Summary The first Final Fantasy installment for the PS2, and possibly the best RPG you will ever play.

Description Before Final Fantasy, no game ever reached a total of ten installments. Once, one of the top twenty best selling console games of all time, Final Fantasy X wowed the world by taking the franchise in bold new directions. From the new Sphere Grid leveling system to the voice work (a first for the series), Final Fantasy X is indeed a Final Fantasy in every way, and possibly the greatest achievement in the history of Squaresoft/Square Enix. Story: Without a great story, any role-playing game is sure to be a disaster. Fortunately, FF X excels here. The game begins with Tidus, an aspiring Blitzball star, whisked away from his world by the horrid abomination known as Sin. He then learns that his home, the great machina city of Zanarkand, has been dead for 1000 years. Tidus is determined to find the truth about Sin and why it has chosen to seperate him from his own time only to be left in this unknown land. Soon after his arrival, he reaches the small island paradise of Besaid, where he meets the fledgling summoner, Yuna, who is learning to summon great spirits from her ancestors to defeat Sin. Yuna's father brought The Calm ten years ago, defeating Sin, and now it is Yuna's responsibility. Knowing that this is the surest path to Sin, Tidus joins Yuna and her guardians to learn the truth. As allies unite and great foes stand against them, Final Fantasy X will grip you until the final moments. Sound: From the beautiful piano introduction of "To Zanarkand" to the classic Final Fantasy victory tune, FF X has the makings to have the best soundtrack in any game. Though the musical score is good, I thought the voice work to be a bit hit or miss. Kind of like it was being forced at times. Aside from that, the in game sound effects are very nice. Next to the story, music and sound effects are what make this game. Combat: In the history of RPGs, almost every game has used a turn-based battle mechanic until FFVII introduced the active time battle system. These new active time battles were used in the series from VII - IX, that is until X brought it back and perfected the turn-based system. These less frantic battles give you the time to formulate a great strategy instead rushing to stay alive like in other FF titles. Another cool addition to more strategic battles of FF X is the ability to alter your party in the heat of combat. This is extremely useful because some characters have useful abilities against enemies that the others don't, therefore not struggling mightily during random or boss encounters. And finally, the best new addition to combat is the Sphere Grid. In almost all other RPGs, your statistics automatically increase as you gain levels. In FF X the grid is introduced as your "leveling up board." Instead of simply gaining more life or strentgh as you level up, you are rewarded with the ability to move a space on the grid. As you advance on the sphere grid, you can use special spheres obtained after battle and plug it into the corresponding space. Though this whole process may seem time consuming and need-less, by traversing the hundreds of different paths, your characters can learn dozens of different abilities every time you play the game. Graphics: This is where this game falls a bit short. Now, I'm not saying that the graphics are bad, but the character and environment texures aren't anything to drool over, though the CG cutscenes aren't too bad. To put it simply, this is about what you'd expect from a four-year-old PS2 title. After playing Final Fantasy VII, VIII, and IX, I was skepticle about a single disc Final Fantasy title. Those fears turned into excitement immediately after I turned on the game, knowing that a great story was about to unfold. With a surprisingly long quest, great musical score, battle mechanic and a story you won't soon forget, Final Fantasy X is absolutely the best RPG you will ever play. For only $20.00, you can't go wrong. Review Page Hits: 2 today (21 in the last 30 days) Create Your Own Review or