Final Fantasy IX....What am I missing?

[Maximum Bert]

To be quite honest - it's one of my least favourite FF games so I think the top 5 got it right. Except that if they were going to include games outside the main series FF:Tactics should have been number 1. Beyond that, the list was okay.

FFIX:
- Very slow battles compared to the others.

- Stealing from bosses for 30+ minutes is not fun.

- Terrible back-asswards ability learning system means that I'm usually equipped with items 2 - 3 levels lower than the best I have available. I hope they never put abilities on equipment ever again.

- Characters design were passable. I found that other FF games had much better character designs. I seriously mistook both the main character and villain for women when I saw them - and I play a lot of JRPGs so this usually does not happen to me.

- The last boss is a giant space flea from nowhere that really had nothing to do with anything until the very end - which is why I couldn't bring myself to care.

It's not a bad game - just not as good as the other games in the series. Others may tell you different, but having been an FF fan since the original on the NES, FFIX was a step backward for the series. Of course, they were going for nostalgia as it was to be "the last of its kind". In my opinion - they did not succeed. The older games were far better.

Personally its not one of my least favourites XII and II hold that honour but I agree with your points especially the combat but not only was it slow it felt very imprecise and basic (like FF1,2 and 3 basic) I would select attack then my character would sit there and maybe the enemy would attack first and so I should have healed instead whereas at least in FFIV at onwards this problem was largely alleviated I have no idea why they did this it made combat a chore in this game.

As for the character designs I quite liked their personalitys but the weird chibi art style didnt gel with me I also wasnt a fan of the setting it felt very stale overall.

And yeah the last boss as soon as it came up I just thought ffs here we go again its just like FFIV and it ruined the ending to that game as well imo especially as Golbez would have remained the most badass villain in FF history apart from that ending I was so annoyed they ruined him.

To me it felt regressive while all the other FF games at least felt like they were trying to be progressive.

 

[Lovely Mixture]

I'm not even a Vivi fan like so many. I rank Freya higher. A tragic female warrior done well, not scared of feeling emotion, well spoken and very powerful it seems. And she barely had much of a story arc past the 2nd Disc... But what was there was sublime. Also Beatrix and Dagger. Even Queen Brahne needed to be there for the story to function and she did it with such fervor and animation.

And this is one thing that really makes the characters stick out to me. You don't care how the characters look, you care about the role they play in the story.

Vivi barely has a face, yet you care about him and what he goes through.
Freya is a giant humanoid rat, but you don't need to describe her appearance when detailing her character, you also care about her and what she goes through.
Brahne looks fugly as hell, but you only care about her actions. You hear Dagger talk about her when she was a good mother, and you wonder if you got the full picture.
Same with Beatrix, first nothing more than a side-character, then she obliterates your party along with a haunting soundtrack.

I'm thinking I liked this game more than I remember.

 

[Gypsyssilver]

What did I miss when I played through FF9?

Well, apparently we both missed it.

I clocked it pretty quickly. That, in itself, is telling. I still haven't finished FF7 or FF8. I love those games so I don't want to finish them all the way - I like knowing I've still got some parts left that I haven't seen yet - that way I can keep playing them over and over, flirting with the idea of finishing them, but then backing off because I don't want to have nothing left to experience. Yeah, alright, that might be a bit weird but it's how I roll...

FF9 though - meh. I hated the reversion to cartoon-like characters. For me it took away from the emotion of the story. I find it hard to take cartoon kids with tails seriously. Also, slapstick? Not such a big fan of that either.

I did like the gameplay - I thought it was well designed and it was a large part of why I was able to finish it instead of just leaving it in a pile of cobwebs while I played something else. The card battles were fun as well.

The story just left me cold though. The story of a Final Fantasy game is what makes you play it over another RPG. Well, it used to be. These days if I want an RPG with a good story - I'm going to look at Bioware first (which is a real shame).

FF10 is my hands-down favourite. God I loved the story in that one. I went against type and actually finished it. I HAD to know what happened.

FF10-2 was... uh... interesting. I did like playing with the Sphere-outfits (total guilty pleasure - flashback to playing with my Barbie dolls as a child). Mostly I keep it because of the 100% completion ending (they really should have just put that ending in FF10 though...)

Then came FF12... I stopped playing them after that one. Again, the gameplay was well done. But the story, God the story...

I can't believe they had the gall to try and create a game that was based on the story of a poor, blonde, male teenager who leaves his home to join a space pirate and his non-human sidekick to fight an evil empire that is represented by a man in black armour...

Really? If I want to watch Star Wars... I'll just watch Star Wars.

I know that there is 'nothing new under the sun' but come on...

I didn't bother with FF13. I thought about it. I looked at videos. I read reviews. I passed on it.

I'm cautiously looking forward to the next one. But I'm definitely not going to pre-order it. I'll wait until the reviews have come out to see whether they've reclaimed their story-telling mojo or (more likely) not.

 

[Amethyst Wind]

*Ignores thread intent to crack a bad joke about the title sentence*

You're missing Ophiuchus. It's in the same place you found Scorpio.

I'd say what a lot of people liked about it was the dramatic shift in tone back to mostly light after 7 & 8 went heavy on the heavy. Also the major NPCs got considerable fleshing out.

 

[Garland]

I actually liked Tetra Masters, I did however have to look up what the numbers and letters meant. See j-e-f-f-e-r-s breakdown of the game's strengths if you need more convincing. The game is not for every gamer, but it is a game for every JRPG and Final Fantasy fan.

 

[anthony87]

I felt the same was as the OP when I first played IX. I'd just come off VII and VIII and the way IX went back to a more "traditional" fantasy style didn't sit well with me after the futuristic style of the previous two games.

Then I picked it up again a few years later and was kicking myself for thinking that IX was inferior to VII or VIII. I could go into detail but that's been done already by people more eloquent than I. So I'll just go ahead and post the best bit of music from the best bit of the game.

 

[Snotnarok]

I don't understand why anyone liked it either, 8 was pretty terrible so maybe it was like "thank Sheogorath that it wasn't as bad as VIII!"
My cousin claims it as one of his favorites, I gave it a look and try and I didn't much enjoy the characters, the load time for the random encounters was abysmal, a lot just irritated me about it. The character style was something else that just grated me. There's much better RPGs, not even being picky it's just I'd rather play any of them than bother with IX again.

 

[sky14kemea]

Are you kidding me?

Quina was hilarious! Half the reason I replay that game is to laugh at whatever antics Quina gets up to while you're trying to be serious.

Oh, yeah, I guess people like Vivi too, he was pretty adorable.

Though the way you had to get his/her attacks by eating monsters was kinda grinding.... I only ever got healing ones for him/her.

Plus, moogle central! I've never seen that many moogles in one FF game until IX!

Fuckin' love me some moogles, boi :3

 

[PedroSteckecilo]

FF9 is pretty high up there as far as my favorite Final Fantasies go... but then again I also have a soft spot for FF12...

For me the big "plus" of Final Fantasy 9 is the fact that it just oozes charm in its character and world design and I just get a big stupid grin on my face every time I play it. Especially the whole section with the play, chasing Garnet around the airship... fighting Steiner as a bomb gets bigger and bigger behind him... just fantastically fun stuff.

 

[verdant monkai]

FF8 is still the best in every possible way

Please watch to the FF8 part of this video at 4:44.


FF9 is good because its like a nostalgia trip to the old airship fantasy games, but this time the characters are actually good.

 

[Cabisco]

FF8 is still the best in every possible way

Please watch to the FF8 part of this video at 4:44.


FF9 is good because its like a nostalgia trip to the old airship fantasy games, but this time the characters are actually good.

He will be hunted down and dealt with, thank you for the information.

Edit: It's annoying how accurate he is.

 

[Epona]

FF9 is overrated. It was largely ignored when it came out as the PS2 was right on it's heels and Chrono Cross came out just before it. Chrono Cross is the better game once you get past the idea that it isn't Chrono Trigger 2. FF9 was a slow paced game with weird characters, call me crazy but I prefer people without tails and I am no fan of rats who walk on two legs, I name her RatFace every time I attempt to play this game. Quina was just embarrassing. Steiner was ok though, I call him Rusty. The ability system was beyond stupid and the Trance system was like a downgrade from FF8's Limit Breaks which were in turn a downgrade from FF7's Limit Breaks.

Anyway, FF6, FF7 and FF8 had airships too. In fact, the airship in FF8 (Ragnarok) was amazing.

 

[Elegy of Fools]

Final Fantasy IX is my second favorite in the whole series. Nearly every aspect of its story and character development are seconded only to VI (in my eyes, VI was a crowning achievement, and laid the ground work for every successful Final Fantasy after it). The characters were deeper and more believable than in other installments; and they ALL experienced genuine growth through the story. The story was epic and lengthy, but did not FEEL long - and aside from the story the mini-games were rich and enjoyable.

But, for me, it still always comes back to the characters -- you felt a commitment to each one, and when any of them had to leave the main party for a while, it was bothersome. When one character effectively became useless because of story events, I know I kept them in party anyway and just slugged my way through it until they were fixed. Each character felt unique in combat as well, and their personality was deeply reflected in their style, abilities and attacks.

Beyond just the characters was a world that was richer than most of the series; with many little details reflected in not only each continent, but the towns between them. The stark differences, yet resounding similarities between the two "tribes" of Burmecia; the odd activities of the Mayor of Dali; the Qu and whatever it is they do...

The closing factor that I always loved was the depth of the themes as well. Kuja, as a villain, was astounding - vilified by factors ultimately beyond his control; and when death looms over him, he experiences such a tremendous existential dilemma.

Over all, the characters, the story, and the flow and interchangeability of each made FFIX a great game, as underrated as it seems to be in the eyes of the world.

 

[Murrdox]

If you're going to go off airships... I'm fairly certain EVERY Final Fantasy game ever made has airships in it. It's sort of like having a "Cid" character. It's a trope of the series. Of ALL the Final Fantasy games to think are overrated, I'm amused you picked 9. But it obviously isn't your type of game, and that's cool.

I just wanted to say I agree with FF9 being incredible. I still prefer 6 as my all time favorite, but 9 is a good second choice. After that it's sort of a tie between FF4 and FF10. Yeah, I know... I enjoyed 10 so sue me. I haven't been able to finish 12 yet, and refuse to play 13 until I finish 12... so I'm lagging behind.

The only things about 9 that are bad are the card game and Chocobo Hot and Cold. Dear God I hated that minigame so much. Amusingly, the card game in FF8 is the only GOOD thing about that game.

 

[Diddy_Mao]

I think we might be in the same boat. I played through FF IX and I enjoyed it, but it would never come close to my top 5. Largely because of some of it's play elements I hate like poison and the fact that a lot of the characters didn't really bring anything to the story.

Not to mention the "Oh by the way I'm the REAL villain" last minute bait and switch.

 

[Elegy of Fools]

Not to mention the "Oh by the way I'm the REAL villain" last minute bait and switch.

That devalued Kuja so much. I hated that.

 

[Zenn3k]

FF9 was in many ways the last GREAT Final Fantasy game to ever be released. It was a return to series form from days old, but was seen as unpopular when it was released, which is why we haven't made a good return to it since that time.