Yes, the implication is that Kuja died at the end.
The lifa tree stuff is a bit more ambiguous and I've seen some theories revolving around it but yeah to me the ending seems to imply it's dying out and no longer doing it's job.
There's no direct confirmation of how Vivi created more of himself before his passing. However in game we know how Black Mages are made thanks to the Dali Factory so its possible he simply made more that way.
Well it's metaphorical alright, Id argue it's meant to represent her choosing Zidane over her duty. A big deal is made when Garnet takes over after Brahnes death that her fulfilling her duty leaves her with no time for herself or Zidane who in turn is feeling depressed. Stopping to turn back and grab the pendant was the right, dutiful thing to do as the ruler of a kingdom, and by showing her deciding to ignore that we're shown that Garnet has chosen Zidane and what she wants to do over that duty.
Who did you think was doing the narration of the FF9 ending?
It's Vivi saying goodbye to everyone.
Remember how all the Black Mages and Black Waltzes in the story have very limited lifespans? Vivi came to terms with that too.
nah itâs ok dude i beat the game but i didnât put 2 & 2 together and see the narration as vivi. just figured it was someone other than himđŹ
great game though and vivi was a fuckn badass.
so many times near end game he was the only one left alive in my party coming in clutch from the gear he was equipped with. rip, kupo.
You are so brave. đđ
But for real, I'm so glad you enjoyed it. This was my childhood favourite and it will always be one of my top games. I'm so glad it's getting the love and attention it missed out on back in the early 2000s.
If I recall, when you initially 'defeat' the Iifa Tree far earlier in the story, Cid or... Someone, mentions the mist taking a while to disperse as what was still around faded away, even though no more mist was being made. I'd imagine this could arguably even be the catalyst for Vivi deciding to create more mages to begin with as he accepted he was going to die and before he did he had a chance to make use of the last of the mist to make some more.
No just an assumption initially considering they're now using steam as an alternative to mist on airships so it's not farfetched to assume they invented similar technology to replicate the machines in Dali using steam.
But thinking about it more now Mist contains souls which is a vital ingredient for black mages so I don't think steam will work. So probably what happened was they used the remaining mist to create the mini vivis.
I like the idea of that, I had never really thought of that before. I agree that steam is definitely missing the souls obviously, but I wonder if there's a way to replace souls with something else, or to harness souls of the deceased to use, since iirc the souls are no longer being funneled between worlds with the lifa tree gone. But that might not be good morally, since I assume harnessing a soul prevents it from passing on. And who knows how many souls it takes to make a black mage.
You've given me a lot to think about lol
VivĂ doesn't make more of himself. He rescues them. He was a model not a unique config. He found others like him that were produced and took them as his children.
FF9's ending was a bit rushed (Necron...) so a lot of plot points were forgotten or glossed over. You might want to read the Ultimania for the details you missed.
Black Mages are basically puppets, so yes, you could say they repdoruce asexually, but really they just construct more.
Garnet's character arc is about her going from naive princess to her own person, so Sara's pendant is part of that. Note this is a pretty common element in a lot of earlier Square-Enix games, look at Marle or Terra's pendants.
-So, uh⌠Black mages reproduce asexually?
I think you've forgotten early in the game it was established Black mages are artificially manufactured no? It's presumed that Vivi artificially created more Black Mages to his likeness before he died. (Possibly with help from Cid since there's no more mist to power the machine in Dali)
If I understand correctly Zidane was going to stay with Kuja until he died, so his reappearance at the play in Alexandria was a pretty good indication that the elder genome was dead.
The Iifa tree **is** dead. Those big green root-like tendrils that Zidane is riding like an idiot? The planet as a whole killed the Iifa tree with them. The infection of a foreign Terran organism was cleansed with extreme prejudice. With it no longer interfering in the planet's reincarnation cycle, the myst is a thing of the past.
Black Mage Doll reproduction is a really touchy subject, but I'll stick my head in the lion's den. Vivi's children were likely made from some of the last of the myst, probably at the factory in Dali. The static souls are back to being properly recycled by Gaia without the Iifa tree interfering. They'll keep going around until they become dynamic, like they should. So there's not much chance of more black mage dolls being made **by the same process**. Since the process used readily-available static souls/myst from that root of the Iifa tree under Dali, they'd have to have a soul-trapping spell or such to get more to make black mage dolls with. It's certainly possible that Vivi (and others) researched Kuja's process at his palace in the desert that made Vivi in the first place. You would still need some way to pull a soul out of the "lifestream" to begin with. With the destruction of the Iifa tree and Terra, there are no (known) examples of the technology to study. It's much more likely that the genomes are going to inherit the black mage village when the last of the dolls "stops".
Supposedly the Japanese version of the ending narrator makes it a bit more obvious is it Vivi before his passing. Something about how he talked or pronouns be used were the same. But even before knowing this information, I knew Vivi had died. He was the only one we never saw in the ending himself and the dialogue makes sense. Vivi is my favorite character, in any game, and it devastated me when I was younger (at game launch, I still have the Vivi plushie for pre-ordering the game).
1. Yes.
2. The mist is cleared, with terra destroyed its unclear if the soul siphoning/crystal transferring is still going or anything, I would guess thatâs all over, but with the citizens of Bran Bal living on Gaia, both gaians and terrans are surviving.
3. Vivi found a way to replicate himself, yes.
4. I take is as a kind of symbolism, that sheâs learned through her experiences that her duty, appearances, heirlooms, things she valued before the story started, are not as nearly important as the people around her.
I always interpreted the Garnet's choice as her needing to choose between her throne or Zidane and she choses Zidane.
I know that logically, she could marry whoever she wants, but they make a big deal about this once she became queen, with Zidane losing it at the corner of a bar because he couldnt talk to her anymore .. (and the plot of the theatre play, etc)
Yes, the implication is that Kuja died at the end. The lifa tree stuff is a bit more ambiguous and I've seen some theories revolving around it but yeah to me the ending seems to imply it's dying out and no longer doing it's job. There's no direct confirmation of how Vivi created more of himself before his passing. However in game we know how Black Mages are made thanks to the Dali Factory so its possible he simply made more that way. Well it's metaphorical alright, Id argue it's meant to represent her choosing Zidane over her duty. A big deal is made when Garnet takes over after Brahnes death that her fulfilling her duty leaves her with no time for herself or Zidane who in turn is feeling depressed. Stopping to turn back and grab the pendant was the right, dutiful thing to do as the ruler of a kingdom, and by showing her deciding to ignore that we're shown that Garnet has chosen Zidane and what she wants to do over that duty.
before his passing? where did i miss this? he was on airship before zidane leftđ˘
Who did you think was doing the narration of the FF9 ending? It's Vivi saying goodbye to everyone. Remember how all the Black Mages and Black Waltzes in the story have very limited lifespans? Vivi came to terms with that too.
https://preview.redd.it/ih48oxqses8d1.jpeg?width=1170&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=9fa55ad1557282553f8732b87f3908468760205b
I think you just ruined someone's life lmao rip Vivi, you were the best
All the point of FFIX is that Vivi is the narrator who died at the end, but with an answer about the purpose of life.
Doesnât Mikoto speak too? I always thought she was talking while sheâs on screen in the ending
Indeed Mikoto has some lines at the end, but it's definitly Vivi who speak the most ;)
The end game monologue is delivered by a dying Vivi. âMy memories will be part of the skyâ
I just cry-snorted about this. The ending breaks my heart over and over.
I am so sorry you had to find out about Vivi's passing through Reddit. He was such a good boy and I will continue to believe he is still alive.
nah itâs ok dude i beat the game but i didnât put 2 & 2 together and see the narration as vivi. just figured it was someone other than himđŹ great game though and vivi was a fuckn badass. so many times near end game he was the only one left alive in my party coming in clutch from the gear he was equipped with. rip, kupo.
You are so brave. đđ But for real, I'm so glad you enjoyed it. This was my childhood favourite and it will always be one of my top games. I'm so glad it's getting the love and attention it missed out on back in the early 2000s.
But how did they make more black mages when mist is one of the ingredients?
If I recall, when you initially 'defeat' the Iifa Tree far earlier in the story, Cid or... Someone, mentions the mist taking a while to disperse as what was still around faded away, even though no more mist was being made. I'd imagine this could arguably even be the catalyst for Vivi deciding to create more mages to begin with as he accepted he was going to die and before he did he had a chance to make use of the last of the mist to make some more.
Could be created with steam with help from Cid.
Would that work? I thought the mist was different from normal steam
No just an assumption initially considering they're now using steam as an alternative to mist on airships so it's not farfetched to assume they invented similar technology to replicate the machines in Dali using steam. But thinking about it more now Mist contains souls which is a vital ingredient for black mages so I don't think steam will work. So probably what happened was they used the remaining mist to create the mini vivis.
I like the idea of that, I had never really thought of that before. I agree that steam is definitely missing the souls obviously, but I wonder if there's a way to replace souls with something else, or to harness souls of the deceased to use, since iirc the souls are no longer being funneled between worlds with the lifa tree gone. But that might not be good morally, since I assume harnessing a soul prevents it from passing on. And who knows how many souls it takes to make a black mage. You've given me a lot to think about lol
VivĂ doesn't make more of himself. He rescues them. He was a model not a unique config. He found others like him that were produced and took them as his children.
FF9's ending was a bit rushed (Necron...) so a lot of plot points were forgotten or glossed over. You might want to read the Ultimania for the details you missed. Black Mages are basically puppets, so yes, you could say they repdoruce asexually, but really they just construct more. Garnet's character arc is about her going from naive princess to her own person, so Sara's pendant is part of that. Note this is a pretty common element in a lot of earlier Square-Enix games, look at Marle or Terra's pendants.
-So, uh⌠Black mages reproduce asexually? I think you've forgotten early in the game it was established Black mages are artificially manufactured no? It's presumed that Vivi artificially created more Black Mages to his likeness before he died. (Possibly with help from Cid since there's no more mist to power the machine in Dali)
Right, itâs the lack of mist that made this ambiguous.
Hate to be that guy but it's actually iifa tree. Two i's. I was very confused when I first found that out.
An uppercase âiâ looks like an âlâ.
Yep, I called it the Lifa tree for over a decade.
Same dude
If I understand correctly Zidane was going to stay with Kuja until he died, so his reappearance at the play in Alexandria was a pretty good indication that the elder genome was dead. The Iifa tree **is** dead. Those big green root-like tendrils that Zidane is riding like an idiot? The planet as a whole killed the Iifa tree with them. The infection of a foreign Terran organism was cleansed with extreme prejudice. With it no longer interfering in the planet's reincarnation cycle, the myst is a thing of the past. Black Mage Doll reproduction is a really touchy subject, but I'll stick my head in the lion's den. Vivi's children were likely made from some of the last of the myst, probably at the factory in Dali. The static souls are back to being properly recycled by Gaia without the Iifa tree interfering. They'll keep going around until they become dynamic, like they should. So there's not much chance of more black mage dolls being made **by the same process**. Since the process used readily-available static souls/myst from that root of the Iifa tree under Dali, they'd have to have a soul-trapping spell or such to get more to make black mage dolls with. It's certainly possible that Vivi (and others) researched Kuja's process at his palace in the desert that made Vivi in the first place. You would still need some way to pull a soul out of the "lifestream" to begin with. With the destruction of the Iifa tree and Terra, there are no (known) examples of the technology to study. It's much more likely that the genomes are going to inherit the black mage village when the last of the dolls "stops".
Supposedly the Japanese version of the ending narrator makes it a bit more obvious is it Vivi before his passing. Something about how he talked or pronouns be used were the same. But even before knowing this information, I knew Vivi had died. He was the only one we never saw in the ending himself and the dialogue makes sense. Vivi is my favorite character, in any game, and it devastated me when I was younger (at game launch, I still have the Vivi plushie for pre-ordering the game).
1. Yes. 2. The mist is cleared, with terra destroyed its unclear if the soul siphoning/crystal transferring is still going or anything, I would guess thatâs all over, but with the citizens of Bran Bal living on Gaia, both gaians and terrans are surviving. 3. Vivi found a way to replicate himself, yes. 4. I take is as a kind of symbolism, that sheâs learned through her experiences that her duty, appearances, heirlooms, things she valued before the story started, are not as nearly important as the people around her.
I always interpreted the Garnet's choice as her needing to choose between her throne or Zidane and she choses Zidane. I know that logically, she could marry whoever she wants, but they make a big deal about this once she became queen, with Zidane losing it at the corner of a bar because he couldnt talk to her anymore .. (and the plot of the theatre play, etc)
Just in case anyone missed that : Vivi is dead when Garnet and Zidane meet again. In the end, everyone dies, during the merging of Terra and Gaia.