Such a comfy game. For some reason my favorite part is inside the little train station with Dagger and Steiner. Like I’d like to have lunch there. Idk why that sticks out to me so much, I’m not even like that
I still remember seeing images of FFIX just after playing and finishing FF7 and FF8: childish and goofy looking characters, a knight, a princess and a guy with a tail? Clearly a game for children! I was so upset and disappointed in Square. How could they do that with those two predecessor, clearly aiming at a more mature direction. What would people (i.e. my class mates) say if they found out that I play that game (I was 14 at that time). Eventually I bought it and hell did I love it. The graphics and CGI Scenes were stunning, the music of N. Uematsu it top notch (as always), the characters had so much heart and soul and the story kept you thinking for weeks and month. It is a truly Final Fantasy masterpiece and I cannot decide if I love it more or less then FF7. Thank you for your well made analysis.
I was 16, iirc, and I way preferred 9 over 8. And I was never more hyped for a game to release than I was for 8. Both amazing, but. 9 is a return to what I loved about FF
10 yr old me playing Vivi for the first 15 seconds... I would die for him. Seeing Garnet run into Zidanes arms made (and still makes) tears shoot from my eyes.
This is one of the games that I would go to high heaven and hell to see it explode into a full blown franchise like FF VII did, im taking live action tv series, anime, full remake of the game it self, even more spin off titles, the works. Lets just hope the upcoming rumored remake becomes a huge hit and maybe just maybe it could start an iceberg, you never know what the future can bring.
@@arkham666 Jrpgs in these days were just works of art truly and they also dealt with large scale stories that have global developments and implications for the plot. You don't get games with naratives of these size anymore with modern tech, partly because its an insurmountable task to achieve in photo realist graphics. (why else does FF VII need 3 parts) and this game's world is actually even larger and more diverse then FF VII. Personally I am content for a more traditional 3d remake that still has the same design and style.
The part that sticks with me the most is after Garnet’s mother is killed, and Vivi contemplates how glad he is she’s dead whilst being sad for Garnet. His wrestling with two conflicting emotions. It’s brilliant, and hits so hard because of FF IX’s presentation. I love it
For some reason, I always mistakenly thought that scene was Zidane reflecting. It was only during the last time I played the game three years ago that I finally noticed it was Vivi. And I've played the game dozens upon dozens of times.
The black mages are truly a tragic case in this game. They aren't just a job class, but an artificial species designed for endless war, against their will. It's just sad that even when they did establish the hidden place away from the outside, they are still at the mercy of their limited time to exist. I wonder if it is ever explained how Vivi was this prototype of the black mages.
From how you describe it I’d call ff9 a what if on ff7, what if it was traditional fantasy, what if it kept the back and forth of dark and light hearted of disc one, what if instead of direct party deaths you have the slow contemplative one that Vivi is condemned too, it’s awesome
I legit just did the same thingnwith this game about a month ago. Ive played ff games for almost 30 years (yes 7 was my first one it was actually my brother's but i was the first to beat it) and ive already beat rebirth and the original 7 again so i was thinking "damn i wonder how great 9 still is" and here i am now almost done with the game and dammit if i havent got teary eyed at parts with just a flood of nostalgia. So glad to know others are still as fascinated by this beautiful story as i am
Replaying this game has been quite interesting seeing the graphics how they were, and it’s the first time I’ve played the game on a TV. It’s load times do drag(& my PS1 is quite finicky), and the game can be slow but it doesn’t bother me the more I adjusted to it. I actually do like the difficulty, and having status ailments unequipped and having a character say stoned or troubled gives items much purpose. It’s another reason why I like the Synthesis shop in this game. As I’ve just replayed the game, I’ll definitely say that I’ve never felt that Chocobo Hot & Cold overstayed its welcome. Because every time you dig out an item with your chocobo, Choco’s beak can gain EXP. I was actually encouraged in getting 8 items in a round to level up my beak, and since each match lasts for like a minute, it levels up your beak. I tried not using a guide, and was able to find most chocographs with the incentive that eventually I’ll get them. Chocobo Hot & Cold is definitely a divisive game, & it just depends on what you like. Trance I feel is only really useful for bosses when you have High Tide, & it’s pretty awkward. But, I’ll say I feel like they work more than say Desperation Attacks in VI which are so useless when you’ll most likely heal next turn. Besides that, I still really like the gameplay. I actually find all the characters useful in their own right, even if there are characters you prefer more. I tend to have Dagger & Eiko around because I love having two healers that can do good damage, Steiner and Amarant are powerhouses, Vivi and Quina are great, and so on. It definitely makes these characters feel unique, like say the cast in 4. Still my favorite cast in any FF. I love the story, world, the themes and the characters. I love the ATEs that explore the characters, and give them time to shine. I still teared up at the Terra segment, Not Alone and the ending. Zidane remains my favorite protagonist with his lovable personality and his relationships with Dagger and the cast. I still look at this game when I think of Final Fantasy at its best, and I will cherish this game for comforting me & changing me into the person that I am. It may not be perfect, and it won’t be for everyone, but man is it phenomenal. Still my favorite, and will forever hold a place in my heart.
FF9 is by far my favorite Final Fantasy game. No other one feels quite so... human. That's saying a lot considering so many of its characters aren't actually humans. One scene that has always stuck with me is the one where Steiner and Beatrix are fighting together against the relentless onslaught at Alexandria. When it seemed like they were in a hopeless situation, Steiner went into trance to protect the woman he loved. The way they used a game mechanic as a storytelling device was brilliant, and the emotional payoff was huge. It actually brought me to tears.
This was a really enjoyable watch! Thank you for enduring hot and cold for us. Gotta love those pre-rendered backgrounds. My favorite part is when you geek out about them cause I get it. I'm super stoked for the ffx video!
I gush over just any game with pre rendered backgrounds lol. It's something I wish would come back. I'm almost finished writing ffx so hopefully it won't take too much longer to finish.
I can only imagine how much work you have put here. The result is incredible. Keep going. Even if you don't have like 1000 likes and 100k views, the few you have really appreciate your work. I can also see that you enjoy making this content, and I think that is what matters the most.
I God damn LOVE Final Fantasy IX. Its by far the best one to me. I played this game on my playstation 1 for the entirety of my 8 years old to my late 18s. I only had the japanese version of the game and it took me nearly a decade to actually beat it. I would always get stuck at some part of the game. Its the best gamr ever.
I remember before using speed running strats always using applying blind on gizmaluke so I could steal the staff for vivi. It was pretty free. You can just use a tent on gizmaluke and keep resetting until it works
WW2, September 11th, people playing 4:3 games in 16:9, people asking for an easy mode in Dark Souls, and people deactivating random encounters in a Final Fantasy game... Humanity will never be the same.
I do it. I've beaten the snes and ps ff games so many times that yeah sometimes I do want to take the easy way out. Sometimes I go for the self made hard run. Depends on the mood. The options are nice.
Nah, turn off them random encounters. Random Encounters are a scourge. I played the original final fantasy years ago. Every 5-10 steps something would jump out at me. It wasn’t even a challenge to beat it, but it was so enraging because I needed to walk in a straight line 300 feet away. And I’d end up overleveled as fuck…just from walking. The air ship was the greatest thing ever when I got it because it basically turned off the random encounters *for* me
Speaking of Vivi an Auron i agree those two a definitely easily close too 1st place in terms of favorite FF character. One is a wildly Accomplish warrior and old man who's been dead this whole time, while another is just a boy who finds out his time is limited despite just being born not to long ago, and would accomplish so much in his limited time on this world. Both can be argued are the real Narrators of there perspective stories in more ways then Tidus or Zidane.
what a lot of the younger generation dont get about FF9 is those of us like myself, whom grew up playing the American releases of FF1, 4, 6, 7, 8, and then 9 in order of their release got a huge love letter to all these great games wrapped up in so much nostalgia that as a young adult, i felt like that kid again that grew up with these classics... FF6, 9 and Tactics will always be some of my favorite games ever as a 40+ year gamer with FF9 representing everything that made those early FF games so epic for me growing up...
I just finished FFIX for the third time in 20 years. I watched pretty much every youtube video there is on my previous playthrough, about a year or two ago. I am now 20 minutes into this video and think this might be the best I've seen. I'll know in an hour I guess lol
@@arkham666 I took Tetra Master seriously for the first time on this playthrough. I enjoyed it and planned on finishing my deck, got close, and that was good enough for me. As for Chocobo Hot and Cold, I didn't even know it existed until this playthrough when I learned about Ozma (who absolutely destroyed me the first three times I fought it) Also, I disagree with the random status effects being an issue, as I always feel like I never lose a fight unless I get affected by random status effects, but that's a personal preference I suppose. And Trance... A year or two ago, Trance saved me in a bunch of fights at the last second. On this playthrough, it was pretty much useless. Very strange that you can't save it for at least a fight or two. But yeah, finished the video, I loved it. Cheers!
I regard FFIX as the greatest piece of art the 21st century has offered me so far, and that's not hyperbole. I mean that. After every frustrating and negative experience I've ever had in the gaming community over decades, my ability to acknowledge video games as a legitimate work of art holds strong because of two masterpieces: Final Fantasy IX and Suikoden. I believe we've only scratched the surface on what interactive storytelling has to offer. I miss the stylized look of PS1 games, as we enter into the uncanny valley of weird facial movement and bland voice acting. FFXVI looks completely unplayable to me, whereas games even as recent as XV and KH3 still look fine. I dunno. FFIX used to get flack for being cartoonish, but in hindsight and even back then, games looked better like that, in my opinion. I would even argue that in the golden trio VII-IX, IX aged the best, precisely because it wasn't leaning too far into realism. There is no uncanny valley in FFIX, but the same cannot be said for a possible remake, which I low key hope they never do.
A really excellent take on FFIX, it shows how much work you put in it. The part about Vivi is really well done and touching. I'll be following your content with great interest :)
There are games I played bc I generationally grew alongside them, games that I fondly grew up with to call nostalgic, this is one of those games I feel has eluded me even amidst its series cohorts - nothing aside from the quarky design caught my eye. Just listening to this however, it's more appropriate to say it did not catch my interest back THEN, even had I had played it I'm sure many things would go over my head bc none of these dismal themes related to me. Now they do. This documentary alone made me feel as this is the itteration, least stranger to me. Change had insued in my life and I had to accept many losses. The art style, has more of quirkyness to it- however its pop upbooky atmosphere ironically distinguishes it from its series contemparies. Taking a bold endeavor to be different and it works. It has that One piece effect, where you judge it as crap, bc it doesn't look generic- only to pick it back up after realizing just how "generic" generic truly is. You appreciate it's boldness. I'll be looking forward to playing. Final Fantasy iX sooner or later. A good potential comfort game, that has a distinct semblance to the wacky world of Discworld by Terry Pratchet, with a tad bit of inclusion of those fairy tales we love so much, but without the naivatay fit for an optomistic child, rather disecting said optomism rending its values but acknowledging the trials of the reality of adulthood. A truly miraculous straying from a path of blinding optomism and overwhelming pessimism, that is the path of life. The acknowledgement of suffering and joy of overcoming it along with found family.
idk, chocobo hot and cold is one of the big things that i enjoy, especially finding a chocograph. When i was younger, whenever i have a chocograph, i would hit up a friend and we would both look for it together. That Ocean chocograph... man phew great memories!
Jeez… triple comment, but it also occurs to me that Vivi is the initial POV character because he’s young, and your the stranger in the strange land, so using him for it makes sense just character wise, things get explained to him because he needs to learn
Props on the video really well done glad i got to experience your love for the game. My favorite is probably ff10 but i dont think its by much. I love ff 5,6,7,8,9,10, zodiac age, and ff online. I strongly recommend any one of them or all of them. Superb games and i hope square doesnt go full action rpg for ff. Im lookin forward to the remake of ff9. Hope you got your excalibur 2 on your playthrough 😂 i have only done it once and used the speed up option they give you in the remaster so not as big of an accomplishment.
i was between 9-11 dont rlly know anymore- i played FFIX and had no clue what im doing as a little kid as our house burned my brother ran to me and said " the house is bruning" i replied: wait i will save quick 💀
Stumbled upon your retrospective's on Final Fantasy, a lot of effort must go into these videos, i would look forward to a retrospective about ff8, in any case, subscribed of course :D
FFIX was the first FF game I actually sat down and played. Not only that, but the first RPG, and further it was the first JRPG I ever played (start to finish. I played Hybrid Heaven on the N64, but only for like 45 minutes because cutscenes and I didn’t understand RPG mechanics). After this I played every other FF because this game was so damn impressive. The characters, the setting, the plot… all incredible. I am constantly at odds with which game is in the top spot. Is it FFVI? VII? IX? X? XII? IV? V? Honestly though, why choose? ALL of them are awesome in their own way
I loved this one, it brought FF back to its original roots in my opinion and I just heard its possibly getting a remake, don't quote me but that would be awesome. Also I'd like a FF8 remake too, I know a lot of people don't like that one becaue of Squalls character but I actually felt like he was one of the most relatable characters...weren't we all a bit brooding and flippant when we were younger? Also in FF8 I felt likke the love story was truly earned and made more sense in that story then most FF stories. I know this is about 9 though and I thought Zidane was so cool, I wanted a tail, idk why I thought that was so cool, probably because I was a kid lol, I just love going back to the roots. No one come for me, this is all my opinion lol, you can disagree.😂❤
The parties being split up in different ways at different times kept the formula fresh throughout- getting stuck on gilamazuke is a skill issue because i was able to do it in 1999 when i was six.
Absolutely fantastical video man. I never got into the games hut I reallt appreciate what they dis for games and the live many such as yourself share for them. FF10 I think with the underwater soccer game I played with my uncle PS2 haha. Thanks for including me as well.
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Epic, in-depth work man, I'll share it where I can. While not my favorite from the "big 3" (FF7-8-9) I can't deny I had a blast playing it and some of the music from its soundtrack is the best this series ever had - Rose of May and Amaranths Theme for example...
RE: The complaint about enemies and bosses using status effects to RUIN your party... I'm 100% sure this was another thing to push the strategy guide that came out around the same time. See also: Excalibur 2
18:55 Tolkien was trying to give the united kingdom back its own mythology, which had been lost to time. He wasn't trying to codify what elves, dwarves, etc, were!
@@XX-sp3tt yeah I know. I don't have any issues with that. It's not Tolkien that's the problem it's everyone else using his work as the basis for their own fantasy elves and dwarves.
I think you should play the 7 remakes but that’s solely because the depth of character is so much better, we actually get to be shown not told so many things
1:23:00 Just bank extra gil and items. Unfortunately its a bit of a grind in the beginning to bank a good amount of necessities, but its literally just a gil issue, not necessarily a skill issue. The skill happens to come with earning the necessary money for great equipment.
Amazing video it really makes you appreciate all the effort Sakaguchi & co. put into the game. Sadly I couldn't really enjoy the game because its terrible combat, 50% of the game time was fighting and I just hated it.
Great video, this is my favorite game of all time, because all of the reasons you said and even more. Funnily enough, chocobo hot and cold is one of my favorite activities of this game, it makes me enjoy exploring the world in hope of finding new, cool stuff, I can see the timed minigame can get repetitive and boring, but I actually like it, also, you can use fast forward to make it faster while the timer stays with the normal speed, it's a little broken, but fun in a good way. Another thing, about what you said about bosses and abilities to counter them, I find it very entertaining to go and encounter a boss, for it to destroy you, and think about your strategy: "hmm, this boss uses a lot of confuse attacks, next time I'll try equipping clear headed", to the point where you can beat pretty much every boss at minimum level if you know how to deal with them, that's not something you can do in every RPG, and I like it a lot, the strategy aspect about your equipment and abilities, I love that even early game equipment can be useful later because of passive resistances, hidden skills, elemental absorption, bonus damage, and so on. I love this game so much, that going back to places you've been before, and see how they have changed through the game is just amuzing to me, and find stuff you wouldn't find otherwise (like the coffee in Dali). I just adore this game. I agree with combat being slow, but my younger , 9 y/o self, from 20 years ago, wasn't annoyed with it, we were used to games having a similar pace at this age. But I hope when it gets a remake, they speed it up a bit, it wouldn't harm. All in all, I can see your points about the positives and negatives, and while I disagree for the most part with the latter (mostly because im biased), they are just stains on an otherwise timeless masterpiece that everyone should give it a try at some point.
Fantastic video! Was a blast to watch! My friends and I would take turns doing rounds of chocobo hot and cold on eachothers saves after school so that mini game holds extreme nostalgia for me and I never got tired of it and will spend an ungodly amount of time even in recent playthroughs doing it.... Maybe thats why I've never been able to get the excalibur 2
Haha oh I guess everything really is better with friends. For me I think it's an age and free time thing. I really don't remember hating it as a kid but as an adult getting a couple of hours to play on weeknights, it's annoying as hell. I felt the same playing blitzball on ffx too. Glad you enjoyed the video.
It's funny how much you hate Chocobo Hot and cold, I'm not saying it's good, but I never though it was anywhere close to the worst of the Chocobo base mini games. I'd rather play it than breed chocobos in FF7 lol I loved this retrospective though, great time hearing your opinions of the game.
If you throw a Tent to Gizamaluk he gets silence and poison and you can just sit down and relax, and also steal him an Ice Staff for Vivi... it'ts very easy bro
13:35 The core of RPGs is generally more about it's combat and character progression system. Games of most genres can have stories or world's to explore but only RPGs have their core gameplay built around leveling and equipment. There are lots of RPGs out there that don't have much in the way of story but are still pretty great games. The guy who directed Final Fantasy IX, Hiroyuki Ito, actually put out a dungeon crawler RPG with pretty much no story whatsoever but was still pretty enjoyable game with ATB based combat.
SLR => Sauver La Reine => (French for) Save The Queen My pseudo for the past 24 years has been a reference to Beatrix's sword. I really loved her character, I haven't played the game since release but from memory: She's driven, loyal, righteous, and stubborn. It will take some convincing to made her give up her assignment but she will eventually, only for a good cause. And of course, she has a great sword =)
Amazing insight into the FF series and I myself LOVEEE FFIX, there's rumors of remakes right now and boy, I will pray to the gaming gods that this comes true so FFIX gets a remake!
Great video! This game is certainly my favorite of the franchise and seeing an in-depth and entertaining look at it is always appreciated. I do think that you had a missed opportunity to bring up the prima strategy guide controversy. Thankfully time has been kind to FFIX and we got the remaster.
I had no idea about that controversy lol. I just googled it. Sheit that's some nasty shit. I guess the beginnings of the square we know now we're there all along.
Love final Fantasy 9. I love almost everything about it other then the slow battle intros, and the villeins are kinda weak. Other then that. I love everything else. The music in my top 3 for FF series. The art and graphics still looks great, I guess the open world kinda ugly but the rest is good. I love the characters and there's some great side characters. I like the combat just wish it was a little faster. Love the equipment system. I love the steam medieval fantasy setting. FF9 probably in my top three for FF series. I would hate to make a list because I don't know where I put my favorite in ranking. In some ways. The game is simple in its story telling but it feels more real, its charming, funny, warming. Its a comfort game that makes me smile in pure enjoyment. Anyways. Great video on a favorite game.
I remember playing this game when it was new and I was young. This game has been so impactful on me that the themes still bring me to uncontrollable tears.
I remember just sitting through dagger's mental breakdown instead of switching to aiko bc change is scary :c legend of dragoon's difficulty scaling was nice... I'd usually run low on healing and realize it's time to attack or die :')
I never could get into the Persona games because they seem to be set in one place. FFIX feels like you're on an adventure, always going to new locales etc. Every place feels so different too.
Awesome video! Thanks! Couldn't help but notice you calling the Iifa Tree the "Lifa" Tree. A lot of people think that the I (i) on Iifa is a lower case L (l), but it is actually a capital case i (l)!
Sir I am most offended by this. We shall meet at dawn before Buckingham Palace to duel. You may choose blades, pistols or fisticuffs but be prepared for a thrashing good sir, a great thrashing! Also glad you enjoyed the video.
@arkham666 hahaha, why? Did you actually say Iifa and not Lifa? I could swear I heard Lifa 😂 In any case, I'm taking the Excalipur 2 for our duel (even though I like the Ultima Weapon more 😢)! See you then! 😂
I feel like that comment about princesses was aimed at a certain video essayist who back in the early 2010s who I will not name because even speaking their name is bound to prompt a shitstorm of insults and unproductive arguments.
@@arkham666 The line about princesses existing to be prizes to be won. About starting with the conclusion and working backwards. Of course, I could be reading too deep into it. Just sounded like something I've heard before.
FF9 is my fav FF and everything about it just overflows with charm and wonder. and the references to previous games are absolutely everywhere. the only thing about FF9 that doesnt hold up, to me, is the combat, and even then it's just the ATB rate and trance. it is a lil slow and the trance system is honestly cool concept but implemented poorly due to the semi random nature of it, if you could bank the trance like limit breaks in 7 and 10 it would have been much better. still have the story beat trances course, like Vivi against BW3 (as well as the stat system, but stats dont really matter that much as level scaling damage is a thing) as well as that GOD AWFUL STEAL RATE! Zidane is, by far, the worst thief in the series purely due to steal rates. christ can go literal hours in the very first fight of the game trying to get that mage masher. it's why whenever anyone plays the game and can mod it i always say "steal rate 100%. do it" Steiner is tied as my fav character with Vivi. it's not so much he is rude to those beneath him, it's that he feels like he doesnt need to be polite or nice to actual criminals. every interaction he has with anyone not part of Tantalus or he knows is a criminal in some way is always polite and agreeable unless they do something to piss him off (which to be fair, is VERY easy to do lol) and early on even he concedes Zidane's strength is impressive. and one of my fav interactions between the two happens near the end: Z"wow, thats a hell of a woman you fell in love with" S:"you're one to talk!" and maybe i'm reading too much into it, but it feels like two close friends just ribbing eachother at this point. and i'm all for it. "you're not alone" is one of the BEST sections of any fantasy game i have ever played. the conversations, the meaning and the song are all just so fcking superb. and while there have been many "down low, friends bringing me back up" sections of games over the years, not many felt as raw to me as this one. for early game no whitemage..... yeah kinda. like, you can get angels snack on Quina before Gizamaluk's which is a party remedy, and i THINK you can get mighty guard which is protect and shell too. and while that helps.... it SUCKS not having a dedicated cure caster. annoyingly, Freya's party regen ability Reis's wind comes from the mythril spear... which you get in burmecia..... christ lol for me, i ALWAYS had the defensive abilities on over any damage increasing ones. so i never had your issue of needing to reset due to bosses pulling bullshit out like stop and freeze/heat. but i do agree that this can be HUGE pain in the ass though. and i certainly got my ass handed to me by bosses when i wasnt strong enough. Garland is a god damn power spike if i've ever seen one. we are complete opposites on the minigames. i DETEST the card game due to how annoying the letters and numbers are to decode and feels 100% random on winning or losing. on the other hand, i ADORE hot and cold. the music is fun, and the game itself is rather easy. the X3 speed available now makes it insanely easy too. ..... wow i ranted a bit lol
That is quite the comment. The main take away is clearly that we share a lot of passion for this game even if we do disagree on a couple of points. Thanks for sharing. It's always nice to hear about other people's experiences with the games I cover.
@@arkham666 yeah i kinda.... rant a lot in comments when i got stuff i like lol expect a longer one on your FF10 vid i'm about to start.... dear god the amount to say on that one....
@@paulsmith9192 if it's true then yes. I just hope it's a single game that stays true to the original. I don't mind the direction they went with 7 but I'd like a true remake of this one.
the most nostalgic game for me, and it was not even near my first gaming experiences. i remember asking for FF7 for birthday, and i got 9 and was disappointed, not knowing it. but then i started playing it...
1:25:00 no it's not an issue with the game. It adds proper challenge to a first time experience of a fight. It then rewards repeat playthroughs. Over coming challenges is a part of games. Finding the path of least resistance in every instance is akin to just watching a playthrough
So all that time I spent tracking down all the various weapon and armor types for each character and grinding away at their abilities so I could have them available for dangerous enemies, that was taking the path of least resistance was it? And because I opted to reset the game and respec for a fight rather than suffer through a battle that I was otherwise ready for thanks to all my grinding, that's the same as me just watching someone play the game? Try again mate.
@@arkham666 Hey don't put words in my mouth. Save-scumming absolutely removes the challenge from the game. But I got the idea that you were the type of player that doesn't like challenge and gets frusterated easily. I mean you even said so in your video multiple times that you rage-quit and scream at the game. But that isn't a problem with the game. It's just that the player in this case prefers when things are simpler or when things are already figured out for them. I prefer when games give us challenges to overcome and think about solutions, thats what makes these fights memorable, not that they were bs or impossible or you needed a walkthrough to get through it. It's a problem with player perspective, not the game. GRANTED in today's world an easy mode would be typically be available for those players, but we didn't really have those for FF games back then. Which is still fine. If it would be remade that option would be available I'm sure.
@@arkham666 some of the characters were really good once you get over the Game of Thrones tone to the whole thing. (No spoilers here) I was genuinely sad when Cid left he was a fun character as well as the scout guy who is always so chummy. There were some bits of the story that i would call diamonds in the rough, but the rough is just SO ROUGH.
I still remember how confused I was watching the beginning of the game when it came out. Someone at a local boys and girls club was playing this on one of the playstation consoles in the game room. I had no idea what was going on. I still remember how shocked I was when Black got petrified along with Evil Forest.
Third favorite Final Fantasy game! I've never actually beaten it, but I've gotten to the final disk. Vivi is my absolute FAVORITE Final Fantasy character BAR NONE!
@@arkham666 Auron is my favorite from X, but Vivi's development just resonates with me. His reaction to finding out why he was created just broke my heart. I just wanted to comfort him! I feel like Vivi is the little brother I never had and Zidane is kinda how I wished I was as a teenager.
Terra's vampiric planet plan is actually deeper and more imaginative than you'd think. 9's soul stream works a little different than 7's, in that, when creatures die, not only does their soul return to the planet, so do their memories. Which is why one of Vivi's final lines is 'my memories will become one with the sky'. These memories become the planets memories and go on to influence the development of that planets lifeforms. When Terra tried to absorb Gaia, the terrans were panicking. There were no newborn planets they could find, so they settled on a young planet instead. This didn't work, as Gaia already had a functioning life cycle and rejected Terra. Garland's current plan, at the start of the game, is simple. The Lifa tree is blocking Gaian souls from reaching the planets crystal, hence the mist, and instead replacing those souls with terran souls. IIRC, there's a line of dialogue in game that even states that more and more terran fauna are appearing on Gaia as this process continues.
1:22:00 I would take unskippable random battles over the unskippable fixed encounters in Chained Echoes. Chained Echoes made me wish the game had random battles so much because Chained Echoes decided to have no levels or exp, so fighting trash enemies offer pretty much no real reward which makes combat feel kind of pointless and it doesn't help that the trash enemies are often harder than the bosses in the game. With random battles I can run away from the fights and continue on my way but in Chained Echoes I can't runaway because if I do, well the enemies are still sitting there waiting for me to defeat them and all progress in the game is completely stopped until I do. I don't hate Chained Echoes but they really screwed up combat. I kid you not when I saw that random battles would have greatly improved the experience over the system they went with. Fixed encounters can be great if implemented in a way that adds strategy to the game, such as in Breath of Fire V: Dragon Quarter. Unfortunately, Chained Echoes has literally the worst implementation of fixed encounters I've even seen in an RPG and I'll take random encounters over that garbage any day.
Such a comfy game. For some reason my favorite part is inside the little train station with Dagger and Steiner. Like I’d like to have lunch there. Idk why that sticks out to me so much, I’m not even like that
I'll join for some South Gate Bundt Cake!
I still remember seeing images of FFIX just after playing and finishing FF7 and FF8: childish and goofy looking characters, a knight, a princess and a guy with a tail? Clearly a game for children!
I was so upset and disappointed in Square. How could they do that with those two predecessor, clearly aiming at a more mature direction. What would people (i.e. my class mates) say if they found out that I play that game (I was 14 at that time).
Eventually I bought it and hell did I love it. The graphics and CGI Scenes were stunning, the music of N. Uematsu it top notch (as always), the characters had so much heart and soul and the story kept you thinking for weeks and month. It is a truly Final Fantasy masterpiece and I cannot decide if I love it more or less then FF7.
Thank you for your well made analysis.
I was 16, iirc, and I way preferred 9 over 8.
And I was never more hyped for a game to release than I was for 8. Both amazing, but. 9 is a return to what I loved about FF
This is exactly why I never played FF9. It looked childish to me. However looking back now 20 years later. Maybe it was cool after all.
@@scottsvt9104 I can only encourage you to give it a try
I prefer 7 and 9, 8 was about some university students love drama bullshit. I played it once.
@@zZiL341yRj736 I was absolutely pumped for 8. Then I played it and was less excited. 😂
9 will always be the best.
10 yr old me playing Vivi for the first 15 seconds... I would die for him. Seeing Garnet run into Zidanes arms made (and still makes) tears shoot from my eyes.
Same here friend.
This is one of the games that I would go to high heaven and hell to see it explode into a full blown franchise like FF VII did, im taking live action tv series, anime, full remake of the game it self, even more spin off titles, the works. Lets just hope the upcoming rumored remake becomes a huge hit and maybe just maybe it could start an iceberg, you never know what the future can bring.
@@Artimes. Well I certainly wouldn't complain about that lol.
@@arkham666 Jrpgs in these days were just works of art truly and they also dealt with large scale stories that have global developments and implications for the plot. You don't get games with naratives of these size anymore with modern tech, partly because its an insurmountable task to achieve in photo realist graphics. (why else does FF VII need 3 parts) and this game's world is actually even larger and more diverse then FF VII. Personally I am content for a more traditional 3d remake that still has the same design and style.
The part that sticks with me the most is after Garnet’s mother is killed, and Vivi contemplates how glad he is she’s dead whilst being sad for Garnet. His wrestling with two conflicting emotions. It’s brilliant, and hits so hard because of FF IX’s presentation. I love it
For some reason, I always mistakenly thought that scene was Zidane reflecting. It was only during the last time I played the game three years ago that I finally noticed it was Vivi. And I've played the game dozens upon dozens of times.
The black mages are truly a tragic case in this game. They aren't just a job class, but an artificial species designed for endless war, against their will. It's just sad that even when they did establish the hidden place away from the outside, they are still at the mercy of their limited time to exist. I wonder if it is ever explained how Vivi was this prototype of the black mages.
From how you describe it I’d call ff9 a what if on ff7, what if it was traditional fantasy, what if it kept the back and forth of dark and light hearted of disc one, what if instead of direct party deaths you have the slow contemplative one that Vivi is condemned too, it’s awesome
I legit just did the same thingnwith this game about a month ago. Ive played ff games for almost 30 years (yes 7 was my first one it was actually my brother's but i was the first to beat it) and ive already beat rebirth and the original 7 again so i was thinking "damn i wonder how great 9 still is" and here i am now almost done with the game and dammit if i havent got teary eyed at parts with just a flood of nostalgia. So glad to know others are still as fascinated by this beautiful story as i am
@@Jayluvlee87 one reason I keep doing this is hearing about all the experiences other people have with the games.
Replaying this game has been quite interesting seeing the graphics how they were, and it’s the first time I’ve played the game on a TV. It’s load times do drag(& my PS1 is quite finicky), and the game can be slow but it doesn’t bother me the more I adjusted to it. I actually do like the difficulty, and having status ailments unequipped and having a character say stoned or troubled gives items much purpose. It’s another reason why I like the Synthesis shop in this game.
As I’ve just replayed the game, I’ll definitely say that I’ve never felt that Chocobo Hot & Cold overstayed its welcome. Because every time you dig out an item with your chocobo, Choco’s beak can gain EXP. I was actually encouraged in getting 8 items in a round to level up my beak, and since each match lasts for like a minute, it levels up your beak. I tried not using a guide, and was able to find most chocographs with the incentive that eventually I’ll get them. Chocobo Hot & Cold is definitely a divisive game, & it just depends on what you like.
Trance I feel is only really useful for bosses when you have High Tide, & it’s pretty awkward. But, I’ll say I feel like they work more than say Desperation Attacks in VI which are so useless when you’ll most likely heal next turn.
Besides that, I still really like the gameplay. I actually find all the characters useful in their own right, even if there are characters you prefer more. I tend to have Dagger & Eiko around because I love having two healers that can do good damage, Steiner and Amarant are powerhouses, Vivi and Quina are great, and so on. It definitely makes these characters feel unique, like say the cast in 4.
Still my favorite cast in any FF. I love the story, world, the themes and the characters. I love the ATEs that explore the characters, and give them time to shine. I still teared up at the Terra segment, Not Alone and the ending. Zidane remains my favorite protagonist with his lovable personality and his relationships with Dagger and the cast. I still look at this game when I think of Final Fantasy at its best, and I will cherish this game for comforting me & changing me into the person that I am. It may not be perfect, and it won’t be for everyone, but man is it phenomenal. Still my favorite, and will forever hold a place in my heart.
FF9 is by far my favorite Final Fantasy game. No other one feels quite so... human. That's saying a lot considering so many of its characters aren't actually humans.
One scene that has always stuck with me is the one where Steiner and Beatrix are fighting together against the relentless onslaught at Alexandria. When it seemed like they were in a hopeless situation, Steiner went into trance to protect the woman he loved. The way they used a game mechanic as a storytelling device was brilliant, and the emotional payoff was huge. It actually brought me to tears.
Love that moment too.
This was a really enjoyable watch!
Thank you for enduring hot and cold for us.
Gotta love those pre-rendered backgrounds. My favorite part is when you geek out about them cause I get it.
I'm super stoked for the ffx video!
I gush over just any game with pre rendered backgrounds lol. It's something I wish would come back.
I'm almost finished writing ffx so hopefully it won't take too much longer to finish.
Words cannot express how much I love this game and how happy I am to see others who feel the same way
that title intro gave me goosebumps. so effective, good job
I can only imagine how much work you have put here. The result is incredible. Keep going. Even if you don't have like 1000 likes and 100k views, the few you have really appreciate your work. I can also see that you enjoy making this content, and I think that is what matters the most.
Thanks I'm really passionate about the things I make and I have a great time making them so none of it is ever a waste.
I God damn LOVE Final Fantasy IX. Its by far the best one to me. I played this game on my playstation 1 for the entirety of my 8 years old to my late 18s. I only had the japanese version of the game and it took me nearly a decade to actually beat it. I would always get stuck at some part of the game.
Its the best gamr ever.
enjoyed watching this. ff9 is one of my top 3 best video game
I remember before using speed running strats always using applying blind on gizmaluke so I could steal the staff for vivi. It was pretty free. You can just use a tent on gizmaluke and keep resetting until it works
WW2, September 11th, people playing 4:3 games in 16:9, people asking for an easy mode in Dark Souls, and people deactivating random encounters in a Final Fantasy game... Humanity will never be the same.
We are all doomed lol.
People choosing the easy way is the worst way any one can choose to live their life
I do it. I've beaten the snes and ps ff games so many times that yeah sometimes I do want to take the easy way out. Sometimes I go for the self made hard run. Depends on the mood. The options are nice.
I do that to see how low of a level I can be for safer sephiroth, Tifa with powersoul broken AF
Nah, turn off them random encounters. Random Encounters are a scourge. I played the original final fantasy years ago. Every 5-10 steps something would jump out at me. It wasn’t even a challenge to beat it, but it was so enraging because I needed to walk in a straight line 300 feet away. And I’d end up overleveled as fuck…just from walking. The air ship was the greatest thing ever when I got it because it basically turned off the random encounters *for* me
Great video! I just discovered the Moguri Mod for the Steam Version of FFIX and i will replay it. It looks beautiful.
Speaking of Vivi an Auron i agree those two a definitely easily close too 1st place in terms of favorite FF character. One is a wildly Accomplish warrior and old man who's been dead this whole time, while another is just a boy who finds out his time is limited despite just being born not to long ago, and would accomplish so much in his limited time on this world. Both can be argued are the real Narrators of there perspective stories in more ways then Tidus or Zidane.
Lore of Final Fantasy IX Retrospective. A World Of Pure Imagination. Momentum 100
Something something Iifa tree, not Lifa tree.
I'll Lifa your tree! *shakes fist angrily.*
what a lot of the younger generation dont get about FF9 is those of us like myself, whom grew up playing the American releases of FF1, 4, 6, 7, 8, and then 9 in order of their release got a huge love letter to all these great games wrapped up in so much nostalgia that as a young adult, i felt like that kid again that grew up with these classics... FF6, 9 and Tactics will always be some of my favorite games ever as a 40+ year gamer with FF9 representing everything that made those early FF games so epic for me growing up...
Really well-done video! Thanks for your effort and thoughtfulness!
I just finished FFIX for the third time in 20 years. I watched pretty much every youtube video there is on my previous playthrough, about a year or two ago. I am now 20 minutes into this video and think this might be the best I've seen. I'll know in an hour I guess lol
That's a hell of a compliment thank you.
@@arkham666 I took Tetra Master seriously for the first time on this playthrough. I enjoyed it and planned on finishing my deck, got close, and that was good enough for me. As for Chocobo Hot and Cold, I didn't even know it existed until this playthrough when I learned about Ozma (who absolutely destroyed me the first three times I fought it) Also, I disagree with the random status effects being an issue, as I always feel like I never lose a fight unless I get affected by random status effects, but that's a personal preference I suppose. And Trance... A year or two ago, Trance saved me in a bunch of fights at the last second. On this playthrough, it was pretty much useless. Very strange that you can't save it for at least a fight or two. But yeah, finished the video, I loved it. Cheers!
I regard FFIX as the greatest piece of art the 21st century has offered me so far, and that's not hyperbole. I mean that. After every frustrating and negative experience I've ever had in the gaming community over decades, my ability to acknowledge video games as a legitimate work of art holds strong because of two masterpieces: Final Fantasy IX and Suikoden. I believe we've only scratched the surface on what interactive storytelling has to offer. I miss the stylized look of PS1 games, as we enter into the uncanny valley of weird facial movement and bland voice acting. FFXVI looks completely unplayable to me, whereas games even as recent as XV and KH3 still look fine.
I dunno. FFIX used to get flack for being cartoonish, but in hindsight and even back then, games looked better like that, in my opinion. I would even argue that in the golden trio VII-IX, IX aged the best, precisely because it wasn't leaning too far into realism. There is no uncanny valley in FFIX, but the same cannot be said for a possible remake, which I low key hope they never do.
You have wonderful taste in art.
Phantasy star actually has a pretty amazing world and music.
Chocobo hot and cold in the versions with fast forward is actually easy and fun. Not so if you just do them as intended.
A really excellent take on FFIX, it shows how much work you put in it.
The part about Vivi is really well done and touching.
I'll be following your content with great interest :)
Thank you. I'm really glad you enjoyed it.
There are games I played bc I generationally grew alongside them, games that I fondly grew up with to call nostalgic, this is one of those games I feel has eluded me even amidst its series cohorts - nothing aside from the quarky design caught my eye. Just listening to this however, it's more appropriate to say it did not catch my interest back THEN, even had I had played it I'm sure many things would go over my head bc none of these dismal themes related to me.
Now they do. This documentary alone made me feel as this is the itteration, least stranger to me. Change had insued in my life and I had to accept many losses. The art style, has more of quirkyness to it- however its pop upbooky atmosphere ironically distinguishes it from its series contemparies.
Taking a bold endeavor to be different and it works. It has that One piece effect, where you judge it as crap, bc it doesn't look generic- only to pick it back up after realizing just how "generic" generic truly is. You appreciate it's boldness. I'll be looking forward to playing. Final Fantasy iX sooner or later.
A good potential comfort game, that has a distinct semblance to the wacky world of Discworld by Terry Pratchet, with a tad bit of inclusion of those fairy tales we love so much, but without the naivatay fit for an optomistic child, rather disecting said optomism rending its values but acknowledging the trials of the reality of adulthood. A truly miraculous straying from a path of blinding optomism and overwhelming pessimism, that is the path of life.
The acknowledgement of suffering and joy of overcoming it along with found family.
What a beautiful analysis of my favourite game of all time ❤️ So thoughtfully and lovingly crafted, I really enjoyed this video!
Thank you it was wonderful to revisit it for myself too. Glad you enjoyed it.
idk, chocobo hot and cold is one of the big things that i enjoy, especially finding a chocograph. When i was younger, whenever i have a chocograph, i would hit up a friend and we would both look for it together. That Ocean chocograph... man phew great memories!
Jeez… triple comment, but it also occurs to me that Vivi is the initial POV character because he’s young, and your the stranger in the strange land, so using him for it makes sense just character wise, things get explained to him because he needs to learn
great video! FF9 is still my personal fav in the series
My first ps3 broke before I could get beyond the Trance Tutorial, thank you for letting me experience the rest of the game with this video
Props on the video really well done glad i got to experience your love for the game. My favorite is probably ff10 but i dont think its by much. I love ff 5,6,7,8,9,10, zodiac age, and ff online. I strongly recommend any one of them or all of them. Superb games and i hope square doesnt go full action rpg for ff. Im lookin forward to the remake of ff9. Hope you got your excalibur 2 on your playthrough 😂 i have only done it once and used the speed up option they give you in the remaster so not as big of an accomplishment.
i was between 9-11 dont rlly know anymore- i played FFIX and had no clue what im doing
as a little kid as our house burned my brother ran to me and said " the house is bruning"
i replied: wait i will save quick
💀
Stumbled upon your retrospective's on Final Fantasy, a lot of effort must go into these videos, i would look forward to a retrospective about ff8, in any case, subscribed of course :D
I'd love to revisit 8. Just need to get time for it.
Double comment but Vivi and final fantasy tactics advance have the classic b mage as my favorite FF class ever
FFIX was the first FF game I actually sat down and played. Not only that, but the first RPG, and further it was the first JRPG I ever played (start to finish. I played Hybrid Heaven on the N64, but only for like 45 minutes because cutscenes and I didn’t understand RPG mechanics). After this I played every other FF because this game was so damn impressive. The characters, the setting, the plot… all incredible. I am constantly at odds with which game is in the top spot. Is it FFVI? VII? IX? X? XII? IV? V? Honestly though, why choose? ALL of them are awesome in their own way
@@remydrums85 They all have that something special.
I loved this one, it brought FF back to its original roots in my opinion and I just heard its possibly getting a remake, don't quote me but that would be awesome. Also I'd like a FF8 remake too, I know a lot of people don't like that one becaue of Squalls character but I actually felt like he was one of the most relatable characters...weren't we all a bit brooding and flippant when we were younger? Also in FF8 I felt likke the love story was truly earned and made more sense in that story then most FF stories. I know this is about 9 though and I thought Zidane was so cool, I wanted a tail, idk why I thought that was so cool, probably because I was a kid lol, I just love going back to the roots. No one come for me, this is all my opinion lol, you can disagree.😂❤
I love 8 too but I find Laguna to be much more relatable than Squall lol.
The parties being split up in different ways at different times kept the formula fresh throughout- getting stuck on gilamazuke is a skill issue because i was able to do it in 1999 when i was six.
Weird flex but okay.
Fantastic stuff
Absolutely fantastical video man. I never got into the games hut I reallt appreciate what they dis for games and the live many such as yourself share for them. FF10 I think with the underwater soccer game I played with my uncle PS2 haha. Thanks for including me as well.
Epic, in-depth work man, I'll share it where I can. While not my favorite from the "big 3" (FF7-8-9) I can't deny I had a blast playing it and some of the music from its soundtrack is the best this series ever had - Rose of May and Amaranths Theme for example...
Thanks I'm really glad you liked it. Kuja's theme always gives me chills and I love Beatrix's too.
Liked just for the intro!
Dude... WHAT A INTRO!
RE: The complaint about enemies and bosses using status effects to RUIN your party...
I'm 100% sure this was another thing to push the strategy guide that came out around the same time. See also: Excalibur 2
@@jessie-buns839 I only found out about that drama after finishing the video. It passed me by back in the day but now I know I wouldn't be surprised.
18:55 Tolkien was trying to give the united kingdom back its own mythology, which had been lost to time. He wasn't trying to codify what elves, dwarves, etc, were!
@@XX-sp3tt yeah I know. I don't have any issues with that. It's not Tolkien that's the problem it's everyone else using his work as the basis for their own fantasy elves and dwarves.
I think you should play the 7 remakes but that’s solely because the depth of character is so much better, we actually get to be shown not told so many things
I've been told good things by people I trust on the subject. I'll get to it eventually. Thanks for the input.
Great adventure through my second favourite of the series. ( FF6 will forever remain.) Keep up the great work!
Thank you. Really glad you enjoyed it. I've yet to finish 6 but it's long been on my to do list.
Still the best ff game
Yup just pure magic. I still need to finish ff6 one day though.
1:23:00 Just bank extra gil and items. Unfortunately its a bit of a grind in the beginning to bank a good amount of necessities, but its literally just a gil issue, not necessarily a skill issue. The skill happens to come with earning the necessary money for great equipment.
Gizamaluke's Grotto has those level 40 Dragons just chillin at the top of that vine, the real skill issue is fighting minibosses that early on.
Amazing video it really makes you appreciate all the effort Sakaguchi & co. put into the game. Sadly I couldn't really enjoy the game because its terrible combat, 50% of the game time was fighting and I just hated it.
Great video, this is my favorite game of all time, because all of the reasons you said and even more. Funnily enough, chocobo hot and cold is one of my favorite activities of this game, it makes me enjoy exploring the world in hope of finding new, cool stuff, I can see the timed minigame can get repetitive and boring, but I actually like it, also, you can use fast forward to make it faster while the timer stays with the normal speed, it's a little broken, but fun in a good way.
Another thing, about what you said about bosses and abilities to counter them, I find it very entertaining to go and encounter a boss, for it to destroy you, and think about your strategy: "hmm, this boss uses a lot of confuse attacks, next time I'll try equipping clear headed", to the point where you can beat pretty much every boss at minimum level if you know how to deal with them, that's not something you can do in every RPG, and I like it a lot, the strategy aspect about your equipment and abilities, I love that even early game equipment can be useful later because of passive resistances, hidden skills, elemental absorption, bonus damage, and so on.
I love this game so much, that going back to places you've been before, and see how they have changed through the game is just amuzing to me, and find stuff you wouldn't find otherwise (like the coffee in Dali). I just adore this game.
I agree with combat being slow, but my younger , 9 y/o self, from 20 years ago, wasn't annoyed with it, we were used to games having a similar pace at this age. But I hope when it gets a remake, they speed it up a bit, it wouldn't harm.
All in all, I can see your points about the positives and negatives, and while I disagree for the most part with the latter (mostly because im biased), they are just stains on an otherwise timeless masterpiece that everyone should give it a try at some point.
Fantastic video! Was a blast to watch!
My friends and I would take turns doing rounds of chocobo hot and cold on eachothers saves after school so that mini game holds extreme nostalgia for me and I never got tired of it and will spend an ungodly amount of time even in recent playthroughs doing it.... Maybe thats why I've never been able to get the excalibur 2
Haha oh I guess everything really is better with friends. For me I think it's an age and free time thing. I really don't remember hating it as a kid but as an adult getting a couple of hours to play on weeknights, it's annoying as hell. I felt the same playing blitzball on ffx too. Glad you enjoyed the video.
Im so hoping ff17 is a stylised game intead of realisitic. Still high end graphics but in some artsy kind ff9 style
That would be nice. I've had my fill of realistic anime for now. I could use something a little more charming.
Im here for the complete spoilers 😂. Never played this one . Then again. Ive nvrr played any FF under 10 so .
Well I hope you can be convinced to give them a try.
arkham666, Your videos always make me happy, so I subscribed!
I'm glad I can put some smiles on faces.
It's funny how much you hate Chocobo Hot and cold, I'm not saying it's good, but I never though it was anywhere close to the worst of the Chocobo base mini games. I'd rather play it than breed chocobos in FF7 lol
I loved this retrospective though, great time hearing your opinions of the game.
@@JonNogo if my pain makes others laugh, then at least it was worth something.
@@arkham666 Hahaha, I'm your age, and a lifelong FF player... so trust me, I know what you've been through
If you throw a Tent to Gizamaluk he gets silence and poison and you can just sit down and relax, and also steal him an Ice Staff for Vivi... it'ts very easy bro
Just in time for my lunch break
Those bugs I had Versalife install in your place are working wonders. I'll be sure to thank Bob Page personally when I see him.
Yea I'll 9 over that university students love time travel bullshit any day.
Took me a minute to understand that one lol.
6:37 Many a fairy tale ended rather grimly.
13:35 The core of RPGs is generally more about it's combat and character progression system. Games of most genres can have stories or world's to explore but only RPGs have their core gameplay built around leveling and equipment. There are lots of RPGs out there that don't have much in the way of story but are still pretty great games. The guy who directed Final Fantasy IX, Hiroyuki Ito, actually put out a dungeon crawler RPG with pretty much no story whatsoever but was still pretty enjoyable game with ATB based combat.
FF9 a happy childhood :) I wish I could buy a house somewhere in villgae on Dali and retire there :)
SLR => Sauver La Reine => (French for) Save The Queen
My pseudo for the past 24 years has been a reference to Beatrix's sword. I really loved her character, I haven't played the game since release but from memory:
She's driven, loyal, righteous, and stubborn. It will take some convincing to made her give up her assignment but she will eventually, only for a good cause. And of course, she has a great sword =)
I'm especially fond oh her music too. She has a great character arc.
Great video thank you!
Amazing insight into the FF series and I myself LOVEEE FFIX, there's rumors of remakes right now and boy, I will pray to the gaming gods that this comes true so FFIX gets a remake!
Great video! This game is certainly my favorite of the franchise and seeing an in-depth and entertaining look at it is always appreciated.
I do think that you had a missed opportunity to bring up the prima strategy guide controversy. Thankfully time has been kind to FFIX and we got the remaster.
I had no idea about that controversy lol. I just googled it. Sheit that's some nasty shit. I guess the beginnings of the square we know now we're there all along.
Damn Zidane is so refreshing compared to previous FF protags, personally Zidane was what held the game together for me.
He is ever a ray of sunshine.
Love final Fantasy 9. I love almost everything about it other then the slow battle intros, and the villeins are kinda weak. Other then that. I love everything else. The music in my top 3 for FF series. The art and graphics still looks great, I guess the open world kinda ugly but the rest is good. I love the characters and there's some great side characters. I like the combat just wish it was a little faster. Love the equipment system. I love the steam medieval fantasy setting. FF9 probably in my top three for FF series. I would hate to make a list because I don't know where I put my favorite in ranking. In some ways. The game is simple in its story telling but it feels more real, its charming, funny, warming. Its a comfort game that makes me smile in pure enjoyment.
Anyways. Great video on a favorite game.
I remember playing this game when it was new and I was young. This game has been so impactful on me that the themes still bring me to uncontrollable tears.
@@Shirazzikkdh same here friend. Same here.
When you're a poor kid who can only afford 1 game every COUPLE OF YEARS I promise, minigames that drag things out are a blessing.
I remember just sitting through dagger's mental breakdown instead of switching to aiko bc change is scary :c
legend of dragoon's difficulty scaling was nice... I'd usually run low on healing and realize it's time to attack or die :')
note how many elements of Hollow Knight were "burrowed" from this game...
Never played hollow knight. I like the art style though.
So many comment but… POOR VIVI! please tell me Ziddane and Daggar adopted this lil bean at the end and they lived happily ever after
I never could get into the Persona games because they seem to be set in one place. FFIX feels like you're on an adventure, always going to new locales etc. Every place feels so different too.
Awesome video! Thanks!
Couldn't help but notice you calling the Iifa Tree the "Lifa" Tree. A lot of people think that the I (i) on Iifa is a lower case L (l), but it is actually a capital case i (l)!
Sir I am most offended by this. We shall meet at dawn before Buckingham Palace to duel. You may choose blades, pistols or fisticuffs but be prepared for a thrashing good sir, a great thrashing!
Also glad you enjoyed the video.
@arkham666 hahaha, why? Did you actually say Iifa and not Lifa? I could swear I heard Lifa 😂
In any case, I'm taking the Excalipur 2 for our duel (even though I like the Ultima Weapon more 😢)! See you then! 😂
@@eduardodacosta4670 no no I eeffd up I'm just in a funny mood today. You're all good boss.
@@arkham666but the duel is still happening, right? 😅
@@eduardodacosta4670 but of course I've already packed my rapiers and muskets.
I always liked the chocobo side quests.
what a good Retrospective video you made here, it was relax but also insightfull and imersive
looking forward to watch your other videos!
31:00 Garnet Was Not A Baby At The Time She Was 5 Yrs Old It’s Said Multiple Times In The Game
I’ guess I’m the only one who never liked this game as much as the others. But good video .
I feel like that comment about princesses was aimed at a certain video essayist who back in the early 2010s who I will not name because even speaking their name is bound to prompt a shitstorm of insults and unproductive arguments.
I don't recall taking a stab at anyone in particular in this script. Which line specifically are you referring to?
@@arkham666 The line about princesses existing to be prizes to be won. About starting with the conclusion and working backwards.
Of course, I could be reading too deep into it. Just sounded like something I've heard before.
@@stevenguitink5947 Haha I know exactly who you're thinking about now.
There's no visible rust on Steiner's armor despite characters joking about it throughout the game. Imagination indeed
FF9 is my fav FF and everything about it just overflows with charm and wonder. and the references to previous games are absolutely everywhere.
the only thing about FF9 that doesnt hold up, to me, is the combat, and even then it's just the ATB rate and trance. it is a lil slow and the trance system is honestly cool concept but implemented poorly due to the semi random nature of it, if you could bank the trance like limit breaks in 7 and 10 it would have been much better. still have the story beat trances course, like Vivi against BW3 (as well as the stat system, but stats dont really matter that much as level scaling damage is a thing) as well as that GOD AWFUL STEAL RATE! Zidane is, by far, the worst thief in the series purely due to steal rates. christ can go literal hours in the very first fight of the game trying to get that mage masher. it's why whenever anyone plays the game and can mod it i always say "steal rate 100%. do it"
Steiner is tied as my fav character with Vivi. it's not so much he is rude to those beneath him, it's that he feels like he doesnt need to be polite or nice to actual criminals. every interaction he has with anyone not part of Tantalus or he knows is a criminal in some way is always polite and agreeable unless they do something to piss him off (which to be fair, is VERY easy to do lol) and early on even he concedes Zidane's strength is impressive. and one of my fav interactions between the two happens near the end: Z"wow, thats a hell of a woman you fell in love with" S:"you're one to talk!" and maybe i'm reading too much into it, but it feels like two close friends just ribbing eachother at this point. and i'm all for it.
"you're not alone" is one of the BEST sections of any fantasy game i have ever played. the conversations, the meaning and the song are all just so fcking superb. and while there have been many "down low, friends bringing me back up" sections of games over the years, not many felt as raw to me as this one.
for early game no whitemage..... yeah kinda. like, you can get angels snack on Quina before Gizamaluk's which is a party remedy, and i THINK you can get mighty guard which is protect and shell too. and while that helps.... it SUCKS not having a dedicated cure caster. annoyingly, Freya's party regen ability Reis's wind comes from the mythril spear... which you get in burmecia..... christ lol
for me, i ALWAYS had the defensive abilities on over any damage increasing ones. so i never had your issue of needing to reset due to bosses pulling bullshit out like stop and freeze/heat. but i do agree that this can be HUGE pain in the ass though. and i certainly got my ass handed to me by bosses when i wasnt strong enough. Garland is a god damn power spike if i've ever seen one.
we are complete opposites on the minigames. i DETEST the card game due to how annoying the letters and numbers are to decode and feels 100% random on winning or losing. on the other hand, i ADORE hot and cold. the music is fun, and the game itself is rather easy. the X3 speed available now makes it insanely easy too.
..... wow i ranted a bit lol
That is quite the comment. The main take away is clearly that we share a lot of passion for this game even if we do disagree on a couple of points. Thanks for sharing. It's always nice to hear about other people's experiences with the games I cover.
@@arkham666 yeah i kinda.... rant a lot in comments when i got stuff i like lol expect a longer one on your FF10 vid i'm about to start.... dear god the amount to say on that one....
Ff9 remake coming,excited?
@@paulsmith9192 if it's true then yes. I just hope it's a single game that stays true to the original. I don't mind the direction they went with 7 but I'd like a true remake of this one.
great video, thx for the work man
@@alphiu you're welcome. Glad you enjoyed it.
the most nostalgic game for me, and it was not even near my first gaming experiences. i remember asking for FF7 for birthday, and i got 9 and was disappointed, not knowing it. but then i started playing it...
A great man once said "we don't make mistakes, we just have happy accidents."
I'm playing it again for like the 5th time and i fall in love with it more every time
Engage with it
1:25:00 no it's not an issue with the game. It adds proper challenge to a first time experience of a fight. It then rewards repeat playthroughs. Over coming challenges is a part of games. Finding the path of least resistance in every instance is akin to just watching a playthrough
So all that time I spent tracking down all the various weapon and armor types for each character and grinding away at their abilities so I could have them available for dangerous enemies, that was taking the path of least resistance was it?
And because I opted to reset the game and respec for a fight rather than suffer through a battle that I was otherwise ready for thanks to all my grinding, that's the same as me just watching someone play the game? Try again mate.
@@arkham666 Hey don't put words in my mouth. Save-scumming absolutely removes the challenge from the game. But I got the idea that you were the type of player that doesn't like challenge and gets frusterated easily. I mean you even said so in your video multiple times that you rage-quit and scream at the game. But that isn't a problem with the game. It's just that the player in this case prefers when things are simpler or when things are already figured out for them. I prefer when games give us challenges to overcome and think about solutions, thats what makes these fights memorable, not that they were bs or impossible or you needed a walkthrough to get through it. It's a problem with player perspective, not the game. GRANTED in today's world an easy mode would be typically be available for those players, but we didn't really have those for FF games back then. Which is still fine. If it would be remade that option would be available I'm sure.
I am not a big fan of FF16. Its way way too gritty for me lol
The reception seemed to be lukewarm at best.
@@arkham666 some of the characters were really good once you get over the Game of Thrones tone to the whole thing. (No spoilers here) I was genuinely sad when Cid left he was a fun character as well as the scout guy who is always so chummy. There were some bits of the story that i would call diamonds in the rough, but the rough is just SO ROUGH.
3:27 yessssss
I still remember how confused I was watching the beginning of the game when it came out. Someone at a local boys and girls club was playing this on one of the playstation consoles in the game room. I had no idea what was going on. I still remember how shocked I was when Black got petrified along with Evil Forest.
Yeah that was a shocker. I immediately promised myself that I'd try to find a way to save him if it wasn't in the main game.
Amazing.
I want to play skies of Arcadia so fugin bad!!
Beatrix is best girl!
Third favorite Final Fantasy game! I've never actually beaten it, but I've gotten to the final disk. Vivi is my absolute FAVORITE Final Fantasy character BAR NONE!
He is the series giga Chad. I think I still prefer Auron but it's an incredibly close fight.
@@arkham666 Auron is my favorite from X, but Vivi's development just resonates with me. His reaction to finding out why he was created just broke my heart. I just wanted to comfort him! I feel like Vivi is the little brother I never had and Zidane is kinda how I wished I was as a teenager.
Terra's vampiric planet plan is actually deeper and more imaginative than you'd think. 9's soul stream works a little different than 7's, in that, when creatures die, not only does their soul return to the planet, so do their memories. Which is why one of Vivi's final lines is 'my memories will become one with the sky'. These memories become the planets memories and go on to influence the development of that planets lifeforms.
When Terra tried to absorb Gaia, the terrans were panicking. There were no newborn planets they could find, so they settled on a young planet instead. This didn't work, as Gaia already had a functioning life cycle and rejected Terra. Garland's current plan, at the start of the game, is simple. The Lifa tree is blocking Gaian souls from reaching the planets crystal, hence the mist, and instead replacing those souls with terran souls.
IIRC, there's a line of dialogue in game that even states that more and more terran fauna are appearing on Gaia as this process continues.
Yes I remember all this from playing the game too.
1:22:00 I would take unskippable random battles over the unskippable fixed encounters in Chained Echoes. Chained Echoes made me wish the game had random battles so much because Chained Echoes decided to have no levels or exp, so fighting trash enemies offer pretty much no real reward which makes combat feel kind of pointless and it doesn't help that the trash enemies are often harder than the bosses in the game.
With random battles I can run away from the fights and continue on my way but in Chained Echoes I can't runaway because if I do, well the enemies are still sitting there waiting for me to defeat them and all progress in the game is completely stopped until I do.
I don't hate Chained Echoes but they really screwed up combat. I kid you not when I saw that random battles would have greatly improved the experience over the system they went with.
Fixed encounters can be great if implemented in a way that adds strategy to the game, such as in Breath of Fire V: Dragon Quarter. Unfortunately, Chained Echoes has literally the worst implementation of fixed encounters I've even seen in an RPG and I'll take random encounters over that garbage any day.
Shout out for light crusader! That game was awesome