PlayStation2: Final Fantasy X-2 (PS2)

Final Fantasy X-2 (PS2) Description

Final Fantasy X-2 (PS2)

Taking place two years after Yuna's fateful journey to defeat Sin, the once chaotic world of Spira has gone through a massive transformation, entering a period of "Eternal Calm". The people of Spira now shun the teachings of Yevon and have opened their arms to former foes, the Al Bhed and the use of machina. The Machine Faction aims to propagate the use of machina in Spira, going as far as renaming "machina" to "machines" to remove the stigma. However, even with the peaceful life they now lived, there is emptiness in Yuna's heart that is keeping her from moving on as the others have. One day, Yuna obtains a mystical sphere that contains imagery of what might be the Blitzball player she thought was gone forever. Although Yuna isn't certain that it is him or if he is even alive, she's driven to seek him out. Yuna needs closure to their unexpected parting, even if only to find that she will never see him again. So begins her journey, this is Yuna's story. While Final Fantasy X-2 is a sequel, it is in many ways a new game. Incorporating several new elements to gameplay, this title can be considered a new methodology to the Final Fantasy franchise. Keeping true to the series tradition, Final Fantasy X-2 has advanced gaming to new levels and is set to be another landmark title for Square.

We'll start by talking a little about the game's locales and world map. Now, because X-2 is a direct sequel to FFX, this game doesn't have a gleaming new world to explore, instead it retains the world of its predecessor and adds some extra areas for exploration. It's an easy short-cut for Square Enix, yes, but the familiarity of the new Spira will be welcome with most FFX players, and those who didn't have the pleasure of the first offering won't know any different. The world map is just like it was before too, but where players previously had to traverse the world on foot to uncover new areas of the game, X-2 gives players freedom of movement throughout Spira right from the beginning.

Now, there are two crucial differences in X-2 that set it apart from its predecessor - a mission-based storyline and the battle system. The main game itself is spread across some 15 missions. These missions can be triggered at any time by travelling to locations on the world map that are flagged as Hot Spots. To veterans of the series, this will sound quite pathetic, but each of the missions are lengthy, and there's a very respectable amount of dialogue to listen to. In addition, there's a shed-load of mini-games to enjoy - perhaps more than in any other Final Fantasy game so far, and this helps to prolong to the overall adventure. It is said that X-2 can be finished in around 40 hours by experienced players, but those looking to tear apart every aspect of the game can expect to spend some 100+ hours in front of their TVs.

Lastly, we have the much-vaunted battle system. For many, this is the most anticipated property of a new Final Fantasy game, and once again Square Enix has come up with something almost completely new - the Dressphere and Garment Grid. As feminine as it sounds, this play mechanic is actually quite brilliant. It does share similarities with the Job system of previous outings, but in practice it's actually quite unique. Here, players are able to choose from an array of trademark Final Fantasy jobs including Black Mage, White Mage, Gunner and Thief, which they can then assign to each character in order to form the best strategies for the coming battles. Each job comes with a range of unique abilities, placed on a special Garment Grid, which can be mastered by making a preset number of kills in battle. It's quite different from the Sphere Grid of FFX, and gives ardent fans of the series something new to sink their teeth into.