It has been a celebratory week for Final Fantasy fans as the beloved RPG’s tenth installment marks the 25th anniversary of its original Japanese release. Developed by Square (then known internationally as SquareSoft), the 10th main entry in the Final Fantasy series launched for PlayStation 2 in Japan on July 19, 2001, before arriving in North America on December 18 of the same year. Entering development in 1999, this particular Final Fantasy game was a landmark release for the franchise, introducing full voice acting, dynamic facial animations, and fully realized 3D character and environment rendering.
Set in the fictional world of Spira, Final Fantasy X follows Tidus, a star blitzball player mysteriously transported to a world plagued by a colossal creature known as Sin. There, he joins the summoner Yuna on her sacred pilgrimage to defeat the monster, only for the pair and their companions to uncover the devastating truth behind Sin and Spira’s religious order. The game was both a critical and commercial success, selling more than 8.5 million copies worldwide on PlayStation 2 while earning a 92 out of 100 on Metacritic. More than two decades later, it continues to be widely regarded as one of the greatest RPGs ever made.
To commemorate the anniversary, Square Enix released a special celebratory video on its official YouTube channel (which you can watch via the player below), showcasing memorable scenes from the original Japanese release. While the video doesn’t include footage from Final Fantasy X-2, which launched in Japan in 2003 and became the franchise’s first direct video game sequel, it does confirm another reason for fans to celebrate. Final Fantasy X/X-2 HD Remaster, the 2013 collection featuring enhanced versions of both games, will launch on Nintendo Switch 2 on July 23.
Collider Exclusive · Sci-Fi Survival Quiz Which Sci-Fi World Would You Survive? The Matrix · Mad Max · Blade Runner · Dune · Star Wars
Five universes. Five completely different ways the future went wrong — or sideways, or up in flames. Only one of them is the world your instincts were built for. Eight questions will figure out which dystopia, galaxy, or desert wasteland you’d actually make it out of alive.
💊The Matrix
🔥Mad Max
🌧️Blade Runner
🏜️Dune
🚀Star Wars
01
You sense something is deeply wrong with the world around you. What do you do? The first instinct is often the truest one.
02
In a world of scarcity, what resource do you guard most fiercely? What we protect reveals what we believe survival actually requires.
03
What kind of threat keeps you up at night? Fear is useful data — if you’re honest about what you’re actually afraid of.
04
How do you deal with authority you don’t trust? Every dystopia has a power structure. Your approach to it determines everything.
05
Which environment could you actually endure long-term? Survival isn’t just tactical — it’s physical, psychological, and very much about where you are.
06
Who do you want in your corner when things fall apart? The company you keep is the clearest signal of who you actually are.
07
Where do you draw the line — if you draw one at all? Every survivor eventually faces a moment that tests what they’re actually made of.
08
What would actually make survival worth it? Staying alive is one thing. Having a reason to is another.
Your Fate Has Been Calculated You’d Survive In…
Your answers point to the world your instincts were built for. This is the universe your temperament, your survival instincts, and your particular brand of stubbornness were made for.
The Resistance, Zion
The Matrix
You took the red pill a long time ago — probably before anyone offered it to you. You’re a systems thinker who can’t help but notice the seams in things.
You’re drawn to understanding how the system works before figuring out how to break it.
You’d find the Resistance, or it would find you — your instinct for spotting constructed realities is the machines’ worst nightmare.
You function best when you have access to information and the freedom to act on it.
The Matrix built an airtight prison. You’d be the one probing the walls for the door.
The Wasteland
Mad Max
The wasteland doesn’t reward the clever or the well-connected — it rewards those who are hard to kill and harder to break. That’s you.
You don’t need comfort, community, or a cause larger than the next horizon.
You need a vehicle, a clear threat, and enough fuel to outrun it — and you’re good at all three.
You are unsentimental enough to survive that world, and decent enough — just barely — to be something more than another raider.
In the wasteland, that distinction is everything.
Los Angeles, 2049
Blade Runner
You’d survive here because you know how to exist in moral grey areas without losing yourself completely.
You read people accurately, keep your circle small, and ask the questions others prefer not to answer.
In a city where humanity is a legal designation rather than a feeling, you hold onto something that keeps you functional.
You’re not a hero. But you’re not lost, either.
In Blade Runner’s world, that distinction is everything.
Arrakis
Dune
Arrakis is the most hostile environment in the known universe — and you are precisely the kind of person it rewards.
Patience, discipline, and political awareness are your core strengths — and on Arrakis, they’re survival tools.
You understand that the long game matters more than any single victory.
Others come to Dune and are consumed by it. You’d learn its logic and earn its respect.
In time, you wouldn’t just survive Arrakis — you’d begin to reshape it.
A Galaxy Far, Far Away
Star Wars
The galaxy far, far away is vast, loud, and in a constant state of violent political upheaval — and you wouldn’t have it any other way.
You find meaning in being part of something larger than yourself — a cause, a crew, a rebellion.
You’d gravitate toward the Rebellion, or the fringes, or whatever pocket of the galaxy still believes the Empire’s grip can be broken.
You fight — not because you have to, but because standing aside isn’t something you’re capable of.
In Star Wars, that willingness is what makes all the difference.
Like previous Final Fantasy entries, Final Fantasy X includes a variety of optional minigames, most notably the fictional underwater sport blitzball. However, it also marked a major departure from the series’ traditional design. Instead of using an explorable overworld map, the game features a largely linear journey through interconnected locations across Spira. Although players eventually gain access to an airship that allows fast travel between destinations, the conventional world map seen in earlier installments was replaced with a more streamlined progression, helping distinguish Final Fantasy X from its predecessors.
Stay tuned to Collider for further Final Fantasy coverage.
