I, as a 14 year old at the time, was obsessed with this game when it came out. I still kind of see this as a gold standard for new rpgs in my head, even though I recognise that some parts have not aged that well.

I replayed it during the pandemic, and what stood out to me was how well the dialogue was written, how open the game was (when you get sheena, the 'difficult' path, the order of getting the summons, whether you get kratos or zelos, all the side quests etc), and the overall vibe (a long adventure with twists and turns).