Sound: 10
Gameplay: 10
Value: 9
Reviewer's Tilt: 10
Final Score: 9.7
I should mention the plot, because it is one of the best plots I have seen in any video game. This is due to the game's use of voice acting--a first for the series--which gives the characters a lot ot depth. Overall, I found FFX's characters to be much better than the one-dimensional ones from FFVII. You are forced to watch every cutscene, which may turn some people off, but the cutscenes are rather short and colorful, basically they are attractive in presentation. The truly best cutscenes are the computer-generated ones, which have as good of graphics as the Final Fantasy movie's graphics!
Speaking of graphics, FFX is one of the best looking games on the PS2. There are huge, colorful worlds with some excellent facial expressions and special effects. The textures are very sharp and the characters sport a lot of detail. Sure, there is some slowdown and some of the NPCs just don't look very good up close, but this is excusable because everything else is just so attractive.
Of course, I can't praise the music enough. It's excellent, and there are a lot of great songs on this soundtrack. My favorite is the Seymour Battle music from your final fight with him. Of course, every song in the soundtrack is outstanding. The voice actors are great with the exception of Yuna's, which just doesn't work. Overall, this game sounds great.
There has been lots of complaints about FFX, and one of them is the linear feel of the game. Personally, I could care less. In fact, I prefer the game's linear feel over non-linear games. People always complain that they don't like having a map in the upper left-hand side of the screen, where you follow a path on your radar leading to a red arrow, where you are supposed to go next. However, it's much better knowing where you're supposed to go rather than being lost, like I have so many times in the other FF games.Thanks to this linear quality, I could enjoy mindless wandering as I explored the area, and listening to the outstanding music, which is some of the best musical composition in any game.
I know I say it a lot, but buy this game. If you don't own this game yet, you should. Yes, it is that good. Consider this: I don't like RPGs, but FFX is one of the best games I have ever played. Well, there you have it. You will like it--no--you will love it! It's Squaresoft's best fantasy yet. --Chris Currey
