I really should have loved this game, but I'm just gonna say it, its inventory management system tainted my experience. Small inventories and backtracking are staples of the survival horror genre but wow this game just takes it to the extreme. Here's something that would happen a lot: I'd see something and have no space for it (in my 6-slot inventory which is criminally small). So I'd go back to my storage crate, drop off what I thought I didn't need at the time, and then go back to the room that I was just in to pick up these new item(s), which half the time went back into the crate for later use. This happens, CONSTANTLY. And you never get much of any ammo for one gun, so you're forced to carry 2 or more guns at a time. This can take up to 5 of your 6 slots, leaving a single slot for the rest of everything else that you pick up lol. It doesn't build the atmosphere. It doesn't add to the suspense. It's tedious and adds incessant amounts of backtracking to an otherwise stellar game. I felt frustrated and that my time was being wasted. It felt reductive and pointless. It unfortunately degrades the game severely for me, which is a shame because other parts of this game are truly excellent.

Speaking of ammo, this game has probably the single stupidest inventory design decision I've ever seen. You know how each ammo type has a max amount that you can carry in one slot? This is pretty normal for the genre. What isn't normal, is having a max amount of a type of ammo that you can carry in your entire inventory. There was a point in this game where I was unable to pick up some ammo even though I had an empty slot in my inventory. Well, that's because, I already had the max amount of ammo of that type in another slot and I guess you can't exceed a certain amount even if you have the space for it. So yeah, I had to go to my storage crate, drop off the ammo, go back to the room, pick up the ammo, and then go back to the storage crate to add to my store (the crate doesn't follow the same restrictions in terms of ammo). All of that nonsense, instead of just letting me take it in my empty slot. Fucking. Annoying.

But aside from my gripe about the inventory, to end on a positive note, I do recommend this game. The sprite work, the music, the storytelling, the puzzles... they're all very well crafted. Especially, the puzzles. They redeem this game for me. They're thoughtful and reminiscent of old-school puzzle design.

7/10

+Combat is fun and strategic
+Using the sphere grid to level up allows for a lot of freedom and flexibility
+Fantastic art direction
+World building is top notch
+Music (for the most part) is phenomenal
+Epic story

-Puzzles are oddly designed and often not fun
-Bosses rely quite a bit on status effects which can be frustrating to deal with
-Dialogue is sometimes cringy (Tidus gets a lot of bad lines and his va goes a little over the top per usual for jrpgs)
-Menus have parts that are badly designed which is bad for a game that uses them so frequently
-Some party members are way more useful than others

Overall: 7/10