It seems that VII gets all the praise and this game gets much less. IMO IX is the best FF game and is undervalued and underappreciated. This should be the most popular of all the FFs.
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It seems that VII gets all the praise and this game gets much less. IMO IX is the best FF game and is undervalued and underappreciated. This should be the most popular of all the FFs.
Final Fantasy VII was revolutionary when it came out, and even though Final Fantasy IX may be one of the most well-rounded and best FFs all-around, it didn't bring anything new to the series. It was basically an homage to the series up until that point.
Maybe that's why? I dunno.
yeah, IX was in and of itself not much more than a tribute, designed to incite reactions of nastalgia in the players, whereas VII was something different and revolutionary at the time of it's release, it had little in common with past FFs (besides the classic FF staples) except maybe VI... i guess if someone hasn't played any of the games before VI it would look and feel like a fresh new experience but to some of us that played the earlier FFs before touching IX it's more like a rehash of the ancient and just your average tribute game, with the most horrible mini-games/side-quests ever... of course there's the jaded old school purists, that really don't like change and hailed it as the greatest FF ever...
It's cuter than ff7, I guess. I prefer 8 over both of them though.
FFIX is kind of a mixed bag. It's has a great cast, an original artistic style, stunning graphics and a wonderful score but it also has some pretty lousy gameplay and a story that eventually collapses under the weight of its plot holes and contrived melodrama (ie just like FFVII/VIII). I not quite sure where I would rank it compared to the other PSX FF games. It's leagues ahead of FFVIII but if it's better then FFVII, it's not significantly so. Definitely not on the same level as Tactics.
And then there are those of us who just love the game for what it is. :)Quote:
Originally Posted by Elly
QFTQuote:
Originally Posted by RantzienAnd then there are those of us who just love the game for what it is. :)Quote:
Originally Posted by Elly
I'm tired of people saying I like FFIX because it was a tribute, considering it was the first Final Fantasy I played and the second I beat. And when I beat it after beating the past games, I still loved it and got to appreciate some tributes, thats all. Besides horrible Mini Games? Chocobo Hot and Cold for the win.
EDIT: On topic, most of the time FFIX is underappreciated, except mainly in EoFF.
Most of the dislike and hostility for FFIX seems to come mostly from fans of VII and VIII, who in my eyes never seem to want to accept Zidane as a main character, mainly due to him not being as serious, or more to the point "emo" as Cloud or Squall. There's also alot of negative opinions on the plot and graphical style of the game compared to the two previous installments (which is understandable for players of VIII, I guess).
I don't think it helped that FFIX was released right at the end of the PSone's life too. From what I remember it had nowhere near as much hype as VII and VIII did, even the Official Playststion Magazine, (which I used to buy at the time) barely mentioned it and were very non-committal on the overall quality of the game. It almost felt like IX was never meant to be part of the regular Final Fantasy series, just something to kill the boredom while the developers worked on X.
Regarding the gameplay, I remember myself being slightly dissapointed with the "cutesy" look it had after getting so used to the more grown up and realistic feel of VIII and it effecting my judgement of the game (for the first few hours at least). It was only after the scenes in the Village of Dali with Vivi, and the fight with Black Walz #2 that I really began to take the game and the characters more seriously. Then after the introdution of Kuja and the fight with Beatrix, followed by the destruction of Cleyra and invasion on Lindblum I was completely hooked on the storyline and gameplay. From that point on it was among the most enjoyable gaming experiences I'd ever had on the PSone console. It was also at that point in the game when most of the characters began searching for themselves and questioning their own existence in some way or another, which I felt was done in a very natural way, and is one of the most overlooked and underappreciated aspects of the game by people who refer to it as "kiddish".
I thought the FMVs were spectacular also, especially the opening one, and Odin destroying Cleyra. The music througout the game is excellent too, very positive for the most part and well suited to the dungeons and cities that you visit. The one problem I did have with the game was the lack of difficulty, I don't remember there being a single boss in the game that recquired any specific strategy to defeat, it was just a matter of hit/heal, although anyone playing a FF for the first time would probably of found a few of them challenging (I remember it took me many attempts to defeat Elvoret on my first play-through of VIII).
I believe if the people who dislike IX so much gave it more of a chance they'd enjoy it alot better than they think they would. Perhaps in a few more years people will begin to become bored of the futuristic approach the series has taken and will come to appreciate IX's gameplay and story much more.
aappart from necron at the end could you elaborate please?Quote:
story that eventually collapses under the weight of its plot holes
Yeah Necron was kinda messed up. O_o
But Final Fantasy IX is my favorite game of the series probably because I'm a sappity sap sap. I like romance and squeeeeee-ness. Backtracking a little, Final Fantasy VIII didn't give me a squee feeling until the end. I dunno, I never felt it during the game probably because I found Rinoa soooooooooo annoying throughout the game. -_- And VII doesn't really have any true squeee moments for me because I'm not a Cloud/Tifa fan. In this game, you have SO much fluff, what with Zidane/Garnet, Freya/Fratley, and my personal favorite Beatrix/Steiner. I don't feel like any of them belong with someone else and I don't find any of them annoying as I have Rinoa and Tifa.
I also think the plot is deep and well developed until the end. But the ending ending makes up for that. So happy! Maybe you people that don't like FFIX don't enjoy great battle system, relatable characters, love stories, great plots, happy people, great graphics and old-school-ness. Whatever. If you'd rather play FFVIII which lacks more than half of that, be my guest. (Though, Quistis and Selphie rock my sox and helped with Ulti. a great deal)
ix is also my favorite ever
even after completing it many times if i were to do it again id still feel all warm and fuzzy(for lack of a better phrase) and love and savour jus about every minute of it
there no other game id feel like that with
Necron, the inexplicable death of the Iifa Tree and Zidane's miraculous (and unexplained) escape from being turned into Genome pulp are the biggest ones. There are also a whole load of smaller issues like the details of Garland's plan, Kuja's sudden change of heart at the very end and most of the things that revolved around the Great Crystal that I felt were pretty poorly explained or poorly integrated with the rest of the game.Quote:
Originally Posted by Marky Tee
Yeah, some of Garland's plan left me with ?????
id have liked more on garlands origins and more info on how he apparently tried to take the world by force before the events of the game
I don't feel IX is overlooked due to it being underrated, VII will simply be remembered a little bit more because it had such a considerably larger impact on the gaming community when it was released.
Regardless I still think IX is one of the best RPG's out there, and thinking back to the great "VII vs. VIII vs. IX" thread, it stands along with VII and VIII as a very special period in RPG's and gaming in general that I think we may never actually be able to get back to. Many don't remember, some were too young, but when it was released, FFIX received hate from only one group - those who didn't play it. Anyone who had a copy at the time couldn't possibly deny its impressive quality of graphics, music, story, gameplay (not so much for some) and most importantly that certain quality that you just can't explain. I consider it the most well-rounded game in the series and the brilliance with which it was all put together is evident with scenes like escaping from the petrified forest, exploring the outer continent, learning the mysteries of Gaea/Terra, everything. I feel sorry for anyone who hasn't had the pleasure of enjoying this game.
i own the game and would have enjoyed playing it if it werent for such a horrible skill system, i've said this before but the concept of being able to learn dozens of skills and then having to only "equip" a handfull at a time is really lame in my opinion, i feel once skills are learned they should be perrmenant and at your disposal at all times, there should be no reason to swap out skills... another hinderance was a completely useless Trance system, i never got to use Trance because it always came up about the time i delt the final blow on enemies/monsters and doesn't carry over to the next battle where it actualy would be usefull... then there are the mini games Tetra Master to be more specific was a horrible example of a card minigame, it totaly removed any and all skill for a system of pure luck, i'm sorry but if my numbers are higher i should win it, adding a random roll feature was once again a lame thng for them to do... as far as story it was good and entertaining, the weapons were awesome the graphics were great even if they were a bit kiddy, but sadly these good points are outshined by the bad, i have tried to replay and enjoy this game on several occasions but the bad points irritate me to no end and squashes any chance of enjoyment i could possibly get from what could have been a great game if not for these flaws...
Few things.
1. Tetra Master ruled.
2. Not having a million skills at your disposal at all times requires you to think strategically.
That is all :p
Necron, and the death of the Iifa Tree weren't necessarily unexplained. Necron, from what the game did tell us about him, (or at least hinted at), is the true form of the Iifa Tree, created by Garland to disrupt the flow of souls on Gaia, eventually leading to it's assimilation by Terra. As he did with Zidane and Kuja, Garland gave Necron a soul (why...?), it was because of this that he was able to observe the actions of Kuja, and it was because of Kuja's thirst for power and the devastation it left behind, that led Necron to theorise that life existed for one purpose only...to perish and return to the Zero World, a place that would be created by the destruction of the Great Crystal. Kuja's attempt to destroy the Crystal in Memoria after being told by Garland that he was not immortal as he had believed, only made Necron even more convinced that this theory was correct, thus he allowed the souls of Zidane & Co to enter the Hill of Despair so he could explain his theory and prove it right by destroying them and the Crystal. Defeating Necron put an end to the Iifa Tree.Quote:
Originally Posted by KarellenNecron, the inexplicable death of the Iifa Tree and Zidane's miraculous (and unexplained) escape from being turned into Genome pulp are the biggest ones. There are also a whole load of smaller issues like the details of Garland's plan, Kuja's sudden change of heart at the very end and most of the things that revolved around the Great Crystal that I felt were pretty poorly explained or poorly integrated with the rest of the game.Quote:
Originally Posted by Marky Tee
Garland's plans were merely to oversee the assimilation of Gaia by Terra, and create Gnomes that would be vessels for the souls of the Terrans once the assimilation was complete. Although why he tried to take Gaia by force, and why it put him back 5000 years is a mystery that they don't seem to touch on at any point in the game from what I remember.
i thought the 5000 years was the age of gaia?
which is another thing i found strange as only 5000 years from the planets formation til a fully developed industrial revolution era human( and hippo lol) society?
bit quick eh?
Not terribly. It's quick by the standards of real life, but that's nothing to bind how the Gaians progressed as a planet. After all, we have no idea when humans existed in their current state on Gaia and it only took the human race a couple of thousand years to reach the Industrial Revolution.Quote:
Originally Posted by Marky Tee
I do feel that FFIX is underappreciated because it is a fantastic game, definitely one of the strongest entries in the series. The soundtrack is fantastic and the colourful array of characters - I thought - was a welcome change from the cast of FFVIII. I do think though that some characters, notably Freya, have their moment in the limelight and then seem to be criminally underused for about half the game, which is one of my main criticisms of the game itself. Otherwise it has an excellent plot, a fantastic villain who - in my view - is probably the best in the series (except possibly Kefka). Gameplay is excellent and adore the relative amount of customisation that the game allows when it comes to skills, equipment and the like. Trance wasn't fantastic but in terms of plot it was a fantastic way to link the storyline to battles. It's an excellent game that only extremely silly people could fail to like.
FFIX isn't my favorite of the series, but it's definitely one of the best. My brother didn't like it, and I am amazed that he didn't. FFIX is such a great game! Great characters, great battle/level system, great story: this game rules.
I've read it before. Some points seem reasonable, others not so much. Ultimately though I think it falls flat for the same reason every other FF theory falls flat: the 'evidence' is so obscure that no one could possibly make the connection unless they were looking for it.Quote:
Originally Posted by Nog
Yeah, like Ipsen beeing Kuja, getting a message to go home(Terra) traveling with a golden chocobo/fat chocobo (learning him the card game) having to open the seal, thus calling the castle for Ipsens castle.
You can make uplike this if you really want, it can be true, it most likely isnt.
I agree. I think is easier the best FF game, between the mini-games, battle system, and story line. I honestly really didn't LOVE FFVII, to be perfectly honest.
buh?Quote:
Yeah, like Ipsen beeing Kuja, getting a message to go home(Terra) traveling with a golden chocobo/fat chocobo (learning him the card game) having to open the seal, thus calling the castle for Ipsens castle.
No, just 5.
what??
[QUOTE=Rantzien;2509292]AmennnnQuote:
Originally Posted by Elly
FFIX is a great game. I think that if you want a definition of what is Final Fantasy, you just need to play FFIX.
But as stated before, it didn't bring anything new to the series. This is why it's not as popular as FFVII.
But if you think about it... What FF game have the same popularity level of FFVII? No one.
Just because VII is the most popular, doesn't mean FFIX is underappreciated. It just means that FFIX is less popular than FFVII, like any other FF game.
5000 years ago was the time where Garland tried to take Gaia by force(when the two planets merged together).Quote:
Originally Posted by Marky Tee
Gaia is older than that.
In my mind, Im pretty sure its a better overall game than the likes of FFVII, VIII, X etc. But I can see why it didnt create as much of an impact and it is fair to say it was less new. I think of it as a perfectly rounded Final Fantasy which wasnt revolutionary.
Still, its my favourite game ever.
Just finished the game, can't say whether I was either content or disappointed about it.
-Extremely straight-forward game.
-Story is well designed, kept me thinking, although I'm still fuzzy on some parts in the story.
-Since I finished FF8 and played FF9 right after (I'm playing through all the FFGames all over again), I would be expected to bag on the graphics, but I actually appreciated the style that was used.
-Extremely disappointed with the Trance system, really wish it charged faster (I have used the first 3 Dyne attacks, then I zoomed right to Solution 9 Dyne attack :mad2:, I haven't even tried the others before Solution 9), or have the activated trance carry on to the next fight.
-Game Mechanics is old-school, easy, and simple.
-The skills was interesting, took some time to get the skills maxed, but it's bearable.
-Tetra Master couldn't have been easier to play, compared to Triple Triad in FF8
-Side Quests - What side-quests??? Ozma is easy, and... well thats all I know that wasn't tedious like Jump Rope/Hippaul.
Overall FF9 is entertaining and simple to play:)
Edit: The ending is spectacular, quite possibly my most favorite ending in Final Fantasy.
I agree, final fantasy 9 is my most favorite final fantasy and i also thought that 8 and 7 were bad, i did not like those two.