This game had me so emotionally invested, I thought every party member was interesting and well-explored (lots of optional dialogue that REALLY adds to the lore and background info), but especially, both Tidus and Yuna and their relationship is amazingly developed. I know there's plenty of criticism towards the voice acting and some of the animations, but I was honestly quite charmed by it, something like the laughing scene really worked well for me, both for offering great lighthearted character moments but also because these scenes end up being so poignant in retrospect. I think there's also something about that "early 2000's ps2 game" atmosphere that I really vibe with.

I was surprised at some of the darker undercurrents in the story, the themes that follow religious order and questioning faith, the way that Spira feels so ethereal and centers around spirituality. It all just really came together for me, it made me wish this was one of those games I grew up with, but I'm also glad I played it now because it has a lot of mature introspective moments that I wouldn't have caught back then. It all ends up being an engrossing experience. the linearity and focus on the pilgrimage was something I loved to keep me on track, with some occasional diversion in minigames to lighten up the mood at points.
Towards the endgame portion, I was just stalling by trying to complete a bunch of optional tasks, I really didn't want the game to end. But of course, I did reach there and wow, probably one of the most beautiful endings to a story I've seen in general. What's most evident is that this game has heart and soul, it's earnest in the best way and they made the most of the ps2 when it came out. Also, the OST is so good and those cg cutscenes look great even today. This was my first full Final Fantasy experience and I'm eager to check out more entries. I know there's X-2, it's part of the bundle I bought, but I sorta just want the ending of this game to linger with me for a bit.

The characters and writing are absolutely the stars of this game hands down. This game has some of the best writing i've ever experienced in a video game and I went so far out of my way to here every line of dialogue that I could. And thats not to even mention that I undisputedly believe that this is the best voice cast in a video game ever. The voice actors/actresses’ performances in this game is so top notch, that I cant even think of one character that i didn't love. This is all to be expected though as its a Tim Schafer game, and story/characters/writing were bound to be the best aspect. I went into this game only knowing a little about the concept, and knowing it was only a 3D platformer. What I wasn’t expecting though, was that this would be a melding between a 3D platformer collectathon AND of traditional point and click adventure games. It started to become aparent to me that that was what they were going for during the Milkman's Conspiracy where item puzzles are super utilized to progress through the level. And Gloria’s Theater also leans super heavy into the adventure game aspect. For the most part, I think they succeeded immensely, but there are major aspects and flaws that really hold the game back. The biggest thing being how shoty the controls and platforming can feel, way too much jank that made me want to pull my hair out. I went for 100% completion and despised a lot of jumps the game wanted me to make for figments because the game was so rough on its mechanics. Another not so great aspect is the figments themselves. There cool and all in the context of the world but sometimes in some levels, they just totally blend in to the background and become a NIGHTMARE to backtrack and collect them all, because there are so many. Really, my only grievances with this game come with the slightly sub par platforming mechanics. All of the other aspects of the game are so polished and unparalleled by anything else I can think of in games, that its almost forgivable. I loved all the campers and wa honestly under the impression that each of the levels would take place in there minds earlier on, because of how distinct and fleshed out they feel. But instead it goes with larger levels with the asylum inmates, which was still REALLY good (except for Waterloo World), I guess I was just hoping to see a little bit more out of the kids because of how funny and memorable they all are. I hope they all apear in some form in Psychonauts 2. Speaking of which, if done as well as this one, and they just polish up the actual gameplay mechanics and level design a bit more, 2 has the potential of being so much more, the skeleton and structure is all right here and theres nothing else like this. This feels like an actual evolution of the adventure game formula.

I feel like the best way to describe God of War is that its basically one of those E3 showcase demos, only it keeps on going. Honestly, if western AAA games were always done this well, id feel confident saying blockbuster films are a way of the past, because this type of experience is something a film could never achieve. Unfortunately, there not, and God of War is in the minority in that aspect. Everything about this game feels like there was no expense spared, the art direction, the voice acting, the music, the graphics, the list goes on. There are some small blemishes that can take you out of the experience and will not age well come 5 years from now, like the very frequent loading zone “tight spots”. But obviously with the PS4 that was unavoidable. I went into this game, probably like a lot of people, having not played a God of War game before, and I REALLY like coming from that angle. I was vaguely familiar with the concept of the series going in, and the way this game strikes a balance between setting up a new trilogy and keeping the past games intact, while also feeling like a reboot of sorts, is pretty masterful. Really makes me want to go and play the original trilogy sooner rather than later.

Nothing great, nothing special. The combat and most of the characters are the only consistently good thing about it and even then characters are consistently likable, not that interesting. It feels like what a prototypical Ys game is (even though I've only played 8 and Origin). The story is as inconsistent as the pacing and I found the boss fights to be cool-looking but never really exciting (with the most deaths being 9 and even then, I was playing a character that I hadn't been playing much as others).

The towns are cool and I like the setting a lot but it can get boring to look at sometimes. There are a few good sidequests like the weapon tests and the armor knight fight but those were few and far between the other boring ones.

While not as compelling story-wise as Ys 8 or is as technically challenging as Origin, it's still a fine game and I did have some enjoyment when I got into the zone. I will say it does make me excited for nine though.