Final Fantasy Megathread
 

As proposed in the Final Fantasy "this or that" thread, here is a Final Fantasy megathread!






For the next uncertain period of time (weeks? months? maybe even years?) I will be embarking on a quest to play through each of the core Final Fantasy video games and I invite you to come along with me!

Basically, every so often I will update this thread with the next Final Fantasy game. If you would like this is your cue to start playing that game and discuss whatever you'd like about it. I will be updating the thread based on my own playthrough, but feel free to play the games at your own pace. Just please refrain from discussing a game that hasn't been posted yet. This way the conversations can stay contained somewhat and we won't all be discussing VII or XIII when we're on II or whatever.

Also, this will only contain the core, numbered Final Fantasy titles. So no sequels (X-2) or spin-offs (Crystal Chronicles) will be included. Also, due the nature of the game I will not be playing through XI, but I will post it so it can be discussed in the future.

So, without further ado....

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Final Fantasy I wiki page


Originally released for the Famicom in 1987 in Japan and the NES in 1990 in North America, FFI is, appropriately, the first Final Fantasy game. I think the story behind the creation of the game is relatively common knowledge. Basically, SquareSoft wasnot doing so well as a company in the late 80s and only had the resources for one "final" game. The man in charge of the title, Hironobu Sakaguchi, felt that he could create a story based game better than an action game, so he decided to create a fantasy RPG. He titled the game "Final Fantasy" since it was supposed to have been Square's literal final fantasy.

FFI introduced to the series... well, everything, but specific things that have carried over to the rest of the games:

- The names and images for many of the jobs/classes
- Musical themes such as the Prelude, Main Theme, and Victory Fanfare
- Airships
- Crystal themed story

There have been many, many different remakes and ports of the game over the years. It has been released in NA as:

- Final Fantasy for the NES
- As part of the Final Fantasy Origins collection on the PSX with updated graphic, a refined translation, and slight tweaks to the gameplay (including an "easy mode")
- Part of the Final Fantasy I&II Dawn of Souls collection for the GBA. This version was made considerably easier and simpler than previous versions.
- Final Fantasy for the PSP with further updated graphics
- The original NES version on the Wii's Virtual Console



******


I will be playing through the Origins version on the Playstation on "Normal Mode". The original has not aged well visually, and I feel the Origins version has the best gameplay "refinements" without compromising the original game itself, if that makes sense.

I actually started playing a few days ago. I am now on Mt. Gulg for those familiar with the game. I will update with impressions once I've completed it.

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Noice!

I will join in when you start Final Fantasy III.

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I'd love to join in now but sadly I have a huge backlog of other games I have to finish. You can ask Earl what I'm talking about, it's pretty big.

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BTW, feel free to talk about the games even if you can't or would prefer not to play them at this time if you have already played them.

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I really wish I could play the older ones. :mad:

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I can't remember where it is that I've gotten the farthest in FF1, but I think my biggest issue with it was the same problem with the old NES RPGs, where they throw you out somewhere and expect you to know wtf is happening.

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Its not so much they expect you to just know; they expect you to pay VERY close attention and take notes.

But I definitely see what you're saying. At one point in FF1 there's, like, five different things you need to do all at once and about 15 NPCs stretched across the entire world giving vague hints about what those things are. Its pretty crazy.

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FF1 and FF2 are both on the iPhone now as well, $9 apiece.

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That would be the part where bahamut is involved. Oh and the other stuff you have to do. it was at that point I was all "FAQ?" and I did it.

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I don't like FAQs unless I'm just that desperate. Probably why I looked to one a bunch of times for Valkyria Chronicles. I sucked at that game a good portion of the time, it's a shame it's really good.

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Ok so I'm working through FF IV and this is my first time actually trying to get through the whole game instead of quitting halfway through because I got distracted by something else.

You know what's fun? Leveling up Cecil right after he becomes a Paladin. You know what's more fun? Killing everybody else in the party and having Cecil accumulate truckloads of EXP for every fight. You know what's even more fun? Having every other character level up accordingly by the time they rejoin you. Running around the latter half of the game at level 50 is SWEET (I used the speed up function on my emulator, in case you're wondering why I didn't die of boredom first). Even Edward is kind of useful.

Speaking of which, does anybody know if Edward can actually be made into a good character other than by ridiculously leveling him up like I did? Because I don't know how the game designers thought he would be a good character otherwise. I mean his only trick is he runs away and hides when he gets hurt which just means you can't heal him.

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My general opinion of Edward has not been a good one, but I think there might be a song or two that he learns that's pretty decent.

I really need to get on FF4 again. I don't have much time to whip out the DS anymore. Thanks work.

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I think Edward is just a crappy character overall. Nobody seems to like him or has made any real use of him. Just deal with him when he's there and soon enough he'll be gone again.

Anyway, I would prefer if we could stick to the "game at hand." Otherwise the "point" of the thread is kind of mutilated beyond all recognition.

Guess its not really a big deal, though. Oh well...

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You know what? I think I might jump on my copy of Dawn of Souls. I'm out of the house more often than not so I can have it tag along on my DS. So I'm in!

I'm gonna start off with Fighter, White Mage, Black Mage, and Red Mage if I so choose. Might swap the last one out for Monk since cheaper to start with, but whatever. I like being overly offensive in my RPG playing strategies.

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Man is this game retarded easy with the adjustments they made. I'm outside of Elfheim trying to make some money for new magic etc, etc. I got the Red Mage instead of the monk however.

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Come on, don't tell me thread is dying after I get started on a game. :(

So now I'm four hours into the game, here's an update. I took care of waking up the elf prince, and I just got into Melmond and I'm just walking around like it's all good with my mystic key. Obviously I picked up everything from the locked rooms since I was able to get into Melmond. Gotta level up some before I try and tackle this vampire in the Cave of the Earth.

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I'm just about done. I've been slowly chipping away at the Temple of Chaos Past, abusing my memo save for everything.

Mine is not so easy as the GBA version :p

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If anyone can suggest any 'must play' Final Fantasy's previous to 7, or 3/6.
And what system/handheld it would be for would be mega helpful.

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The DS remake of 4 is actually pretty fucking solid, and I like the Origins ports of FF1/2 on the PSX if you can't get a hold of a PSP for the Anniversary Editions of 1/2

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I hear you, I feel kind of cheap doing it, but I've been trying to finish these first two games for years and I've never gotten around to finally doing it. Slow the hell down though! I want to catch up on 2! I won't be playing through FF3 again though so I guess maybe that could be my catch-up time.

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Random sidenote, but when we do get to FF4, are we also doing The After Years?

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There's a DS remake of one of them?
I had no idea.
Thanks.

(That looks like it's dripping with sarcasm, but it's not.)

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There's a DS remake of 3(Jap) that's the only legit way to play it without an emulator and a translated ROM. I have that one too. It's a good game but not the best to be honest.

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No, I personally want to stick with just the core titles (so no After Years, X-2, Revenant Wings, or VII Compilation).

I'll probably tackle After Years at the end, though, and if this thread is still active I may throw it in. I was going through it, but then my Wii got stolen and I haven't re-bought it yet, so...

Anyway, I just completed FFI a few minutes ago, I'll post my "overall" impressions and thoughts on that here in a bit, and then update with FFII.

Also, if Magus or anyone who is secretly playing along hasn't completed I don't worry about it. Go at your own pace. If you didn't want to play through I, but feel like jumping in with II feel free. And if you don't want to play at all, but want to post your thoughts on the current or prior games feel free as well.

FFI Impressions
 

As I stated above I have just beaten FFI. I've beaten the game once before; it was the same version (Origins) right after it came out, so about 7 years ago or so. I have played the original on the NES, but I never got very far in it.

I beat it this time with a class of Warrior/Knight, Monk/Master, Black Mage/Wizard, and a White Mage/Wizard. Not very exciting, but I like balance. I kind of got frustrated with my Monk, though. I probably would go for another Warrior next time. The Monk gets strong later, sure, but not that much stronger than the Warrior and he takes a lot more damage. The only real benefit is not having to buy equipment, but I never had any issues with gil and could have easily afforded a second Warrior's equipment.

One thing in FFI that seems odd to me is the balance between normal enemies and bosses. In most of the games the enemies in the dungeons are usually just speed bumps on the way to boss. Sure, it ramps up in difficulty for the final dungeon and special dungeons, but for the most part they're there for farming exp and gil, not much else. In FFI, however, I actually had more difficulty with the normal enemies.

I guess it has more to do with a lack of resources and save points than the enemies themselves. Potions restore a set amount of health, no percentage, so their usefulness ends pretty quick and there aren't any "Hi-Potions" or anything later on. Magic does better, but you have a maximum of 9 casts per healing spell and that's only if you don't plan on using any of the other spells on the same level. They get used up quit, too. So I ended up running from battles just trying to save my resources to fight the boss at the end and be able to heal only to find that the bosses are pretty easy. They only have slightly more health than normal enemies and can usually be defeated in one or two rounds. Even the final boss only lasted me about 5 rounds. They don't hit hard either; some enemies hit almost as hard, except that you have to fight up to 9 of them all spamming the same friggin' attack.

Its an interesting dynamic. Instead of very difficult boss fights where you need all of your resources, FFI has relatively easy boss fights, but you're usually pretty spent by the time you get there.

Ultimately, my view on FFI is the same as most 8-bit titles of long running series (of course, my version was closer to 16-bit): its interesting to see where the series evolved from, but the older version just can't compare to the later games.

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Final Fantasy II wiki page


Originally released in Japan in 1988 for the Nintendo Famicom. It was initially going to be localized for NA as Final Fantasy: Shadow Over Palakia. By this point, however, FFIV had already been released in Japan. It was decided to skip over the newly outdated NES titles and jump straight to the new SNES. Final Fantasy II was not released in American until 2003 as part of the Final Fantasy Origins collection along with Final Fantasy I.

Final Fantasy II follows the characters Firion, Gus, and Maria as they oppose the mighty Empire. The three main characters are often joined by different characters who fill the fourth slot in the battle menu. The most important of these is Leon, Maria's brother. Leon starts as an ally to Firion and the crew, but later can be found fighting against them only to switch back to side of good near the end of the game.

FFII followed the apparent 8-bit sequel trend by more or less ignoring the first game in the series. While the changes weren't as drastic as, say, The Legend of Zelda to Zelda II: Adventure of Link, it still had very little in common with the original Final Fantasy. Rather than using the same "level" system used in FFI (and every other FF until FFX), FFII takes a more "realistic" approach. Your character's stats increased only as you used the ability that goes with it (strength rises when you attack; defense rises when you're attacked; etc.). There are no experiences points or anything similar. Generally, this system has been disliked and has caused FFII to be considered by many the "black sheep" of the series.

Other changes from FFI and introductions that proved more popular and were carried on:

- The playable characters now had preset names and personalities. Also, the fourth party member frequently changed and was oftentimes completely absent. This feature is abandoned in the third game but resurrected and remains for all other core FF releases.
- A more dynamic plot with a larger cast of characters and a more visible enemies (also ignored for FFIII, but is found in all subsequent releases).
- Chocobos
- The recurring character of Cid.

In North American FFII has seen a couple of different releases, usually alongside FFI:

- As part of the Final Fantasy Origins collection for the PSX in 2003. The game was updated from the Famicom original with better graphics and slight interface tweaks to modernize gameplay.
- As part of Final Fantasy I&II Dawn of Souls for the GBA. This version has a few more graphical tweaks. Also removed the "cancel" glitch that allowed players to quickly and easily "level-up" their characters. Also added bonus dungeon.
- For the PSP with further updated graphics and another bonus dungeon.
- Also for the iPhone with added touch screen capability.

Also, one last thing. With the introduction of Cid comes a new feature for these posts: Cid Watch! A spotlight on the various characters named Cid that appear in every Final Fantasy game following FFII.



The first Cid has no last name. He can initially be found in the town of Poft and offers rides on his airship for a fee. He later helps the party and even sacrifices his life for the good of the rebellion. Cid's association with airships is often continued in the later games of the series.


*****


I plan on playing the Origins version of FFII. I plan on highly exploiting the "cancel" glitch which later releases remove. This will be the first time I have beaten the game (well, hopefully), but not the first time I've played it. I played the Origins before after beating FFI for the first time. I quit a ways into the game due to the levelling system. Maria was never attacked in the early parts of the game which meant her HP stayed really low which meant when she was attacked in the later bits she was usually killed in one hit. I wasn't aware I could have her attack herself and didn't have the patience to try to get enemies to attack her. We'll see how it goes this time.

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Dammit! I just defeated the Lich. I'm so behind already. :( I hear what you're saying about the normal enemy difficulty. It's not so much that they're difficult, it's just that you can only prep and lvl so much but the random encounter rate is just really really high on occasion. We'll see how I keep up with the rest of the game, and if I can hold my ground in FF2 this time.

Truth be told it's not my personal favorite.

Re: Final Fantasy Megathread
 

I don't think FFII is anyone's personal favorite.

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I had a co-worker that liked it. I dunno, he's weird though.

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Sure he wasn't talking about the original American FF2?

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Also are you going to play final fantasy tactics? Because if you've never played it, I highly suggest you play it as part of this. Such an amazing game.

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This so hard. I loved the War of the Lions remake. It was definitely a great way to redo a great game.

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Yup such a good game.

So since I have decided to do something I wanted to do for a while while you're busting out FF1-3.

I'm going to do an all thief run of FF 1 using the original NES version.

Supposedly one of the hardest things to do in a ff game is this.

Going to do it.

I know you're thinking "WHITE MAGE WOULD BE RETARDED HARD"

But this is only true until you get White Wizard.

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I will definitely believe this. White Mages/Wizards are pretty decent if only because they have good defense but not physical power. Thiefs...eh. Not a fan.

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Also, I got the airship and did my class change. Just getting some spells for the red wizard (which I haven't been really using much of so I guess I could have been better off with two warriors) and some other things I might have missed.

Running around looking for stuff had farmed like 400,000 gil for me so I was able to get the best weapon for the black wizard without a problem, along with the worthwhile lvl. 7 black and white magic.

Now to get the other two crystals taken care of.

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And FF1 completed! Gotta say, the more I played it, the more I realized that it hasn't really aged well at all.

Be that as it may, this is my first time finishing the game. Took me 13 hours and I'm glad I can add this game to my belt of finished classics if you will. Maybe one day I'll give FF1 a go on Origins or the original NES version to give myself a true test of difficulty, but for now FF2. I'll be playing the version on Origins for this one.

Let's hope I can stick it out this time.

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An hour into it and I can already tell that this might be troublesome.

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The best way to play II, IMO, is to go crazy and seriously overpower yourself in the beginning of the game. I had all three core party members at 1000+ HP with weapon skills or magic at level 10 before I even stepped foot into anything even slightly resembling a dungeon.

You don't maybe need to go that far with it if you don't have the patience or time, but training up to a respectable level will definitely make the game much more enjoyable. Otherwise its just frustrating.

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What I'm thinking of doing is having Maria as a mage, both white/black with more emphasis on white, and an archer since she'll be better taking less damage in the back (that's what he said). Firion can be the sword wielder with the shields and whatnot. Gus right now is just a brute. I already went to this place across the lake or whatever, forgot the name. I'll work on stuff around there.