This review contains spoilers
Final Fantasy X (FF10) and its sequel, Final Fantasy X-2 (FFX-2) are the first Final Fantasy titles to debut on the PlayStation 2, as well as being the first in the franchise to be fully voiced. Naturally, both of these facts earned both titles a lot of attention, but are both titles within this collection deserving of that attention, and more importantly, of gamers' time?
FF10 certainly shocked a lot of people when it first released. Whilst previous FF titles had been well received for their visuals when they released, nobody had ever seen anything like this in a video game before. FF10's visuals are gorgeous, especially in the remastered version, and, whilst they may not be as awe-inspiringly realistic as we all believed them to be at the time of release, they do still hold up well, even today. Naturally, FFX-2 runs in the same engine, with a vast majority of its assets being recycled from its predecessor, and therefore, it also looks just as pretty.
It isn't just the graphical prowess of these titles that help bring Spira to life, but the vast range of aesthetics too. From dark caverns, bustling cities and thunderous plains to beautiful fields, lush forests and snowy mountains, Spira is a joy to explore, despite its more linear layout in comparison to other FF worlds.
Sadly, the two games don't really have much more in common than that. FFX-2 made a lot of changes to the world it inherited, and it really shows. Take, for instance, the soundtracks.
One of the aspects of the Final Fantasy franchise that is nearly always considered among the most iconic parts of an entry is its soundtrack, and FF10 is no exception. It has so many beautifully composed, atmospheric and emotional songs such as To Zanarkand, with music in each area of Spira matching its environment spectacularly. It also has spectacular battle themes, particularly Enemy Attack and Otherworld.
Sadly, the same cannot be said for most of FFX-2's OST. Rather than build upon some of the beauty of the original game's music, FFX-2 opts for more of a pop style, with some jazz lounge thrown in. It's incredibly clear that composers Nobuo Uematsu, Masashi Hamauzu and Junya Nakano did not return for the sequel, being replaced by Noriko Matseuda and Takahito Eguchi, and the new direction just doesn't work in this setting. Sadly, that is a recurring theme with a lot of FFX-2.
Character design is another aspect that the original did far better. Whilst there are some characters, such as Seymour with his long, weirdly styled hair, do have some interesting design choices, for the most part, FF10 has some fantastic character designs. The Ronso are one of the coolest species in FF to date, and characters like Auron and Jecht ooze coolness. Of course, there are some oddball designs too, but overall, FF10 did a good job.
Admittedly, FFX-2's character design isn't all that bad either. However, this may be down to the fact that most designs are recycled from its predecessor. Having said that, Yuna, Rikku and Paine have mostly good designs in the different outfits they can all attain by changing job class. Unfortunately, a lot of FFX-2's character design seems to serve as solely fan service, with a lot of outfits being very revealing, including new antagonist Leblanc, and more worryingly, the underage Rikku, who is by far the most revealing of the 3 main protagonists. Players also get treated to a two minute cutscene of the three protagonists in just swimwear in a hot spring, which definitely feels like it was added on solely for fan service. It could be argued that the same could be said for Lulu in general in both games, but at least she isn't running around with nothing but a bra on her top half.
Of course, beauty is only skin deep, so what about the characters in terms of writing? For the most part, FF10 does a wonderful job of giving its characters meaningful origins and making its main cast very likeable, although there are times when a certain party member is very easy to dislike. However, FF10 has some great character development, with said party member redeeming himself over the course of the rest of the game.
Once again, FFX-2 fails to keep up with its predecessor, with some characters seemingly regressing rather than progressing. Both Yuna and Rikku are far more childish than their younger selves in FF10, and they are both fairly annoying throughout the game. FFX-2 does try to explain the changes in Yuna's character in particular, but does a poor job of doing so. Also, many other characters, both new and returning, are even more annoying, such as Brother, who plays a comedic relief role with an incredibly pervy attraction to his own cousin, Yuna, and Leblanc, whose purpose in this game is to annoy the player and gush over another new face, Nooj.
One thing neither game is particularly good at is the voice acting. FF10 has the excuse of being the first voiced FF title, but FFX-2 does little to improve upon it. The games do have some redeeming voice acting moments, with James Arnold Taylor doing a mostly good job voicing Tidus, and with names like John DiMaggio also gracing the cast. FFX-2, in particular, also stars George Newburn and Rick Gomez, whose roles here would lead to them later voicing Sephiroth and Zack Fair in the FF7 games, respectively. However, both games suffer from monotony and many cringey dialogue moments which may garner some laughs.
Alas, in the case of FFX-2, the dialogue isn't the only aspect of its writing that is often cringey. One of the things FF10 can pride itself on is that its story is an emotional journey filled with friendship, love and sacrifice. Whilst a couple of the themes are used in FFX-2, it lacks the raw emotion, and honestly, plays off more like a JRPG take on Charlie's Angels or Totally Spy.
One thing both games do well is character progression. FF10 forgoes the traditional level up system for Sphere Levels, which allow you to traverse a board called the Sphere Grid. The Sphere Grid is unique in that, rather than having set level up bonuses, you can travel in any direction you please and have full control over your party's growth, especially if you are using the Expert Grid. The main downside is that, unless you plan to abuse the one hit kill move present in FF10, you will need to do some serious grinding to stand a chance against the endgame super bosses. On top of this, FF10 also has a fully customizable weapon and armour system, allowing you to choose which abilities your equipment has. Again, the downside is that you may need to do some serious grinding for the best equipment if you want to take on those super bosses.
FFX-2, however, returns to a more traditional level system, and brings back FF's fabled job system. Each job learns its own abilities, and as a character fights as a specific job class more, they learn more abilities for that job. You also get to change class mid battle via the Dressphere and Garment Grid system, in which you can equip specific jobs to a grid and then equip that grid to a character. This lets you focus on learning specific job abilities on each character, so you can make some awesome combinations. For example, you can give Yuna a magic orientated equipment build, then equip her Garment Grid with solely magic based jobs, like White Mage and Black Mage, whilst Paine focuses on physical damage, using classes like Warrior and Samurai.
As for the battles themselves, both games differ greatly. FF10 has a much more traditional turn based system, in which using different moves and abilities will either delay or prioritise that character's next turn. It is a rather relaxed and easy to get a hold of system. On the other hand, FFX-2 opts to use the Active Time Battle style, a staple for the FF series that most of its games utilize one way or another. In the case of FFX-2, like FF10, different moves will make a character potentially wait longer before they can go again, but, unlike FF10 and more like previous FF games, enemies won't necessarily wait for you to decide your actions before attacking again. With the ATB system and Garment Grid system combined, FFX-2 actually has some of the best turn based combat in the series.
Also, what is a FF title without minigames? FF10 has a few compulsory ones that must be completed to progress the story, but they are more like puzzles than minigames. It also has multiple optional minigames, all of which give access to items needed to make the ultimate Celestial Weapons. Some of these are asinine to complete, but the rewards are well worth the effort. FF10's biggest minigame is Blitzball, which is introduced early in the story, but is available throughout the game, and even allows you to recruit new team members as you explore Spira.
FFX-2 is also no stranger to minigames, with many being compulsory for the 100% completion ending. Unfortunately, most of them are either boring or just plain frustrating, often with little to no reward outside of not locking out the true ending. Blitzball does return, but is now played via a managerial style. Think of it going from FIFA to Football Manager.
Perhaps the thing that FFX-2 actually improved the most was FF10's monster catching. In FF10, you can use specific weapons to capture monsters in each area, and you can create a sort of living bestiary at the Monster Arena, unlocking more nasties as the owner of the arena creates more as you bring them in. In the later releases of FFX-2, you get the Creature Creator, where you can capture, train and battle with monsters. You can even recruit the creatures into your own party, swapping out Yuna, Rikku and Paine, although they will be controlled by AI rather than the player. The Creature Creator even gives you access to non-playable characters from both games who can fight alongside you, including Brother and some of the original party members from FF10.
Potentially, the most frustrating part of either game is FFX-2's different endings. The 100% ending is the true one, naturally, but so much as the wrong dialogue option, not talking to a specific, random NPC at a specific time, or even in one case, not failing a minigame enough times before succeeding, can you lock you out of 100%. For those who enjoy the game and the completionists out there, you at least have NG+ to try and get what you missed the first time round.
Overall, the collection is worth having, even if you only get it for Final Fantasy X. It still holds up as one of the greats of the series, and is well worth picking up in HD. Final Fantasy X-2, however, is an acquired taste, although it does have a few good notes. Unfortunately for many, it is too much of a far cry from the original game, with many aspects ruining what made FF10 special to begin with. To put it bluntly, it's almost like if Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring had had a sequel that was a K-pop music video. Having said that, the HD Remaster is a bundle deal, so you might as well at least give FFX-2 a go.
FF10 certainly shocked a lot of people when it first released. Whilst previous FF titles had been well received for their visuals when they released, nobody had ever seen anything like this in a video game before. FF10's visuals are gorgeous, especially in the remastered version, and, whilst they may not be as awe-inspiringly realistic as we all believed them to be at the time of release, they do still hold up well, even today. Naturally, FFX-2 runs in the same engine, with a vast majority of its assets being recycled from its predecessor, and therefore, it also looks just as pretty.
It isn't just the graphical prowess of these titles that help bring Spira to life, but the vast range of aesthetics too. From dark caverns, bustling cities and thunderous plains to beautiful fields, lush forests and snowy mountains, Spira is a joy to explore, despite its more linear layout in comparison to other FF worlds.
Sadly, the two games don't really have much more in common than that. FFX-2 made a lot of changes to the world it inherited, and it really shows. Take, for instance, the soundtracks.
One of the aspects of the Final Fantasy franchise that is nearly always considered among the most iconic parts of an entry is its soundtrack, and FF10 is no exception. It has so many beautifully composed, atmospheric and emotional songs such as To Zanarkand, with music in each area of Spira matching its environment spectacularly. It also has spectacular battle themes, particularly Enemy Attack and Otherworld.
Sadly, the same cannot be said for most of FFX-2's OST. Rather than build upon some of the beauty of the original game's music, FFX-2 opts for more of a pop style, with some jazz lounge thrown in. It's incredibly clear that composers Nobuo Uematsu, Masashi Hamauzu and Junya Nakano did not return for the sequel, being replaced by Noriko Matseuda and Takahito Eguchi, and the new direction just doesn't work in this setting. Sadly, that is a recurring theme with a lot of FFX-2.
Character design is another aspect that the original did far better. Whilst there are some characters, such as Seymour with his long, weirdly styled hair, do have some interesting design choices, for the most part, FF10 has some fantastic character designs. The Ronso are one of the coolest species in FF to date, and characters like Auron and Jecht ooze coolness. Of course, there are some oddball designs too, but overall, FF10 did a good job.
Admittedly, FFX-2's character design isn't all that bad either. However, this may be down to the fact that most designs are recycled from its predecessor. Having said that, Yuna, Rikku and Paine have mostly good designs in the different outfits they can all attain by changing job class. Unfortunately, a lot of FFX-2's character design seems to serve as solely fan service, with a lot of outfits being very revealing, including new antagonist Leblanc, and more worryingly, the underage Rikku, who is by far the most revealing of the 3 main protagonists. Players also get treated to a two minute cutscene of the three protagonists in just swimwear in a hot spring, which definitely feels like it was added on solely for fan service. It could be argued that the same could be said for Lulu in general in both games, but at least she isn't running around with nothing but a bra on her top half.
Of course, beauty is only skin deep, so what about the characters in terms of writing? For the most part, FF10 does a wonderful job of giving its characters meaningful origins and making its main cast very likeable, although there are times when a certain party member is very easy to dislike. However, FF10 has some great character development, with said party member redeeming himself over the course of the rest of the game.
Once again, FFX-2 fails to keep up with its predecessor, with some characters seemingly regressing rather than progressing. Both Yuna and Rikku are far more childish than their younger selves in FF10, and they are both fairly annoying throughout the game. FFX-2 does try to explain the changes in Yuna's character in particular, but does a poor job of doing so. Also, many other characters, both new and returning, are even more annoying, such as Brother, who plays a comedic relief role with an incredibly pervy attraction to his own cousin, Yuna, and Leblanc, whose purpose in this game is to annoy the player and gush over another new face, Nooj.
One thing neither game is particularly good at is the voice acting. FF10 has the excuse of being the first voiced FF title, but FFX-2 does little to improve upon it. The games do have some redeeming voice acting moments, with James Arnold Taylor doing a mostly good job voicing Tidus, and with names like John DiMaggio also gracing the cast. FFX-2, in particular, also stars George Newburn and Rick Gomez, whose roles here would lead to them later voicing Sephiroth and Zack Fair in the FF7 games, respectively. However, both games suffer from monotony and many cringey dialogue moments which may garner some laughs.
Alas, in the case of FFX-2, the dialogue isn't the only aspect of its writing that is often cringey. One of the things FF10 can pride itself on is that its story is an emotional journey filled with friendship, love and sacrifice. Whilst a couple of the themes are used in FFX-2, it lacks the raw emotion, and honestly, plays off more like a JRPG take on Charlie's Angels or Totally Spy.
One thing both games do well is character progression. FF10 forgoes the traditional level up system for Sphere Levels, which allow you to traverse a board called the Sphere Grid. The Sphere Grid is unique in that, rather than having set level up bonuses, you can travel in any direction you please and have full control over your party's growth, especially if you are using the Expert Grid. The main downside is that, unless you plan to abuse the one hit kill move present in FF10, you will need to do some serious grinding to stand a chance against the endgame super bosses. On top of this, FF10 also has a fully customizable weapon and armour system, allowing you to choose which abilities your equipment has. Again, the downside is that you may need to do some serious grinding for the best equipment if you want to take on those super bosses.
FFX-2, however, returns to a more traditional level system, and brings back FF's fabled job system. Each job learns its own abilities, and as a character fights as a specific job class more, they learn more abilities for that job. You also get to change class mid battle via the Dressphere and Garment Grid system, in which you can equip specific jobs to a grid and then equip that grid to a character. This lets you focus on learning specific job abilities on each character, so you can make some awesome combinations. For example, you can give Yuna a magic orientated equipment build, then equip her Garment Grid with solely magic based jobs, like White Mage and Black Mage, whilst Paine focuses on physical damage, using classes like Warrior and Samurai.
As for the battles themselves, both games differ greatly. FF10 has a much more traditional turn based system, in which using different moves and abilities will either delay or prioritise that character's next turn. It is a rather relaxed and easy to get a hold of system. On the other hand, FFX-2 opts to use the Active Time Battle style, a staple for the FF series that most of its games utilize one way or another. In the case of FFX-2, like FF10, different moves will make a character potentially wait longer before they can go again, but, unlike FF10 and more like previous FF games, enemies won't necessarily wait for you to decide your actions before attacking again. With the ATB system and Garment Grid system combined, FFX-2 actually has some of the best turn based combat in the series.
Also, what is a FF title without minigames? FF10 has a few compulsory ones that must be completed to progress the story, but they are more like puzzles than minigames. It also has multiple optional minigames, all of which give access to items needed to make the ultimate Celestial Weapons. Some of these are asinine to complete, but the rewards are well worth the effort. FF10's biggest minigame is Blitzball, which is introduced early in the story, but is available throughout the game, and even allows you to recruit new team members as you explore Spira.
FFX-2 is also no stranger to minigames, with many being compulsory for the 100% completion ending. Unfortunately, most of them are either boring or just plain frustrating, often with little to no reward outside of not locking out the true ending. Blitzball does return, but is now played via a managerial style. Think of it going from FIFA to Football Manager.
Perhaps the thing that FFX-2 actually improved the most was FF10's monster catching. In FF10, you can use specific weapons to capture monsters in each area, and you can create a sort of living bestiary at the Monster Arena, unlocking more nasties as the owner of the arena creates more as you bring them in. In the later releases of FFX-2, you get the Creature Creator, where you can capture, train and battle with monsters. You can even recruit the creatures into your own party, swapping out Yuna, Rikku and Paine, although they will be controlled by AI rather than the player. The Creature Creator even gives you access to non-playable characters from both games who can fight alongside you, including Brother and some of the original party members from FF10.
Potentially, the most frustrating part of either game is FFX-2's different endings. The 100% ending is the true one, naturally, but so much as the wrong dialogue option, not talking to a specific, random NPC at a specific time, or even in one case, not failing a minigame enough times before succeeding, can you lock you out of 100%. For those who enjoy the game and the completionists out there, you at least have NG+ to try and get what you missed the first time round.
Overall, the collection is worth having, even if you only get it for Final Fantasy X. It still holds up as one of the greats of the series, and is well worth picking up in HD. Final Fantasy X-2, however, is an acquired taste, although it does have a few good notes. Unfortunately for many, it is too much of a far cry from the original game, with many aspects ruining what made FF10 special to begin with. To put it bluntly, it's almost like if Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring had had a sequel that was a K-pop music video. Having said that, the HD Remaster is a bundle deal, so you might as well at least give FFX-2 a go.