final Fantasy game of Final Fantasy. It's most potently-FF game imaginable.
You have high fantasy, lovable characters, and cartoonish delight that make this game the most lovingly characterized video game of the 1990s. Few video games hold a candle to FFIX's truly unique identity. And as you can imagine, that identity not only extends from its legendary... uh, legacy, but also to the experience of playing it.
I had a bit of trouble following IX once I got to the third disc. Like with VIII, the first and second discs are AMAZING. AMAAAZING!!!! It reminded me almost of the extremely well-designed pacing of The Witcher 3, which is in my opinion the greatest RPG experience available. But FFIX's genius focus on cities/locations to create memorable story moments out of them allowed for an intriguing story to unfold almost flawlessly. It wasn't until the third disc, or rather, when the party arrived at Conde Petie that the pacing started to take... well, a nosedive.
One of FFIX's greatest strengths was its worldly plight. To me, the firstly-developed antagonist was much, MUCH better than the bait and switch typical of FF storytelling that is given to players around the 2/3s mark of the story. This is unfortunate, as the gameplay experience for me, especially as someone who had played EIGHT of the series' games up until this point, made playing the game exhausting.
It wasn't until the very end of FFIX where I felt it had came all together. Something about its ending made it feel like a closing-of-the-book to the old era of FF, and into its middle period. For someone like me who has now fully finished the NES, SNES, and PS1 era of FF, that felt like an amazing release of the ATB system, into new and rockier territory. As a player of these games, I truly do appreciate left turns artistically and mechanically.
But considering the previous entry, VIII, and its incredibly deviating junction/GF system, something about IX's simplicity was appreciated. The most complex the gameplay gets is with item-abilities, which at first seem interesting, but get very annoying to deal with as crucial spells like float, protect, shell, and thundaga are locked behind items that you don't know even hold them when purchasing them from vendors. I did not like this feature. It led to me choosing to use this version's special features to make every battle a cakewalk.
Still, had the game literally done one thing and showed item descriptions in vendor screens, literally all of this would go away. I just hate the hassle of going into your cluttery item screen only to realize the hat you just bought has a completely useless ability for your playstyle.
And whats more -- FFIX has the slowest combat ever in the series. I am not joking about that. Even I-III were quicker considering its turn based combat systems. The ATB bar fills soooooo slowly in FFIX that it might as well be considered a complete design misstep. Had the porting devs changed up this stuff, and somehow optimized FFIX's offensively slow pre-battle load times, we would have one of the best FF combat systems imaginable. No joke! Literally all it would take for me to love this game's combat are:
1.) Show item abilities on purchase screen
2.) Speed up ATB bar filling even past the max battle speed option
3.) OPTIMIZE LOADING TIMES!!!
But other than these undeniably harsh gripes, I have to be honest. FFIX's story was second to none in the entire series. It may not have a Kefka-quality villain, and its mid-story switchup may be undesirable, but what this game has to say about life, what it means to live, and love, is simply some of the best storytelling in video game history.
I will not go into detail about it, but just know -- the characters of Steiner, Garnet, Eiko, Freya, (definitely not Amarant), Brahne, Beatrix, ViVi, and of course, ZIDANE!, are now my favorites in the series. Not in JRPGs, because DQXI still takes that cake... but for what its worth, this game's story is the most heartfelt in the entire series up until this point. And for that, I have to give it chops. Had the game's combat system been tweaked, and its story quality improved upon its second half, we would truly have an all-timer contender when it comes to deciding the best RPG.
But for now, I have to give it its rating.
FFIX gets...
a 95/100
Probably the best 4 people in a row game ever. Solid build customization for your team. Kuja's theme was a banger.
Not my FF
This is it, my most replayed and my favorite entry in the Final Fantasy series. I love everything about it: The fleshed-out and goofy characters, the combat system, Tetra Master (well, except how random it is), the sidequests and minigames, the soundtrack,... Playing this game is a joy every single time.
At time of writing one of only 2 final fantasy games I've beaten. Its really good, I enjoyed it more than what I've played of 7. Hot take, I know.
Better with cheats, but still mediocre
Without a doubt the best FF on the PlayStation and one of the best FFs ever!
Even after playing through it for the fourth time, I still find new ways to enjoy the simple yet intriguing combat system. I especially love how well thought-out the entire world and experience are.
There is a nicely-paced balance of linear, story-heavy sections and the more open-ended exploration sequences of the world map with fantastic side quests. Not a single location feels pointless or underused. Rather, even the tiniest spot of the world map has its purpose.
And the story and characters just get me every single time. I love the entire cast, the writing is great and the pacing and the emotions are just perfect.
Even after playing through it for the fourth time, I still find new ways to enjoy the simple yet intriguing combat system. I especially love how well thought-out the entire world and experience are.
There is a nicely-paced balance of linear, story-heavy sections and the more open-ended exploration sequences of the world map with fantastic side quests. Not a single location feels pointless or underused. Rather, even the tiniest spot of the world map has its purpose.
And the story and characters just get me every single time. I love the entire cast, the writing is great and the pacing and the emotions are just perfect.
Lo amo
É um jogo bem divertido, a história é bem cativante e os personagens são maravilhosos. As músicas e as batalhas por turno são característicos de ff, por mais que eu não seja tão próxima assim de jogos por turno, esse eu gostei demais
Final Fantasy IX's Remaster is such an amazing experience, it took the game I loved as a child and improved on it in nearly every way, the story in the game is still fantastic, the art style is bright and cute while the game's tone itself isn't afraid to go dark to throw the player off, the cast is super memorable (mostly) and the mechanics are great. The only thing keeping it from being higher, is some of the trophies on the PS4 version are obnoxious and Tetra Master still doesn't measure up to other mini games.
One of the Greatest game ever
Vivi is so goated