Square-Enix has been trickling out information regarding its upcoming project Final Fantasy X/X-2 HD Remaster. After the announcement that Final Fantasy X-2 would also be included in the HD Remaster pack, Square-Enix has finally revealed a trailer to showcase the improvements they have made over the original games. From the looks of things, it’s not too shabby an upgrade, and this article will try to analyze the recent trailer that was produced for the game.
The start or the trailer already showcases the great additions to the game. Accompanied by the beautiful tune ‘To Zanarkand’ we see Yuna and Tidus sitting outside an inn on the Mi’ihen Highroad. To me, this scene alone showcases the level of work that has gone into the game. Most notably, the textures surrounding the characters and the distance those textures cover are all vastly improved compared to the original game. Final Fantasy X was a very colorful game, and this HD Remaster looks like it will bring out those colors even more vividly.
We don’t really get many up close shots of the characters in the game in the trailer, but the few shots that we do, together with accompanying screenshots of the game that have circulated the web, do show changes to the characters in terms of appearance and of course, texture quality. Without a doubt, the texture of the characters’ clothing is much better in the HD Remaster. On the characters’ appearances however, there are some contentious points. Tidus looks noticeably different than in the original version. Part of it is his hair being less ‘spiky’, but it also has to do with his character model. I personally had no problem with the original model, but this newer look Tidus doesn’t put me off or anything. It’s different, and I’m fine with that. If I wanted to play the original game without any changes whatsoever, I’d well, play the original game. Lulu is another character that looks visibly different from her original model. In this case though, I think it is for the better. It’s a bit harder to tell with the other characters though.
Moving on to the sounds in the trailer, maybe it is just me, but Tidus sounds different. While I may not go so far as to say the HD Remaster has had an overhaul of its audio, perhaps what I am noticing is simply an upgrade in the sound quality. The Kingdom Hearts 1.5 HD Remaster has already been stated to have improved sound quality, so hopefully the Final Fantasy X/X-2 HD Remaster will too. I wouldn’t be against an overhaul of the audio though, as the original game tried too hard at times to fit its audio in with the animations of characters. This didn’t really work as those animations were based off the Japanese voice acting.
We then move on to the confirmed Final Fantasy X-2 HD Remaster. Not much info is shown here aside from confirming the game will be bundled together with Final Fantasy X HD Remaster for the PS3 (separated on the PS Vita). It is a bit disheartening not seeing any footage of this game, as it implies the game is a way off from being completed. I believe that is actually the case, although since this is a HD Remaster, it shouldn’t really take too long to complete now that the game is in proper development.
The last thing to note, is that while the news that has spread so far points to the fact that both versions of the game will be the International versions of the two games, the trailer itself doesn’t confirm that. While most are content with assuming that Final Fantasy X will get its International version (because an English version of the International version already exists), the same can’t be said for the Final Fantasy X-2 International edition which also includes an extra mission known as Last Mission. The problem here is, that extra mission only has a Japanese audio track, so to make it into the final game would require more work on Square-Enix’s part. Here’s hoping it does though, as the extras in the Final Fantasy X-2 International + Last Mission edition sound pretty fun.
No firm release date has been announced aside from the 2013 window of release. It would be great to see this game out before the PS4 starts to gain momentum though.
Did you notice anything else about the trailer? Watch it here:
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