Everytime I hear people talk about FFX-2, they always have kind of a “eugh” sound in their tone. It was obviously not as popular as its predecessor. It takes a decidedly different turn in the series. I myself was trying to play it for the second time recently, and found I just couldn’t take the cheesy dialogue anymore, or maybe the fact I was playing New Game Plus and didn’t find it challenging anymore. But it did sell 3.4 million, which is number 13 of best-selling PS2 games (GTA:SA at #1 with 12 million)
Anyway, do you consider FFX-2 to be a failure for Square? Is it a failure for FF in general? It clearly isn’t as popular as others. It’s not as regarded as FFX. For that matter, do you consider FF9 to be a failure in that respect as well? That it’s not as popular with gamers and did not sell as well as other FFs.
I don’t judge games in terms of sales or popularity, but simply how good they are in their respective field. X-2 was a horrible joke script-wise that raped FFX’s beautiful ending. New let me clarify, I’m not mad about Tidus not being dead and all that, it’s just that it was pulled off horribly.
Augh, how many times do I have to hear people say FFX-2 and FF9 are failures. Just because they aren’t as overrated and didn’t sell as well as FF7 and FF10 doesn’t mean they are failures. If those games were failures, then I guess that means that all of the Nintendo-era FF’s are failures also. Wrong. For one thing, FFIX sold over 4 million copies worldwide by 2002, a little over a year after its release. And FFX-2 sold only a little less than that. FF8 is said to have sold even more than FF7 at its release, but is hated by many who bought it for its lack of character personlalites and weird gameplay. Anyways, many of the newer FF fans aren’t so fond of FF9’s cartoony anime characters(many of which are not human) and fanstasy backround. And many didn’t like how FFX-2 tried to attract a big male audience looking for hot girls, or the mission based format and small storyline. But they both sold a decent amount, certainly more than many other Square games. And their popularity is above many Square games as well. But regardless of their low sales and popularity, FF9 and FFX-2 are my two favorite games in the series. I definetly don’t consider them failures, unlike the Virtual Boy and the Sega Saturn.
Bitch, don’t you sass the Sega Saturn, almost every game on that system was better then anything you’ve ever played.
I prefer to judge games on rather I enjoyed playing them or not And for the most part I thought X2 was fun. I will admit it was corny at time (the third FMV in the game was a complete waste of technology) but all in all entertaining. I also thought FF9 was great dispite the fact that everyone looked chibified. So no I don’t think either of them were failures.
I personally consider FFX-2 one of the most fun FF games ever released, and FF9’s my personal favorite. If you mean that FFX-2 denigrates FF’s serious tendencies, yes, definitely. But that’s not a bad thing IMO. 
It’s a fun side story sort of thing.
As for FF9, its main theme was a goodbye to the series in general, so calling it a failure in any way other than sales-wise doesn’t make sense IMO. Quality-wise it was just fine.
FF9 is one of my favorite FFs. I played through part of FFX-2 and meh. Most people have the “eugh” to it because of how the pop image and the fan service draws a knee jerk reaction in them. I thought that the concept of FFX-2 was interesting what what it was trying to do, but I also think it was unneeded because it kills the effect FFX was supposed to have.
I guess I should clarify a little in what I mean by sales. Clearly, FF9 and FFX-2 were successes in the video game world as far as sales, surpassing a great many others, as most FFs do. But in our little FF world, where there are so many games, there are those that are successes and failures. Clearly we have to judge the games in the time they were released. Comparing FF1 to FF7 is ludicrous.
But I agree, I don’t think sales should be the sole criteria with which we judge a game. But comparing games like FFX-2 and FF9 to the other games in their peer group (which I suppose would be FF7, FF8, FFX, FF11, CC, and FFTA). Do you consider them as good as those games or closer to Virtual Boys? Do you think the FF universe would have been better off if they had never been made?
I enjoyed X-2 for gameplay, and boobs.
Big, half-covered boobs.
I think it’s okay to say that since the graphics are almost photorealistic. Right?
I think both of them were good or excellent, and they definitely should have been made. Having said that, I also know that many people disagree with me. 8p
Like Sin said, the concept behind X-2 had a lot of potential. The way it was carried out however, just ruined it.
As for FFIX, it was my favorite in the series.
True that.
Anyway, I haven’t actually played FFX-2 yet (even though I’ve owned it for a couple years >_<), but everything I’ve read about its gameplay makes me think that I’d really like it. I don’t care about all the pop music and fan service and whether the storyline is “serious” or not (which seem to be the reasons most often cited when people say they don’t like the game), I only care if the game is fun. So if the gameplay is solid, I’m sure I’ll like the game.
Well, it obviously would have been more profitable to SE if they hadn’t have gone back to the original FF style in FFIX and if they just made FFXI a regular FF instead of being online and called their online game Final Fantasy Online(or something) and have no need to develop FFX-2. However, it certainly would have been horrible for both the FF universe and the public if they weren’t made. Part of what makes the FF series better than all the other RPG series out there is diversity. I’m talking about diversity in style and themes. Here are what I believe makes each FF different besides new characters, battle systems, ability systems, classes and storyline.
FF1-Focused mainly on obtaining the four crystals, and didn’t have any actual
characters(the classes don’t count as characters because you can have more
than one of a single class) or story in which you don’t know what will happen
next(you know that you need to get the wind crystal at the beginning of the
game. Started the traditional fantasy theme.
FF2-Fewer characters than any other FF(unincluding FF3, FF5, and FFX-2 which all
use job battle systems)
FF3-Never played it, but I’m sure there is something that differs it from the rest
FF4-Game with most manditory party changes (Formally known as FF2)
FF5-Led to the development of another game(Game was FF:Mystic Quest)
FF6-Had so many playable characters (14) that it is the only game(with the
exception of FF10, as it had a character switch system) that never required
the main character to be in the party
FF7-Introduced the Sci-Fi theme, and the game that is getting a bunch of spin-offs
FF8-Most realistic of series
FF9-Returned to fantasy style, was able to display its cartoon-anime characters
better than those games in the 2D era, and is least realistic of the series.
More FF connections(connections to other games in the series) than any
other FF title
FF10-New islandlike style, theme of sacrifice, and characters looked more asian in
FMV’s. Only FF game to get an RPG sequel.
FFX-2-Mission based game giving player access to almost every location at
beginning. Mainly aimed towards males seeking hot chicks.
FF11-Completly online
FF12(what it will be)-will use FFTactics style and influence(many FFTactics races
will appear in game)
As you can see above, all the FF games seem to have something special that sets them appart from all the others. FF9 and FFX-2 obviously made the most of their differences(at least out all the Sony-era FF’s) which obviously effected their popularity and sales. But changing them would be against the FF spirit. FF fans in general(like me, for example) usually like seeing games that are set apart from others. That is part of the reason why FF9 and FFX-2 are my two favorite games in the series. For the record, if FF9 was never made, I would still be playing Crash Bandicoot 24/7 and wouldn’t have played any RPGs. And after I started feeling that no FF game could get nearly as good as FF9, FFX-2 changed that feeling. Although FF9 is still my favorite, FFX-2 definetly qualifies as my 2nd favorite.
In Short: I believe both games should have been made
FF3 had a job system like FF5, except that there was a cost to switch (Capacity Points, earned along with Exp. and Gil). As you used a class enough, you would grow in rank (though as far as I can tell, all it does is reduce the cost to change to similar classes). This was the first to give class-specific battle commands. Though the magic system was like FF1’s, except you could remove unwanted spells, as well as give any spell to any character (whether they could actually USE it, was of course determined by class). The first appearance of the Moogles. The first to give you multiple airships (one, you get only a half hour into the game. Only used to reach the first dungeon, since you need to crash it to move to the next town afterwards. Another airship that is fast and can travel through a windy canyon. And another airhsip that is slow as hell, but can fly over mountains and prevents random battles.)
I believe that FF3 was also the first one with monster summoning. Also the introduction of the Fat Chocobo (though it only appeared in 3 and 4, since you were given an unlimited inventory in 5, 6, 7, and 10 (items, I know you would eventually be forced to give up Equipment) (still need to play 8, 9, X-2).
And like FF1, there’s only four playable characters, with no character development (though the DS remake is supposed to change that).
I don’t think FF:MQ should count, since it was developed to be a beginner’s RPG.
Gameplaywise it was alright.
Everythingelsewise it was a fucking failed abortion of a game. I only finished it out of obligation. I gave up on the “story” after like chapter 3. I dont even remeber a damn thing about it anymore.
I was one of those things that was really enjoyable if you didn’t think about it too much, long story short.
If I would admit it was ever made, I’m sure I’d think FFIX was a failure. I’m still wondering why they skipped over it and went straight to X.
Arac: ?
Arac dislikes FFIX so much that he pretends to suppress every recognition of it’s existence.
But seriously dude, what do you hate so much about the game? I’m biased because it’s my favorite, but still…
I absolutely adore FF9. I was disappointed with FF8 because I felt it toned down the fantasy element to an almost non-existant basis, especially as far as the characters went. At least in FF7, you had Red XIII, Cait Sith and Vincent to spice up the characters. There’s “fantasy” in the title. Give it to me. I don’t want a gang of nothing but stupid teenagers.
As for FF10-2, I wouldn’t say it was a failure. It’s great to use for scaring people who haven’t seen it yet. :kissy:
Is that a fact? Do you have SE’s income statement for the FFIX product? Net sales don’t even begin to tell the whole story. For example, I’d bet that SE made more profit off X-2 than X, because X-2’s development costs were probably half - almost everything was already there.
Re: FFXI, I wouldn’t have played if it was called “Final Fantasy Online”. I know that goes for a lot of other people too. I’ve spent $14 for 26 months on subscription costs ($360) plus $75 or whatever on the game itself and expansion. Their decision to include it as a series installment was brilliant IMO, and it brought them lot of suscribers they wouldn’t have had otherwise. It was a marketing decision that screamed “this is going to be revolutionary, high quality, and on par with the rest of the series, we’re not experimenting here.” That was enough to sell me on the product, and it was better than I ever imagined it would be.
Was X-2 a failure? As I discussed above, X-2 was most likely a resounding success for SE, financially. I don’t know that they release profit figures for a specific title to the public, and given that localized release dates span accounting periods, I really doubt such information is available.
Opinion of IX? I didn’t like IX at all because I disliked all the characters, and thought the story was cheese. If I want to watch muppets run around, I’ll go rent the Muppet Show. Chibi = no thanks. Rat girls, Qu things, 4 year olds in my party - didn’t work for me at all.
Opinion of X-2? Loved it. Aside from XI, it’s my favorite SE title since Xenogears. I loved the job system, loved the comedy, loved the challenge, and loved the girls. My initial thoughts upon seeing the advertisements were very negative - Yuna in ho-bag gear with guns? I saw it in a used bin for cheap a year after release, figured what the hell, started playing…and couldn’t stop! The game was just funny as hell, and the job system was an absolute blast. Best localization ever.