While the release of PlayStation 2 staple Final Fantasy X hasn’t exactly felt like very long ago, it’s already been over 13 years since it hit North America. In that time, it became the first Final Fantasy to ever spawn a direct sequel, had several of its main protagonists (and villains!) given the crossover treatment in titles like Dissidia and Kingdom Hearts, and had its memory-making musical scores played by symphonies across the globe in the Distant Worlds symphonic tour.
Final Fantasy X had staying power. And Square Enix brought it back – HD remastered and with all the extra parts of the international version that were left on the cutting room floor when it was first released in North America. Preorders flooded the online marketplace on Amazon and the Square Enix store, and now nearly everyone who has preordered the fan favorite have received their copies and started it up.
But now what?
Far from the smoothest release day, Final Fantasy X/X-2 is experiencing a release like those experienced by PC releases – that is, full of crashes, freezing, bugs, and a flurry of customer complaints.
Add in the fact that with the hype of FFX/X-2‘s release reaching boiling point, those fans who haven’t preordered but are still terribly interested in reliving what some consider “the last great traditional Final Fantasy” still have a variety of questions regarding what exactly you get that is different between the three different releases… and how they compare to the original.
Here are some of the most popular questions (and issues!) first-day players have asked and experienced.
How many different versions of the new release are there?
There are three of them: the Standard Edition, the Special or Limited Edition, and the Collector’s Edition. For the PS3 versions:
- Standard Edition: This edition comes with just the game.
- Special/Limited Edition: This edition comes with the game in different artbook packaging and includes 24 pages of concept art and commentary. It was available as a free upgrade for preorders of the game.
- Collector’s Edition: This is available exclusively through the Square Enix store and comes with the game in different artbook packaging with 40 pages instead of 24, five lithographs, and a Blu-ray music disc.
For the PS Vita version, those who preorder the game also received three collector cards with their game but there is no artbook packaging.
How is it different from the original game?
This reviewer on Amazon came up with the best list of differences:
- Improved map and character/monster textures
- Remade character models
- Higher quality cutscenes
- Trophy support for each individual games (Double platinum!)
- Cropped change from 4:3 to 16:9 perspective
- Improved voice audio
- Approximately 60 remastered music tracks
- Exclusive 30-minute audio drama following the end credits
- Added “Final Fantasy X International” content, which includes a newer Sphere Grid and Dark Aeons, as well as new bosses and abilities
- Added “Final Fantasy X-2 International + Last Mission” content, which includes new dresspheres, a new Coliseum battle arena, and a new dungeon
I have the game but it freezes right after the opening cut scene!
This is a common problem that many users are experiencing with the Limited Edition preorders. Right after Tidus leaves to the adoration of screaming fans, the game skips and then freezes. Several people have reported that restarting and replaying it once or twice have allowed them to move past this scene and continue on through the game.
Others have recommended contacting Square Enix directly (even if you bought from Amazon since they have essentially sold out of the Limited Edition stock – on Amazon.com and Amazon.ca at least – and cannot simply send you a replacement disc).
I have the PS Vita version. Why isn’t it downloading?
Several users who purchased the PS Vita Final Fantasy X/X-2 have experienced version errors (invalid code error) when downloading the game and installing updates. This is due to a recent PlayStation store update.
Unfortunately there is no current fix for this issue but they are aware of the problem and have reported on coming out with a solution fix for it as soon as possible.
If you have other questions and are experiencing issues with your game, please feel free to leave a comment and I’ll see if I (or any other commenters) can find you a solution!
