final fantasy x - Playstation - http://maxpages.com/ffonline/final_fantasy

The Final Fantasy series is among the most popular franchise in Japan, with only Dragon Quest and Pokemon having any arguments over it. The influence that the Final Fantasy name has in the Japanese market is best shown by looking at the market share of the Sega Saturn and Sony PlayStation before and after the announcement of Final Fantasy VII for the PlayStation.
Up until Square's announcement that it would release Final Fantasy VII on the PlayStation game console, the Sega Saturn and PlayStation were neck and neck in the console wars in Japan. As soon as Japanese gamers found out that Final Fantasy VII would be released on the PlayStation and not the Saturn, sales of the PlayStation began to increase steadily and it began to build a lead over the Saturn that would never let up.

Final Fantasy VII went on to sell over 3.7 million units in Japan, and the next game in the series, Final Fantasy VIII, has racked up over 3.6 million units sold to date. What this means is that the Final Fantasy franchise is huge in Japan and Square's announcement at Square Millennium on January 29, 2000, which revealed that Final Fantasy X and XI were PlayStation2 bound, will have a huge impact on the next generation system battles.

While Final Fantasy X will definitely give the PlayStation2 a huge edge going into the upcoming war with Nintendo's Dolphin (tentative name), the race isn't won yet. Nintendo does have Pokemon and that franchise is arguably bigger than Final Fantasy in Japan at the moment. We'll have to wait and see how all of this turns out.

Anyway, back to Final Fantasy X. The game was shown in video form at Square Millennium and lucky journalists got the chance to see an amazing display of the PlayStation2's triangle processing power. The video showed a beautifully rendered 3D polygonal character wandering around freely in a breathtaking 3D world.

Just like in Final Fantasy IX, which will be the last Final Fantasy game on the original PlayStation, Final Fantasy X marks a change in Square's direction with the series. Based on what was show, the character designs in X are less cyber-looking and more aimed towards a fantasy-style that was more common in earlier games in the Final Fantasy series.

Final Fantasy X will also be the first Final Fantasy game to have online capabilities. While it won't be playable online like Final Fantasy XI, it will allow players to access online tips, maps and strategies to help them through the tough spots in the game in realtime. All players will have to do is log on to Square's PlayOnline service and press a few buttons to figure out how to get past the sticky area.

Final Fantasy X is headed for a spring 2001 release in Japan and will undoubtedly be one of the main reasons numerous Japanese gamers pick up a PlayStation2. The game has yet to be announced for release in the U.S., but that's just because its release is so far away. It's only a matter of time before it is announced, because it's definitely coming.

With sales exceeding 25 million units worldwide, the Final Fantasy series is one of the most lucrative videogame licenses on the planet. Thus, Final Fantasy X heading to the PlayStation2 will surely go down as one of the biggest videogame-related stories in 2000. We'll have more information and real screenshots of Final Fantasy X as soon they're made available.

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Page Updated Sat Apr 29, 2000 5:29am EDT