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<document>
<title>Final Fantasy IX</title>
<authors>Wikipedia</authors>
<publisher>wikipedia.org</publisher>
<publishedplace>network</publishedplace>
<publishedyear>2010</publishedyear>
<edition></edition>
<category>Interactive Achievement Award winners</category>
<section id="10741" fatherid="0" title="" lv="" priority="-1" level="1">
is a console role-playing game developed and published by Square (now Square Enix) as the ninth installment in the Final Fantasy series. It was released in 2000 and is the third and last numbered Final Fantasy game for Sony's PlayStation. The game introduced new features to the series, such as the "Active Time Event", "Mognet", and a revamped equipment and skill system.
Set in the fantasy world of Gaia, Final Fantasy IXs plot centers on a war between several nations. Players follow a young thief named Zidane Tribal, who joins with several others to defeat Queen Brahne of Alexandria, who started the war. The plot shifts, however, when the characters realize that Brahne is a puppet for an arms dealer called Kuja.
Final Fantasy IX was developed alongside Final Fantasy VIII, but took a different path to return to the series' roots with a more traditional fantasy setting. Consequently, Final Fantasy IX was influenced heavily by the original Final Fantasy game, and features allusions to other titles in the series. The music was scored by the then regular series composer Nobuo Uematsu. The game has been subject to generally positive reviews, but received mixed opinions for its return to the style of older Final Fantasy games. Final Fantasy IX was commercially successful, selling 5.30 million units worldwide as of March 31, 2003.

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<section id="10742" fatherid="0" title="Gameplay" lv="" priority="-2" level="1">
<section id="10743" fatherid="10742" title="" lv="" priority="-1" level="2">
In Final Fantasy IX, the player navigates a character throughout the game world, exploring areas and interacting with non-player characters. Most of the game occurs in towns, dungeons, caves, and similar areas, which are referred to as "field screens". To aid exploration on the field screen, Final Fantasy IX introduces the "field icon", an exclamation mark appearing over their lead character's head, signaling that an item or sign is nearby. Players speak with moogles to record their progress, restore life energy with a tent, and purchase items - a deviation from previous installments, which used a save point to perform these functions. Moogles may request that the playable character deliver letters to other Moogles via "Mognet".
Players journey between field screen locations via the world map, a three dimensional, downsized representation of Final Fantasy IXs world presented from a top-down perspective. Players can freely navigate around the world map screen unless restricted by terrain, such as water or mountains. To overcome geographical limitations, players can ride emu-like chocobos, sail on a boat, or pilot airships. Like previous Final Fantasy installments, travel across the world map screen and hostile field screen locations is interrupted by random enemy encounters.
Final Fantasy IX offers a new approach to town exploration with Active Time Events (ATE), which provide character development, special items, and prompts for key story-altering decisions. At specific points, the player may view events that are occurring simultaneously. ATE is occasionally used to simultaneously control two teams when the party is divided to solve puzzles and navigate mazes.

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<section id="10744" fatherid="10742" title="Combat" lv="" priority="-2" level="2">
Whenever the playable character encounters an enemy, the map changes to the "battle screen". On the battle screen, the enemy appears on the opposite side of the characters; each battle uses the familiar Active Time Battle system that was first featured in Final Fantasy IV. The character's command list is presented in a window opposite the ATB gauge list; while all characters can physically attack the enemy or use an item from the player's inventory, they also possess unique abilities. For instance, the thief Zidane can steal items from the enemy, Eiko and Garnet can summon "eidolons" to aid the party, and Vivi can use black magic to damage the opposition.
These character-specific commands change when the player goes into "Trance mode", which is activated for a short duration when an uncontrollable gauge fills as character sustains damage in a style similar to the Limit Breaks used in Final Fantasy VII. When the gauge is full, the character's strength is amplified, and the player can select special attack commands. Zidane's "Skill" command list, for example, changes to "Dyne", allowing him to execute powerful attacks; Vivi's "Black Magic" command evolves into "Double Black", allowing him to cast two magic spells simultaneously. Through the Configuration screen, the player can change the Battle Style from Normal to Custom, which allows two players to control two characters during battle. However, two controllers must be plugged into the PlayStation.
A character's performance in battle is determined by numerical values ("statistics") for categories such as speed, strength, and magical power. Character statistics are driven by experience; when players win battles, they are awarded "experience points", which accumulate until characters gain "experience levels". When characters "level up", the statistics for their attributes permanently increase, which may also be amplified by the types of equipment the character is wearing. Winning battles also awards the player money (Gil), Tetra Master playing cards, and ability points (AP).

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<section id="10745" fatherid="10742" title="Abilities and equipment" lv="" priority="3" level="2">
Final Fantasy IX deviates from the style of customizable characters featured in the last two titles by reviving the character class concept, which designates a character to a certain role in battle. For instance, Vivi is designated as a black mage and is the only character who can use black magic, and Steiner is a knight and is the only character who can use sword skills.
The basic function of equipment in Final Fantasy games is to increase character attributes; arming Zidane with a Mythril Vest, for example, increases his base defense statistic. In Final Fantasy IX, weapons and armor include special character abilities, which the character may use once the item is equipped (permitting that the ability matches their class). Once the character accumulates enough ability points in battle, the ability becomes usable without having to keep the item equipped. In addition to granting abilities the equipment in Final Fantasy IX determines the statistical growth of the characters at the time of level up. Armor not only raises base defense or evasion statistics but raises defense and/or other statistics at level up.
Abilities are classified into action and support categories. Action abilities consume magic points (MP) and include magic spells and special moves that are used in battle. Support abilities provide functions that remain in effect indefinitely (e.g., the support ability "Antibody" nullifies poisonous attacks), and must be equipped with magic stones to be functional. The maximum number of these stones increases as the characters level up.

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</section>
<section id="10746" fatherid="0" title="Plot" lv="" priority="-3" level="1">
<section id="10747" fatherid="10746" title="Setting" lv="" priority="1" level="2">
Final Fantasy IX takes place primarily on the four continents of a world named Gaia (homonymous with Final Fantasy VIIs Gaia, but not the same world). Most of Gaia's population reside on the Mist Continent, named so because the entire continent is blanketed in thick Mist. Lands outside the Mist Continent—the Outer, Lost and Forgotten continents—are uncharted territories not explored until midway through the game. Several locations on the parallel world of Terra and the dream land of Memoria round out the game's areas. The Mist Continent features four factions: Alexandria, Lindblum, Burmecia, and Cleyra. Each country is separated by mountain ranges; the isolated Cleyran civilization, nestled in a giant tree in the desert, is protected by a sandstorm summoned by the village elders.
Gaia is inhabited by humans and various non-human races. Alexandria and Lindblum are both populated by a mix of humans and anthropomorphic animals. The Burmecians are anthropomorphic rats who live in both Burmecia and Cleyra. The Cleyrans, who value dance, split from the Burmecians when the latter started to appreciate "the art of war". The dwarves are short humanoid creatures who appear as inhabitants of the village of Conde Petie on the Outer Continent. There is also a village of black mages that have gained sentient thought which reside in the Outer Continent as well. The Genomes, an artificial race of soulless vessels, inhabit Terra; they will house the once-dormant Terran souls when Terra assimilates Gaia. Summoners are similar to other humans, but with a horn on their forehead. In the story, only two summoners remain (Garnet and Eiko); the others were exterminated when the Terran warship Invincible destroyed their homeland of Madain Sari. Lastly, the Qu are large, seemingly androgynous humanoids, who are recognized as fine gourmands. They inhabit marshlands throughout the world where they catch their main source of nutrition: frogs.
In Final Fantasy IX, the game's developers sought to make the game's environment more "fantasy-oriented" than its PlayStation predecessors. Since the creators wanted to prevent the series from following a redundant setting, Final Fantasy IX distinctly breaks from the futuristic styles of Final Fantasy VII and Final Fantasy VIII by reintroducing a medieval setting. In the game, steam technology is just beginning to become widely available; the population relies on hydropower or wind power for energy sources, but sometimes harness Mist or steam to power more advanced engines.Man: I'll be joining a team of engineers who are developing a new engine that runs without Mist. The world outside the Mist Continent is uncharted territory, but there's no need to worry about our safety if we can explore it on an airship. Regent Cid is an advocate of technological advancement. Oh, sorry. I talked your ear off." Continuing with the medieval theme, the game's setting is inspired by Norse and Northern European mythology. According to director Hiroyuki Itō, "The development team is attracted to European history and mythology because of its depth and its drama". The main Final Fantasy IX website says the development of the game's world serves as a culmination of the series by blending the "successful elements of the past, such as a return to the fantasy roots," with newer elements.

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<section id="10748" fatherid="10746" title="Characters" lv="" priority="2" level="2">
The eight main playable characters in Final Fantasy IX are Zidane Tribal, a member of a group of bandits called Tantalus masquerading as a theater troupe; Garnet Til Alexandros XVII (alias Dagger), the Princess of Alexandria who has a strange connection to "Eidolons", Vivi Orunitia, a young, timid, and kind black mage trying to find the meaning of his existence; Adelbert Steiner, the Captain of the Knights of Pluto and loyal servant of Alexandria and Princess Garnet; Freya Crescent, a dragon knight from the city of Burmecia looking for her lost love; Quina Quen, a Qu whose master wants him/her to travel the world so that s/he will learn about cuisine; Eiko Carol, a six-year-old girl living in Madain Sari, the lost village of the eidolon summoners, and along with Garnet, one of the last two remaining summoners; and Amarant Coral, a bounty hunter hired to return Garnet to Alexandria. Other main characters include Regent Cid Fabool, the charismatic leader of Lindblum; Queen Brahne, Garnet's mother and the power-hungry Queen of Alexandria; General Beatrix, the powerful leader of the female knights of Alexandria; and antagonist Kuja, an arms dealer and enemy of Gaia. Other minor characters and groups also appear; such as Blank, Zidane's good friend and band partner but their significance and back-stories are revealed as the game progresses.
During development, the creators made the characters a high priority. The return to the series' roots also affected the characters' designs, which resulted in characters with "comic-like looks". Uematsu commented that the design staff attempted to give the characters realism while still appearing comic-like. To accomplish this, and to satisfy fans who had become used to the realistic designs of Final Fantasy VIII, the designers stressed creating characters with whom the player could easily relate.

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<section id="10749" fatherid="10746" title="Story" lv="" priority="-3" level="2">
Final Fantasy IX begins with Zidane and the Tantalus Theater Troupe kidnapping Princess Garnet during her sixteenth birthday celebration. The group learns that Garnet, who is concerned about Queen Brahne's increasingly erratic behavior, actually wanted to escape to Lindblum to meet with Regent Cid,Garnet: I am actually... Princess Garnet Til Alexandros, heir to the throne of Alexandria. I have a favor I wish to ask of you... I wish to be kidnapped... away.and had planned to stow away on the theater ship. The Troupe's airship, Prima Vista, is damaged during the escape; it crashes in the Evil Forest, prompting Zidane to continue the trek to Lindblum without the rest of Tantalus.Baku: So, you're leaving, eh? / Zidane: Yeah... I promised Garnet I'd kidnap her. Zidane and Garnet are accompanied by Vivi and Steiner, who became entangled with Tantalus during their escape from Alexandria. During their journey, Garnet adopts the alias "Dagger" and struggles to mingle with the locals.Garnet: I will be called Dagger from now on. The group learns of a factory inside the village of Dali, that manufactures soulless black mage warriors for Alexandria's use. Brahne dispatches three powerful ones called Black Waltzes to retrieve Garnet by force, but their mission ends in failure.
In Lindblum, Zidane meets Freya and joins in Lindblum's Festival of the Hunt. Regent Cid has been turned into a bug-like oglop by his wife Hilda, for his womanizing behavior.Regent Cid: "When Hilda found out about my little affair, she used her magic and turned me into an oglop.  Wishing to protect Garnet from Brahne's newfound aggression, he had ordered Tantalus to kidnap her.Dagger: Uncle Cid hired Tantalus out of concern for my safety.  When the group learns that Alexandria has invaded Burmecia, Freya investigates the situation with Zidane and Vivi, while Dagger and Steiner head to Alexandria to ask Brahne to stop the war.Dagger: I have to help Mother... I don't want to see anything happen to her... / Steiner: Very well. Princess, I will follow you wherever you choose.  Both parties are powerless to stop her, and Dagger has her eidolons forcibly extracted from her body.Queen Brahne: Zorn, Thorn! Prepare to extract the eidolons from Garnet.  Brahne uses Dagger's eidolons to destroy Cleyra, after which she attacks Lindblum, forcing Cid to surrender.Minister Artania: Yes, Princess. The castle was spared. Regent Cid is alive.  Zidane, Freya, and Vivi, after witnessing the assault on Cleyra, rescue Dagger, befriend General Beatrix, and return to Lindblum.
Afterward, Cid tells the party about Brahne's arms dealer, Kuja.Regent Cid: I believe Kuja is the only one supplying  Brahne with weapons.  The party travels to the Outer Continent, the location of Kuja's headquarters, through an underground tunnel with the help of Quina.Minister Artania: That he came from the north suggests he's from the Outer Continent. There, the party meets a young summoner named Eiko, who assumes herself to be the last survivor of Madain Sari. They also discover a village inhabited by self-aware Black Mages. Their pursuit of Kuja leads them to the nearby Iifa Tree, an entity that dissipates fighting-stimulant Mist.Soulcage: I contaminate the other continents with Mist to stimulate the fighting instinct.  They also learn that Kuja uses Mist to create the Black Mages.Zidane: What kind of weapons did Kuja make? / Soulcage: Kuja called them black mages, dark spawn of the Mist.  The party defeats the Iifa Tree's core and stops the Mist from flowing. When the party returns to Madain Sari, they confront Amarant, who was hired by Brahne to apprehend Dagger. Dagger slowly realizes that she is also a Summoner from Madain Sari. Amarant joins the party for his own reasons. At the Iifa Tree, Brahne turns against Kuja and intends to kill him with the eidolon Bahamut.Queen Brahne: Kuja! So you finally decided to show your girly face here! You're all that stands between me and total domination! However, Kuja uses the airship Invincible to gain control of Bahamut, killing Brahne and defeating her army.Kuja: Excellent, Bahamut! Power, mobility... You truly are the best! You even hurt me...a little. And you, Brahne... Your tragic role in this drama now comes to an end!
The party returns to Alexandria, and Garnet is crowned Queen. Afterward, Kuja assaults Alexandria with Bahamut. Eiko and Garnet summon the legendary eidolon Alexander, who overpowers Bahamut. Kuja attempts to control Alexander using the Invincible, but is foiled by a mysterious old man named Garland, who destroys Alexander and parts of Alexandria.Garland: You have gone too far, Kuja. I granted you the freedom to do as you wish in Gaia for one purpose alone. Now that you have lost sight of your mission, I will no longer tolerate your actions.  Kuja, still intent on mastering a powerful eidolon to defeat Garland, shifts his attention to Eiko.Kuja: I sense power from within her. Continue the extraction!"  The party learns of Kuja's Desert Palace and attempts an assault. However, Kuja imprisons the party and escapes with Eiko to extract her eidolons. During the extraction attempt, Eiko's guardian moogle Mog uses Trance to transform into her true form, the eidolon Madeen, disrupting the process.Eiko: Mog saved me... I never knew that Mog was an eidolon. She always looked after me...disguised as a moogle.  Learning of the powers of Trance,Kuja: How can that--That moogle went into a Trance!? So...an eruption of anger against one's surroundings induces a complete Trance! It's not the will to live, nor is it the desire to protect another! Kuja escapes to further his aim of defeating Garland.Kuja:I need an eidolon more powerful than Alexander! An eidolon with the power to bury Garland! His powers are so incredible; I cannot even come close. I must destroy him before Terra's plan is activated, or my soul will no longer be my own! The party rescues Eiko and also finds Hilda, who turns Cid back into a human. He is now able to design an airship for the party that does not need Mist for power.Hilda: Al. I'll turn you back. But it's going to be much worse if you ever cheat on me again! / Regent Cid: I...I understand. Now turn me back!
With Hilda's aid,Hilda: You may find a clue if you go to Ipsen's Castle. / Eiko: Did you ask Kuja about all of this? / Hilda: These are things he discussed voluntarily.  the party pursues Kuja to Terra by opening a portal. In the Terran town of Bran Bal, it is revealed that Garland was created by the people of Terra to orchestrate the process of assimilating Terra into Gaia, as Terra was a dying world. Garland created Genomes - intelligent, sentient beings who lack souls - to become future vessels for the souls of the Terrans.Garland: I constructed the Genomes to be vessels for the souls of the people of Terra when they awaken.  The Iifa Tree's existence,Garland: the Iifa Tree blocks the flow of Gaia's souls, while it lets those of Terra flow freely.  the phenomenon of Mist,Garland: The role of the Iifa Tree is that of Soul Divider. The Mist you see comprises the stagnant souls of Gaia...  the eidolon's destruction,Garland: I feared Gaia's eidolons more than anything... However, I decided to deal with them before they became a major problem.  and even Kuja and Zidane's true purpose of existence,Zidane: So...Kuja is just an angel of death who sends souls to the Tree of Iifa. / Garland: Yes, my angel of death. But only until you came of age.  were part of the process. Angered by Garland's motives, the party confronts him. However, Kuja has now obtained enough souls to achieve Trance.Kuja': The Invincible is mine! Now, I have the power to control all souls! Garland gave me everything without a fight. The old fool was too busy dealing with him.  Trance Kuja ends Garland's life, but not before Garland warns him of his limited lifespan, and that Zidane was created to replace him.Garland's voice: Do you think a defect like you could last forever...? / Kuja: ...What? What do you mean!?" / Garland's voice: I built you to last only until the worthy Genome, Zidane, grew. It was too dangerous to let you last any longer than that.  Enraged by this revelation, Kuja destroys Terra while the party rescues the Genomes and returns to Gaia on the Invincible.
The party discovers that Mist has returned and now envelops all of Gaia. Assisted by the combined forces of Burmecia, Lindblum, and Alexandria, they travel to the Iifa Tree, where they are teleported to a mysterious location called Memoria. The spirit of Garland guides the party to Kuja. When Kuja is defeated, he uses his Trance abilities to destroy the Crystal, the source of life,Kuja: It's the original crystal... This is where it all began... The birthplace of all things... Once I destroy it, everything will be gone. Gaia, Terra, the universe, everything...  prompting the appearance of Necron, the "Eternal Darkness" bent on destroying life.Necron: I exist for one purpose... To return everything back to the zero world, where there is no life and no crystal to give life.  After Necron is defeated, Memoria and the Iifa Tree collapse. Although Kuja teleports the party to safety, Zidane returns to save him, and is later assumed to have died with Kuja in the collapse.Zidane: ...Kuja's still alive. I can't just leave him. 
Some time later, Alexandria has been rebuilt, and Tantalus arrives in Alexandria to perform "I Want To Be Your Canary" for Queen Garnet. During the play, one of the performers removes his robe and reveals himself to be Zidane,saved by Kuja's barrier from the collapsing tree. The credits roll as Garnet and Zidane embrace. Other scenes reveal that there are some Vivi clones still living; Steiner and Beatrix have returned to their old posts as royal bodyguards and have also become romantically involved; Eiko has been adopted by Regent Cid and Lady Hilda; Freya is attempting to start over with her former love, Sir Fratley; Armarant is reunited with Lani while, curiously, on his way to Alexandria; and Quina has now become the head chef of the Alexandria Castle kitchen.

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<section id="10750" fatherid="0" title="Development and release" lv="" priority="4" level="1">
Development of Final Fantasy IX began before Square had finished development on its predecessor, Final Fantasy VIII. The game was developed in Hawaii as a compromise to developers living in the United States. As the series' last game on the PlayStation, Sakaguchi envisioned a "reflection" on the older titles of the series.  Leading up to its release, Sakaguchi called Final Fantasy IX his favorite Final Fantasy game as "it's closest to his ideal view of what Final Fantasy should be". This shift was also a response to demands from fans and other developers. Additionally, the team wanted to create an understandable story with deep character development; this led to the creation of Active Time Events.
In the game's conceptual stage, the developers made it clear that the title would not necessarily be Final Fantasy IX, as its break from the realism of Final Fantasy VII and Final Fantasy VIII may have alienated audiences. This led fans to speculate that it would be released as a "gaiden" to the main series. By late 1999, however, Square had confirmed that the game would indeed be published as Final Fantasy IX, and by early 2000, the game was nearly finished. The developers made several adjustments to the game, such as changing the ending seven times.
Final Fantasy IXs release was delayed to avoid a concurrent release with rival Enix's Dragon Quest VII. On October 7, 2000, a demo day for the North American version of Final Fantasy IX was held at the Metreon in San Francisco, California. The first American release of the game was also at the Metreon; limited edition merchandise was included with the game, and fans cosplayed as Final Fantasy characters in celebration of the release. In Canada, a production error  copies of Final Fantasy IX without an English version of the instruction manual, prompting Square to ship copies of the English manual to Canadian stores several days later.
The game was heavily promoted both before and after its release. Starting on March 6, 2000, Final Fantasy IX characters were used in a line of computer-generated Coca-Cola commercials. Figurines of several characters were also used as prizes in Coca-Cola's marketing campaign. That same year, IGN awarded Final Fantasy dolls and figurines for prizes in several of their contests.
Final Fantasy IX was also the benchmark of Square's interactive PlayOnline service. PlayOnline was originally developed to interact with Final Fantasy X, but when those plans fell through it became a strategy site for Final Fantasy IX. The site was designed to complement BradyGames' and Piggyback Interactive's official strategy guides for the game, where players who bought the print guide had access to "keywords" that could be searched for on PlayOnline's site for extra tips and information. This caused fury among buyers of the guide, as they felt cheated for the expensive print guide. The blunder made GameSpy's "Top 5 Dumbest Moments in Gaming" list, and Square dropped the idea for Final Fantasy X, which was under development at the time.

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<section id="10751" fatherid="0" title="Music" lv="" priority="5" level="1">
The music of Final Fantasy IX was created by Nobuo Uematsu, his last exclusive Final Fantasy score. In discussions with Itō, Uematsu was told "It'd be fine if you compose tracks for the eight characters, an exciting battle track, a gloomy, danger-evoking piece, and around ten tracks or so." However, Uematsu spent an estimated year composing and producing "around 160" pieces for Final Fantasy IX, with 140 appearing in the game.
Nobuo Uematsu composed with a piano and used two contrasting methods: "I create music that fits the events in the game, but sometimes, the event designer will adjust a game event to fit the music I've already written." Uematsu felt Final Fantasy VII and Final Fantasy VIII had a mood of realism, but Final Fantasy IX was fantasy, so "a serious piece as well as silly, fun pieces could fit in." He felt the theme was medieval music, and was given a break to travel in Europe for inspiration—"looking at old castles in Germany and so on". The music was not entirely composed in the medieval mode, Uematsu claims that "it would be unbalanced" and "a little boring". He aimed for a "simple, warm" style and included uncommon instruments such as a kazoo and dulcimer. Uematsu also included motifs from older Final Fantasy games "because Final Fantasy IX was returning to the roots, so to speak" and incorporated ideas such as "the old intro for battle music" and arranged the Volcano theme from Final Fantasy and the Pandemonium theme from Final Fantasy II. Tantalus' band is also heard playing "Rufus' Welcoming Ceremony" from Final Fantasy VII near the beginning of the game.
Uematsu was twice reported claiming without hesitation that Final Fantasy IX was his favorite score. The original soundtrack for the game has 110 tracks; an additional soundtrack, Final Fantasy IX Original Soundtrack PLUS, was released with 42 more new tracks. Like Final Fantasy VIII and Final Fantasy X, Final Fantasy IX features a J-pop ballad, Melodies of Life. The song was composed by Uematsu, written by Hiroyuki Ito (as Shiomi) in Japanese and Alexander O. Smith in English, and performed by Emiko Shiratori. The song itself was sung in Japanese for the Japanese release of the game, and in English for the North American and European releases.

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<section id="10752" fatherid="0" title="Reception" lv="" priority="-6" level="1">
<section id="10753" fatherid="10752" title="" lv="" priority="-1" level="2">
Although a top-seller at the time, Final Fantasy IX did not sell as well as Final Fantasy VII or Final Fantasy VIII in either Japan or the United States. As of March 31, 2003, the game had sold 5.30 million copies worldwide. The game was voted the 24th-best game of all time by readers of the Japanese magazine Famitsu and 42nd by the users of the website GameFAQs. Final Fantasy IX also achieved an average review score of 94% on Metacritic, the highest score a Final Fantasy game has received on the site.
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<section id="10754" fatherid="10752" title="Critical response" lv="" priority="-2" level="2">
Reviews for the game were generally positive, with praise to the graphics and nostalgic elements. Critics pointed out that the strength of the game lies on the gameplay, character development, and visual representation. GameSpot noted that the learning curve is easily grasped, and the ability system is not as complex as in Final Fantasy VII or Final Fantasy VIII. Each player character possesses unique abilities, which hinders the development of an over-powered character. GameSpot describes the battle system as having a tactical nature and the expanded party allowing for more interaction between players and between enemies. Nevertheless, IGN disliked the lengthy combat pace and the repeated battles, describing it as aggravating, and RPG fan feels the Trance system to be ineffective as the meter buildup is slow and unpredictable, with characters Trancing just before the enemy is killed.
The characters and graphics received positive reviews. Although IGN feels the in-depth character traits in Final Fantasy IX could be generally found in other Final Fantasy games, they are nevertheless engaging and sympathetic. GameSpot finds the characters, up to their dialogue and traits, amusing and full of humor. IGN also noted that the Active Time Event system helps to expand the player's understanding of the characters' personalities as they question many ideas and emotions. Their super-deformed appearance, which also covers monsters of every size, contain detailed animation and design. They gave praise to the pre-rendered backgrounds, noting the careful attention given to the artwork, movement and animations as well as character interactivity. The movies are seen as emotive and compelling, and the seamless transition and incorporation to the in-game graphics helped to move the plot well.
On the other hand, critics acknowledged that the overall story is recycled from previous Final Fantasy installments and other role-playing games. However, the repeated elements such as evil kingdoms and enigmatic villains are believed by RPGFan as an attempt to emulate the elements of previous Final Fantasy plot and storyline. The main villain, though considered by GameSpot to be the least threatening in the series, is seen by IGN as a mixture of past villains through behavior and appearance. Mixed reactions were given to the audio aspects of the game. Some reviewers, such as RPGFan feels the sound effect and music "uninspired, dull and annoying"; IGN and GameSpot acknowledges that only a handful of the tracks are memorable, while GamePro praised the audio for evoking "emotions throughout the story, from battles... to comedy". They leveled criticism on composer Nobuo Uematsu who seemed to have only reused and simplified the scores of past series. Nevertheless, reviewers have come to agree that this and many other elements are part of the overall effort to create a nostalgic title for fans of the older Final Fantasy titles.
The strategy guide also gained criticism; it urged buyers to log on to an online site to gain the information, instead of providing it within the actual guide. The book's given links are no longer accessible on the PlayOnline website. Tetra Master was seen by GameSpot as inferior and confusing compared to Final Fantasy VIIIs minigame Triple Triad, as the rules for it were only vaguely explained in the game and there were very few rewards earned from playing it despite its expansive nature.

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<section id="10755" fatherid="0" title="References" lv="" priority="-7" level="1">
<section id="10756" fatherid="10755" title="Game quotes" lv="" priority="-1" level="2">
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<section id="10757" fatherid="0" title="External links" lv="" priority="-8" level="1">
Category:2000 video games
Category:Final Fantasy games
Category:Interactive Achievement Award winners
Category:PlayStation games
Category:Video games developed in the United States

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