[DragonSphere]

Source: RPGamer

First off, the Famitsu reviews of the game break down as follows:

Hige: 9/10

It's worth buying
The battles are too complex
As a sequel, the story could have been better.

Kissy: 8/10
It's built around an assumed knowledge of FFX.
Issues regarding how long you can pause the game during battles.
All the dressing up seems to be condescending towards the audience.
The movies are worth a look

Cisco: 8/10
It doesn't feel quite up to the FF standard; they should have put more effort into it.
The individual stories are fortunately enjoyable.

Haneda: 9/10
A piercing story
They have the gall to attach the FF name to game where the victory theme isn't the same as the rest of the series.
Busted a hip looking at the "explosive" opening movie. [ed: OK, Haneda.]

The FFX summons make their appearance, and power has been poured into the dress up scenes, so there is much time devoted to the changes, and many digressions.

Overall, these scores total 34/40, which merits Famitsu's Gold Award. It is worth noting that this does not necessarily indicate a game is stellar; for instance, Vagrant Story, a game whose reputation did not necessarily meet up with the standard suggested by the score subsequent to its release, received 40/40 from the magazine. The next set of scores come from Zabure, another Japanese publication.

10/10:
The gloominess of previous Final Fantasies is swept away by the opening movie.
Unlinear, much along the lines of the Saga series.
A lighthearted story is balanced with an unaffected and sincere game system.

9/10:
The expressions and movements seem to have stiffened up a little.
It's not necessary to have played FFX
The opening is required viewing!

8/10:
A completely different game from FFX
Since you can do many things from the very beginning, unless you take your time dropping by places along your way, you probably won't recognize how good the game really is.
Finally, writers at Dorimaga had this to say about the game, along with the following five ratings out of ten:

9/10, 8/10, 9/10, 10/10, 9/10

The new system has been well integrated into the game.
The extremely tactical battles are fascinating.
At first, the game appears to be quite difficult, but as you grow accustomed to the system, you're able to put the tactics that you come up with into use more efficiently.

The cheerful ambience of the story is a complete change from FFX.
The tutorials are very helpful.
Even if you haven't played FFX, there are explanations everywhere, so you don't need to worry.
There's no need for saving up.
There are explanations for each character upon their introduction, which we agree is a good idea.
Even though there are only three players in the party, without opportunity for changing like in FFX, the Dress-Up system creates the sensation of playing with a much larger cast of characters.

It's well balanced; just enough detail without being overly picky.
We like how no infantile characters appear for the sake of trying to suit everybody's tastes, like in many RPGs.

There isn't any compatibility with the Broadband unit, but the loading times can be drastically cut down by using hard drive,creating a pleasant stress-less gaming experience.

Gamers in Japan will be able to give their own opinions on FFX-2 firsthand starting Thursday, when the game will be released there. Though a North American release is expected, one has yet to be confirmed.

Not too shabby...