What is VGChartz's opinion on Final Fantasy X?

[theRepublic]

I played Final Fantasy X my freshman year of college after two of my roommates beat it and both told me I HAD to play this amazing game. So I did. And never finished it. I just didn't think it was that good and ended up bored with it.

I liked the battle system. I remember having a lot of fun with it, and it became even better when you started getting Aeons to summon into battle. Blitzball was a ton of fun. I really liked that. It was a great little distraction whenever you wanted it.

The story and characters were ok. Not great, but not bad either. Somewhere in the middle.

What I really didn't like was how linear this game was. I really think that this is what lead to me just quitting. Every RPG I had played up to that point gave you a world to wander around in. This game gave you a hallway. Usually with vast open spaces on either side that you just can't get to. I remember being able to see the entire width of the path on the screen at once in most areas. That's terrible. Big desert? Sorry, take this one path. Big field? Sorry, take this one path. I think I just got tired of holding one direction on the controller.

Let's compare it to a game like Pokemon Blue. It actually has a world built somewhat similarly. In that game you have town-hallway-town-hallway-town-hallway, etc. The difference there, is that each 'hallway' is built a bit like a simple maze. It keeps things interesting. And instead of all the hallways built end to end (like FFX felt), the 'hallways' started to intersect each other after you beat just a few gyms. On top of that you got the occasional cave or building which was a more complex maze. (Then of course you had the autonomy to capture and level Pokemon as you saw fit, making the game feel even less linear.)

I just took a look at a guide to figure out how far into the game I was, and I think I was getting well past half way. I remember beating Seymour and being at a point where the game would not let you play Blitzball. I think when that sense of autonomy was lost, it was game over. Sorry, I don't want to push straight ahead anymore. I'm done.