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Date |
: Oct 10th, 2002 |
| Genre |
: RPG |
| Developer |
: Squaresoft |
| Author |
: Jin-Ning Tioh |
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Additional Hints & Tips
Hint #1
Amplify black magic attacks by Vivi by equipping auto-reflect on everyone. Once done, simply fire off an offensive spell at all your party members and it will all bounce at your enemies. In other words, four attacks for the price of one. Heh heh...
Hint #2
Try not to sell off old armor, weapons and accessories as they can usually be used by other party members to learn new abilities. Or, you could always keep them around to combine or "Synth" up new and better stuff at certain stores.
Hint #3
In Treno, Queen Stella is collecting precious stones called the Stellazzio. There is a total 13 of them scattered around the world. Collect and bring them to her for a big fat reward. This is a list of their respective locations.
| Capricorn |
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In the first screen at Daguerreo, search to the right and you’ll find it in the water. |
| Aquarius |
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In the first room of Ipsen’s Castle. |
| Pisces |
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In the core area of the Invincible. |
| Aries |
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Behind the windmill inside the house to the north of the Mayor’s House at Dali. |
| Taurus |
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Behind the Item Shop at Treno. |
| Gemini |
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At the entrance into Treno, drop 10 gil into the pond to the left. Do so 11 times. |
| Cancer |
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On the second screen in Burmecia behind the debris on the left side of the screen. |
| Leo |
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Upper right corner of the Neptune Room in the west tower of Alexandria Castle. |
| Virgo |
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In the Black Mage Village Inn. |
| Libra |
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Behind the fountain in Madain Sari. |
| Scorpio |
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Lower level at Quan’s Dwelling, near the Recovery Spring. |
| Sagittarius |
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House of Card Freak Gon at Lindblum. Search only after Brahne destroys Lindblum. |
| Opiuchus |
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Deliver all twelve coins to Queen Stella. Then tell her there is another coin before searching where the Scorpio Stellazzio was. |
Historical Facts
Although the production values remain as high as ever, Final Fantasy IX is a throwback to the aesthetics and gameplay of the older Final Fantasy titles. Developed concurrently with Final Fantasy VIII, it's hard to imagine two more different games. While Final Fantasy VIII was cutting-edge, Final Fantasy IX is intentionally old-fashioned. Whether it's musical cues and graphical asides or item, location and character names, nostalgia permeates every facet of the title. If Final Fantasy VIII was a strong look at what the future of the genre might hold, then Final Fantasy IX is an equally strong look back at where the genre has been. It absolutely doesn't try to innovate; instead, it is content to be a highly polished game crammed full of traditional RPG elements and Final Fantasy series traditions. It is rumored that there was an internal debate at Square as to whether Final Fantasy IX should be released as a main series title or as a "gaiden", otherwise known as a side story.
The gameplay eschews the entirely free systems of the past few Final Fantasy titles for the more tightly regimented class systems of the older games in the series. Each of the eight party members has skills and techniques that only he or she can use and learn. Zidane is a daring Thief, Vivi is a feared Black Mage, Garnet and Eiko are both White Mages as well as Summoners, and so on and so forth. Abilities are learned or acquired from armor, weapons and other equipment. The same piece of equipment can teach different characters different abilities, and weaker equipment sometimes teaches powerful abilities. This division makes every character and every piece of equipment valuable and makes for a more carefully balanced game than titles with a more open-ended party structure.
Some gamers feel that because it focuses on gameplay and presentation over unnecessary innovations, Final Fantasy IX is the pinnacle of PlayStation RPGs. However, others feel that while Final Fantasy IX is a truly excellent RPG, it lacks the cutting-edge creativity that has always defined the Final Fantasy series. Nevertheless, Square's following two sequels appears to have both feet planted very firmly in the future.
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