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Episode 373: Final Fantasy X (Patreon)

Published:
2021-04-23 12:02:34
Imported:
2026-06
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Four years ago, we undertook a pilgrimage to explore the world of the Final Fantasy franchise, and here we are still truckin' along. We've finally made it to the double-digit entries of the series, though of course their reliance on Roman numerals in their titles means we've somehow reverted back to single digits. 

This week, Bob, Kat, and Chris K. (the standard Final Fantasy loadout) join me (Jeremy Parish, aka "Little Ronso") to talk about the good and bad of the series' 10th entry. Xth entry. Whatever. 

Edits by Greg Leahy. And, of course, another glorious cover illustration this week, this time courtesy of Steph Sybydlo.

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Comments

Griffin Youngstrum

Chris explaining the sphere grid was incredibly poignant.

TeamVenom

That cover illustration is wonderful.

Paul

A friend of mine walked down the aisle to To Zanarkand at his wedding. He's divorced now but that is probably a coincidence.

Christopher Hughes

Because I fondly remembered watching friends and family members play it back when it was new, I bought the HD remaster on PS3 around 2016. I liked it... but didn't love it. I believe I only made it about 15 hours before I moved on to something else. I almost feel bad saying that, as I WANT to commit to it! This was prime time for getting lots of really good PS3 games at a low price. My backlog was tremendous.

SilverHairedMiddleAgedTuxedoMask

Final Fantasy X HD edition on PC has my favorite random-ass mod I stumbled upon once, it's called the "Lulu Less Clothes Mod" but contrary to that title all it really does it update the textures of her character model and lower her neckline a bit, so she still looks normal but she's showing more cleavage. It's the mod for someone who still wants to keep the game classy by not just making her naked, but also wants to add in 10% more fan-service.

Dave Dalrymple

I just re-played it (and X-2) recently on the Switch, and I liked FFX a lot more this time through (I always loved X-2). Despite being turn-based, random battles are still quick. The weapon mod system is really flexible. Mini-games like chocobo racing and blitzball can generally be ignored. I still think it was a step down from the SNES and PS1 games, but I no longer think that it was a "bad" game.

Michael Castleberry

I replayed this semi recently.. and man, Kimarhi is just worthless unless you like, meticulously plan an optimal path for him. I eventually just gave up on the dude. Kimarhi weak Ronso indeed.

Wisdomandlore

I got this Christmas it came out. I was 15. There were a few days left before break ended. The day before we were supposed to go back the gaming gods smiled on me and blanketed the area in 2 feet of snow. This was in the south so society ground to a halt for a week while I stayed inside and freebased FFX (as Jeremy would say).

Chris Dobson

I wish y'all had been able to go a bit more into the story and the voice cast, since it's such a big attraction of the game for those who are fans of it. I'm not sure you named every character, and a couple of the characters were remembered incorrectly based on half-remembered stuff from 19 years ago (e.g. Auron is not a dream). Maybe it's just that I don't care about the franchise as a whole, but it's frustrating when every comparison seems to be measuring it against another game in the series I haven't played nearly as much.

CitizenMeh

Looking forward to this one. My favourite thing about FFX is the cohesiveness and detail of the world of Spira- I doubt many notice there are distinct Spiran, Yevonite and Al Bhed alphabetic scripts used in background assets, or the sheer complexity of the patterns that adorn each temple floor, but it all adds up to produce a wonderful fictional world. The lightning bolts can **** off forever though.

Derek Williams

The laughing scene defender has logged on. Bob, Tidus does not tell Yuna to smile more in that scene, it's actually the exact opposite. And the cringiness is intentional, as evidenced by every other character in the scene cringing. You don't have to think it's a good scene or anything, but it's funny how prevalent the misinterpretations have become after twenty years of memes.

Kellen Taman

I loved that Amano EGM cover, remember finding it at the airport gift shop (I used to be an airport rent-a-cop). It still stands out in my memory, not many other covers do.

PurpleComet

FFX is a top three FF for me. I was genuinely moved by the story, despite the localization issues. The world of Spira is compelling, particularly when we see them grieving after an attack from Sin or fighting to survive an attack. The battle system is fantastic and consistently engaging. It has some tough boss fights (maybe a little too tough) so there's incentive to explore the Sphere Grid and dig into the nuances. I also love the soundtrack, "A Fleeting Dream" is one of my FF tracks of all time. Unfortunately FFX has some of the most infuriating endgame content of any FF. Dodge 200 lightning bolts on an HDTV with input lag? Or how about that ridiculous chocobo racing game? Not to mention the 100s of Blitzball matches required. I wanted to spend more time with the game but not like that. FFX was the first HD re-release, so it's lacking nearly all the bonus features from the other HD remasters. Except for the PC version, none of them have a turbo speed function or the ability to turn off random encounters. You can't even skip most cutscenes! Also as difficult and grindy as the endgame content is already, the road to a platinum trophy is even crazier. You have to activate every node on the Sphere Grid with every character. This includes using spheres to turn empty nodes into HP/MP/etc nodes. Utterly ridiculous.

Steven Babb

This was really great! I never played 10, and maybe I will after hearing you all talk about it, but I do remember being so excited for it when it was coming because I was and still am a big Final Fantasy fan. I dunno, I just never got around to it. Anyway, nice work as always!

Jordan Coleman

I don't think I've ever both dreaded and anticipated listening to a podcast before. Final Fantasy X is possibly one of the most impactful gamesI've ever played and Retronauts is probably the podcast I've followed thelongest. Both of them came to me in my teens and both have influenced how I view games. Retronauts, though is probably the one that has grown with me.    But FFX is the Final Fantasy that got me into FF and I mostly follow that stereotype of “you always remember your first”. Before X, growing up as an N64 kid, my only exposure to FF was the commercials and The Spirits Within. My friend group was weird and the Playstation might as well not exist compared to the power of "Bond". Yet, I was somewhat aware of it, and with my burgeoning interests in anime and drive for more "mature" experiences. Also, thanks to being 12, I was drawn in by games that looked to offer more complex experiences. It was really an old Toonami PR review of it that brought the game to my attention. Just thinking about my first experience with FF is a conclave of nostalgia. Finally "growing" out of Nintendo, I received my first personal tv and a PS2 for Christmas 2001, mostly thanks to pressuring my mom for Grand Theft Auto 3. During Xmas breaks, going to Blockbuster was almost an institution for my family. So with that last week of vacation I rented Final Fantasy X. I was aware of the concept of jrpgs thanks to Pokemon, but also FF's legacy as a very cinematic adventure. Yet, I was such a novice at these things that I simply assumed that in games like FFX you level up and no attention is to be made past that. My assumption that my characters were becoming stronger was thrown out when I fought my first Sin Spawn. But FFX was what I dreamt it would be. It felt like this grand adventure, an actual interactive story. Complete with twists, turns, character arcs, and things that to me just felt so above what I had played before. Playing Metal Gear Solid 2 and this in close proximity was earth-shattering. Games can have stories! Games can be art! FFX helped create those feelings, which I still have today.  I think I've cooled off on that kind of passion these days and I'd honestly say I think FFXII is my favorite FF thanks to its more mature story. And by mature I mean yeah it kind of runs out of steam, but it deals with less jpop infused angst with a cool art direction that grumpy anime fans such as myself can feel cool about liking. That said FFX is still a beloved game to me.  Plenty dislike of Tidus was displayed in this episode and while he can grate, I really enjoyed his more positive attitude and sunny sensibilities. In a genre that loves to pit angsty sad boys against evil sad boys or just straight-up bland self insert characters, Tidus is honestly a breath of fresh air. He's happy and he yearns to support his friends. Dad issues may abound, but I can relate to his dad issues. His story is mostly relatable and feels more real than a soldier suffering an identity crisis. His romance with Yuna feels understandable as they both have alot in common. It's simple stuff, but I think that's what makes FFX strong. It's well rounded and there hasn't been such a well-rounded FF in a long time. The battle system can be easy, but thanks to the CTB and seeing how turns can be affected it can feel strategic. Seeing buffs and what they actually do is honestly a revelation and makes them feel like they have a point. Maybe I'd use growl in Pokemon if it displayed how many turns the enemy would be affected. The sphere grid can feel tedious, but it also easies you in. Understand what the characters are and then start messing with them. Sure Yuna eventually outclasses Lulu, but she does because I got her there in an easy-to-understand way. The story can become a little crazy, but I never think it loses its focus and feels like it runs out of steam. Well, I feel like it has fewer things to do with some of the party members as the story goes on, hey no jrpg is perfect. Yet, the game finishes strong with one of the most satisfying bittersweet endings I've seen in a game. Well rounded is how I would describe FFX. FFX to me is the definition of a jrpg. Plenty of jrpgs have better stories, better battle systems, better worlds, and so on. FFX is an 8 in all those. It does great in pretty much every category while having excellent production values and polish. It's the FF I'd recommend to anyone interested in JRPGs or FF.

James Krusling

I couldn’t get into this one when it came out but I finally played the HD version a couple years ago and really appreciated it a lot more. Granted, I still don’t understand Blitzball at all and count me among the people who don’t care for the laughing scene all that much, but the battle system is pretty great and overall I think the story is interesting if not quite up to the VI/VII/IX levels or anything. I think the podcast definitely reflects the mixed feelings I have about this one in that I think it’s undeniably really good, but there’s a lot here that I wish was a bit more refined.

Shannon Williams

Thank you, Jeremy, for coming to the game's defense. Over the last couple years I've replayed FF4-FFX and only finished 4 and 10. Which was strange, after only really wanting to play 6 and 9 again. There's so much gibberish in every mainline entry, I think that reducing FFX to being about a bad laughing scene and daddy issues is ignoring how playable the game still is, in 2021.

Derrick Bettis

Wow, y’all were really down on my fav game of all time! I’ll try to have more thoughts later, but for now, thanks for playing anyways.

Eino Keskitalo

FFX was such a conflicting game to play (I played it through around 2009), I enjoyed it but it was so silly to me. I didn't mind the linearity, it was like a road movie of sorts and the structure worked well enough I thought. Thanks for the discussion! For some reason it's been particularly enjoyable to hear the eyewitness accounts around this era.