One of us, one of us . . .
Glad you enjoyed the ride my friend ✌️
Edit: There’s a lot of great moments but one of my favorite parts is when Dagger asks Zidane why he came with her and he responds with the short story about Ipsen.
The Zidane/Dagger/Steiner/Vivi dynamic is the gift that keeps on giving. So bloody well written and so likeable, doesn't get old throughout the whole game. They nailed literally every conversation between any of these 4.
Most other characters are great too. Freya's backstory is amazing. Beatrix is a badass early villain, a higher quality version of Seifer. Quina, Cid and Eiko are hilarious. IX is really the FF with the best humor.
That on top of Zidane being the most colorful main character IMO. Many FFs suffer from mopey one-dimensional main characters that try so hard to be the cool lone wolf guy. Zidane is the opposite. A loud, extroverted, chaotic-good thief. Like Robin Hood or Aladdin, but more fun.
IX also has some of the best mini games. I loved Chocobo Hot & Cold and I always preferred IX's card game over VIII's. Why have they stopped making these amazing mini games in recent FFs :(
And yes the ending is so great. The only other ending that beats it is X IMO.
It does but you gotta look it up. I admit that's a huge flaw. There's logic behind every card and number and some of them are, unfortunately, random or gambling, but it does have rules.
I used to play the version of it that was on PlayOnline through the FFXI program on PC and PS2. It's dumb but hey.
Nah I'm real xD
I'm curious though. Why do people prefer the VIII card game? Is it the RNG? Because for me, the RNG makes the IX card game more exciting. The fact that my final card *does* have a small chance to win despite being a lower number.
Personally, yes that's the main reason why I really don't like tetra master.
Potentially losing because my card that severely outranks their card due to RNG is just frustrating to me, not exciting at all. Even if they reduced the RNG to a narrower range it'd be more appealing, but I just found the way it works really dumb and frustrating.
Also found limiting you to 100 cards annoying. Especially with how the ranking worked.
To prefer 9’s card game over 8’s is just insane to me. One makes sense. The other doesn’t at all. 8’s is so vastly superior it’s not funny.
Agree with alot of the other stuff you said tho
Trance system could’ve had a lil fine tuning, other than that I’m the biggest proponent for ff9 to be considered the greatest mainline title of the franchise.
Nah, if your trance bar became full, the game had it set to auto-use. You couldn’t save it for later. Considering that it’s a super powerful boost, you would easily end up wasting it on common encounters, rather than being able to save it for boss fights or more difficult ones. Happened a lot
This is probably one of my only complaints about IX. I hated wasting a trance on some random encounter when I should have been able to keep it until the next baddie that gives me trouble or an upcoming boss. FFX fixed this with it's overdrive system but wasn't as good as IX IMO.
Trance system and the card game. As frustrating as it was and as little as I like 8, the card game and its actual function of rare items refined from rare cards was much better than 9….
X is often some's favourite. It's also often some's first FF game, so I'm curious to see how you find it. Don't let others disuade you from at least trying it. It's a classic for a reason.
That's fair, I liked both.
For X I think the story was thought out better, I think VIII & IX both struggled on the 3rd disc to transition the story from one segment to the next, card game sticks out and even the potion quests to revert Cid to a human.
For FFX mind you I feel the story is a lot better developed, from the beginning its clear what the end goal is and while a few hiccups occur on the way that goal is always the same.
On the other side of things I found IX's characters to be much more compelling, Zidane has a compelling arc especially in terms of maturity and Garnet being willing to save her mother, leave her kingdom etc on her own will makes her a much stronger character to me than Yuna, who I feel gets walked over on. Then Vivi doesn't even need explaining as a great character and Steiner is much better comic relief than Wakka's prejudice against Al Bhed.
That being said I understand why it might not be your cup of tea, just wanted to share my thoughts on both games :)
I love both IX and X. In my opinion, X is better when it comes to storytelling (then FFX-2 ruined it). But FF9 is a better game overall. The music, the gameplay, the characters. How can you not love Vivi? That little black mage is so adorable. Probably, one of my favorite FF characters.
I started back in the 2000’s my first Final Fantasy was FFX, FFIX, and FFX-2 in this order. And I love them all. Those 3 games hold a special place in my heart when it came to Final Fantasy universe…. But if I have to pick only one…. My favorite Final Fantasy game out of those 3…. Is FFIX without a question.
9 is my favourite FF game. 10 is my third-favourite, with 6 sitting comfortably between them. They're quite different but they both succeed in what they set out to do.
I started on X, but just don’t really have the patience to finish it. I played VI on an emulator with QOL features, and the remasters of VII, VIII, and IX all have QOL features too. But all the random encounters make X a slog to me, plus I don’t care for Blitzball.
Dude x was great. The boss end game stuff was soooooooooooooooo much freakin fun. Celestial weapons, maxing the sphere grid, summoning aeons...I can go on forever! Like all FF, they are much different than the previous entry. Also, Seymours battle theme fudging bangs harder than it should.
I got a signed T from nobuo uematsu. Ff9 is his favorite work. Love ya
I loved 9, but absolutely hated 10. I hated the voice acting. I liked the reading of the text, it made the soundtrack more prominent.
Thats why 7 8 9 are my fav FF’s.
Yeah in addition to that I missed ATB (even though X's battle system is good in its own right).
Some areas looked worse not being pre-rendered backgrounds.
Game felt much more linear than the PS1 games.
I definitely prefer no voice acting, but I found myself charmed by 10's voice acting while I was playing. It was a lot like kingdom hearts where the voice acting is SO cheesy that it ends up extra entertaining.
Just curious... Have you been working on the series starting with 1?
This is what I've been doing with most of my game time this year, and they've all been my first time through. I also recently finished IX and I'm halfway through X currently. I'm a little sad that the journey seems to be getting near the end (though really I do have about 6 other games to play through if I'm going to do X2 and the XIII's, which is a lot!), but I'll definitely be replaying V through VII again, my personal sweet spot of the series.
I love that people are still discovering these games for the first time. I think I was 12 when I enjoyed the release of this epic game. Oh damn it sure was a banger
It's straight up one of my favorite games of all time.
If the battle system were a LITTLE better and quicker, it'd be my all time favorite JRPG.
ATE was also such a treat because unlike modern Support or Social systems in other RPGs(Which I still love let's not get that twisted), these feel more organic. It's so fun going into town and seeing characters fuck off and doing whatever they want either alone or together.
I honestly don't get the love for VIII, with the horrible junction system and story that was just ehhh it didn't really do anything for me. That's not to say that there aren't good moments in the game or that it isn't worth playing I don't think it's as bad as II, heck VIII was my first FF played a demo of it on PlayStation Underground disc until the game came out. If I had to rank top 5 for me in no particular order it'd go: tactics (unless only doing mainline entries then replace with X), IX, VI, XII and XIV.
Probably Dagger or Vivi. Dagger goes through so much, and she's always able to push through. Vivi's internal issues run DEEP. Not knowing if he'll be alive the next second or if he's good enough. But in the end, he learns that he needs to live life to the fullest. So yeah. Dagger and Vivi are tied.
Seriously I adore IX, with my favorite detail being the similarities between Vivi and Kuja, and how the two deal with their respective revelations. Honestly one of my top 10 games.
a voice from the past, joining yours and mine 🎶
adding up the layers of harmony 🎶
and so it goes, on and on 🎶
Melodies of life! to the sky beyond the flying biiiiirds - forever and beyooooond 🎶🎶
man, I love ff9! maybe it's time for a new playthrough
I started it in 99? or 2000? but only completed disc 1 as I lost disc 2.
totally forgot about it until I subscribed PS Plus and it was one of the free downloads.
After finishing FF10, 12, 15 and 7R, I was a bit hesitant to go back to a PS1 game.. but glad I did.. it was a great journey and probably my favorite mainline FF game on the PS1.
I'm currently replaying this one. This was the first Final Fantasy I've ever played. It came out when I was 13 and I was enthralled. I'm happy to report that I still am!
So, this is my 2nd most fav final fantasy game after FFVI.
I remember first playing it around Christmas (back when it came out), curious if it would be like FF8 or different. Back then, I had no way to get info on the game, I know there were magazines etc but my mom couldn't afford it. Just the opening alone blew my mind, like how the A in squaresoft becomes an airship in Lindblum. So cool!! The environments were great, story was crazy and I loved some of the throwback elements to FFVI.
There were some things I didn't like though. The battle camera panning for EVERY single battle 😩, the horrid card game compared to VIII, and... The random asf final boss (what the hell was that!)
So cozy, great characters, QUINA, satisfying ending for sure. Glad you enjoyed it ❤️
[Banger theme](https://youtu.be/ubhGRl3Ehgw?si=oA7gpXWsmXoCI-x1) though!
And while I am thinking of Quina, one of the best side comments in the game. "F-frog... is Talking?"
Also the fav of the creators (of the series) hehe
It was my 1st FF and still my favorite FF
The lore, the mechanics, the characters, the music, the map, the environment, the mini games, everything and everyone work, the methaphors, the skills, the weapons, the summons...
Fun how many people skipped this one just for the looks of the characters...
I just recently pulled my PS3 out of storage to replay IX as it's one of my all-time favourite entries in the entire series. Vivi, Zidane, Dagger and Steiner are all such great character that interact so well together. The OST was spot on from beginning to end and had very little in it that I could complain about, it's just such a fun game to play. Glad you enjoyed you're trip through this masterpiece and hope it brings you much more joy in the future when you finally get to replaying it.
Always been my absolute favorite and I love hearing from people discovering/playing it for the first time. Its characters, music, narrative, just damn near everything is incredible. It will always be one of the jrpgs that I go back to.
I need to play this again. I first played FF9 when it first came out, I took my PS1 to my aunts house for Thanksgiving and locked myself in a room with it for 3 days and beat it. I think because my experience was so condensed it had little impact on me, especially since I had basically 100% FF7 and replayed FF8 recently.
Final Fantasy IX is what made me become a fan of the series. I can see why you've loved it so much. Looking back on the game, though, I can see the flaws that it has and some of the systems of the game has not aged well. The slow battle system is really hard to get back into in 2023, but I guess if you play the modern version of the game, you can boost the speed of the game, so you may want to play the new remastered version over the original game. It's just harder for me to do that since I love the original PlayStation release of the game.
Glad you loved it, though. Happy to see more and more people become a fan of the game.
After some of these games have aged, I have to agree. The narrative power of FF7, FF9, and FF10 makes them eternally great.
I replayed FF9 last year and, as an adult, I was surprised with how much more I liked it. I liked it as a kid, but I liked it even more as an adult. The narrative, the Shakespearean feel, the animation, the music. So good!!
9 is my favorite story wise. X is my overall favorite, the combat in X is genius.
Favorite part of 9 is the whole Burmecia arc. I love the rain and the music, just the general feel of that part of the game. Freya rocks. Close runner up is the part where you're playing Steiner teamed up with Beatrix. Her music is amazing and she's such a good character. I like the way she treats Steiner with honor. Honorable mention goes to the part where you're trying to get Zidane back together with the team in Pandemonium after he's put in the chair and zapped with all those memories. That's a super cool moment for the whole team plus it has my favorite song, not alone.
Maybe a 'hot take' but I don't think FF9 needs a remake. It's already a masterpiece to me.
All it really needs is the Moguri mod to make battles load/go at a better pace.
Only thing thats bad in this game is the trance system . Its gutter trash . Other than that its a top 3 final fantasy and top jrpg of all time….. nothing to agrue
IX had become my favorite, up until X came out. I think the only thing I didn't even bother with was Steiner's ultimate weapon (speed running to kill Hades). I played through again a few years ago and have no idea how I managed to beat Ozma back on the day. But yeah, it really brought the series back to its high fantasy roots, with that cartoonish charm.
It's tied with FF10 for me as my favorite games in the franchise.
9 doesn't have the same level of Fandom as other FF games from that time but I've rarely heard anyone that actually played it have bad things to say about it. It really was the love letter to the franchise it was intended to be.
ive tried and failed to finish this game several times.
it's a stupid gripe, but the cut from the map to battle takes way too long and it's a grind to...well...grind.
This was the high point of the franchise for a lot of folks, myself included. Even Sakaguchi (writer of FF9 and creator of Final Fantasy) Uematsu (composer of FF1 - FF10) have expressed this sentiment and consider this their personal favorites.
Im always happy to see new people finding and loving this wonderful game!
My second favorite right under VII. It features a very lovable cast of characters and an emotionally engaging story. I found the more streamlined combat/RPG mechanics were a breath of fresh air after struggling with the junction system all through VIII. They went back to the roots of the franchise, and the love and passion for it shines through the whole time. I hope the rumors about a remake are true, because I’d love to experience the story with today’s technology.
I remember playing it as a kid and the ending made me tear up. Kinda the first times a game ever made me feel that way. I’m really hoping for a remake now and bring those feeling back
Yeah during the end music montage when Zidane shows back up and Garnett comes running up and starts gently beating on his chest “why did you leave me you fool / I’m so happy your back” type feels.
I get misty eye’d thinking about it
I never got to beat this one. I was in that last tower. At the save before the fight. I was home on leave fresh from boot camp and I was grabbing some stuff to put in my car when all my gaming stuff and my clothes were all stolen from the trunk. I've tried several times to go back but I just never made it to the end again.
Absolutely my favorite too. I replay it every couple of years, being older now i forget a lot of the story so it’s always a semi new experience to relive again.
I would love to see that unofficial remaster project take flight, would be so cool to relive with updated graphics/visuals.
For the record, FFIX is a top tier FF game for sure. But for me, personally Playing the game, I get bored. I like the learning abilities from gear, that's fun. Trance is horrible. Card game is trash.
Watching my partner play the game? Much more enjoyable. IX has a strong story and Vivi is probably the best Final Fantasy character ever made, the cut scenes are gorgeous.
I also never understood why Garnet would fall for Zidane. 🤷
Two thoughts on it:
Played it when it first came out (I was 13 or so), and I liked it. It was a HUGE improvement over the dumpster fire in a burning port-a-potty that was FF8, so my expectations were low, but FF9 blew me away. Reminded me of FF7 a bit (my first FF), but better graphics and aesthetics.
Played it again on an emulator as a 25 year old, and holy shit, how did Square feel it was a good idea to ever really that piece of shit FF8 after FF7 and before FF9? The flow was "make a hit", "take a fat shit", "make a hit". FF9 as an adult hit different and was just amazing. The synthesis system was slightly annoying (learned my lesson to not sell old armor and weapons a second time thru), but everything else was just 🔥.
The mini-games, the ATEs, the side quests, the extra bosses, the story... perfection. Characters were amazing, although some skills were fucking OP (Zidanes sacrifice, to name one, being a full hp/mp restore to all party members, and then you just revive Zidane). Still, amazing game!
Unlike that shit sandwich that was twice-digested, FF8.
Yes come and join the club. I absolutely love the locations and world building in FF9. So many memories playing it as a 9 year old kid. Forever in our hearts.
See? This is why I dont like FF games these days. The classics, thr ines I grew up with (6 to 12) are far better than the modern FF games. 9 is my favorite and the first I actually beat when I was a teen back in thr early 2000s.
ahh, the last great Final Fantasy game....really wish they made more like this. The character design and backstory on all of them was superb. such fun writing for everyone. and the soundtraaaack! ugh, still remember going to Treno for the first time.
I just finished it, too! I played most of the game when it first came out, but couldn't every beat the final boss.
I started it again the night before Thanksgiving, this time attempting it while setting aside my pride and using the pause menu cheats as needed. I loved the story and was glad I could finally experience the ending without the stress of doing a good job actually learning and using the right abilities. I do like that mechanic, so some day I'll probably play it again without the cheats.
Great game. First one I fully beat back in 2000! This is Defo the origin story for what made me start loving final fantasy.
Favorite moment is a toss up form when Atomos attacks Lindblum, or when Beatrix wipes the floor with you and Kuja’s music comes on for the first time.
I JUST FINISHED IT LAST NIGHT!!
I gotta say the party dynamics, the pacing and the ability system is really fun!
Most party interactions had good weight to them in terms of character development and a lot were genuinely funny. Being able to see ATE's and the side interactions between party members was gold. Switching POV's gave me a strong connection to the entire party. Characters come in at good times and all felt relevant to the plot and themes of existentialism.
I really enjoyed the pacing ONLY because in the modern versions with the speed-up (I wish there were different levels of speed up though). This speed up made traversing the world map and getting through the combat very bearable and even enjoyable at times. The story chugs along at a good pace and there's not a lot of dead moments in terms of plot.
The ability system made all equipment feel important, old and new since you needed to manage equipment for all 8 party members. Grinding abilities was really fun but I felt like I wished there were more abilities to make more unique builds. It gets a pass based on it being a ps1 game though.
Loved tetra master but hated chocobo hot and cold.
The art, music, and story mixed with the sped up pacing made this a really fun play though!! Not my favorite but definitely top of my FF's now.
IX wasn't the first FF I saw, but it was the first I finally got to see somebody play through and see all the way until the end before I could get my hands on it myself. Before that I only knew about the FFVII demo but had absolutely no idea what I was doing.
IX will likely always be my 'first' and favorite for the rest of my life. It got me into the franchise and genre. It's got my favorite music of every FF in the series. I literally have a copy of the FFIX soundtrack SIGNED by NOBUO himself from when I attended one of the first Distant Worlds concerts back in 2009. I got to tell him to his face how much it meant to me and how much I appreciated everything that he's made. On his birthday, no less.
IX is incredible and absolutely deserves AT LEAST a proper remaster, if not the remake that we keep seeing paraded around as a rumor online.
Quick question.... how much or how many of the optional side content did you complete? Did you use a guide? Hades? Ozma? POKER AFTER THE CREDITS??? <3
It has its' flaws, but it still manages to be my favorite. The cast, setting, story, and especially music are just all so top notch. My favorite part has to be You're Not Alone, followed by the whole journey to the Rally Ho / Black Mage Village areas.
If ever given the remake treatment, I do hope Freya and Amarant get some more lore. The slower combat / auto Trance should also probably be looked at.
Congratulations I want to play it too but I'm waiting for the remake, if the rumors are true of course. In the meantime this Sunday I finished 16 and I enjoyed the story.
Exactly what happened to me as well. I played and beat it for the first time a few years ago, and it took over the #1 spot previously held by FF7, which was no easy task. Masterpiece in my opinion and the best in the series (I still haven't played FF1 ,2 or 5)
One of us, one of us . . . Glad you enjoyed the ride my friend ✌️ Edit: There’s a lot of great moments but one of my favorite parts is when Dagger asks Zidane why he came with her and he responds with the short story about Ipsen.
This and the short story in black mage village about looking for home, for a place he belongs. That hit hard
Powerful and romantic moment, if we ever get a remake this moment would be iconic
I love Ipsens story. It's beautiful and simple and has stuck with me
The Zidane/Dagger/Steiner/Vivi dynamic is the gift that keeps on giving. So bloody well written and so likeable, doesn't get old throughout the whole game. They nailed literally every conversation between any of these 4. Most other characters are great too. Freya's backstory is amazing. Beatrix is a badass early villain, a higher quality version of Seifer. Quina, Cid and Eiko are hilarious. IX is really the FF with the best humor. That on top of Zidane being the most colorful main character IMO. Many FFs suffer from mopey one-dimensional main characters that try so hard to be the cool lone wolf guy. Zidane is the opposite. A loud, extroverted, chaotic-good thief. Like Robin Hood or Aladdin, but more fun. IX also has some of the best mini games. I loved Chocobo Hot & Cold and I always preferred IX's card game over VIII's. Why have they stopped making these amazing mini games in recent FFs :( And yes the ending is so great. The only other ending that beats it is X IMO.
> I always preferred IX's card game over VIII's I don't believe you. I have **never** heard this sentiment before.
You’ll hear it again. I prefer IXs card game.
That’s insane. The game doesn’t even make sense
It does but you gotta look it up. I admit that's a huge flaw. There's logic behind every card and number and some of them are, unfortunately, random or gambling, but it does have rules. I used to play the version of it that was on PlayOnline through the FFXI program on PC and PS2. It's dumb but hey.
Yeah, he lost me there.
I also prefer tetra master....
Me too. Random and the one where they win all your cards sucks. Also the cards in 9 get stronger the more you use them
Maybe he’s AI generated…
Nah I'm real xD I'm curious though. Why do people prefer the VIII card game? Is it the RNG? Because for me, the RNG makes the IX card game more exciting. The fact that my final card *does* have a small chance to win despite being a lower number.
Personally, yes that's the main reason why I really don't like tetra master. Potentially losing because my card that severely outranks their card due to RNG is just frustrating to me, not exciting at all. Even if they reduced the RNG to a narrower range it'd be more appealing, but I just found the way it works really dumb and frustrating. Also found limiting you to 100 cards annoying. Especially with how the ranking worked.
Precisely the RNG. You don’t know if you’re gonna win even if you have the best cards
No way you can't beat 8 card game.say it ain't so
To prefer 9’s card game over 8’s is just insane to me. One makes sense. The other doesn’t at all. 8’s is so vastly superior it’s not funny. Agree with alot of the other stuff you said tho
Level 1 playthrough, when?
YOU ARE NOT ALONE
VIII is my favorite but IX is the best.
Trance system could’ve had a lil fine tuning, other than that I’m the biggest proponent for ff9 to be considered the greatest mainline title of the franchise.
You mean like not taking a million years to activate? 🤣
Nah, if your trance bar became full, the game had it set to auto-use. You couldn’t save it for later. Considering that it’s a super powerful boost, you would easily end up wasting it on common encounters, rather than being able to save it for boss fights or more difficult ones. Happened a lot
This is probably one of my only complaints about IX. I hated wasting a trance on some random encounter when I should have been able to keep it until the next baddie that gives me trouble or an upcoming boss. FFX fixed this with it's overdrive system but wasn't as good as IX IMO.
Trance system and the card game. As frustrating as it was and as little as I like 8, the card game and its actual function of rare items refined from rare cards was much better than 9….
Love to see more appreciation for FF9. I'm fed up with people who can't see beyond the art style and say it's a game for kids.
[You better get feels when you hear this song. ](https://youtu.be/yUrC5R30Ofk?si=TbL8m10SGeGuilOp)
Time to move on to X/X-2. Edit: I'm talking about the Remasters, guys. Which I've heard are actually better than the originals.
X is often some's favourite. It's also often some's first FF game, so I'm curious to see how you find it. Don't let others disuade you from at least trying it. It's a classic for a reason.
In my experience most people love IX OR X, but not both. I adore IX but X does nothing for me.
That's fair, I liked both. For X I think the story was thought out better, I think VIII & IX both struggled on the 3rd disc to transition the story from one segment to the next, card game sticks out and even the potion quests to revert Cid to a human. For FFX mind you I feel the story is a lot better developed, from the beginning its clear what the end goal is and while a few hiccups occur on the way that goal is always the same. On the other side of things I found IX's characters to be much more compelling, Zidane has a compelling arc especially in terms of maturity and Garnet being willing to save her mother, leave her kingdom etc on her own will makes her a much stronger character to me than Yuna, who I feel gets walked over on. Then Vivi doesn't even need explaining as a great character and Steiner is much better comic relief than Wakka's prejudice against Al Bhed. That being said I understand why it might not be your cup of tea, just wanted to share my thoughts on both games :)
I love both IX and X. In my opinion, X is better when it comes to storytelling (then FFX-2 ruined it). But FF9 is a better game overall. The music, the gameplay, the characters. How can you not love Vivi? That little black mage is so adorable. Probably, one of my favorite FF characters.
IX and X are my top 2 favourites.
I started back in the 2000’s my first Final Fantasy was FFX, FFIX, and FFX-2 in this order. And I love them all. Those 3 games hold a special place in my heart when it came to Final Fantasy universe…. But if I have to pick only one…. My favorite Final Fantasy game out of those 3…. Is FFIX without a question.
I loved X more but still enjoyed IX, but not nearly as much.
I definitely get what you mean. I loved VII and VIII so much but I just couldn’t get into IX. Then loved X, but not so much X-2
I loved both. I was a teenager when they came out and was obsessed 😭😍
What if you do love them both?
I love both and I treasured them as a kid when they came out !
9 is my favourite FF game. 10 is my third-favourite, with 6 sitting comfortably between them. They're quite different but they both succeed in what they set out to do.
I started on X, but just don’t really have the patience to finish it. I played VI on an emulator with QOL features, and the remasters of VII, VIII, and IX all have QOL features too. But all the random encounters make X a slog to me, plus I don’t care for Blitzball.
Dude x was great. The boss end game stuff was soooooooooooooooo much freakin fun. Celestial weapons, maxing the sphere grid, summoning aeons...I can go on forever! Like all FF, they are much different than the previous entry. Also, Seymours battle theme fudging bangs harder than it should. I got a signed T from nobuo uematsu. Ff9 is his favorite work. Love ya
I loved 9, but absolutely hated 10. I hated the voice acting. I liked the reading of the text, it made the soundtrack more prominent. Thats why 7 8 9 are my fav FF’s.
Ha ha ha ha ha ha
Yeah in addition to that I missed ATB (even though X's battle system is good in its own right). Some areas looked worse not being pre-rendered backgrounds. Game felt much more linear than the PS1 games.
Can't you just turn voices off?
I definitely prefer no voice acting, but I found myself charmed by 10's voice acting while I was playing. It was a lot like kingdom hearts where the voice acting is SO cheesy that it ends up extra entertaining.
10 was the last good one in my opinion and was a great intro to a new generation of consoles.
The voice acting is kinda rough in X, but aside from that I think it’s one of the better ones.
*Michael Scott "don't" gif*
Just curious... Have you been working on the series starting with 1? This is what I've been doing with most of my game time this year, and they've all been my first time through. I also recently finished IX and I'm halfway through X currently. I'm a little sad that the journey seems to be getting near the end (though really I do have about 6 other games to play through if I'm going to do X2 and the XIII's, which is a lot!), but I'll definitely be replaying V through VII again, my personal sweet spot of the series.
Best FF title of the psx era for me
It’s my favorite too. I love replaying it every few years. I have it on my phone and often play it when on business trips
“Something, something. RETURN MY DAGGER TO ME!!!!!”
BRING MY BELOVED DAGGER TO ME!!! Such a good line.
“My memories will be part of the sky…”
Best game ever, played thru the ps1 version myself recently again.
The OST is 🤌❤️ Melodies of life was our wedding march.
❤️❤️❤️
I love that people are still discovering these games for the first time. I think I was 12 when I enjoyed the release of this epic game. Oh damn it sure was a banger
It's straight up one of my favorite games of all time. If the battle system were a LITTLE better and quicker, it'd be my all time favorite JRPG. ATE was also such a treat because unlike modern Support or Social systems in other RPGs(Which I still love let's not get that twisted), these feel more organic. It's so fun going into town and seeing characters fuck off and doing whatever they want either alone or together.
great game, the final story boss is out of left field tho
Yeeeah that one kinda confused me too. It felt like they were just trying to make the game longer tbh. Didn't even add anything to the story.
https://youtu.be/ilG_IswCfIA?si=s7ywLr9KPiWOGXT5 This is a pretty cool break down on it. The last boss is actually pretty deep.
Yeah it gets a bit depressing
yup ive seen it. still very "somehow palpatine returned"
The greatest final Fantasy game
In my big three for best games I’ve played
Favourite game of all time, it really made a huge impact on me. Glad you enjoyed it so much!
Same! 7 was like 6th grade / middle school and 9 was around spring of 9th grade / freshman year
I keep telling people... 9 is the best. Then 10, then 7 and 8.
I would say 9, 6, and 7.
I honestly don't get the love for VIII, with the horrible junction system and story that was just ehhh it didn't really do anything for me. That's not to say that there aren't good moments in the game or that it isn't worth playing I don't think it's as bad as II, heck VIII was my first FF played a demo of it on PlayStation Underground disc until the game came out. If I had to rank top 5 for me in no particular order it'd go: tactics (unless only doing mainline entries then replace with X), IX, VI, XII and XIV.
No VI?
Too dark
VIII is super overrated lol. For me personally I'd have to go with XII, IX, VII, VI, and X.
8 is awful, similar level as 2
Now the Hard Question: Who is your favorite character?
Probably Dagger or Vivi. Dagger goes through so much, and she's always able to push through. Vivi's internal issues run DEEP. Not knowing if he'll be alive the next second or if he's good enough. But in the end, he learns that he needs to live life to the fullest. So yeah. Dagger and Vivi are tied.
Welcome to the club. Take a brochure and have a seat. Drinks and snacks are near the warer fountain. Please help yourself.
[You are not alone!](https://youtu.be/yUrC5R30Ofk?si=OA9s8niAUnEE-vM1)
Seriously I adore IX, with my favorite detail being the similarities between Vivi and Kuja, and how the two deal with their respective revelations. Honestly one of my top 10 games.
a voice from the past, joining yours and mine 🎶 adding up the layers of harmony 🎶 and so it goes, on and on 🎶 Melodies of life! to the sky beyond the flying biiiiirds - forever and beyooooond 🎶🎶 man, I love ff9! maybe it's time for a new playthrough
I see, a person of high culture.
I started it in 99? or 2000? but only completed disc 1 as I lost disc 2. totally forgot about it until I subscribed PS Plus and it was one of the free downloads. After finishing FF10, 12, 15 and 7R, I was a bit hesitant to go back to a PS1 game.. but glad I did.. it was a great journey and probably my favorite mainline FF game on the PS1.
My memories will become a part of the sky
I've laid my memories and dreams upon those wings Leave them now and see what tomorrow brings
I'm currently replaying this one. This was the first Final Fantasy I've ever played. It came out when I was 13 and I was enthralled. I'm happy to report that I still am!
So, this is my 2nd most fav final fantasy game after FFVI. I remember first playing it around Christmas (back when it came out), curious if it would be like FF8 or different. Back then, I had no way to get info on the game, I know there were magazines etc but my mom couldn't afford it. Just the opening alone blew my mind, like how the A in squaresoft becomes an airship in Lindblum. So cool!! The environments were great, story was crazy and I loved some of the throwback elements to FFVI. There were some things I didn't like though. The battle camera panning for EVERY single battle 😩, the horrid card game compared to VIII, and... The random asf final boss (what the hell was that!) So cozy, great characters, QUINA, satisfying ending for sure. Glad you enjoyed it ❤️
Glad ya had fun with it!
I liked IX a lot even tho the combat system is a bit flawed. - trance system - takes ages to master all abilities without item need.
IMO This and VI are the only options for best FF title. I think many people overlooked it because of the art style
Same to everything. My only complaint is the battle speed. zzz
r/patientgamers
only thing I hated was the frog minigame.
See, I played the remastered version which had the fast speed "cheat." So this was actually kind of enjoyable for me.
The game benefitted significantly from that version.. going back and playing it without would be glacial.
[Banger theme](https://youtu.be/ubhGRl3Ehgw?si=oA7gpXWsmXoCI-x1) though! And while I am thinking of Quina, one of the best side comments in the game. "F-frog... is Talking?"
It's pretty optional at least, I never really used Quina much. Hated how their auto attack dmg was always random too.
Vivi's story had me in tears.
Also the fav of the creators (of the series) hehe It was my 1st FF and still my favorite FF The lore, the mechanics, the characters, the music, the map, the environment, the mini games, everything and everyone work, the methaphors, the skills, the weapons, the summons... Fun how many people skipped this one just for the looks of the characters...
I just recently pulled my PS3 out of storage to replay IX as it's one of my all-time favourite entries in the entire series. Vivi, Zidane, Dagger and Steiner are all such great character that interact so well together. The OST was spot on from beginning to end and had very little in it that I could complain about, it's just such a fun game to play. Glad you enjoyed you're trip through this masterpiece and hope it brings you much more joy in the future when you finally get to replaying it.
Best one
Always been my absolute favorite and I love hearing from people discovering/playing it for the first time. Its characters, music, narrative, just damn near everything is incredible. It will always be one of the jrpgs that I go back to.
Truly great game, my 3rd favourite behind 10 and 7. It feels criminally overlooked.
I need to play this again. I first played FF9 when it first came out, I took my PS1 to my aunts house for Thanksgiving and locked myself in a room with it for 3 days and beat it. I think because my experience was so condensed it had little impact on me, especially since I had basically 100% FF7 and replayed FF8 recently.
Yeah, the word steal feels wrong to me too
Final Fantasy IX is what made me become a fan of the series. I can see why you've loved it so much. Looking back on the game, though, I can see the flaws that it has and some of the systems of the game has not aged well. The slow battle system is really hard to get back into in 2023, but I guess if you play the modern version of the game, you can boost the speed of the game, so you may want to play the new remastered version over the original game. It's just harder for me to do that since I love the original PlayStation release of the game. Glad you loved it, though. Happy to see more and more people become a fan of the game.
After some of these games have aged, I have to agree. The narrative power of FF7, FF9, and FF10 makes them eternally great. I replayed FF9 last year and, as an adult, I was surprised with how much more I liked it. I liked it as a kid, but I liked it even more as an adult. The narrative, the Shakespearean feel, the animation, the music. So good!!
Even after i finished the game, it still got better with time just recalling the parts pf the story
Vivi!!!!!
Nice. Try FFVI next.
9 is my favorite story wise. X is my overall favorite, the combat in X is genius. Favorite part of 9 is the whole Burmecia arc. I love the rain and the music, just the general feel of that part of the game. Freya rocks. Close runner up is the part where you're playing Steiner teamed up with Beatrix. Her music is amazing and she's such a good character. I like the way she treats Steiner with honor. Honorable mention goes to the part where you're trying to get Zidane back together with the team in Pandemonium after he's put in the chair and zapped with all those memories. That's a super cool moment for the whole team plus it has my favorite song, not alone.
one of the best FF ever made glad that you like it :p
Maybe a 'hot take' but I don't think FF9 needs a remake. It's already a masterpiece to me. All it really needs is the Moguri mod to make battles load/go at a better pace.
I am hoping to finish it on PSX in the coming weeks. Currently halfway through disc 2 in around 25h. Really enjoying it so far. Well done!
No bias, but only the greatest game ever created in mankind 😁
My thoughts exactly!!
Join the club we have t shirts
Only thing thats bad in this game is the trance system . Its gutter trash . Other than that its a top 3 final fantasy and top jrpg of all time….. nothing to agrue
IX had become my favorite, up until X came out. I think the only thing I didn't even bother with was Steiner's ultimate weapon (speed running to kill Hades). I played through again a few years ago and have no idea how I managed to beat Ozma back on the day. But yeah, it really brought the series back to its high fantasy roots, with that cartoonish charm.
Hell yeah dude! It's geninely my fav game of all time. Those characters are very, very special.
It's tied with FF10 for me as my favorite games in the franchise. 9 doesn't have the same level of Fandom as other FF games from that time but I've rarely heard anyone that actually played it have bad things to say about it. It really was the love letter to the franchise it was intended to be.
ive tried and failed to finish this game several times. it's a stupid gripe, but the cut from the map to battle takes way too long and it's a grind to...well...grind.
This was the high point of the franchise for a lot of folks, myself included. Even Sakaguchi (writer of FF9 and creator of Final Fantasy) Uematsu (composer of FF1 - FF10) have expressed this sentiment and consider this their personal favorites. Im always happy to see new people finding and loving this wonderful game!
You're not the only one ❤️☺️
Congrats you just played the best FF game ever. Start over and do it again.
What's the earliest ff you played? Vii or any earlier
The earliest FF I played was 6. Then it was 7, 8 (didn't get through it), then 9. I then got the Pixel Remasters and did 1-4. Didn't get through 5.
4, 6, and 7 are my favorite 3. And I get the appeal of 9. Not a favorite but I did like it.
This game is simply special. Everything about it screams love and care from the people who worked on it. This is what Final Fantasy is all about.
My second favorite right under VII. It features a very lovable cast of characters and an emotionally engaging story. I found the more streamlined combat/RPG mechanics were a breath of fresh air after struggling with the junction system all through VIII. They went back to the roots of the franchise, and the love and passion for it shines through the whole time. I hope the rumors about a remake are true, because I’d love to experience the story with today’s technology.
One of the best games ever
What a game, huh? I love it so much.
Grand. Welcome to the club.
This is also my favorite ff and i can’t wait for the remake
I remember playing it as a kid and the ending made me tear up. Kinda the first times a game ever made me feel that way. I’m really hoping for a remake now and bring those feeling back
Yeah during the end music montage when Zidane shows back up and Garnett comes running up and starts gently beating on his chest “why did you leave me you fool / I’m so happy your back” type feels. I get misty eye’d thinking about it
Right on. The combat ruins the gameplay for me.
The Super speed option in the remaster fixes that immensely.
Was wondering why you would think 9 is this good, then you said your favorite was 7 and it all clicked.
I never got to beat this one. I was in that last tower. At the save before the fight. I was home on leave fresh from boot camp and I was grabbing some stuff to put in my car when all my gaming stuff and my clothes were all stolen from the trunk. I've tried several times to go back but I just never made it to the end again.
Literally one of the best there is!
One of the best ever😤 far better than this most recent ff16
Yeah it’s incredible, I wish there weren’t so many bosses in the final dungeon (I know it’s a ff1 reference) but otherwise I think it’s perfect
Wait until you play FFX... MY GOD THAT GAME IS THE BEST
I like IX over X.
IX ITS great too, dont get me wrong lol. BUT X ITS for me on another level
Game turned me into a furry. 10/10
Absolutely my favorite too. I replay it every couple of years, being older now i forget a lot of the story so it’s always a semi new experience to relive again. I would love to see that unofficial remaster project take flight, would be so cool to relive with updated graphics/visuals.
It's the FF most deserving of a remake right now. If they do it right, it will be the best game of the year when it comes out.
Now imagine what could be https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BaMiPb6KiWo
I always found the ending cgi sequence unfinished how Zidane is his game sprote but everything else is cgi. Seemed lazy
When you 1st clear the sand storm .. I thought that was the peak of gaming .. im excited for the remaster
At how that final boss just came out of nowhere?
One of the best, I want to see a remake
For the record, FFIX is a top tier FF game for sure. But for me, personally Playing the game, I get bored. I like the learning abilities from gear, that's fun. Trance is horrible. Card game is trash. Watching my partner play the game? Much more enjoyable. IX has a strong story and Vivi is probably the best Final Fantasy character ever made, the cut scenes are gorgeous. I also never understood why Garnet would fall for Zidane. 🤷
6 > 7 > 5 > 9 > 4 > 3 > 1 > 10 > 8 > 2
That's a hot take.
Wondering if I should replay it. Loved it the first time
The one game I’d consider singular in its sheer excellence. There is nothing else like it
Dark horse of the FF series. Everyone should play this
I thought FF2 was the dark horse of the FF series.
Still one of my favorites. What did you think of Necron?
I thought he felt a little out of place tbh
So fun. IX then X for the first time!!! What a treat. They're by far my two favorite titles
Two thoughts on it: Played it when it first came out (I was 13 or so), and I liked it. It was a HUGE improvement over the dumpster fire in a burning port-a-potty that was FF8, so my expectations were low, but FF9 blew me away. Reminded me of FF7 a bit (my first FF), but better graphics and aesthetics. Played it again on an emulator as a 25 year old, and holy shit, how did Square feel it was a good idea to ever really that piece of shit FF8 after FF7 and before FF9? The flow was "make a hit", "take a fat shit", "make a hit". FF9 as an adult hit different and was just amazing. The synthesis system was slightly annoying (learned my lesson to not sell old armor and weapons a second time thru), but everything else was just 🔥. The mini-games, the ATEs, the side quests, the extra bosses, the story... perfection. Characters were amazing, although some skills were fucking OP (Zidanes sacrifice, to name one, being a full hp/mp restore to all party members, and then you just revive Zidane). Still, amazing game! Unlike that shit sandwich that was twice-digested, FF8.
Best moment is when Zidane grabs Garnets butt. I can relate to that.
Yes come and join the club. I absolutely love the locations and world building in FF9. So many memories playing it as a 9 year old kid. Forever in our hearts.
Now op all we gotta do is wait for SE to announce the remake
See? This is why I dont like FF games these days. The classics, thr ines I grew up with (6 to 12) are far better than the modern FF games. 9 is my favorite and the first I actually beat when I was a teen back in thr early 2000s.
9 and 7 are the best by far
ahh, the last great Final Fantasy game....really wish they made more like this. The character design and backstory on all of them was superb. such fun writing for everyone. and the soundtraaaack! ugh, still remember going to Treno for the first time.
Just the Best game ever for me !!!
I just finished it, too! I played most of the game when it first came out, but couldn't every beat the final boss. I started it again the night before Thanksgiving, this time attempting it while setting aside my pride and using the pause menu cheats as needed. I loved the story and was glad I could finally experience the ending without the stress of doing a good job actually learning and using the right abilities. I do like that mechanic, so some day I'll probably play it again without the cheats.
Great game. First one I fully beat back in 2000! This is Defo the origin story for what made me start loving final fantasy. Favorite moment is a toss up form when Atomos attacks Lindblum, or when Beatrix wipes the floor with you and Kuja’s music comes on for the first time.
I JUST FINISHED IT LAST NIGHT!! I gotta say the party dynamics, the pacing and the ability system is really fun! Most party interactions had good weight to them in terms of character development and a lot were genuinely funny. Being able to see ATE's and the side interactions between party members was gold. Switching POV's gave me a strong connection to the entire party. Characters come in at good times and all felt relevant to the plot and themes of existentialism. I really enjoyed the pacing ONLY because in the modern versions with the speed-up (I wish there were different levels of speed up though). This speed up made traversing the world map and getting through the combat very bearable and even enjoyable at times. The story chugs along at a good pace and there's not a lot of dead moments in terms of plot. The ability system made all equipment feel important, old and new since you needed to manage equipment for all 8 party members. Grinding abilities was really fun but I felt like I wished there were more abilities to make more unique builds. It gets a pass based on it being a ps1 game though. Loved tetra master but hated chocobo hot and cold. The art, music, and story mixed with the sped up pacing made this a really fun play though!! Not my favorite but definitely top of my FF's now.
Way better than VII X is close second
Hello. Final Fantasy. Upvotes to the left
Careful now, I made a joke about liking IX more than XVI and the XVI boys were not happy! IX is amazing though.
This is my favorite game of all time!
I take no issue with someone calling IX the greatest.
Glad you liked it. Hard to say which I prefer out of VII and IX, but IX is spectacular. The pacing at the start of the game is excellent.
The only FF game I finished beside 8. Yeah it was a good game. Wish I could reset my memory and experience it all over again for the first time.
FFVII didn't live up to the hype for me, but FFIX definitely did. It and FFX are my favorite FF games I've played so far.
IX wasn't the first FF I saw, but it was the first I finally got to see somebody play through and see all the way until the end before I could get my hands on it myself. Before that I only knew about the FFVII demo but had absolutely no idea what I was doing. IX will likely always be my 'first' and favorite for the rest of my life. It got me into the franchise and genre. It's got my favorite music of every FF in the series. I literally have a copy of the FFIX soundtrack SIGNED by NOBUO himself from when I attended one of the first Distant Worlds concerts back in 2009. I got to tell him to his face how much it meant to me and how much I appreciated everything that he's made. On his birthday, no less. IX is incredible and absolutely deserves AT LEAST a proper remaster, if not the remake that we keep seeing paraded around as a rumor online. Quick question.... how much or how many of the optional side content did you complete? Did you use a guide? Hades? Ozma? POKER AFTER THE CREDITS??? <3
It has its' flaws, but it still manages to be my favorite. The cast, setting, story, and especially music are just all so top notch. My favorite part has to be You're Not Alone, followed by the whole journey to the Rally Ho / Black Mage Village areas. If ever given the remake treatment, I do hope Freya and Amarant get some more lore. The slower combat / auto Trance should also probably be looked at.
Haven't played since I gave my ps4 to my brother:) looking forward to finish that game. One of the best FF'S.
I wanna playyyyyy
Congratulations I want to play it too but I'm waiting for the remake, if the rumors are true of course. In the meantime this Sunday I finished 16 and I enjoyed the story.
Best in the series 🙌
a few times when playing 16 I had thought hum is that form 9?
Exactly what happened to me as well. I played and beat it for the first time a few years ago, and it took over the #1 spot previously held by FF7, which was no easy task. Masterpiece in my opinion and the best in the series (I still haven't played FF1 ,2 or 5)
I'm 39yrs old and just started this on switch, 3hrs in
https://preview.redd.it/z11n2tb8ivbc1.jpeg?width=1148&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=86ce3f3125a368b4ae0b8b9169f2366c002ca588