Final Fantasy IX, the third incarnation of the famous RPG series from Square on PlayStation, follows the story of a headstrong thief, a mysterious mage, a lonely princess, and a dedicated knight.
All are united in their desire to save the kingdom of Alexandria from a mad queen. Eight characters are playable in total, with heroes leaving and joining your group at certain points in the narrative as they complete specific tasks.
Whenever characters leave the party, you will be informed of their progress with the 'active time event' system. An icon at the bottom of the screen flashes when something important happens outside your party.
Selecting an event pauses the ongoing action and displays dialogue sequences or cutscenes. Although these story segments are optional, viewing them can reveal new character developments.
Final Fantasy IX retains many features from the two previous PlayStation games in the series, including pre-rendered backgrounds, polygonal characters, random battle sequences, and summon attacks.
However, instead of guiding three people into battle, you can fight with up to four. A 'active time battle' gauge indicates when a character can attack, while the 'trance' gauge builds up when characters take damage.
Once this counter is filled, powerful special moves become available.
