LogFAQs > #896471282

40. Final Fantasy IX (Eerieka)


Like Metal Gear Solid 2, I probably spend more time pointing out Final Fantasy IX's weak points relative to the better games in the series than its good ones because Board 8 overrates it to high heaven. It's still a great game, and there's no shame in being the weakest of Square's Golden Era because the five Final Fantasy games in five years is the best stretch for any series ever. When Final Fantasy IX came out, it was touted as a throwback game, filled with homages and references to previous games in the series, as well as a return to a more traditional medieval fantasy setting after the last two games had been more futuristic. However, when I first played it in 2000, that didn't mean much to me, since the only Final Fantasy games I had played up to that point were VII, VIII, and Tactics! Of course, I can appreciate those things now, although I do find it weird that they also claimed they would bring back crystals (it even says "The Crystal Comes Back!" on the back of the case), but you don't even see the crystal in the logo until the very end of the game.

Anyway, as far as the game itself goes, where do I even begin? The main cast is solid (except for Eiko, who is in contention for worst party member of the 3-D games), although Zidane, Vivi, Dagger, and Steiner are clearly above the other four to me. Freya and Amarant had potential, but they sort of get discarded along the way other than having a couple of sequences centered around them. Quina is decent enough comic relief from time to time ("Frog...is talking...Maybe I eat it...?"), although I did take great pleasure in learning that s/he can eat the Earth Guardian. Final Fantasy IX has a pretty great ensemble of NPCs, too. Kuja might be my favorite villain in the series, design aside. Beatrix is cool, too, although I wish they had made it possible for you to win at least one of the boss fights against her, even if the ensuing cutscene has her owning you anyway. Tantalus is a really fun group, too. It was always a good time when they were on screen. One of my favorite aspects of Final Fantasy IX that I'm sad the series hasn't brought back is the Active Time Event, which lets you break away from the main characters to see what other characters are doing elsewhere. It's a very slice of life type mechanic, because they're mostly optional (occasionally there's a mandatory one you can't ignore), but they tend to be fun segments that build cast chemistry (key phrase for me).

Final Fantasy IX's battle system gets a lot of flack, some of it deserved. Perhaps the biggest critique is how slow everything is, but I honestly don't mind it all that much. I'm not playing an RPG because I want a fast-paced experience. The lamest thing to me is the fact that you can't store up your Trances, and they automatically activate when your gauge is full. I suppose it was an overreaction to how spammable Final Fantasy VIII's were, but they went too far in the opposite direction. Another annoying thing is how low the steal rate is in this game. I don't understand how a thief can be so bad at his job! Other than that, it's fine. The game has some pretty good boss fights, with the Beatrix and Kuja fights, along with Black Waltz No. 3, being some of my favorites. The regular battle theme is great, too. Speaking of which, Final Fantasy IX might have my favorite soundtrack in the series. I think Uematsu has claimed it's his favorite, too, and it's the most represented game in Curtain Call, so I guess I'm not alone on that. On a related note, You're Not Alone might be the best song in the series, too. It almost single-handedly makes the scene it plays during as good as it is. I could say more, but I'm already running out of space to fit this all in one post! I didn't even say anything about the story, but oh well! Argh, it's so hard being concise with this series!

Bonus Question: Which Final Fantasy has your favorite soundtrack?
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