Chances are you've heard about a little company called Square.
While Final Fantasy is not their only franchise, it is one of their best and
with good reason. Not bad considering the creator, Hironobu Sakaguchi thought this
was to be the last game he would make.
The world of Final Fantasy is in trouble. The elements are
out of control and this causes all kinds of unpleasant things like the earth
starting to rot and stormy weather. The legends tell of four light warriors
that will come to save the day by defeating each of the four fiends and finding
the four orbs. Now it's up to you and your party of light warriors to stop the
chaos and save your world from evil.
Final Fantasy packs quite a few nice options like the
ability to pick your party from a group of character classes like Fighters,
Thief's, Mages and Black Belts. Each has their own weapon and armor
capabilities not to mention spells. After proving your worth, your characters
can also be promoted to Ninjas, Knights and Wizards. These features are very
nice and were almost unheard of back then in console titles. The world of Final
Fantasy is also quite large with a variety of towns and dungeons and you even
get different modes of transport like Boats, Canoes and Airships.
Mostly, you'll be fighting creatures for money and
experience. Fear not as there are also some puzzles to solve. Taking on the
four fiends is no easy task as they reside deep in their dungeons and you can
only save in a town or world map. This means you're on your own inside the
dungeons so one false move can cost you your life. This means Final Fantasy is
one of the most challenging RPGs out there and will really tax your skills. It
sucks that you only have one save game slot though.
Combat takes place in turn based format giving you lots of
time to plan your next move. All enemies have their own strengths and
weaknesses and learning what weapon or spell works best on what monster will
help you a lot. There are also lots of magical items and weapons that will make
your quest a bit easier. The combat is cool and the only criticism I have is
that if the creature you wanted to attack is already dead or has fled your character
does not automatically move on to the next one but instead still tries to
attack the absent creature.
You can buy a variety of items like tents, cabins and houses
that will allow you to save and rest on the world map but once in the dungeons
you are on your own. There are also items like healing potions and antidotes as
well as potions to cure being turned into stone. For combat ailments like being
blinded or paralyzed you'll have to rely on your white mages defensive spells.
Seeing as you use so many potions and stuff it's a pity that you can only buy
one item at a time. A simple slider or number input could have sped up the
process considerable. The music by Nobuo Uematsu is a highlight and you definitely
won't be reaching for the mute button. Control is easy and every button has a
use.
I have been looking forward to playing this game for some
time now and I must say I wasn't disappointed. What it might lack in graphics
it more than makes up with in gameplay and this is one game that will take some
time to complete. It's tough and challenging but still has that addictive
quality that has you exploring every dungeon and town in sight. A very
worthwhile addition to your collection and a game that comes highly
recommended.
[9]
No comments:
Post a Comment