FFXII - FFX all over again.

[Sakura]

Yes people...It is true. My friend showed me a few pictures of Final Fantasy 12. It's just a whole 'nother Final Fantasy 10. Except that Yuna is all Lara Croft w/ booty shorts, and a tank top thing. It's a quest for Rikku and Yuna and other new characters to find Tidus. (Yes he is alive) It is going to come out that way. I saw screen shots and it even had monsters from FF10 (Such as these things that you see in Bevelle, those robots with one leg lifted up and that drop kicks one of your party members out...um...k..whatever but anyways...)

Well anyways. Same battling system, same...well some same characters, but with new skanky looks, and well you get the picture. x.X

MAJOR EDIT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Please excuse my stupid rant. It is NOT FF12. I have been informed by my lovly friend, COBBI! that it is not it. Please excuse this silly message and continue on with life. Thank you.

[Cobalt Katze]

(FFX Spoilers!)

Here, some more info on the game <^^> I'll post an exerpt then the addy where ya can find pictures, movie, etc:



From gameforms.com:

Eleven games, zero direct sequels. Final Fantasy has always been unique for that trait alone. Each game in the main series boasts a new cast of characters and world to explore, with spin-offs having been few and far between, often gaining the series name only in English in hopes of better sales.

That all comes to an end with Final Fantasy X-2. The heroine from FFX, Yuna, returns here with a game that reuses many of the original locations but takes an almost shocking new approach with the main character.

At the 2002 Tokyo Game Show, a promotional poster of Yuna in tight shorts and wielding dual pistols was displayed at the Square booth. Two silhouettes flanked her as she posed with her back to the camera, a gun in each hand. People wondered: Was this a joke? A jab at her innocent FFX persona? A preview of the sequel starring her that Square had already promised?

It may be a jab, but it definitely isn't a joke. The art may exaggerate the in-game models, but Yuna now boasts a wardrobe that would make Daisy Duke proud. Besides her cheek-baring pants, she wears a shirt with the symbol for Tidus and Jecht sewn in the middle. Her traditional clothes from FFX have been replaced by a mix of modern fashion and Al Bhed wear.

Having saved the world once, Yuna now sets off on an adventure of self-discovery, trying to find something that interests her. She does so with Rikku, who is no longer set to receive her own sequel, and one other unnamed female companion who fights with a sword. As they travel through a Spira enjoying the Eternal Calm, a new evil is brewing, and signs are beginning to show that the calm is in danger.

The cast of FFX will play a large role in the story, with Rikku and Lulu already confirmed as returning. Rikku even boasts her own new and more revealing outfit, and judging from the voice acting in the first released movie of the game, Lulu may be the third playable character.

If the characters will be somewhat new, the setting should be instantly familiar. Many towns and locations from the original will be visitable again, playing a significant role in the new story and showing some significant changes since the defeat of Sin. Kilika, Macalania, and the Mi'ihen Highroad have all been shown so far, and tension between the Al Bhed and the rest of Spira appears as high as ever.

The biggest change is the expanded use of machina, considered evil under the first game's rule of Yevon. Temples and shrines are now open to scrutiny and use the once-forbidden machinery, while chobocos on the Highroad have seemingly been replaced by more machina. Whether they will be used for evil again remains unseen, but many foes from the first game will appear again, proving video game enemies do learn slowly.

The battle system is set for still-unknown additions, but we do know what will not be reappearing: Overdrive, Overkill, and the Sphere Grid are all goners. Square promises things will be more "realistic," and the interface has been slicked up considerably.

The newest abilities are available on the field map, allowing Yuna to "climb," "jump," and "run," all pulled straight from the action/adventure style of gaming. The field abilities seem fairly simple, but the gameplay overall promises to be something more than FFX with different heroes.

The gameplay changes are mirrored by a major staff change - Nobuo Uematsu will not be handling composing duties for the game. Presumably occupied with FFXII, Uemtasu gives way here for composer Noriko Matsueda and arranger Takahito Eguchi, both longtime Square employees. Matsueda has worked on the Front Mission series, Racing Lagoon and The Bouncer, almost always teaming with Eguchi.

Now that Square is finally making a direct sequel to a Final Fantasy, they don't seem to be holding back. One of the most quiet heroines in RPG history in skimpy short shorts and wielding guns as big as her head? This could get very, very interesting. FFX-2 is set for a March 2003 release in Japan.

Check http://www.gameforms.com/games/ps2/ffx-2/ for more images an' art an such

[neogen76]

drooooooooooooool.me want badly.

[Sperrit]

Oh, yeah. It's gonna be mass cool! I can't wait! It'll be interesting to see what they do to the world as far as what has happened over time!
Only one minor thing that bugs me: Since when could Yuna (a mage) do all those crazy matrix type moves??? I mean, heck! If she could do those then why the heck did she have a staff? She could have had some knives or something and kicked butt! It's very curious....

Join the Fun

[Reverend]

First, let me say that I am very supportive of Square going at taking the characters of previous FF's and doing followup games; Bryan actually is currently making a sequel to FFIV, so bug him about it.

Now, let me get this off my chest...Final Fanstay X and a greater use of technology do not mix. They blended it well enough in the first game that I don't think they needed to go and change that balance. Too, the loss of the sphere grid hurts, as it was the single most effective way I have seen to level characters up and keep then in order, mirroring the Job system rather well.

Wow that was a bad pun earlier.

As for Yuna now being a Lara Croft ripoff, well I can't say from a hormone perspective I'm disheartened, but I do believe that they could have done better to find another way to do it. Though Square may suprise me by explaining why Yuna would do this rather well in the game. Course it could have been cool too if Yuna instead of summoning Aeons, she summoned party members like Yu Yevon, or Jecht, or Auron to fight for her.

And, as for having a Kingdom Hearts interfafce with the mapworld, it could be good, or it could ruin the FF genre. Wait, Square did that by making FF an MMORPG, so I guess this can't be any worse.

Will be interesting to see how this plays out.

[D-Trix]

hmm...signed up half an hour ago and i'm already set to lay down some of my heated opinions.

let me begin with a little of my personal history with the FF series. FFIV was the first i played in the series, and easily remained my favorite FF game, and favorite RPG, and favorite video game of all, for many years to come. no other game even came close until FFIX, which showed a return to many of the classic FF elements that had been lost from VI-VIII. but IX had it's share of problems, especially towards the end; so it wasn't until FFX that IV was finally eclipsed.

FFX had everything i could possibly have asked for in a video game:

Characters - wonderful, lovable, all unique, all relevant to the story, lots and lots of development in their personalities and relationships.

Plot - not just a great story; all characters were with you all the time, so character development remained constant and was in fact tied up in plot events (make-your-own-party systems can't do that, it RUINS games).

World - beautifully crafted, a delectable balance of magic and mysticism against technology and science.

Graphics - incredibly detailed models: at first i mistook the in-game graphics during the game's intro for mediocre FMV. the actual FMV made me cream my pants. twice.

Sound - great music, especially that boss track towards the end that Bryan likes so much. the voice acting was also pretty good, better than one usually expects out of video games at least.

Gameplay - the sphere grid is the best leveling system i've ever seen. the ability to swap party members mid-battle is by far the best innovation square made in this game, both in terms of strategy and consistency (if 8 people are traveling together, why would only 3 of them fight?).

So basically, FFX is, in my opinion, the best Final Fantasy game; the best RPG; and the best video game EVER MADE, EVER.

now, to address this FFX-2...thing.

more machina in the world is OK. Yuna using guns is not.

of course machina would be more widely accepted after the fall of Yevon. but Yuna is a) a mage, b) of slight physical build, and c) NOT A GOD-DAMNED ACTION HERO. i agree with Sperrit that 'matrix-type moves' are totally inconsistent with her character. if square does that to her, they will guarantee themselves a bad game.

what the hell is with that jail-bait get-up? Yuna is an innocent, conservative type of girl; there is no way she'd be caught dead wearing crap like that. again, if square goes with that character design, they guarantee a bad game.

running, jumping, climbing? in a FINAL FANTASY? that's just not right. i haven't played much of Kingdom Hearts yet, but already i can tell that these action/adventure kinds of controls change the game mechanic in a huge way. applying them to game that is expressly Final Fantasy (not just related, like KH) is yet another way to guarantee yourself a bad game.

overdrives, limit breaks, call them what you will - they are AWESOME. they were one of the few things i liked about FFVII the first time through - i'm replaying it now and realizing that i was dead wrong: it's a great game, but anyway... removing overdrives in an ENTIRELY DIFFERENT FF game might be OK; but taking them out of a SEQUEL is ridiculous.

the sphere grid, as i've mentioned, is one of square's best ideas to date. get rid of that and you might as well call the game Final Fantasy X-Stupid.

i could go on like this all night long. the point i'm trying to make is that FFX is an amazing game, in my opinion the epitome of video gaming itself. if square wants to butcher all of that great work by making a horrendously terrible sequel, i guess they're free to do so - but i'll lose a helluva lot of respect for them. i mean, they've made what i think are bad decisions in the past - most notably turning FFXI into an MMORPG (read: NOT A FINAL FANTASY GAME) - but this...this tops them all.

~Ted

[Reverend]

Yeah, I hadn't been able to talk with you yet about this Ted, but I'm happy to know I was able to anticipate your near exact words/ arguments.

FF X-2 is just Square attempting to further cash in on it's series by using the title and characters, not actually making another FF game.

[Sperrit]

I was not aware that they were getting rid of the sphere grid, and the overdrives. I mourn their loss, for I loved them, verily. Indeed, the leveling system was great, the overdrives cool, the characters memorable. One wonders why they have vamped this world so much, for it was well crafted as it was.
With these new developements I can't offer an opinion on this game, for I have not seen it first hand, or played it, but it certainly makes you wonder what their intent is over at Square.

Join the Fun

[Therin]

I have a question: Was it created by good old Hironobu? cuz if it wasn't, that explains a lot. I think he was the creator of all the original Final Fantasies, including the movie, which was wonderful, but I don't think he was the creator of KH or FFXI, so he may not be the creator of this. it's still a bad thing, but instead of placing our original respect in Square, we can place it in Hironobu and be less dissappointed...did that make sense?

[Reverend]

No, we don't know whose responsible.

Yes it did.

Let me just point out to you that I don't think that KH is a bad game, it's incredible actually, but it feels better to me because it is not claiming to actually BE an FF game. Sure Tidus, Squall, Yuffie, Cloud, Wakka, and Cid all show up in the game and we're fine with that; Cloud looks really cool too. But if you are going to call a game "Final Fantasy" it requires certain things be present.