My favorite out of the series.
The characters are the game's real strength. All of them are likable, even the villains. You can get into the good guys because each of them has their own unique personality. Zidane is a womanizer, but he's soft underneath his roughness. Dagger is both burdened with responsibilities, and still finds time to be kind and gentle. Vivi is very shy, but has a fiery spirit. Steiner's sense of honor and duty is unmatched. Freya probably is the most underdeveloped of all of the characters, but she still has a semi-interesting if not slightly cliche back story. Quina is one of the quirkiest characters I've ever seen. Eiko, while emotional at times, is very mature for a 6-year-old. Finally, Amarant is a mysterious character, but his actions let us know there is more to him than meets the eye. Kuja, the main villain, is probably the most whiny and least threatening villain of any FF game. However, at the same time you sympathize with his plight.
Another of the strong points is the overall story. Each of the main characters is given their own spotlight in the game. True, Zidane and Dagger are given more spotlight than the others, but they are the two main characters so that is expected. Each of the characters' stories are interesting and they all tie into the main plot in some way.
A third strong point are some of the optional bosses and side quests. Bosses like Tantarian, Hades and Ozma are fun and challenging. Side quests like Chocobo Hot and Cold, hunting down the Ozma animals and raising your treasure hunting level are a fun ways to take a break from the regular story line.
The only weak point I saw while playing the game was a couple of the mini games. The Tetra card game was a redundant waste of time. It seemed to have no rules and relied solely on luck. It took me a very long time to finally collect 1 of each card, which is the ultimate goal of the mini game. A mini game that takes up too much time can be annoying. Another hair-pulling mini game was the jump rope mini game. True it offered some helpful rewards like the Cactuar Tetra card, but it was still a very redundant and not very entertaining mini game.
Overall I was pleased with this game. I could play it again and again and still love it just as much every time. The few small flaws it has doesn't overshadow the excellence of the rest of the game. I would recommend it to any fan of RPG.