Useless characters

[NeoCracker]

In response to Del's comment about VI doing a better job at not leaving characters behind, I find that true but there is a reason for it.

The game isn't really about one person going after something. IX was, at it's core, Zidane's story and him going out to save the world. In these stories, other people getting left behind plot wise happens, though really good story telling still keeps them all relevant and keeps you caring about them, which IX does a fine job at for the most part.

In the case of VI, it does start off with Terra running from the empire and the whole half esper thing, but really that is but a minor part of the actual story. It's people from all over the world rising up together to fight against the empire. The overall story isn't about any one character, but specifically about the group itself and it's struggles as a whole. They do give everyone their moments to shine which I greatly enjoyed.

I mean when you get down to it though, this story is just as much about the struggles of Banon and Cid as it is Terra and Edgar.

[Darth Cid]

I'll admit not all of the characters got theor fair share of spotlight. But if you work with the abilities, none of the characters are useless gameplay wise. This is more like a underrated, overrated thread than a useless character thread.

[Quindiana Jones]

I agree entirely. Even though it's a damn near perfect game, FF9 feels incomplete or rushed in some parts. The obvious Trance issues are another sign of getting the game done as soon as possible. Although, it's worth noting that rushed in this sense doesn't really have the same meaning as with games nowadays. It just means they cut a few corners, or at least that's how it seems to me.

[loza]

I felt like Quina was the only pointless character if you ask me....

However I do see your point, after their story is done and dusted they don't evolve any further.

If I remember correctly though, there were two teams (of some sort or other) that made the game... I suppose there would be some uneven parts.

[Caelheim]

I always felt that Beatrix would have made for a better playable character than Amarant. She may have been similar to Steiner, but she had a lot more screentime than many of the other supporting characters in the game and was bloody brilliant to boot! Other than Amarant, I felt the game portrayed the playable characters rather decently. It would have helped a good deal if Amarant popped up earlier in the game, though.

[black orb]

>>> All the characters end up dealing 9999 damage in one hit/attack, so all of them are pretty much the same..

[Hot Shot]

I think Freya, Amarant and Quina aren't relevant that much. But in a couple ATEs, Freya gets Amarant to talk about his past a bit, which was pretty cool I guess. IX definately makes the least effort to incorporate all the main characters in the story, but then again, it's hard to when it's mostly about Zidane, Dagger (with Steiner tagging along as her protector) and Vivi. Eiko, as one of the last summoners, is pretty relevant for most of the game.

[Sum1sGruj]

Every character in FFIX at least has some good use throughout parts of the game. It's not as if one dreads having to use them as the story progresses.
Quina is very good through the first half of the game. Whenever she has to be in your party, one can make good use of things like the 'millionaire' ability and her blue magic.
She does become a bit obsolete through the second half. Freya is a strong player through the first half as well, but starts to lack later on.
The great thing baout this is that the developers were well aware of this and so when you are forced to use them, it is rather fun. You won't have to use Quina or Freya much as the game makes them less usuable.

However, if one wanted to, they could very well do so and still kick some ass.IX was very well developed.
Freya is a semi-popular character to use, actually. My strategy just doesn't work with her (never been a fan of dragoons).

Some say Amarant isn't good, but in my opinion, he is a must if one really wants to go all the way and max out. Healers will eventually become obsolete because of auto-regen, auto-life, etc. and Amarant has abilities that fill in the gaps, like revive. Since he is also really quick, he makes for a good support character. To boot, he hits pretty hard as well.

[Jinx]

I was actually always sad about Freya's lack of development in the story. On the first disc and the beginning of the second she's super important; fighting for her kingdom she hasn't seen in years, searching for and finding her lost love, helping Cleyra protect the closest thing she has to home after the destruction of Burmecia...

then her story dies. WHAT? I thought it was BRILLIANT. I love her character (although she sucks in combat.) I wouldn't say as a character she's useless, but it felt like they forgot about her.

Quina and Amarant are completely idiotic and pointless characters, though.

[Quindiana Jones]

You won't have to use Quina or Freya much as the game makes them less usuable.

Two of the most powerful and versatile characters in the game are "less usable"? They can both take the place of Healer while dealing out maximum damage for next to no cost, and Quina has a variety of attacks that dramatically weaken the enemy. Amarant can also act as a Healer, though to a more limited capacity (he does have Revive, however), and when paired with Vivi the Curse/Elemental Magic combo can be devastating, especially when Vivi enters Trance.

In my opinion, the only reasonably useless characters in terms of battle are Garnet and Eiko, as their abilities are expensive and unnecessary. Garnet isn't needed because her summon aren't even in the same league as Vivi, and her White Magic is unecessary due to the characters mentioned above. Eiko's summons are more useful, though still not that important, and her White Magic is only slightly better than Garnet's (with particular mention to Holy). Their uselessness in battle is offset by their integral role throughout the story, however.