Final Fantasy X-2 Electronic Arts ( 19 February, 2004 ) Video Games Our Price : £ 29.99 List Price : £ 39.99 You save £10 (25% off) Prices subject to change. usually dispatched within 24 hours.

The good the bad or the ugly?

I was a little nervous when I started playing this game as I didnt think much of Final Fantasy 10, I was waiting for an even bigger let down than FF10, but to me it seems that the final fantasy series has finally found its way forward from the amazing games like final fantasy 7 and 8, that still take my breath away, this has proved that wisdom grows with age and even though final fantasy has become a extremely old series it is still one of the best you can find out there. I think that it is an excellent idea to bring sequels into the Final fantasy series as many of us have shared bonds with the characters and wish to know what happens to them after their moments of glory at the end of the games. It was a great way to finish off the ending that we found ourselves watching at the end of ffX as we saw Tidus disappear from Yuna arms but never from her heart. In FFX-2 we see Yuna and Rikku return with new friends on a search for spheres around the world, but Yuna motives are much greater than others as she is searching for any hope that Tidus might still be out there. We see a return of old characters like Lulu Wakka and Kimahri in their new lives out of the combat, but also new characters like Nooj and others but they can not be used in battle. Final Fantasy has stepped into a new direction with the sequel as we see many new advantages, instead of using many characters it has been numbered down to a mere three, this may have its down side also but it helps the player focus on just the three instead of continuously changing. The third character in the group is Paine; she is the mysterious one until the player unravels her life to show how she really feels. We see new costumes that have different abilities instead of the sphere grid that confused many players in FFX, we have been introduced back to levelling up as well as that seemed to be lost. We still have the things that make Final Fantasy a great game, the chocobos, the random battles and the brilliant videos at the end, also secret endings that make all the effort worth while, the "perfect ending" we see by completing everything really is a perfect ending but I wont give anything away too much. The game play can either by short or if you play it in detail long and challenging. You can certainly see a difference in graphics from FFX as everything seems more smoothed out and genuinely allot better. We also see the return of musical characters as we saw in Final Fantasy 8. One tradition that seems to have faded away from this game is the music after winning a battle and I shall have to say it is sadly missed also another thing that shall be missed from this story is the summoning of aeons as they were destroyed in the last one, but FFX-2 has many tricks up its sleeves and some sights that will amaze and shock the audience. FFX-2 seems to bring emotions into the way you play the game as we see Yunas heart break every second she is away from her love, as she sings in front of the whole of Spira. The music that is used is real Japanese musical hits like "1000 words" that bring beauty into life and an emotional video that makes people shred a tear. Even though square soft has changed its name it seems to have the same effect on many of people, this is a piece of genius that all ages will love, if they are up for a challenge to be awarded with a spectacular ending that we can truly call a happy ending :) (If you follow the rules you can get the happily ever after) I can say from experience that this game is amazingly good and beautifully developed into being one of the best final fantasies Ive played as I enjoyed it very much and was sad when it was over, it is getting back to being as good as Final fantasy 7 and 8 and hopefully we shall see show sequels of those games or improvements made upon those ones. This game surely deserves 5 stars as it is well made and not only the graphics are amazing but the story is too and the rest of the game. Will Yuna find what she was looking for and be re-united with Tidus at the end? Youll have to play it to find out :)

A different slant on the usual from Square

Final Fantasy X was melancholic affair. A world gripped by a perpetual spiral of death where the inhabitants had very little in the way of hope or joy to look forward to. The entire game had a sense of depression about it as you travel round the ravaged world of Spira. Along come Square-Enix with their first ever sequel to a Final Fantasy epic, and its almost like theyve got a button on their wonderful Japanese machinery that is labelled Remix Final Fantasy X in a Charlies Angels stylee. The game is literally THAT different from its predecessor! Upbeat cheesy music! Girl power in effect! Clothes! Oh so many clothes! Flashy effects and liberal doses of humour! Its like the complete negative of the very serious original. Where FFX tackled the concepts of mortality and the falsness of the religion of Yevon, FFX-2 has wiped the slate clean to bring a more upbeat take on things to the casual buyer. The fights are flashy and entertaining from moment one, there is plenty to do with the return of Active Time Battles. Once again you find yourself quickly making choices to get your attacks in first. You get a greater sense of involvement than you did in the previous game, having to continually select actions, swap costumes, fire of salvos of bullets by tapping R1, trying to chain together moves in time. Much more to keep you entertained in battle in contrast to the more laid back style battles of FFX. Rather than having a large party of people to manage, you just have our 3 ladies; Yuna, Rikku and Paine. Yuna & Rikku have joined a band of sphere hunters known as the Gullwings after Rikku brings Yuna a sphere which contains an image of Tidus, trapped somewhere dark and unfriendly. They travel the world of Spira searching for more clues that could lead where Tidus may be. Certain favourites make cameos in the game and the entire world of Spira is familiar and instantly accessable by your huge flying aircraft. Again this is down to Square-Enix trying to make this game accessable to new heads to the Final Fantasy game. Instant action and instant gratification. Of course the depth is there for the hardcore. The Sphere Grid powerup system has now been replaced by Garment Grids. Our main characters can change their abilities depending on what costume they wear. The standard Theif, Black Mage and White mage are present alongside new skill sets such as Songstress and Gunner. The amount of time a character spends in a costume determines how much of an expert they become with that skill. You have the freedom to decide how your characters will develope in this game. Add to that the replay value to get alternate endings and a branching storyline based on your actions, there are HOURS of play to get from this game. If the hardcore can place their sceptisism aside about this new cheery update and STOP pining for a FF7 update, they will discover more joys in the world of Spira. Those who are new to the game and have found it ploddy in the past, will be mesmerised by the new instant action approach that Square-Enix have taken, PLUS knowledge of the past game is not essential. Although I would say that the previous game is too good a bargain not to pick up since its on the Platinum range. Its nice to have something different from the franchise for once. Those wanting a fresh new saga in the more traditional style of Square will have to wait until FFXII surfaces later this year.

Therapeutic return to Spira

Final Fantasy X-2 is a confused game, this much is clear from the two opening sequences to the game. The usual, sombre opening credits are intact, and from this beginning you could be forgiven for thinking you were about to embark on the usual Final Fantasy adventure, with accompanying heavy plots and emotional scenes aplenty. This is shattered once you start the game, however. Our heroes are introduced in colourful cut-away freeze frame, in moments which very correctly remind many people of Charlies Angels. Yuna sings J-Pop, Rikku tries to subdue a guard using her cuteness, and Paine jumps straight into action. A few moments later, the girls all join up for a group freeze-frame, and the unsuspecting gamer is left not knowing what to think. It establishes itself quickly as light-hearted, yet also throws you quickly into the thick of battle, and the unitiated may be taken aback by the speedy nature of the turn-based battles. This is a tremendous change for the series, though: the clunky, pause-ridden battles which have typified FF games thusfar is emphatically thrown out of the window, and replaced with something much more condusive to real action. Side-quests are a large feature of this game, and it is pleasing to discover that if you should ever bore of the main story, you can take day-trips to other areas and indulge yourself in a mini game or two. I once visited Luca, intending only to level up a few times before I continued, but was drawn into a beuatifully detailed reconstruction of some of Yunas backstory: a most pleasing diversion. Production values in this game are consistently high, and the amount of speech, especially in battles, is hugely impressive. The characters are thus fleshed out fantastically, and the player is drawn into the experience with great intensity. The one drawback is that this is still Final Fantasy: seemingly a curious criticism. You still go from A to B and battle a boss before you get the item you want. You still have to level up and get money to beat these bosses, and you still have to use trial and error on too many occassions. The saving grace of FFX-2 is the inventive nature of the in-game experience, and the diverse society which makes up Spira. Rikku, Yuna and Paine do succeed in making this a successful sequel to FFX, and hopefully Square-Enix can learn from what theyve done here to make FFXII a fantastic experience.