Just finished FFX and this is probably my 2nd favorite game of all time -right behind LoZ: Twilight Princess.
I genuinely can’t believe this game came out in 2001. The art direction, the music, the worldbuilding, the leveling system feels so incredibly polished in comparison to modern games.
I especially loved the story and the Lord of the Rings-eqsue linear journey like progression, with physically movement from one spot to the next along with the gradual emotional buildups and twists we saw with Tidus and Yuna.
The reveal that Tidus was a dream was unique and completely reframes everything, and I love how unexpected it is.
That said, I do wish the game spent a bit more time sitting with that idea. Once the reveal happens, it kind of just becomes the new reality and the story keeps moving forward. I know they provided the foreshadowing and hints, and there is some dialogue (like with the fayth and Tidus’s “regret/grateful” part) but it feels like there could’ve been more fleshing out in terms of dialogue with the dream paradigm. It’s a massive existential revelation, and I found myself wanting more reflection from both Tidus and the party.
I felt something similar with the ending cutscene. It still hit me emotionally, but the pacing felt a little fast. Besides Yuna, the party kinda just waves goodbye. I almost wish there had been just a bit more time to let that moment breathe—especially given how important their relationship is.
Part of me also wonders if these types of choices were intentional from a construction standpoint. Like, maybe they were trying to maintain the momentum of the story instead of slowing everything down with heavy dialogue once the reveal happens. The game does plant a lot of subtle hints and foreshadowing leading up to it, so maybe the idea was that the groundwork had already been laid and maybe overexplaining it at the end would’ve dulled the impact.
Same with the final CGI scene. I can’t tell if the brisk pacing is a flaw, or if it’s actually deliberate. Maybe it’s mirroring Tidus’s mindset? As in there is no long, dramatic goodbye, just a quiet acceptance and then he’s gone: he finally found a way to save Yuna and his composure and running of the ship signifies acceptance and the maturity he built across the game. But I do think the moment passes quickly, almost like it doesn’t give the characters (or the player) time to fully process it in the moment.
If that actually is what they were going for, then I think that's brilliant in its own right and I respect it. But at the same time, I still can’t help but feel like just a little more space to breathe in those moments would’ve made it hit even harder.
Overall though, these are minor compared to everything the game does right. Even with those feelings, the ending still left me in that quiet, reflective kind of sadness that sticks with you after you finish. I remember all of the charming moments, from when Yuna just for some instintive reason wanted tidus to become a gaurdian, the scene with them on the ship, the laughing scene, the blitzball tournament, the lake with the pyreflies, the shoopuff, crashing the wedding, the lightning, and think to myself Tidus experienced all of that with Yuna despite being a dream, that to me is the beauty of the game. The fact that he experienced all of that - we experienced of all that - despite not being of this world and not real, and this has left me with that quiet, sad reflective state.
What are your thoughts on the haste of the reveal/ending - if it exists at all. What was the lasting emotional impact/takeaway the game left on you. Thanks!