Final Fantasy X-2

align=center colspan=2|Final Fantasy X-2
align=center colspan=2|
style=width:80px|Developer: Square-Enix
a href="/encyclopedia/Video-game-publisher" title="Video game publisher">Publisher: Square-Enix
elease date: November 2003
a href="/encyclopedia/Computer-and-video-game-genres" title="Computer and video game genres">Genre: RPG
a href="/encyclopedia/Video-game-music" title="Video game music">Composers: Noriko Matsueda, Takahito Eguchi
ame modes: Single player
a href="/encyclopedia/ESRB" title="ESRB">ESRB rating: Teen (T)
latform: PlayStation 2
edia: DVD
Final Fantasy X-2 (X-2 is pronounced "ten-two", not twelve, as some people might think) is a video game in the Final Fantasy series, and the first to be a true sequel to any Final Fantasy game.

Overview

Taking place two years after the defeat of Sin in Final Fantasy X, Final Fantasy X-2 deals with less dramatics and the more down to earth ossies of the rapidly changing Spira, for better or worse. The story revolves around three girls, the returning main characters Yuna of Bevelle and Rikku the Al Bhed, and a new girl, named Paine. The game is often criticized for its dual cute factor and perceived exploitation of sex appeal. Others view it as attempt to bring a more upbeat tone to the Final Fantasy series as well as attract (Japanese) female gamers. Adding to this issue is the insinuation it is purely a marketing gesture, as it is the first direct sequel in the Final Fantasy franchise. Being set in the same world as its predecessor means that the geography is largely unchanged.

Storyline

Shortly before the beginning of the game, a "sphere" was brought to Yuna's attention, apparently containing what appeared to be an image of her lost love, Tidus. Apparently Kimahri found this sphere on Mt. Gagazet, and gave it to Rikku. Once viewing it, Rikku rushed to Besaid to show Yuna. These events can be viewed on a special prologue named "Eternal Calm, Final Fantasy X-2: Prologue". In the original game, the player had a choice of renaming Tidus and thus his name was never used in spoken dialogue. Perhaps because of this, Yuna simply refers to him as "Kimi," (君) a personalized way of saying 'you.' The world of Spira has basically been split into two major political groups: the Youth League and New Yevon. Headed by Mevyn Nooj, the Youth League is a radical organisation who believe in a massive upheaval of the system on which Spira has been based for the past millenium. They preach complete freedom of speech, attracting a great deal of support from Spira's younger generation and the former members of the Crusaders, who were disbanded after the defeat of Sin. Opposite them is New Yevon, a conservative group led by Praetor Baralai. Based upon the now-defunct Yevon religion, New Yevon promises to make up for their predecessor's false teachings by aiding those who feel overwhelmed by the rapid changes sweeping Spira. Their motto is "One Thing At A Time", believing that a slow evolution of Spira's customs is the only way to prevent complete anarchy. Following the forced resignation of the last praetor, the party is run by a democracy of the younger members. A third party, the Machine Faction, prefers to stay out of the main political conflict in Spira, but their awesome military influence makes them a definite factor in this power struggle. Headed by an Al Bhed called Gippal, the Machine Faction are the pioneers of machina research, which was banned during the Yevon reign of Spira. The Machine Faction are entirely composed of Al Bhed, and use the term "machine" to distance their creations from the negative connotations of "machina".

Features

The battle system from the previous game (CTB - Conditional Turn-Based) was dropped in favor of a fast-paced variation on the traditional Active Turn Based system. Instead of waiting for enemies to attack, it is now possible to interrupt an enemy whilst they are charging their attack or chain your characters' attacks together for special chain bonuses. This also comes with its disadvantages, because the same can be done to members of your party. Because your party contains the same three characters for the entire game, the ability to switch out characters in battle was invalidated; instead, Garment Grids and Dressspheres were introduced. A Garment Grid is simply a geometric shape with several slots on them; the slots can be filled with various "Dressspheres", which are similar to Jobs from Final Fantasy V. The Grid/Sphere system allows characters to change from one Class to another in battle, and allows the player to decide which classes any given character will have. Each Dressphere has a smaller list of abilities than the characters and classes of most RPGs, meaning that spherechanging is often advantageous or necessary in battles. Furthermore, each Garment Grid adds bonuses, for instance allowing the equipped character to cast Firaga, and moving between certain nodes will sometimes trigger bonuses (Automatically cast "Shell", for instance). Finally, certain Limit-Break-like skills (actually a unique Dresssphere) can only be triggered if the triggering character changes between all her Jobs in one battle. The field system has been upgraded, and now Yuna has the ability to jump and climb, and, in the words of Ken Berry (the SE Product Supervisor), Yuna can also "do heaps of other cool stuff". The field is still totally 3D. The world map is essentially unchanged. Most of the locations from Final Fantasy X return, though some have changed (the player was never able to visit Bevelle outside the main storyline, for instance, and Kilika is no longer in a state of ruin) and others have been added. Players are also able to visit almost every location from the (near) beginning of the game, via an airship interface--another major departure from normal Final Fantasy fare, in which the airship is never obtained until late in the game. These two changes allow for a third reworking of the game's design, namely in its storyline. As opposed to Final Fantasy X, in which the player always walked from one direction to the other and the story was likewise linear, X-2 is entirely freeform, divided by locations and chapters. The game has many locations and five chapters, and each location has one "event" per chapter. Put together, the five "events" in one locale form an "Episode". Only a few events per chapter are important to the game's overall plot, however, and these are marked on the world map as "Hotspots" (Active Links in the Japanese version). By accessing Hotspots only, the player can speed through the story (and find out whether Yuna gets Tidus back) in ten or fifteen hours if they so desire. But in order to get the full experience--and achieve a 100% completion rate, which is, ironically, the only way to find out whether Yuna gets Tidus back--one must visit every location during every chapter and complete every Episode.

Miscellaneous

This is the first Final Fantasy game to feature an all-female cast of player-characters, and the first since FF3 to feature a constant party throughout the entire game. The game includes a number of side-quests and minigames, including Gunner's Gauntlet- a third person shooting minigame, Sphere Break- a coin based minigame, and the Den of Woe and the Via Infinito sidequests, amongst a lot of optional bosses who provide much of a challenge. The underwater sport Blitzball also makes a return appearance. Fairly early on in the game, Yuna and her party must make a decision to give a key item to either the Youth League or New Yevon factions. Though this decision ultimately doesn't matter as far as the overall storyline is concerned, it will affect how certain NPCs react to Yuna and the development of certain plot points. In addition, a 100% completion rate is only possible if the player sides with the Youth League - you can only get to 99.7% if you side with New Yevon. There are three different endings in this game, all of them are "happy" in relation to its predecessors. The Game also utilizes a feature made popular in Chrono Trigger as "New Game +": when the player completes the game, they are allowed to save their file and then restart the game using the same file, retaining all items, learned Job skills and game completion percentage. This makes it easier to get 100% completion.

Soundtrack

All of the music has changed, as Nobuo Uematsu has been replaced by Noriko Matsueda and Takahito Eguchi (composers for The Bouncer). Among the songs are the J-Pop styled "Real Emotion" and a slower paced song, "1000 Words" (Senn No Kotoba in Japanese). The Japanese and International versions of the songs are sung by Koda Kumi, a Japanese music artist. The American versions of the songs are sung by Jade of Sweetbox.

Playable Characters

  • Yuna: High Summoner born in Bevelle, raised on Besaid Island. She's responsible for the defeat of Sin, bringing Spira its Eternal Calm. Her primary dressphere is a gunner.
  • Rikku: Daughter of Cid; the leader of the Al Bhed in Final Fantasy X. She is a cousin to Yuna and one of her guardians during her pilgrimage. Her primary dressphere is a thief.
  • Paine: Former recorder, amongst other things recording Crimson Squad candidates. She joined the Gullwings to ride their airship and find the reason of the Crimson Squad's demise. Her primary dressphere is a warrior.

Non-Playable Characters (NPCs)

  • GullWings:
    • Brother: Rikku's brother, and self-proclaimed leader of the Gullwings. He is also the main pilot of the Celsius. He has a huge crush on Yuna (technically his cousin), and is not afraid to express his affection, though he is constantly thwarted by Rikku.
    • Buddy: Old friend of Brother, a co-pilot of the Celesius, and co-founder of the Gullwings with Brother. He has a level head that contrasts sharply with the energy of Brother.
    • Shinra: An young Al Bhed who works aboard the Celsius. He is incredibly intelligent for his age, as the creator of the Garment Grid/Dressphere system, the Commsphere system, and many other innovations. He claims to know everything, so when he doesn't have the answer to something, his excuse is, "I'm just a kid."
    • Barkeep: A Hypello that Brother took in that works aboard the Celsius. No one knows his real name.
  • LeBlanc Syndicate: Sphere hunters who are the rivals of the Gullwings.
    • LeBlanc: Leader of the LeBlanc Syndicate. Infatuated with Mevyn Nooj.
    • Ormi: Professional lackey; first for Yevon, now for LeBlanc. Uses a large shield as a weapon.
    • Logos: Professional lackey; first for Yevon, now for LeBlanc. Uses twin pistols as his weapon.
  • Wakka: One of Yuna's guardians from Final Fantasy X. He currently resides in Besaid, and is about to be the father of Lulu's child.
  • Lulu: One of Yuna's guardians from Final Fantasy X, currently residing in Besaid with Wakka and carrying their child.
  • Rin: Al Bhed travel agent from Final Fantasy X. He is the founder of a brand new game called Sphere Break which becomes very popular across Spira.
  • Yaibal: Member of the Youth League who is a huge fan of Yuna.
  • Clasko: Chocobo breeder from Final Fantasy X. Following former-Crusader comrades Elma and Lucil into the Youth League, he soon grows weary with his new life. His only wish is to "ride a Chocobo faster than the wind."
  • Maroda: One of Isaaru's guardians from Final Fantasy X. He is a member of the Youth League.
  • Elma: Lucil's partner from Final Fantasy X. She is a member of the Youth League.
  • Lucil: Captain of the Chocobo Knights from Final Fantasy X. She is now the commander of the Youth League forces, as Nooj's right-hand woman.
  • Gippal: Former Crimson Squad candidate; Leader of the Machine Faction. Has an interesting relationship with Rikku, and insinuates that they used to be a couple. The fact that Rikku goes on the defensive whenever this is mentioned leads Paine to speculate that something must have happened between them in the past, despite Rikku's protests to the contrary.
  • Nhadala: Member of the Machine Faction. She's in charge of excavating the Bikanel Desert.
  • Tobli: An event organiser who uses twice as many words to say half as much.
  • Bayra: A harp-playing spirit from Macalania Woods who resembles a hawk.
  • Donga: A drum-playing spirit from Macalania Woods who speaks in a thick Scottish accent.
  • Pukutak: A small horn-playing spirit from Macalania Woods who only talks in rhymes.
  • Tromell: A Guado who was Jyscal and Seymour Guado's assistant from Final Fantasy X. Becomes leader of the Guado race.
  • O'aka: A freelance merchant from Final Fantasy X who bought the Lake Macalania travel agency from Rin. However, the Macalania temple nearby sank to the bottom of the lake, and business went with it. O'aka wants to hide out on the Celsius to avoid the Al Bhed who are coming to collect payments.
  • Baralai: Former Crimson Squad candidate; Praetor of New Yevon.
  • Kimahri Ronso: One of Yuna's guardians from Final Fantasy X. He is now the elder of the Ronso tribe, and is working hard to unite his people.
  • Garik: Member of the Ronso tribe who is heavily in favour of leading the Ronso in violent retribution against the Guado.
  • Isaaru: Yuna's fellow summoner from Final Fantasy X. He is now a tour guide for Zanarkand, which has been turned into a tourist attraction.
  • Pacce, Taro, and Hana: Pacce was one of Isaaru's guardians in Final Fantasy X. Now, he and his friends are sphere hunters. They call themselves the Kinderguardians.
  • Cid: Rikku's father and leader of the Al Bhed in Final Fantasy X. He was the one who turned Zanarkand into a tourist attraction.
  • Dona: Yuna's rival summoner from Final Fantasy X. She is a member of the Youth League.
  • Barthello: Dona's guardian and lover. He is a member of New Yevon.
  • Mevyn Nooj: Leader of the Youth League. Former Crusader and Crimson Squad candidate. Otherwise known as 'Nooj the Undying' or 'Deathseeker' for his dangerous fighting style (he has suicidal tendencies).
  • The Besaid Aurochs: Besaid's Blitzball team. Members include Datto and Jassu. They are members of the Youth League.
  • Beclem: A Youth League member who becomes the new coach of the Besaid Aurochs. According to members of the team, he's a hundred times stricter than Wakka.
  • Shelinda: Was a disciple of Yevon in Final Fantasy X. She got tired of everyone in the temples ordering her around. Now she's a Luca news reporter, and people still boss her around...
  • Calli: The little girl that Tidus' group met on the Mi'ihen Highroad in Final Fantasy X. She's currently obsessed with chocobos.
  • Lian and Ayde: Young Ronsos who left Mt. Gagazet.
  • Maechen: The old scholar from Final Fantasy X. He tells the Gullwings about Lenne and Shuyin.
  • Benzo: Interpreter for the Cactuars.
  • Shuyin: A man from Bevelle who lived in the age of the Machina War. He was in love with Lenne, and imprisoned after a failed attempt to save her life.
  • Lenne: A famous singer from Zanarkand who lived in the age of the Machina War and was the lover of Shuyin. Her skills in the art of summoning were to have her sent to the front line against the machina of Bevelle, and to certain death. She died before this could happen, shot by Bevelle soldiers alongside Shuyin.

Cast(English)

Cast(Japanese)

Release dates

Final Fantasy X-2 was released in Japan on March 13, 2003, in North America on November 18, 2003 and European/PAL regions on February 20, 2004. An extended version of the game, entitled Final Fantasy X-2 International + Last Mission, was released (exclusively in Japan) on February 19, 2004.

External links

  • http://www.square-enix.co.jp/games/ps2/ffx2/ Official Site (Japanese)
  • http://www.square-enix-usa.com/games/FFX-2/ Official Site (English, US)
  • http://www.ffx2-europe.com Official Site (English,Europe)
  • http://www.square-enix.co.jp/games/ps2/ffx2inter/ Final Fantasy X-2 International + Last Mission Official Site (Japanese)
  • http://www.avexnet.or.jp/koda Official Site for Koda Kumi
  • http://www.ffshrine.org/ffx2/ffx2.php Final Fantasy X-2 Shrine

 

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