Final Fantasy IX
Round-Up
 June 16th, 2000 -
Over the past week a lot of Final Fantasy IX news has been filtering through from Japan, and Final Fantasy: Worlds Apart is here
to bring you a round-up of the recent goings on!
Japanese Front And Back Covers
With only three weeks until the Japanese launch of Final Fantasy IX, Sony have revealed the front and back covers - and
long-time fans will be pleased with its simplicity. Let's just hope that the North American and United Kingdom
front cover is much the same after the disgrace that was the Final Fantasy VIII front cover.
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Front Cover
Sticking to the Japanese tradition of a pure white background with the logo, Square
haven't really invested much time into the front cover. And a good job, too! ^_^
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Back Cover
Resplendent with an Amano sketch of Zidane in the background, the back sticks to the idea
of keeping everything simplistic. Note the lack of PocketStation support.
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Summon Monsters
Final Fantasy IX will include summon monsters (it was just about cetain it would anyway), and the first two have been
confirmed in the form of Odin and Bahamut. As usual, Odin will be riding a giant horse, cutting his foe in
two, and Bahamut will be stronger this time with his Megaflare attack.
What is interesting is that Bahamut can be seen facing the summon monster Alexander (who seems to be guarding, or even
possessing in a way, Alexandria castle) as if they are about to do battle...
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The red dragon facing Alexandria's castle is Bahamut...
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...and this is him close up. Mean looking fellow.
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This is Odin, back as a standard summonable monster.
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Summonable monsters seem to play a bigger role in Final Fantasy IX...
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You will be able at this point in the game be able to switch scenes and play as VIVI for a bit.
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Active Time Event (A.T.E.)
A system not seen in any previous Final Fantasy game, 'Active Time Event' allows you to play the role of other characters
in real-time, while another event is still happening. For example, if the A.T.E. menu appears while you are playing
as Zidane, you will be able to play as another character, such as VIVI, and walk about in his scenario. This is intended to
give you the chance to learn more about the character's individual personalities.
Chocobo Mini-Game
If Square didn't include Chocobo's in Final Fantasy IX, we're pretty sure riots would ensue outside of their
headquarters in Japan, but we are pleasantly surprised to find that they'll have a bigger part to play than
previously expected. In his diary on PlayOnline.com, Nobou Uematsu comments that the Chocobo mini-game will
be "very addictive and deep" and goes on to say that although a player might think they have done everything they
could, they discover more: "I thought I did all the chocobos, but it seems there are even more", mentioning
a town called Toreno.
Leather Clothing
Quite amusingly, if the chivalrous Zidane is equipped with "leather clothes", he can learn the ability "Defend Girls".
If Items are combined, then they can become more powerful and new abilities can be learnt.
Article by Rob for Final Fantasy: Worlds Apart.
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