In their latest installment of the epic Final Fantasy series, Square has not failed to impress. Final Fantasy IX is a return to their "traditional" Final Fantasy style. Final Fantasy IX is set in a time period which would best be described as similar to Final Fantasy VI's, in that it's set in a medieval period, and yet also an industrial era. It is based around a number of small kingdoms on a continent named Mist. The Mist continent is a fairly peaceful area until an odd turn of events throws a thief/actor named Zidane together with the princess of the kingdom of Alexandria, Garnet, as the clouds of war are beginning to linger over the kingdom.

I must say it is refreshing for Square to give us a hero who is an outgoing and fun loving, diverging highly from their previous installments' heroes' anti-social angst. Final Fantasy 9 is played out on a much lighter note than that of its PlayStation predecessors. Though the deep, emotional, and thought provoking content that has helped to make these more than just your average games are once again included, they did a very good job balancing it out with plenty of action and comedy.

The control is quite a bit like the traditional Final Fantasy controls. There are a few exceptions. As usual, there is a menu screen that holds the Item, Ability, Equip, Status, Order, Card, and Config. options. Item, as usual, is where your items, weapons, armors, and so on are stored. The Ability menu is a part of the game's battle and magic system. There, you can see what abilities you know, in some cases use some action abilities, and select the support abilities that you wish to equip. I'll explain more later on. Equip, as usual, is where you equip the various items that would require equipping. Status allows you to look at your various characters' stats, including what abilities they know/are learning. The order selection lets you choose what order you want your characters in and if you wish them in the front or back row.

Card lets you see your card collection, as well as discard the ones you don't want. It also lets you see your card rank, which you gain by playing the Tetra Master mini game and winning, as well as from gaining cards. Config. is the configuration menu where you choose the options you want. In a final feature, there is a new addition to the menu. By hitting select, a small caption will appear next to the menu and describe its use. This can also be used in other places, such as stores and in battle to find out what an item or ability does.

On the world map, you will, as always, encounter random enemies while traveling. To enter a location, you must be within range of it so that the place's name, or in some cases a "??" mark when the area is unknown, is displayed and then hit the X button. The R and L buttons change the camera view in various ways. The triangle key opens the previously mentioned menu screen. Though your primary mode of transportation on the world map is by foot, later on you can ride Chocobos, boats, and even airships.

In the internal map areas, the X button lets you talk, as well as acting as the search/confirm button. The O is the cancel button, and when held in allows you to run. Triangle opens the previously described menu. The square button initiates the Tetra Master card mini game. Not all people you meet in the game will want to play you, and in that case, they will either say they don't wish to play you or they will just say what they normally would.

Saving your game is done via, for most of the game, strategically placed Moogles. The Moogles are found all over the world in places you may or may not ever expect them to be. With them, you may use a tent to restore your HP and MP, save your game, and participate in mini-game of sorts called Mognet. Mognet is the Moogle mail system. From time to time, Moogles will ask you to deliver letters to other Moogles for them. When you deliver one, you and the recipient moogle will read the letter, and at times information about the game will be given. People may also send you letters. Mognet isn't really a requirement for the game, but frankly you aren't going out of your way to do anything by delivering their mail. From time to time, moogles will also allow you to buy from them in the Mogshop, but that tends to occur only in longer dungeons. On the world map, you may also access the save and tent commands by hitting the square button, which summons a moogle to you using a flute.

The battle system is a return to the traditional Final Fantasy systems. It feels like a cross between Final Fantasy VI's "Esper" system and Final Fantasy VII's "Materia" system. Each character has certain ingrown abilities, such as Zidane's steal and Quina's eat. Each character also has the use of character specific, or in come cases class specific action abilities. Action abilities usually require MP in order to execute. They range from white and black magic to sword techniques. There are also support abilities which include status blocking abilities, such as Antibody, a block for poison, attack and magic enhancers, and other support abilities like Chemist, which enhances the effects of medical items.

All abilities are learned from items that you equip. Nearly every piece of armor, weaponry, and wrist guards, helmets, and accessories can teach you abilities. Some characters can't use some equipable items, and some characters can't learn all the abilities from what they've equipped. The abilities are learned via AP points, points you gain in battle.

In battle, there are up to four characters in your group. Final Fantasy IX reintroduces the front and back row formation, which Final Fantasy VIII left out. In the front row, you do more damage with short-range weapons; yet receive more damage from the enemy's physical attacks. In the back row, you do less damage with your short-range attacks, although long-range weapons will do the same damage from front or back, and from the back you also are more protected from enemy physical attacks. Some weapons also possess elemental and status effecting properties.

The "Limit Breaks" in Final Fantasy 9 are used by entering a state during battle called Trance. Trance is achieved by taking damage from enemies. After you have taken enough damage, your character releases a burst of anger that changes their appearance and puts them into Trance. In trance, your attack power rises, and you may also use special abilities, or in some cases more powerful versions of your pre-existing abilities. These different or improved abilities can only be used while the Trance remains. When it runs out, you go back to your normal state and your Trance meter goes to zero. This also happens if you end battle while in Trance, even if you haven't used your abilities while you were in Trance.

For those who find the game itself getting dull, there are plenty of mini-games to occupy your time. The major ones include Mognet and Tetra Master, which I explained earlier. There is also another once called "Chocobo Hot & Cold." In it, you use a chocobo to search the world for treasures hidden all over the place. There are also a number of other, smaller-in-scale mini games that you will find all over the place.

A nice feature of Final Fantasy IX are the Active Time Events, or ATE. The ATE allows your other characters to go off and do other things while you explore an area such as a city. These are mostly not mandatory to continue the game, but they can be important. When an ATE is possible, a message will flash at the bottom of your screen, at which point you hit select and you can see a menu of what events you can choose to watch from that position. ATEs that are mandatory for the story to continue will automatically go to the event when the message flashes up. The only problem with ATEs is that, at times, you can loose one by watching another. Even if you watch them all right when you get the chance to, there is still a possibility to miss one because of someone moving in the last one or whatever reason there is for it.

Another feature of this game is the ability to see spots where something can be done or picked up by either an exclamation point or a question mark over the characters head. This makes life a lot easier when you don't necessarily see something you are looking for, but you know it's there.

The graphics in Final Fantasy IX are beautiful. They are a far cry from the primitive polygons of Final Fantasy VII. In some ways, they are much like Chrono Cross's graphics. However, they actually look a little better in Final Fantasy 9. The movies are some of the greatest FMVs that have ever been rendered. They are timed well and look terrific. They also continue with the style of movies made by having a movie background and putting whatever characters are necessary on the screen in their normal mode. Those make for some great looking movies, and at times, would definitely give you more choices of who to use.

The music is another display of the great Nobuo Uematsu's talent as a composer. He has once again outdone himself in the music department. The beautiful music goes quite well with the rest of the game. I'm sure some of the music from this installment of Final Fantasy will be as remembered as songs like "Aerith's Theme" from Final Fantasy VII and the other great pieces which have decorated Final Fantasy IX's predecessors. The sound is also quite good and realistic. From the well-timed explosions to the effects that go along with the slapstick comedy to the "Kupos" of the Moogles, I must admit the sound is quite terrific.

Overall, I find Final Fantasy IX a fitting end to the PlayStation's trio of Final Fantasy games. The next group will be on the PlayStation 2. If Square keeps the quality rising as they have in the past, I have high hopes and expectations for the future of Final Fantasy games. Final Fantasy IX truly shows what the PlayStation can truly accomplish, just as Final Fantasy VI showed just what the Super Nintendo could do.

I would recommend Final Fantasy IX for anyone who has ever played an RPG and enjoyed it. This game will truly be remembered as a classic. It was also good to see the revival of several items that have been considered symbols of the series, such as the traditional looking Black Mage and a quartet of major enemies that, though I won't mention the names of, many Final Fantasy fans will know immediately. Things like those are what helped build the long lasting series, and it's great to see some of them return to the later end of the series. I give an overall score to this game of 90%.