Fainaru fantajî X-2

Like Final Fantasy VIII, the focus of Final Fantasy X-2 isn't on the worldsaving-- though worldsaving does, of course, appear. Instead, it's on the characterizations of the protagonists and her allies, and it does an amazing job of it. I clocked in at 77 hours, gaining the Normal Ending; a replay is definitely in order and I'm glad they've included New Game Plus in order to make it easier to get the story again.

X-2 is a game where you definitely have to explore and poke around everywhere in order to squeeze every bit possible from the story; if you only follow the big clue hammer plot points, you will indeed only get the barest sketchings of a story and maybe even finish it in 15 hours. However, I feel that the Square-Enix team has used the previously created world of Spira very well, taking advantage of players' familiarity and interest in the world to weave engrossing stories about not just the protagonists but many of the characters encountered in the previous game.

It's not only a game where you have to explore in order to find more story, it's a game where you can't see and get everything on a single playthrough. It's also a game where you repeatedly run across signs that Yuna and company aren't the only adventurers and explorers in Spira.

I really enjoyed the development of the inhabitants of Spira-- what retired summoners do, the fact that the fiends of Spira encourage even grandmothers to be competent-- the game starts out extremely easy, although it does get harder later, and this is clearly meant to reflect not only Yuna's experience in Final Fantasy X but also the world's experience with wandering monsters.

Finally, the music and voice acting in FFX-2 is just fantastic. Yes, the music is peppy and jazzy. It's also quietly desolate in places, and some of the repeated themes are just beautiful. As for the voice acting-- Yuna, Rikku and Paine's voice actresses all deserve medals, as do several of the other more minor characters. They bring a richness, subtlety and depth to the story that older games could only reach for. Yuna's voice actress in particular once again does a stellar job, conveying a nervous, self-conscious, but determined Yuna who can't help wanting to save people but wants to learn to have fun, dammit. And who misses her boy a lot, underneath it all.