This review contains spoilers
Wow. Where do I even begin with this game?
I'll just put a disclaimer: my experience with video games generally center around platformers, arcade and casual games - stuff that don't really focus on narrative too much for the sake of letting the player's experience be their own story to some extent.
Final Fantasy X was something of a culture shock, in both how different it was from the Final Fantasy games I'd played before it (I, IV, Chrono Trigger) and how different it was from video games as I'm comfortable with the medium as a whole.
This is perhaps the first game I've ever played that actually felt like a genuine story of characters that's not compromised one way or another to its gameplay... generally for the better.
Seeing the main cast grow and mature past both their former selves, as well as their once-assumed destinies was intense, as was comparing them to the rest of Spira, against its antagonists and the themes of corruption, ignorance, false hope and tradition that arise from that.
Seymour in particular was interesting from that cast of antagonists in how close he was to being sympathizable, how close he was to recognizing the things that Yuna did... yet without the support she had, without love for others, he was blinded by ambition, wrongly assuming the only way to love was to kill.
I love to hate him. The contrast between him and Yuna acts as a reminder to myself in some ways.
Breaking from destiny, choosing one's own path... The Sphere Grid does a good job in translating that thematic idea into gameplay, and I really like it and how much strategy you can put into it and the weapon customization in the endgame, but I do think I'd like to see that implemented in a game less narratively driven, a bit more roguelike, one with... decidedly less cutscenes. I very much enjoyed learning the bosses' strategies and eventually outsmarting them through exploiting all kinds of mechanics, but certain pre-boss cutscenes lose far too much of their power when you watch them for the third time after getting defeated against the boss right near the end.
Still, I think I think the game works very well in the sum of its parts. By the time I was done, I'd grown to love the Al Bhed and what they stood for, I was happy with where my party had gone, both as fighters and as people, and I hope Spira will move on to be a better place in X-2 now that Yevon and its religion have been proven to be a sham; that they will learn to be less judgmental of one another and truly strive for peace.
Final Fantasy X was amazing, and it was a one-of-a-kind experience in my relationship with video games so far. I wish I could embrace everything about it, even down to its more frustrating parts in game design, but it's hard for me to say it's one of the best games I've played alongside my all-time favorites, if only because this isn't the kind of experience I'm used to from video games, and some of that inexperience has let me down in my own personal time with the game.
One day I'll have another sixty hours to invest in this game with better hindsight. I think I'd be ready to absolutely love it then.
I'll just put a disclaimer: my experience with video games generally center around platformers, arcade and casual games - stuff that don't really focus on narrative too much for the sake of letting the player's experience be their own story to some extent.
Final Fantasy X was something of a culture shock, in both how different it was from the Final Fantasy games I'd played before it (I, IV, Chrono Trigger) and how different it was from video games as I'm comfortable with the medium as a whole.
This is perhaps the first game I've ever played that actually felt like a genuine story of characters that's not compromised one way or another to its gameplay... generally for the better.
Seeing the main cast grow and mature past both their former selves, as well as their once-assumed destinies was intense, as was comparing them to the rest of Spira, against its antagonists and the themes of corruption, ignorance, false hope and tradition that arise from that.
Seymour in particular was interesting from that cast of antagonists in how close he was to being sympathizable, how close he was to recognizing the things that Yuna did... yet without the support she had, without love for others, he was blinded by ambition, wrongly assuming the only way to love was to kill.
I love to hate him. The contrast between him and Yuna acts as a reminder to myself in some ways.
Breaking from destiny, choosing one's own path... The Sphere Grid does a good job in translating that thematic idea into gameplay, and I really like it and how much strategy you can put into it and the weapon customization in the endgame, but I do think I'd like to see that implemented in a game less narratively driven, a bit more roguelike, one with... decidedly less cutscenes. I very much enjoyed learning the bosses' strategies and eventually outsmarting them through exploiting all kinds of mechanics, but certain pre-boss cutscenes lose far too much of their power when you watch them for the third time after getting defeated against the boss right near the end.
Still, I think I think the game works very well in the sum of its parts. By the time I was done, I'd grown to love the Al Bhed and what they stood for, I was happy with where my party had gone, both as fighters and as people, and I hope Spira will move on to be a better place in X-2 now that Yevon and its religion have been proven to be a sham; that they will learn to be less judgmental of one another and truly strive for peace.
Final Fantasy X was amazing, and it was a one-of-a-kind experience in my relationship with video games so far. I wish I could embrace everything about it, even down to its more frustrating parts in game design, but it's hard for me to say it's one of the best games I've played alongside my all-time favorites, if only because this isn't the kind of experience I'm used to from video games, and some of that inexperience has let me down in my own personal time with the game.
One day I'll have another sixty hours to invest in this game with better hindsight. I think I'd be ready to absolutely love it then.