Catching Up With Old Friends

Listen to me. It may be the last time we have. The immortal words of Tidus, in the opening scenes of Final Fantasy X 2001, changed my life forever. But it wasn’t just Tidus’ story that grabbed me. It was everything surrounding it – the cast of characters, the world, the conflicts, the power dynamics, the politics, and the relationships. These elements combined to form a recipe that I will remember vividly for the rest my life.

Spoiler Alert: The following article contains spoilers to Final Fantasy X, Final Fantasy X-2, and Pokémon Gold & Silver

Over the years I immersed myself into the Spira world, trying to learn everything about this world that I had fought valiantly for, trying to free it from the cycle of endless death brought on by Sin, Seymour and Yevon. Watched YouTube lore video, read Wikis and played the game incessantly. All I could do was play the direct follow-up.

Despite the fact that I was obsessed with Final Fantasy X and wanted to experience everything it had to offer me, Final Fantasy X-2 never entered my life. Maybe it was the change in the battle system or the word of mouth that it wasn’t as good as X, but it wasn’t just Final Fantasy X-2 that I skipped. Some of my favourite games from the past have had direct sequels. It took me many years to continue the stories.

Another example is The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask. I’ve replayed Ocarina of Time almost as many times as Final Fantasy X, yet I hadn’t played more than a few hours of its sequel. When I was young, I never owned the Nintendo 64 Expansion Pak required for Majora’s Mask. It was a long time coming, but I’d always wanted to play another adventure featuring Link from Ocarina of Time.

Then, something strange happened. I finally played Pokémon SoulSilver, a 2010 remake of the direct follow-up to another favorite game of mine: 1998’s Pokémon Red and Blue. After the final battle with Team Rocket and interacting with familiar characters, players are able to return to Kanto – the area of Red and Blue – and continue their fight. As well as these battles and exciting reunions, I also loved watching the time pass in an area I knew very well. After years of waiting, and with The Legend of Zelda Tears of the Kingdom set to carry on the story of Breath of the wild, my favourite game, it seemed like the perfect time to go back and finish the stories of Final Fantasy X, and Ocarina of Time.

I began this by tackling Majora’s Mask; I figured giving myself a game between it and Tears of the Kingdom might be a good idea. I’m glad I did, not because I needed some kind of Zelda buffer, but because Majora’s Mask, while distinct, haunting, and compelling, doesn’t deliver the kind of continuation I was looking for. Although it is the Link that I remembered from Ocarina of Time’s story, because the game takes place in Termina and not Hyrule the events seemed to be utterly disconnected from what I enjoyed.

Although I knew that I would receive some interesting lore outside the main plot, I hoped I could still get some. These moments weren’t many, but they were an interesting experiment to see how Zelda could expand beyond what is expected. The game has a magical aura when I see all the characters from Ocarina of Time as new people. The new time loop structure and transformative gameplay mechanics make Termina more than it appears. Majora’s Mask didn’t end up being my favorite Zelda game, nor did it deliver much in the way of expanding my understanding of Link or the Ocarina of Time Hyrule, but it scratched an itch other Zelda games do not.

Final Fantasy X-2 was the perfect continuation for me. You explore a Spira who is searching for an identity free from Sin, a fanatical religion, and the clutches of a sinful, oppressive faith. The themes of a people grappling with identity and recognizing that they have little knowledge about their history were everything I was looking for. Whether Zanarkand is transformed into a tourism attraction, which would definitely happen, or there’s a war between Ronsos and Guados that will erupt in the future. Seeing the effects of what happened in Final Fantasy X was fascinating and satisfying.

The characters Yuna met during her Final Fantasy X pilgrimage were all so interesting to me, and I enjoyed watching her grow into a character beyond the summoner she was. It was a continuation that I had hoped to see. Her struggle to become selfish, for the very first time, while Spira continues to call upon her, made me happy. Final Fantasy X-2 is a game about coping, though in a very different way. Yuna is faced with external conflicts in both Final Fantasy games. But, in X-2 it’s her internal conflict that makes the story so compelling. Both games have a similar theme, which is why they work. In fact, when X-2 revealed that another world-ending threat had emerged, I instantly longed for a time when we were catching up with what was going on in Spira and further exploring Yuna’s place in it.

Hollywood is a big fan of nostalgia and the desire to tell stories from our youth. Movies like Maverick is the Top Gun in Maverick, Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force AwakensThen, CreedThe formula of bringing back beloved films of the past while adding a touch of nostalgic nostalgia to the mix and giving an audience a reason to look forward to the future with a cast of adorable new characters can prove to be successful. But that’s not what these games were, even if I experienced them in that way. Still, I’m a sucker for a continuation of a story, and I’m upset that I waited so long to discover the journey through Majora’s Mask and Final Fantasy X-2.

But that’s what made them special for me; by now, I know Ocarina of Time and Final Fantasy X so well that having more to experience as an adult in his mid-30s feels like a sentimental return to a special part of my youth. Even if I didn’t like Final Fantasy X-2 and The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask as much as their predecessors, I’m so glad I finally took the time to deepen my connection with those worlds and characters. The next time I visit the Spira of Final Fantasy X, or Hyrule of Ocarina of Time universes, it will be with a better understanding of those first adventures. And with Tears of the Kingdom finally here, I excitedly dove back into that world and story that I adored so much – this time, without waiting.

The original version of this article appeared in issue 356 (July 2003) of Game Informer. You can listen to the episode here of All Things Nintendo where Brian talks about his experience with Majora’s Mask 2023.