Final Fantasy X was the series’ last truly great game… Since then, it was all downhill, and the Final Fantasy franchise will more than likely never recover. As the first Final Fantasy on PS2, the game offered some marvellous locations, and relatively detailed character models we hadn’t seen until then. The turn-based battle system was a nod towards the roots of the series, and the story was quite powerful. The romance between Yuna and Tidus worked well, and the wise mentor role has hardly ever been done as well as it was with Auron.

Needless to say, the soundtrack was also one of FFX’s strong points. Nobuo Uematsu had some help this time, with Junya Nakano and Masashi Hamauzu doing some of the tracks. The one I’m featuring this week is by Nakano. I’ve always felt his work was extremely underappreciated, his more atmospheric themes always in the shadow of Uematsu’s glorious music. This is undeserved because Nakano’s songs, in my opinion, contributed the most to the immersion factor of the game. “Those Who Come Closer” plays in the last dungeon, and it truly put me in an upbeat mood as I was getting closer to facing the last boss.

Composer: Junya Nakano
Game: Final Fantasy X
Song: Those Who Come Closer