Thoughts

There's a rule of sorts, among Final Fantasy fans, that all the odd numbered games are "system" entries, meant for combat and gameplay changes, while the evens are "story games". I find this rule to be as silly as they come; FF7 is highly regarded for its story (even if I dislike it), while 2 and 8 aren't exactly classic tales. Meanwhile no one is raving about FF9's combat. There are some entries that follow the rules - 3 through 6 come to mind for me, but in general I find it is more coincidence than anything.

Whatever is the case, I'm finding that the more I play FFX, the more respect I continue to have for it. This is easily the most impressive mainline entry (meaning not FF Tactics) that I've played since 6.

I'm not going to go into a full review (that would require finsihing), but I'd like to talk a little bit about the story. Like the Playstation entries, X still focuses heavily on cutscenes and story segments. What is amazing is that for the first time, it doesn't bother me. I'm actually interested in the plot. It isn't perfect, or even that original, but I can detect a definite maturity to it that just wasn't present in past entries.

An example if you will (I suppose spoiler alerts are in order if you haven't played FF7, though at this point you probably won't ever play it, so read on!). I was watching my roomate play 7 the other day. He reached one of the more critical stages of the plot, when meteor is summoned, Cloud is missing and most of the major plot twists seem to have been revealed. Its all doom and gloom among the cast, and the prevailing emotion seems to be "its all over now, so lets just bide our time." At this point I decided to complete give up on the story of FF7. Here it was, only a few hours into the second disc, and the stage has been setup for the end game. What were the writers thinking? We all know this isn't the end. The heroes will prevail, everything will turn out okay... what the hell else could they fill the rest of the game with? (please don't tell me fans, I honestly don't care) Whatever it may be, I doubt it can be that interesting. FF7's story is much like its fans. I envision it being like a hyperactive teen screaming "OMFG I've this super awesome story that you just have to watch right right now because its so mature kthxbye!!", followed by Barrett tossing random swear words while the other characters make no sense whatsoever. It tries to use plot twists and foul language in an attempt to be serious and mature, but like a young, naive writer it has no clue what the hell to do with any of it.

Then we have FF8. More ellipses than I've ever seen in an RPG. Why so many pauses?

.... I just don't know....

Anyway, FF8 isn't quite as immature as 7, but it has the angsty/emo vibe of a college kid. A good try, but not enough to grab me.

Then there is FFx. For once we have characters that have real emotions, real reasons for how they behave. They can still be erratic, but when Tidus runs towards the water and swims after Sin, I actually understand why. Hell, I know I would do the same. The characters feel human for once, and I'm actually concerned about their wellbeing.

Furthermore, the plot is much more mature in how it progresses. I just got through a rather major event, one that occurred less than ten hours into the game. Right from the start I knew that shit was going to go down. People were going to die, things were going to be revealed. I never expected something this dramatic to happen so early in the plot, but there it was, and it worked brilliantly. This was not FF7. This was a game that was saying "You and I both know this isn't the end. Far from it in fact. I'm simply giving you a taste of what I can do." It isn't perfect, but the story is trying. It is maturing. It is giving me a reason to give a damn, it isn't pulling any punches, and it is getting better at using plot twists and character development effectively, rather than throwing them about haphazardly. Simply put, I'm hooked, and if the stories from games like FF12 and Nintey Nine Nights truly are as good as I hear, then perhaps we really will get to an era were RPG stories aren't one giant anime cliche.


A couple parting shots for you all;

Command and Conquer 3 has been announced. This is one of the few series that still has not been destroyed by EA. Let's hope the trend continues. With this, Rise of Legends and Supreme Commander (or whatever Chris Taylor's new game is called) in the works, perhaps the genre will see a rebirth of sorts.

Keita Takahashi doesn't like the Revolution controller? I don't care if the man made Katamari Damacy; he's starting to piss me off. Not because he seems to be hating on Nintendo, but because I've yet to see an interview with the guy in which he doesn't sound like a disenfranchised hipster. Newsflash Keita; you're not too cool for school. Go make more than one game (and one that isn't a spiced up version of super monkey ball) and then you can talk.