Final Fantasy Quest - Time for Dress-Up!

After 80-90ish hours in total, I finally 100% completed Final Fantasy X-2 a few days ago.

Whew, what an experience.

Final Fantasy X: Charlie's Angels Edition?

I think I had heard ABOUT the game previously, such as it being silly or not that great. I didn't realize what I'd be getting myself into. I can't give an award for the story, as much as I may have liked bits and pieces of it. Coming out of the relatively serious tone of Final Fantasy X, X-2 felt a bit like going from the first Christopher Reeve Superman movie to the third one. There are familiar faces, and there seem to be high stakes, but the tone is too lighthearted to take it seriously for very long.

"I guess I have no choice" -Dark Knight Paine

Where FF X-2 succeeds very well is the "job system" in the form of the dresspheres (DSP). Different Garment Grids can equip the DSPs, and provide differing benefits, like stat boosts, passive and active abilities, and new menu commands. Clearly, the coolest DSP is the Dark Knight, and the best ability to spam is their massively effective Darkness. And I suppose the Chemist's ability to pull healing potions out of nowhere is nice too.

Still, bits were odd or off. The "blocking" or certain characters, like Brother and Rikku, features them constantly flailing about or being awkward. I did find enjoyment in the story and characters overall. I suppose I have a weakness for getting into a game and just wanting to find out the mysterious backstories of all the characters.

Mini-games were hit-or-miss, and mostly miss. The "Gunner's Gauntlet" to finish one episode was annoying, and the Cactuar ones relied on reflexes that I didn't have (thankfully, losing them doesn't count against % completion). Sphere Break was fun once I understood it a bit, and I even beat the "harder" version of the match played against Shinra.

For completing it to get the true happy ending, I'd recommend using a guide and exhausting all story options before moving to side quests. I took a painstakingly long time to complete a particular side quest (that involved losing at certain mini-games in a certain location) only to discover three new story bits on the ship that I could probably have done instead.

I don't regret playing the game. My advice is similar to what I said for Final Fantasy IV: The After Years. The best bet is to either get it cheap or get it together with FF X in an HD collection. I'm still playing at it, many hours in, 80+ floors into the 100 floor optional dungeon.

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Image source: finalfantasy.wikia.com