A great sequel to a great game.
Graphic-wise, the game is well drawn out and extremely detailed. Just about everything in the game has so much detail, it would seem almost life-like at times. There are a few new enemies this time around, and they look just as good as the old enemies, if not better.
If you've played Final Fantasy X, you'll hear many of the same songs you did in that game. There are only a few songs in the game that differ from the previous, but they all sound great either way. The voice acting sounds terrific and even the new characters you meet sound fantastic.
The battle system is different than the previous game. Final Fantasy X focused on a more turn-based battle while X-2 focuses on an active time battle. There is also the return of the famous ATB gauge, letting you know when your turn is up. You only have three characters so you won't be able to switch out at any time you want. When you are fighting a group of enemies, after you defeat a couple, the group will circle around an enemy to make the chance of escape more difficult, and they'll team up on them. If you happen to rapidly attack the enemy, you'll be able to chain them for a massive amount of damage and a potentially quick kill. This feature is a great addition to the game, and chaining on enemies is extremely encouraged.
Jobs return in this game. But this time around, they are called dresspheres. Dresspheres are spheres that are found in dungeons, or are simply given to you, for you to use. You can equip them to either of the three girls and each serve a different purpose. You can be a Black Mage, White Mage, and all kinds of other things. The more time you spend with the suit, the more things you can learn, and the more your attributes build up for that specific dressphere. They even have their own special dresspheres that you can acquire by completing some of the many side quests available in the game.
The time spent playing this game is long. You'll be given a lengthy storyline to follow, along with tons of side quests to do. The replay value is high because the game features New Game + which allows you to play the game over again, and make different decisions to change the events that happen. The game features up to 80 or more hours of gameplay and that's all you'll ever need and want.
Of course, the game features its fair share of mini games. Blitzball is back, but you cannot play it like in the last game. You can only choose the formation and watch your team play against another. But, you can play a fun game of Sphere Break. Sphere Break has you using coins that you can collect in the desert to battle an opponent. The mini game is incredibly fun to play, and there are so many different strategies to use.
Gunner's Gauntlet has you playing as Yuna, who starts off as a gunner in the game, and you run from Besaid Village all the way to the beach, killing monsters along the way. It has a time limit so you only have a period of time to make it across there, and at the same time you have to get the high score.
Visiting the Calm Lands will grant you numerous mini games for you to enjoy, and possibly gamble some Gil on. Overall, the mini games are fun and great.
The downsides to this game would be that the mini games, as fun as they may be, tend to get extremely repetitive. Bosses are so incredibly tough, you'll be forced to spend a huge amount of time leveling up, rather than progressing through the story. Leveling up is fine, but the game makes it so difficult, you'll have to do 10+ hours of leveling just to be able to defeat the boss.
Overall, Final Fantasy X-2 is a great sequel to another great game. Despite some of the downsides, the game is really fun, and it is a must to play. Final Fantasy X-2 will have you playing literally all day long, and will keep you guessing all of the many plot twists until the very end. I highly recommend this game to anyone looking for a good RPG to play.