Games to Try Before You Die: Final Fantasy IX (PSX)

The Final Fantasy games on PSX are just awesome. Final Fantasy VII broke new grounds for the series to jump out of it's usual medieval setting, Final Fantasy VIII went out there with the teenage drama-esque setting, and then Final Fantasy IX came around. Which went back to the old style of Final Fantasy.

What: In Final Fantasy IX, you play as Zidane (primarily), a member of the theatre group Tantalus. The group goes out to kidnap Princess Garnet, just to find out that she wanted to be kidnapped anyway to escape Alexandria!

You know what? If you want to get the story, just click here and read away. When it comes to Final Fantasy game, I could watch the entire Godfather series by the time you finish reading the story.

Why: If you follow the Final Fantasy games, this is a really cool look back on the old Final Fantasy games. When Final Fantasy VII hit the scene, a whole new group of RPG fans summoned, which most of them never played 1-6. They figured Final Fantasy was this futuristic game with epic story lines. Then IX came around and kind of shocked everyone with it's medieval old style setting. It didn't bother new fans much though, as the game sold well over  5.30 million copies of the game by 2003.

Gameplay wise, it played very well and was easy to understand. In Final Fantasy VIII, they had a Junction System which seemed to make the game very confusing. In IX, they listened to the fans and fixed that issue by making a very easy way to equip Magic. It played very similarly to VIII which had very stellar control with the Analog sticks, which believe it or not was basically a new thing.

The main point though, is how well this game plays out. The story line is fantastic and if I could summon up the game in one word, is 'charm.' This game has a lot of that. It may look a little less serious compared to the previous games, but that's where this game shines. It may have a 'cartoony' look and characters, but you can't deny the seriousness that the story plays out. The development of the characters, the card game, the VERY satisfying ending, etc. This game is PURE Final Fantasy! Even the series creator, Hironobu Sakaguchi cites it as his favorite Final Fantasy title, and you can really tell.

At this point in the series, Nobuo Uematsu was creating compositions that were becoming very memorable, and Final Fantasy IX had a great song named, "Melodies of Life." Uematsu also cited the music from this game as his favorite in the series as well.

This game is just an awesome game, and there is no way you could complete it in one day as it spans 4 disc. Since I have covered all of the Playstation numbered Final Fantasy games, I best rank them. So lets do it!

1. Final Fantasy IX
2. Final Fantasy VII
3. Final Fantas VIII

Yup, that's right! Final Fantasy IX is my favorite Final Fantasy game on Playstation (RELEASE THE FAN-BOY ANGER)! Why? The storyline is strong, the graphics are great, and I feel more emotionally connected to the characters than I did in the previous two, where the main characters are sad and question why they exist with way to much inner monologue.

When it comes to Final Fantasy games, Story is the main point for me. If the story is good and keeps me playing, then it works. Final Fantasy is like reading a really good book before you go to bed. You know you need to go to bed, but the book is so exciting, you fight to keep your eyes open to see what happens next, hoping that the next page will provide you with an exciting outcome.

Try this game out, it's pretty good!