Oh god, I thought I was the only one.
same for me, but I was honestly still pretty new to RPGs (i think x was my second final fantasy, maybe my fifth or so turn based rpg). I didn't really have any strategy or specialization in mind, just followed sphere grids, tried to keep everyone levelling, and made sure to take what stuff i did know was extremely good (ultima, holy, etc). It was forever ago, but I just remember having the absolute perfect rhythm of attacks and healing that was more patient than anything I had done in my life to that point, but was undone by what must have been the smallest difference in speed. obviously can't remember the exact process but at some point in the battle jecht jumped one of my characters turns and 30 minutes or so of patterns went out the door. I was an extremely mad 13 year old
Well, I'm glad that there are others like me. Perfectly honest, I feel like my approach to battles, bosses or not, is still pretty much "hit hard and heal", in most cases. With FF X, I incorporated attacks that slowed the enemy down or made you faster, but aside from that, I still don't have a mind for getting into the details of how to break any FF (except VIII, I guess, which says more about that game than me).
Also, wow, that sounds incredibly frustrating.
The real answer is that everyone else did all the sidequests before setting foot in the last dungeon.
A friend of mine said basically this. After complaining about how easy Jecht was, I asked him if he had done the side-quests, and yes, he did. To be honest, I still don't really understand this. I expect a game to get at least easy, if I have a lot of side content and do all of it. That, to me, is part of the point of side-quests, making the game easier, so I don't need to grind if I'm stuck. Maybe that's me, but especially with a game where I can level up, I WANT this to be the way to make it easier, just in case I get stuck.
I'd watched a friend of mine play through nearly the entirety of Final Fantasy X before I got my PS2 (I think I just missed the Yuna wedding stuff), so I was aware of Jecht's self healing capability before I got to him. I've played through FFX 5 or 6 times, and have never won a single blitzball match, and don't care to.
Oh god, I had forgotten about his self healing (I appreciate the spoilers, but don't worry about them, I know the game too well not click on them). Good to know. The main problem was petrification, though, I think. And my grinding was only done, so I could put something on my armor to make me not stoneable anymore.
I have never done FFX sidequests because they seem extremely annoying and I don't grind, and I thought it was pretty easy to beat Jecht just following the criitcal path. Here's the trick:
Jecht is easy if you know how powerful Quick Hit is, and he's hard if you don't. Get Quick Hit on as many of your melee attackers as possible by the end of the game game. They toned it down a bit in the remakes, but it's still extremely good instead of game breaking. It's easy not to notice Quick Hit, this because you get it relatively early on (depends which version you're playing, but if you're talking about the PS2 version it was very early), and at that point it feels like a lot of MP for a small effect. However, by the end of the game it's using a proportionally smaller chunk of MP. And during the final boss, there's no reason not to use consumables, so there are really no restrictions on it. If you can only use Quick Hit once or twice, okay you're getting your next turn a little faster, no big deal. If you can use Quick Hit every turn instead of Attack? You're getting a ton of free turns and doing a hugely increased amount of damage.
The other tip is that alchemy is extremely powerful. Experiment or look up some of the best recipes. It's your best source of healing.
Oh, I know about Quick Hit, and used it often enough, but I think it's on Tidus' main path, isn't it? So he certainly got it, but no one else, because I think I didn't get to the end of the others pathes on the grid. And before that, I don't want to mix abilities. Dunno, I want my characters to be different, in how they fight.
Using an alchemist in FF V taught me, that I don't like alchemie much. It always seems too much work. But considering that I put the work into the Blue Mages this time, I will try to experiment more with it. Just to at least give it a chance.
Thanks for the tipps.
I remember being confused by the sportscaster voice over in Zanarkand when Tidus is running to the stadium for the longest time. It took till my 3rd play through or so before I stopped dashing through that area and just stopped to listen to him ramble. I guess it ties back into the whole estranged fathers and children that runs through the whole game. Kinda odd they don’t give you enough space to hear the whole thing if you aren’t deliberately dawdling though.
This is a really good observation. And, considering how the game gives you a ton of cutscenes that you can easily skip (at least it seems that way), I'm not surprised at all, that the did it that way. As linear as this game is, there are a lot of things hidden on the side, like such cutscenes you can trigger or not, and treasure chests that are somewhat hidden, or stuff like the Al-Bhed primers. I'll keep an eye out for this, but I really like how there is still stuff to find, even if the main path is basically a straight line.
------------------------------------------------------
Last time, a giant monster attacked Tidus' city, and ate him.
He wakes up in some water ruins, everything dark and grimm. I found that they got the atmosphere pretty right. It looks a bit like his city got ruined, and he woke up afterwards. For a short time, I wondered if we are at the real Zanarkand here, but then remembered what it actually was.
Even the minimap creates a sense of linearity, with a red arrow pointing us in the right direction. Which I actually really love. In dungeons, I normally have the problem, that I want to explore all the non-critical areas, before continuing on. Which means backtracking, nearly all the time. This arrow, while creating other problems that I don't really mind, makes it super easy to avoid that.
Aside form waking up in ruins, Tidus gets also attacked by a big seamonster and has to make a fire, so he doesn't freeze. It's a pretty stark contrast to the life he had, up to an hour or so ago. I did enjoy the slight Resident Evil like puzzle, of finding three items by simply running around a building. I'm actually impressed that the boy can use firestones, I would probably have frozen to death, or something.
Also, if you have already played the game, even without coming back here, it's easy to see a former cloyster in this ruin.
To further strenghten the idea that this is Tidus' story, we get his narration, something that will continue throughout the game. It creates a nice effect, not unlike the one in VIII with Squall (and in some way, the one in VII too). It's nice to spend so much time in the head of your lead.
We get another memory of Tidus, where he learned that Jecht is assumed dead. And where we learn, that not only his father, but also Auron, was an abusive prick. No, it's not Tidus' fault that his father died, and it's not ok to make a kid feel bad for crying about losing his father.
Tidus denies having cried, but the creepy kid appears again. Telling him that, yes, he did.
I really wonder about his mother, who doesn't really seem to play a role in Tidus' memory. Which is by design, of course, and makes a certain amount of sense. The focus of the boy was on his abusive, awful father. So, I guess his mother didn't help him much with this, or else he would remember her as a positive force in his life.
It reminded me of the one scene in VII, where we see Cloud coming back home and seeing his mother, not wanting to talk with her. And then never, ever mentioning her again. Like, how is this even a thing, not caring about their mothers, at all? I guess the answer would just depress me, so I'll not linger on it much further.
It boils down to Tidus having two shitty dads and an ineffectual mum. No one to look up to. Honestly, he became pretty decent, considering that.
A few Al-Bhed wake Tidus up, by blowing open the door. They nearly kill him, before being stopped by Rikku. He still has to work, and is stuck outside on a ship, where only Rikku will even think about giving him food. It's just one more grim part of the new situation, when he finally does find other people, and then doesn't understand their language, and is even nearly killed by them. The whole thing must feel godawful, being ripped out of your mainly cosy life as a pro-athlete with all kinds of technology to help you, to a world in ruins and people who don't care about you, at all.
A wonder, he didn't get traumatized by it. But then, Jecht was trauma enough, I guess. He certainly is happy, when finding out that someone, Rikku, understands him.
It's, of course, pretty useful to have Tidus as this outsider, so we can have someone the game explains everything to. I think it's the first time, that the main character in an FF is this guy. We even had a reverse situation in VII, where Cloud knew more (in some way) than the others, and explained certain things.
Here, Rikku gives him the useful excuse of getting too close to Sin, and talking nonsense for that reason. Because Zanarkand was destroyed a thousand years ago. It is also now a holy place, so he should not tell anyone that he thinks he is from there.
There is also a short bit about her being scared, that he hates Al-Bhed. Nice little touch, so early, in such a small way.
While getting angry about not being able to go back, a very understandable and human reaction, Sin attacks, and Tidus' is thrown overboard.
Next, we finally get to a nice place, a tropical island with seagulls crying, and beautiful weather. Plus, a blitzball reaches him, which raises Tidus' spirits immediately, and he does one of his supershots. Which immediately gets him on the good side of Wakka.
It's another nice contrast. Tidus got ripped out of his old life, gets thrown into a situation where even other people want to kill him, and now is finally welcomed here. Sort of.
We already get a bit of a chance to explore. I find a Lunar Seal, and a treasure box in the water.
Through Wakka, we get the basics of the religion here. Mainly, it is about repenting for the sins of their forefathers, who had a life that was just way too easy, with all these evil machines. And now everyone has to pay forever for it, with Sin always making sure that the world doesn't become a decent place, ever again.
I always loved this place. Summer is my favourite time of the year, and you can basically feel how warm it is on Besaid Island. It also feels like this calm, relaxed place. Which has a very harsh reason for being that way, but more on that later. For now, it is a really nice change of pace, simply feeling good to be there.
Also, Wakka immediately starts treating Tidus like a younger brother, which is nice. And sad, but more on that later on, too.
I always found it chilling, that the Blitzball sing is now used as a prayer. It just stinks like corruption. For a first-time player, this has to be really confusing and intriguing. But knowing what has happened in this world, I just get angry at the shitty, old man in power.
Anyway, we soon meet one of many groups, who will go on their own journeys, and who we will see again and again on the pilgrimage: Lutts and Gatta, two crusaders.
I never thought much about them, but they basically offer a bit more hope for people, so they can carry on. I wonder, if the church helped create them, because as one more tool, they are likely pretty useful. Sure, the main hope are the media, but only very few people can do that job. But everyone can become a crusader, and feel like they are doing something useful, like they could fight Sin. No matter how hopeless it is. It's surely very useful for the church.
We soon get to the temple, and while I generally think peoples annoyance with Tidus is overblown, he acts like a dumbass here. Instead of listening to the rules, not entering if a medium is already inside, he simply storms in. But, honestly, this very quality is what makes him important, for Yuna and this world. Someone who doesn't care about the century-old rules of this world. Spira is basically (un)dead, not dying, but also not living and developing, because they are way too focused on rules that were made up to oppress people.
That Tidus ignores these rules will become essential, and is the main reason why Yuna is drawn to him (that and him not knowing about her dying). I assume she finds him refreshing.
To be clear, the good thing is not ignoring rules in general. It's about ignoring rules made up by bullies, rules that make no sense at all, and are only there to keep most people down.
I always had a weak spot for the cloyster puzzles. I don't think they are that well made, and I wished there was more logic to them, instead of "put all spheres everywhere and hope a wall explodes", but I always liked that they tried to put something in there that tries to be a logic puzzle. It's not Lufia II, but what is?
It still strikes me as strange, that there is no boss battle at the end. But that's not the point of these puzzle dungeons. I do wonder, who is supposed to solve the puzzles? The guardians? Elsewhise, there is no point of them entering with the medium. It would make more sense to let the medium solve them, to get more into the spirit of the temple, or something like that. But with no enemies, why the guardians?
Probably to have both in a holy place, to strengthen the bond between them. Having the summoner wander the cloisters alone, might estrange them from their companions.
Outside, when Yuna summons Valefor, we see an immediate connection between her and Tidus. She is a star here, a hero, worshipped by nearly everyone, for her special abilities. I'm sure Tidus noted here, already.
I always love the different ways, how the Aeons are summoned, and how they interact with Yuna. Her gently stroking Valefors beak, or riding on Ifrits arm - it creates a sense of them not being just monsters that attack and vanish, but of creatures that form a bond with the medium.
Skipping to the night, there is a small party going on, which, despite being the last nice thing, before Yuna starts moving towards her grave, feels like a nice summer gathering. This game does the nice atmosphere really well. Here, Yuna thanks Tidus - he came in, because he was worried about her. While not even knowing that it was a young girl, he thought an old man was in danger. Which, again, speaks pretty well of Tidus.
It certainly left an impression on her. She wants him to come along. Part of that is likely, that he is also just the same age as her, and she can be, for once, just be a bit of a teenager around someone.
I was surprised, that the whole "Tidus looks like Wakkas dead brother" thing is already unveiled. This could be some thing that comes up in a dramatic scene later, but not much is made out of it. Instead, there is no drama and Tidus just thanks Wakka. Which is really nice.
Here, we already see how this game works. It's slow. Not in a bad way, it just takes its time to get where it wants. Instead of giving us action-setpiece after action-setpiece, we only had a puzzle dungeon and a few fights on the way to the village. Mainly, it was character work and world building. Sure, part of it is that there is a lot to explain, but we see a lot of the characters doing small things or talk with each other. I really like this small, relaxed pace.
Which, again, fits the idea that this is a dead world pretty well. There is no drive here. Sure, the people have a goal, and there is determination, but it feels all so slow and everyone, while seemingly relaxed, is just too broken to put more energy into it.
In the morning, Wakka gives Tidus the old sword of Chappu (Wakkas brother), which I also had forgotten. So, Wakka isn't quite over it, I guess. We learn, that Yuna came here ten years ago, when Sir Braskas Calm started. Since then, Wakka and Lulu became like older siblings to Yuna.
We are talking siblings, not parents. While parents aren't much of a thing in FF games, or JRPGs in general, here it will be called out, and is very much intended. Most people don't get old here.
Also, something that I never thought about: The last Calm started ten years ago. That's really not a long time. People start becoming summoners from a small age, as I understand it. They devote maybe more time to this, than it takes for Sin to start reappearing. I get that people need this hope, but this seems like a very short time. So, when did the Calm end? One year ago? More?
I wished the time-frame would be longer. This just seems so short, that it would disillusion people too much - not enough gain, to put much hope into a summoner.
Well, I still remember that I can get a second technic for Valefor, a stronger one, which I do get. Using him, he is actually really useful, with the attack that makes his enemies slower.
On the whole, the game seems to let you break it pretty easily, in general. Your summons are big meatshields, that you can load up with overdrives before boss battles, which are pretty powerful. And overdrives can get pretty powerful, too, also from your regular characters.
But then, I still remember a bunch of challenging boss fights, so breaking isn't the right word.
As an aside, the interiors of the houses, and basically everything, looks really great, again. The huts look like places where people might actually live, in such a small community. Square (or is it SE at this point?) was great at this in VII and hasn't unlearned anything here.
We get one more cutscene, of Yuna taking a last look at Besaid Village, and I can only repeat that I love how the game takes time for these small, slow things. It offers a lot of small moments to its characters. I appreciate that a lot. And, knowing where this is going, it's nice seeing how Tidus doesn't get it. At all.
Aside from some tutorial battles about the strength of everyone, we also get a fight, where Kimahri attacks Tidus. I assume, he is protective of Yuna, and just doesn't trust the new kid.
I really appreciate, how this tight-knit group all react different to this intruder. Yuna finally has someone who doesn't know her as a summoner, but just as a friend and peer. Wakka likes him, as a player and someone who reminds him of his younger brother.
Lulu hates him, likely because she doesn't want Wakka and Yuna get hurt - it's fun, how she straight-up says to Tidus that she doesn't want him here. With how little time she gets, it is great how she says what she thinks (aside to Yuna, who she is always kind to), and is also shown as pretty smart.
And Kimahri, too, dislikes Tidus. That said, I don't have much to say about him. I always wanted to use him, because he looks awesome, but I can't get over him not having a niche in battle, that isn't filled out by someone else, when we talk about abilities. I'll try to find something for him, this time. I'm also open for suggestions, though.
When reaching the ship, the whole village seems to be there, watching Yuna go, incredibly sad. I don't have much to say here, except that it's a pretty painful scene, if you know what is actually happening.
I really find Spira fascinating. FF VI and VII are clear, oppressive dystopias, where the game makes clear from the get-go, that the world is awful. X is smarter about this. The world can always lull you in, appearing like a nice, relaxed place. With the darkness hidden, not immediately visible. When I think of VII, I want to get as far away from that world as possible. When I think of X, I think of nice weather and a relaxed world, the horror not the first thing on my mind. And even then, the horror isn't as brutal as in X. I mean, it's fast and hits hard, and leaves as many dead people as a destroyed reactor.
Dunno, I have a hard time putting this into words. I hope it is a bit clear, what I mean, and that I'm maybe not the only one who sees it this way.
Anyway, this is enough for now. Next time, we fight against Sin for a bit and visit Kilika.
