There are two smaller sets of options in the Option menu, for setting up the Mini-map and the Messages in the game.
The first of these turns the Mini-map on or off. While it does take up some space in the top-right corner of the screen, I can’t offhand think of any reason not to leave the Mini-map off. It’s a useful tool, displaying things you may want to check for in your surroundings (particularly enemies, quests and quest points, heart-to-hearts, and landmarks) as well as letting you know what time of day it is with the clock that surrounds it.
The second option is one you need to consider carefully- whether the Mini-map rotates or not. If you leave the Mini-Map in Fixed position, it will be a little bit easier to navigate the terrain, since you will always know which direction is North and be able to use the compass to set your directions. This setting is good if you get lost easily, or if you find yourself in a confusing map area where you’re not sure what is where compared to what other place. However, it becomes a bit harder to figure out which direction key points are in, since what you’re seeing on your screen isn’t oriented the same way as the map. Contrandantally, using the Rotate option on the Mini-map will make it far easier to use it as a tool for aiming towards locations. A rotating Mini-map always turns so that the direction you are facing is ‘up’ on it, which will let you more easily pass by obstacles and head in the direction you want to go. However, it makes it nearly impossible to tell which direction is which, making it far more easy to get lost or disoriented when it comes to longer distances. If you have an easy time finding your way places but can’t ever seem to locate nearby things on the Mini-map, then you’re going to want this setting, though you may find yourself turning it off occasionally to make sure you’ve got your bearings.
The Message settings are mainly cosmetic, though some people will find them more useful than others.
Event Scrolling can be set to Auto or Manual- if it’s set to Auto, then events will pass at whatever speed they want, which feels more natural and follows the flow of what characters say better. Setting it to Manual, on the other hand, will give you more time to consider what’s been said before moving on in the conversation or other event.
The Subtitle setting is fairly obvious, and those of you who have some trouble figuring out what people said (a surprising possibility for North American players, given that the voice actors all seem to be British- in fact, the spelling is also, indicating that this is more a port of the British version of the game than it is an actual North American version) will find it very useful.
Finally, you can set the dialogue text speed to Normal or Fast. This doesn’t affect the speed people talk at or anything of the sort- it simply accelerates the appearance of typed text in word bubbles. This mostly affects your interactions with NPCs outside of Events and cutscenes. Party characters and key characters all have actual voices and you will only be reading what they say if you use Subtitles- and those aren’t affected by this option.
