Final Fantasy IX

Review

by J.C. Barnes

Each new installment in the Final Fantasy series seems to bring with it a gripping story, complex battle system, and memorable characters. Final Fantasy IX, the third and last Final Fantasy game on the PlayStation, continues developer Square's tradition of releasing quality role-playing games on the home console.

The first thing that players will notice is that Final Fantasy IX has returned to its roots in terms of setting and artwork. Final Fantasy IX now takes place in a traditional fantasy world with an abundance of magicians, knights and dragons that were absent from its two predecessors. While some fans worried that the plot and character development would give way to a simple save-the-princess theme, nothing could be further from the truth.

Players are introduced to the four main characters right from the start. Zidane is a thief who lives for the moment and is extremely impulsive. He's part of a traveling theater group called Tantalus, who plans on kidnapping Princess Garnet. The Princess, however, has plans of her own and is struggling with her role as an authority figure. Her personal bodyguard, Steiner, has lived his life in service of others. The black mage Vivi, one of the most endearing and loveable characters in a Final Fantasy game, desperately wants to see this play and has to figure out a way to get a ticket.

Of course, nothing goes according to plan and the fate of the four characters intersect time and time again throughout the game. The characters go through experiences that change their lives -- Steiner will question the meaning of a life spent in servitude and Vivi will question his existence altogether. The ways in which the characters play off each other is masterfully told: Zidane constantly flirts with Princess Garnet; Garnet is continually annoyed by the protective Steiner; Steiner blames Zidane for her rejection; and Vivi is always on the sidelines, offering fresh and unbiased insight into their problems and on life in general.

While the character development is excellent, the main plot tends to suffer as a result. The characters dwell on their problems too much and simply drift from place to place. The lack of a true, threatening villain is also a problem. Final Fantasy VIII tried to show characters as "human," where there wasn't a clear dividing line between good and evil, and many characters fell into a gray area. While that approach was unique, it caused the plot to waver and become unfocused. Final Fantasy VII, however, had the evil, twisted and unforgettable Sephiroth. Final Fantasy IX tries to mimic this but fails miserably with Kuja, an obvious attempt to clone a Sephiroth-like enemy.

The graphics continue the trend of using pre-rendered backgrounds with polygonal characters, which was first introduced with Final Fantasy VII. As with previous games, the visuals are phenomenal, from the unbelievable CGI cinema scenes to the animated in-game battles. Yet the music is a disappointment, especially when compared with the orchestral scores found in the last two installments.

The battle system is similar to Final Fantasy VII and VIII, while successfully including elements from the older Final Fantasy titles -- Steiner is a Knight, Zidane is a Thief, Princess Garnet a White Mage, etc. The fact that only three characters were playable in the last two games was a huge complaint. Thankfully, this has been addressed, as four characters are now allowed in your party at once. While this may seem trivial, it makes a huge difference in gameplay and strategy while at the same time enhancing the enjoyment of the game.

Each character can equip certain types of armor and weapons useful to their character class. These weapons and armor contain abilities and summons that the user can draw out of it once equipped. Once the armor or weapon is removed, however, that ability is lost unless a certain amount of Ability Points (AP) are gained while wearing the item. AP is a separate type of experience gained after every battle. Once enough AP is gained for a specific ability, that ability is "mastered" making it permanently at your disposal.

Abilities are assigned according to the number of crystals that your character has. For example, you may have three abilities at your disposal. In order to use one ability, you may have to allocate three crystals, another may cost you five and an even more powerful one might cost you nine. If you only have ten crystals at your disposal, you must decide if you're willing to sacrifice the two lesser abilities for the greater one, or vice versa. This balances the game out nicely and offers great customization to player preference, and the number of crystals each character has increases with each level gained.

Limit Breaks also return in this installment. Now referred to as Trances, they occur when a character in your party receives a certain amount of damage. Once the Trance Meter fills up, your character becomes super strong and is capable of executing Limit Break-like special moves.

Final Fantasy IX also has an assortment of mini-games that will keep you entertained as well as give you a nice break from the constant adventuring. The most notable one is the card game. The card game is addicting once you get the hang of it, and collecting cards quickly becomes its own separate activity that offers a nice refuge from the action.

Despite its shortcomings, Final Fantasy IX still maintains the epic status of the series. It's guaranteed to keep you playing for 60 hours. Perhaps the worst thing about this game is when you finish it. Final Fantasy veterans know that each "sequel" has nothing to do, story wise, with the previous installment. You'll never get to see the same characters again in another RPG adventure. This only illustrates Square's talent for storytelling and character development; gamers will actually miss the characters after the credits roll.

The bottom line is that fans of the series as well as hardcore RPG gamers should grab this game as soon as possible. It's worth every penny and is a fitting end to the series on the 32-bit PlayStation.