Final Fantasy IX

 PlayStation
User Score
9.0

Universal acclaim- based on 1535 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 1,390 out of 1535
  2. Mixed: 75 out of 1535
  3. Negative: 70 out of 1535
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  1. moonman1994
    Jul 15, 2012
    7
    The strongest aspect of Final Fantasy IX is it's story. The characters are good and the story draws you in and motivates you to continue playing the game. Also the game has an amazing musical score. (One of the best I've heard.) Also the mini game in Final Fantasy IX is a lot more fun than the one in Final Fantasy VIII. The draw backs to this game are that it's short. It's a lot shorterThe strongest aspect of Final Fantasy IX is it's story. The characters are good and the story draws you in and motivates you to continue playing the game. Also the game has an amazing musical score. (One of the best I've heard.) Also the mini game in Final Fantasy IX is a lot more fun than the one in Final Fantasy VIII. The draw backs to this game are that it's short. It's a lot shorter than Final Fantasy VII or Final Fantasy VIII and it's less challenging. Also the graphics are a down grade from the graphics in Final Fantasy VIII. Over all Final Fantasy IX is a good game but it's not the as good as it's predecessors.… Expand
  2. MadResistance
    Feb 19, 2012
    7
    A fairly average Final Fantasy game, Final Fantasy IX has for the PS1, gorgeous scenery, a solidly enjoyable story that doesn't require you to look up mountains of lore elsewhere and impressive music. Where it fails however, is a lack of gameplay (akin to a transition of Final Fantasy games becoming movies) where you'll be mashing X to get through the text because the characters areA fairly average Final Fantasy game, Final Fantasy IX has for the PS1, gorgeous scenery, a solidly enjoyable story that doesn't require you to look up mountains of lore elsewhere and impressive music. Where it fails however, is a lack of gameplay (akin to a transition of Final Fantasy games becoming movies) where you'll be mashing X to get through the text because the characters are talking about crap, a lack of direction for those who do not know where to go and you'll also find that the characters and world is full of annoying, corny ****… Expand
  3. AlienSpaceBats
    Feb 24, 2014
    6
    FFS Final Fantasy. I really enjoyed this game up until somewhere in disc 3, but by then Zidane and co. had outstayed their welcome. By disc 3 we're operating on contrivance, hour after hour of frustrating, stupid random encounters constantly interrupting dungeon exploration, battle scenes that take so god-damn-long to get started (do we really need a thirty second pan of the fightingFFS Final Fantasy. I really enjoyed this game up until somewhere in disc 3, but by then Zidane and co. had outstayed their welcome. By disc 3 we're operating on contrivance, hour after hour of frustrating, stupid random encounters constantly interrupting dungeon exploration, battle scenes that take so god-damn-long to get started (do we really need a thirty second pan of the fighting arena?) redundant ATB gauges that take far too long to fill, irritating enemies, level grind, the same battle over again and again, level grind, boss fight, boss fight. Another example of overrated Final Fantasy bilge.… Expand
  4. archonome
    Mar 11, 2014
    7
    I just had to change my review for this game... after playing more than 20 hours. I had to log off the game and come on metacritic.....

    The best part of this game is the music, it's very nostalgic and you feel like you are in a magical realm(the music is sophisticated yet catchy/delightful). Unfortunately, I am realising that I can't continue playing this game any longer and I am    I just had to change my review for this game... after playing more than 20 hours. I had to log off the game and come on metacritic.....

    The best part of this game is the music, it's very nostalgic and you feel like you are in a magical realm(the music is sophisticated yet catchy/delightful).

    Unfortunately, I am realising that I can't continue playing this game any longer and I am dissapointed in waiting for the "epic" moment that was supposed to come but after 20 hours...I realise it's not coming at all.

    By half of disc 2, I realised all that I am doing is dealing with non-stop random battles...every 5-6 seconds... I'm forced to fight boring monsters over and over and over and over... Just wishing to get to the next scene.
    Then, I realise that the next scene kinda "bores" me... essentially the MAIN reason is that the story is mediocre at best. It doesn't help that the graphics are horrible on HD screen on the PS3.

    Overall, I have to give this game a 7/10 because it deserves a good rating for being a well-made game for its time. However, I realise that it COMPLETELY dissapoints in comparison to FF7 and FF8. Those 2 games had the constant random battles but they were WORTH IT...the storylines and scenes from the game were rewarding enough to continue...you were enthralled. In comparison, this game feels like they couldn't come up with an epic plot... or deliver a plot in an exciting and nostalgic fashion. Instead, it is rather bland... For example, even the bosses in this game are not memorable at all... the evil characters are rather boring(and they make you fight the same boss over and over and over).

    I can definately see why they decided to change the series after FF9... but it's their own fault. It's not that the old model wasn't excellent... the main problem is they failed to deliver it correctly with FF9.

    Don't get me wrong the game is not horrible... It's decent only because you can tell the developpers loved making games in the 1990-2000 era. You can feel the "atmosphere" and nostalgia in this game at least. IT BEATS ANY NEW "next-gen" games out there.... like FF13 or RE6 lol....

    If square-enix would make a game similar to FF9 in spirit... with a PS3-PS4... they would enchant us all... it would be their chance to re-deem glory.    … Expand
  5. Danilo89
    Nov 28, 2010
    6
    I don't like this kind of gameplay, FF VII and VIII were far better than this.
    FF IX lacks in complexity, bringing the series to a too much traditional rpg.
    Besides the story is a little childish.
  6. LeongFongW.
    Aug 5, 2001
    7
    Actually is a good game but the characters' skills are not as flexible as FF7. FF7 can use different combinations with materia but FF9 can't.
  7. VidM.
    Dec 8, 2004
    7
    First, let me say that I am a huge fan of the Final Fantasy series. Of the games I own, this is the one I've played the least. It is strange to realize that because this is not my least favorite Final Fantasy game. I whipped right through it in about two weeks, and that was it. I forgot about it. My least favorite Final Fantasy is actually FF8 (I'm not willing to even call the First, let me say that I am a huge fan of the Final Fantasy series. Of the games I own, this is the one I've played the least. It is strange to realize that because this is not my least favorite Final Fantasy game. I whipped right through it in about two weeks, and that was it. I forgot about it. My least favorite Final Fantasy is actually FF8 (I'm not willing to even call the fecal matter that was FFX-2 a Final Fantasy game...or maybe even calling it a game is too much credit...). However, I've logged far more hours playing FF8 than I have FF9. Even though I like FF8 less, I'm still willing to go back and play it every now and then. I simply have no desire to ever play FF9 again. It was fun while I played it. I did everything I wanted to do. The story was so neatly wrapped at the end, that I just don't feel a second playing would reward me in terms of more completely understanding the story. Again, this is a strange game, because it is good, and yet very forgettable.… Expand
  8. AbraxusZ.
    May 8, 2006
    6
    well i do say this is a very good game. Although it does have its bads and goods. What i didnt like about ti was that it was very short. I went through the game pretty fast and i expected more of a chalenge. This is my first fantasy game. And i hope it wont be my last. I was impressed by the charictors. I liked the fact that the main charictors fell in love hapily ever after. but what well i do say this is a very good game. Although it does have its bads and goods. What i didnt like about ti was that it was very short. I went through the game pretty fast and i expected more of a chalenge. This is my first fantasy game. And i hope it wont be my last. I was impressed by the charictors. I liked the fact that the main charictors fell in love hapily ever after. but what wouldve been better was another game with same charictors and like a new bad guy comes and invades but there love still remains a secret to themselfs. that would be a little secret between them i wouldve liked to have happend. But aditional charictors would be cool too. Anyways, the game was good and what someone said before i wanted to here there voices because i cant imagien them. Also it is indeed forgetable. I would like more of a story next time and a more unprodictable story. Everybody knows the stor, bad guy comes in godd guy comes in good guy kills bad guys yippidy doo dahh hapily ever after . I want more then that and that is what i expect in a good fantasy game. The only thing i admire most was the game play, graphics, and the charictors.… Expand
  9. Orctownorc
    Aug 22, 2013
    6
    A "role playing game" for four year olds, with a protagonist who looks like a monkey playing in a world where everyone looks like a monkey, jumping about like an assortment of zoo animals. Full to the brim with upgradeable skills to addict the completionist in everyone and your classic oversentimental JRPG plot lines so that everyone can 'role play" being 4 years old again and crying whenA "role playing game" for four year olds, with a protagonist who looks like a monkey playing in a world where everyone looks like a monkey, jumping about like an assortment of zoo animals. Full to the brim with upgradeable skills to addict the completionist in everyone and your classic oversentimental JRPG plot lines so that everyone can 'role play" being 4 years old again and crying when mummy yelled at you. The game mechanics are well designed, the music is good and 'as a game' its brilliant if you are suitably young at heart or still wearing diapers.

    THE GROT REVIEW CRITERIA: After a long time writing reviews like an anus, think its time to set a few bad habits straight: Stop insulting designers. Show some respect for the design process and getting games in circulation. Hence (1) No Red scores. (2) Game scores as follows: Bad Game 5/10. Poor Game 6/10. Mediocre Game: 7/10. Good Game 8/10. Great game 9/10. Stella Game 10/10. To get 10/10 it must be a game that can be (theoretically) play-able for 1000+ hours. Not only great but near endless fun. Games may be bad or poor but making them should earn respect. Thus even the worst POS will still be a 5/10. 0/10 no longer exists in my vocabulary. Yellow is the new red. For the sake of accountability: you can reply if needed: Orctowngrot: Tim Rawlins: timtimjp@yahoo.com    … Expand
  10. Runa
    Apr 25, 2013
    7
    It is one of the best Final Fantasy. He have some funny moments in the game. He have a good graphic and sound. But the history is the only i don't like at 100%.
  11. HopelessVoice
    Feb 1, 2015
    7
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. This is perhaps the only FF entry where I disagree with the common consesus; sure it's good, enjoyable and still has the open world roaming and item hunting, yet I never truly connected with IX. This has mostly to do with a dozen of minor things which do not seem like real issues by themselves, but when adding them together an issue occurs.

    Although the plot and the world are both solid FF stuff, the gameplay feels slow when compared to other entries. Character customization is extremely limited as you are only able to make minor tweaks to the characters and there's only really one end game boss, which only requries a single and simple strategy to beat. Whereas VIII had the card game nicely implemented, IX card game felt a bit out of place. The limit breaks/trance in IX were just acquired by something, I even don't know how, as at point I just was able to do the best trance skill with Zidane without no apparent reason. Perhaps there's something I missed to truly understand and enjoy the game as much as it recieves praise, but I simply found nothing out of the ordinairy in it. The game felt like Square was trying to do everything too carefully, and the result was a solid careful game that neither broke anything or made anything better. 7/10    … Expand
  12. DoctorZack
    Jan 1, 2021
    6
    Much like its cousin Chrono Cross, Final Fantasy IX exists in a bubble. Debuting at the end of a fading console, it didn't resurge until more modern times of social media and video content. With its core message being that of "belonging", Final Fantasy IX is more relevant to modern social culture than it was at launch.

    Pros: Strong core message Fundamental JRPG that is fairly balanced    Much like its cousin Chrono Cross, Final Fantasy IX exists in a bubble. Debuting at the end of a fading console, it didn't resurge until more modern times of social media and video content. With its core message being that of "belonging", Final Fantasy IX is more relevant to modern social culture than it was at launch.

    Pros:
    Strong core message
    Fundamental JRPG that is fairly balanced (some exceptions)
    Variety of side content and challenges
    The last purely composed Nobuo Uematsu soundtrack.

    Cons:
    Regressive gameplay compared to previous games. Despite having a variety (character skills*), the overlap makes most of them redundant to use in game outside of investigating.

    *Two characters are even White Mage-Summoner class. (Look at FF5 Jobs, or FF6 character variety. This comes across as lazy.) Several characters and locations become extremely irrelevant to overall story. I would argue a new player could reasonably start at disc 3 and not miss much context from the first half the game. Most locations visited from the first half of the game are even locked away due to disc limitations, unless they have a key item. Despite having a variety of side content, a lot of it is simply for padding time and not particularly beneficial or interesting, with some challenges being outright broken or intentionally malicious (Jump Rope).

    Conclusion:

    Saved by a good overall message and the soundtrack; FFIX is a solid JRPG that I find is a bit overrated by its devoted fans.    … Expand
  13. 6oni
    Oct 17, 2018
    7
    the combat system has gotten worse
    the art is different but not always good
    the game does not attract you
    the enemies are forgettable (the coolest enemy is a sphere ...)
  14. Seafox89
    Aug 8, 2016
    6
    As a followup to FF7 and FF8, I found FF9 to be a bit disappointing. Much of the classic Final Fantasy content is there: sounds, summons, battle system (with unique additions to gameplay and abilities), items, a charming cast of characters, vast worlds to explore, stunning artwork and graphics (for the era), etc. However, a few of the core elements that have made past FF games great areAs a followup to FF7 and FF8, I found FF9 to be a bit disappointing. Much of the classic Final Fantasy content is there: sounds, summons, battle system (with unique additions to gameplay and abilities), items, a charming cast of characters, vast worlds to explore, stunning artwork and graphics (for the era), etc. However, a few of the core elements that have made past FF games great are missing or subpar.

    The music was particularly lacking. Some of the tracks were great, some were just ok, and some were flat out annoying (I'm looking at you Black Mage Village music). Some good stuff there, but definitely not Nobuo's best.

    The character development and story were also lacking. This is the primary offender which kept this game from being quite good. The dialogue was often over-dramatic, muddled, and confusing. Characters lacked consistency and depth. They would often say and do things that did not seem to follow logically from the storyline or the character's past actions/dialogue. FF6, FF7, & FF8 had really solid characters that you felt like you knew very well by the end of the game. FF9 certainly had interesting characters (Vivi was a gem), but most of them I could not really connect with due to poor character development. I was constantly trying to figure out what kind of characters the game developers were trying to convey.

    The FF series is known for being imaginative and often lofty or mysterious (especially the epic endings), but I definitely feel that the over-arching plot of FF9 stepped too far into the "weirdness" realm and lost me somewhere in disc 4. What may have been intended as epic plot "twists" really just came off as out-of-nowhere what-were-they-thinking hard-to-accept plot devices thrown in your face. Where is the context and the subtle hints throughout the game that help lead up to a satisfying conclusion? I found myself largely disconnected with the story at the end. I tried really hard to immerse myself, but I couldn't get a grip on to the convoluted and confusing story.

    Ultimately, I'm glad I played through FF9, because I'm a fan of the series and there are some truly great moments in this game. However, a more accessible storyline with more consistent character development could've ranked this game up there with FF7 and FF8 as a true FF classic.    … Expand
  15. mugsy
    May 9, 2020
    5
    Didn't really like the childish fairy tale vibe. I prefer Final Fantasy games to be more on the serious and futuristic note, like FF6, FF7, FF8 or even FF13 or FF15. Nothing memorable in this game for me.
  16. eded9999
    Jun 21, 2023
    6
    So, let's make everybody hate me: I do not like this FF, i though i liked back in the 2000 but now i got boring playing it.

    First i will say what i liked: >I Love Vivi and Vivi's story, easily my favorite thing of the game. >For a 2000 game i think the presentation is 10/10, scenarios are beautifully made and the FMV are spectacular for PS1 gen. >I like the Tetra Master minigame. >I    So, let's make everybody hate me: I do not like this FF, i though i liked back in the 2000 but now i got boring playing it.

    First i will say what i liked:
    >I Love Vivi and Vivi's story, easily my favorite thing of the game.
    >For a 2000 game i think the presentation is 10/10, scenarios are beautifully made and the FMV are spectacular for PS1 gen.
    >I like the Tetra Master minigame.
    >I like the Ability Stones system.

    And what i don't like:
    >I HATE the Limit Break replacement (Trance); It's so random and irregular; they trigger in the most mundane moment, most of them are just lame and static, they don't evolve. Meanwhile the Zidane one is brokenly OP.
    >The game is so easy it get boring, the only part when i feel in danger was the mere beginning, simply because your party is incomplete and the character have nothing yet, once you get to disc 3, is just a walk.
    >Story is not bad, but i hate that they make a spectacular destruction (pretty much a nuke) in a cutscene but then everybody is ok? Feels so cheese.
    >I hate Quina, it's a dumb and unappealing character, and to make it even worse... It's the Blue Mage of the party. BM are one of my favorite jobs/classes cause you have to actively look for the spells to grow the character. One of the most awesome class behind the worse character of the game.
    >And finally i think the game feels slow.

    It start strong on me, nostalgia on 100%, but the more i play, the less i want to keep playing it.    … Expand
  17. sebastianali
    Apr 3, 2020
    7
    Este juego me recuerda mucho a los Final Fantasy clásicos, debido a la ambientación cosa que me encanto que volviera después del 8! Sinceramente, me encanto este Final Fantasy y puedo decir que es uno de mis favoritos! La historia también me gusto, la música es sobresaliente y la jugabilidad no esta mal. Es simple, pero funciona. Sin embargo, el sistema de obtener magias no me termina deEste juego me recuerda mucho a los Final Fantasy clásicos, debido a la ambientación cosa que me encanto que volviera después del 8! Sinceramente, me encanto este Final Fantasy y puedo decir que es uno de mis favoritos! La historia también me gusto, la música es sobresaliente y la jugabilidad no esta mal. Es simple, pero funciona. Sin embargo, el sistema de obtener magias no me termina de convencer, y como todo Final Fantasy si te llegas a olvidar algo importante, puede ser que no lo vuelvas a conseguir... Ademas, no entiendo porque tenían que quitar el sistema de invocaciones y el de habilidad que tenia el FF8... me encantaba... Ademas, el minijuego de las cartas personalmente, es uno de los peores minijuegos que jamas he visto. Se basa simplemente al azar, y para colmo, hay una parte en el juego en el que tenes que ganar varias rondas de manera obligatoria.... Y la curva de dificultad... Hmmm, si bien esta bien, no faltan los momentos frustrantes. No hay mejor ejemplo en esto que el primer Final Fantasy. En este la curva de dificultad es excelente. Quitando eso, estamos ante uno de los mejores Final Fantasy que existen. Los gráficos son buenos, la ambientación muy buena, la música, la historia, en fin, casi todo es genial! Solo tendrían que haber pulido la jugabilidad que como ya dije no me termina de convencer el sistema de magias con armaduras; podría haberle dado un 8...
    Igualmente, creo que tengo que mencionar algo que no a todos les gustara... Lo unico bueno que ha tenido la saga es la historia... nada mas... yo soy de las personas que critican mas la jugabilidad que la historia... Final Fantasy tiene una historia SOBRESALIENTE, no me lo tomen a mal, pero la jugabilidad.... es por eso que prefiero el primer Final Fantasy! Ya que el sistema jugable, la curva de dificultad y las magias estaban geniales! Final Fantasy necesita mejorar la jugabilidad si quiere ganarse una muy buena nota... Los personajes, la ambientacion, todo eso esta genial! Pero le falta lo mas importante... la jugabilidad....    … Expand
  18. ZidaneLionheart
    Dec 13, 2020
    5
    FFIX means so much to me. My favorite game of time. The characters in this taught me lessons I still remember today. Loyalty, friendship, honor. You’re not alone!

    Shout out to THE MAN Nobuo Uematsu.
  19. Sinmaker
    May 25, 2020
    5
    Irei à contramão da mídia e não exaltarei o FF IX. Dos FF produzidos para ps1, opino ser o mais fraco dos três. Argumentos para tal:
    - Lore/história: uma trama extremamente genérica e infantil, como se fosse um desenho para uma criança de 10 anos. Sem reviravoltas, emoções fortes. Basicamente se você jogar qualquer RPG genérico na sua existência será mais do mesmo.
    - Personagens: eu    Irei à contramão da mídia e não exaltarei o FF IX. Dos FF produzidos para ps1, opino ser o mais fraco dos três. Argumentos para tal:
    - Lore/história: uma trama extremamente genérica e infantil, como se fosse um desenho para uma criança de 10 anos. Sem reviravoltas, emoções fortes. Basicamente se você jogar qualquer RPG genérico na sua existência será mais do mesmo.
    - Personagens: eu joguei FF do VII ao XV, e o IX é o único que não consigo lembrar o nome de nenhum personagem. O desenvolvimento dos personagens não é bom, eles são rasos. Me lembra um anime Shonen genérico: o protagonista escandoloso, a moçinha, o antiheroi amigo do heroi, etc. Com 10-20 minutos de trama dá para prever com qualidade tudo sobre o personagem.
    - Jogabilidade: repetitiva (mas qual RPG que não é assim)
    - Trilha sonora: sólida, porém não marcante
    - Gráfico: é um jogo de PS1 o que não dá para cobrar muito, o visual é estilizado como se fosse um cartoon o que aumentou o caráter infantil do mesmo.

    Enfim, recomendo FF IX se for o primeiro RPG que irá jogar, pois não se terá elemento de comparação e este de tornará marcante; ou se você for um grande entusiasta de RPG, pois ele oferecerá a experiência vanilla de RPG que se der tudo errado o agradará.
    PS: se seu tempo de jogar por restrito, opte por uma escolha mais segura.    … Expand
  20. meop
    Jun 27, 2020
    7
    Many people will praise this game like it is the "bestest game evaaar". Those people are lying to you.

    This game is beautiful, it is fun, but it is by no means amazing. It is far to linear, forcing you down one track and never letting you explore or become the characters you are playing. It has gorgeous cutscenes but the gameplay itself is a bit lackluster. Overall, just ok.
  21. ArthurWinters
    Jun 26, 2021
    7
    It's not a bad game, there's a lot of qualities, but also it's not a masterpiece. Characters are very too cringe sometimes and not at the level of the seriousness of Final Fantasy Saga. Glad to a return in the medieval fantasy, but it's not enough.
  22. QilBoy
    Oct 22, 2021
    5
    After a number of entries that shaked up the series' formula to test new mechanics and features FF9 takes the series back to its roots, both in terms of setting and gameplay.
    In Combat, we are back to an efficient simplicity: each party member has its own set of skills and equipment that are exclusive to them, giving each character their distinct flavour. The only innovation comes in the    After a number of entries that shaked up the series' formula to test new mechanics and features FF9 takes the series back to its roots, both in terms of setting and gameplay.
    In Combat, we are back to an efficient simplicity: each party member has its own set of skills and equipment that are exclusive to them, giving each character their distinct flavour. The only innovation comes in the form of Abilities: Abilities can provide new action commands or add passive effects on characters. They can be acquired through weapons: fight enough times with a weapon and the Ability linked to said weapon will be available permanently. This mechanic can be quite addicting: trying to find every Ability and see them gain experience to become permanent tickles that completionist part of the human brain, but sadly this feature doesn't go much farther than that: collecting Abilities is way more satisfying than actually using them. Most are minimal and offer such a superficial novelty that they hardly ever change the way you look at battles like Materia did in FF7. Materia also gave the player incredible creative freedom to craft custom builds based on countless hidden synergies with the Materia slots on weapons, whereas Abilities in FF9 have way less potential and work indipendently, suffocating any room for experimentation. The Ability System isn't downright awful, mind you, but Materia in FF7 showed us what an excellent Skill System could be and FF9's System is just decent by comparison.
    Materia System and Ability System have one, negative thing in common: they both make their game too easy. Truth be told, FF9 is such an improvement on this. FF7 and 8 were just too easy to the point of boredom, while FF9 is a pleasantly challenging game... until you discover 3 specific Abilities that completely destroy almost all challenge within the main story. It's such a shame because if these 3 Abilities were nerfed the level of challenge would've remained optimal. Another huge improvement regarding Combat concerns its frequency: the enemy encounter rate has been significantly lowered, making the entire experience way more user friendly. But, as if to balance this, combat speed has tremendously worsened. The ATB bar moves at a snail's pace, characters take a whole second before deciding to act and Summons are as long as ever: battles in FF9 are excruciatingly slow, worse than ever.
    Let's talk about gameplay outside of battles. Final Fantasy is a series famous for its worlds brimming of optional content to discover, and Final Fantasy 9 is no different: full of secret areas, side-quests, activities, minigames and juicy treasure chests hidden at every corner, ready to be discovered by those who are willing to explore everything that this beautiful game has to offer. Maybe not the richest display of minigames and secret Bosses of the series, but certainly not disappointing. The Card Game idea from FF8 makes a return, except way worse. Ironically, one of the few good things of FF8, makes a return only to become one of the few bad things about FF9.
    Not only this time around it lacks any involvement with the main gameplay, but the game's rules are so unnecessarily complicated that it just becomes frustrating.
    So, the gameplay is pretty much average for a Final Fantasy game, let's get on the narrative.
    The story of FF9 starts off with a dynamic blast, and manages to keep that exciting momentum almost all the way through, stuttering a bit only in the second act. It doesn't go for a simple road-movie approach like FF7, but it doesn't clobber the viewer with plotpoints and plot-twist without rest like FF8 either. There's always something happening, even multiple plot-lines going on at the same time, but it's all paced and structured so that the characters have still plenty of room to breathe and showcase their development to the player. Speaking of characters, FF9 has four protagonists, and it is incredible how believable their growth is throughout the game. Influencing each other, they change and decide what they intend to do with the life they were given, creating some of the most emotional character arcs that this series has ever seen (even though one character's arc overlaps with another one's in a pretty redundant way).
    The problem is that FF9 doesn't have four protagonists. It actually has eight. But those other four are some of the most forgettable party members you'll ever see. Either existing just to be a comic relief, having a subplot that goes nowhere, or joining the protagonist for no reason other than being in the boxart. It's almost jarring to see these bland characters coexisting with the aforementioned spectacular ones.
    Or, in other words: Final Fantasy 9 has, all highs and lows considered, a pretty average gameplay elevated by its plethora of secrets and optional content, and an excellent story that despite some abysmally boring characters, offers some of the best character arcs of this entire series.    … Expand

Awards & Rankings

2
#2 Best PS1 Game of 2000
1
#1 Most Discussed PS1 Game of 2000
3
#3 Most Shared PS1 Game of 2000

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
94

Universal acclaim - based on 22 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 21 out of 22
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 22
  3. Negative: 0 out of 22
  1. GMR Magazine
    100
    The crystals return to the series, along with a four-member party, blue magic, and black mages. [Feb 2003, p.97]
  2. CNET Gamecenter
    90
    Continues the series' long-standing tradition of quality in one of the most compelling RPGs ever. This is the last Final Fantasy game that will appear on the PlayStation, and SquareSoft has definitely saved its best for last.
  3. Gamestyle
    90
    A masterpiece of an adventure game. For anyone not to fall in love with it would truly amaze me. Everything is set just right and you are drawn into the story right from the very offset.
    Read full review
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