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Final Fantasy Origins Final Fantasy I & II Remastered Editions Review (continued)
More User Submitted Final Fantasy Origins Final Fantasy I & II Remastered Editions Reviews
Date: 2006-10-04
The Beginning of an era (in remake form)
For those who don't know too much info about this game, this is the remake of the first 2 NES games, not the originals. 2nd is that FF2 (FF2 in japan) was never released here in the US and finally that these 2 games are actually ports from the Wonderswan versions of the games. Wonderswan is a handheld gaming system (like the gameboy) that is in Japan only and has two ways to play the system (horizontailly and Vertically).
Because I have been a fan of the FF games for a long time, I actually can say that this is my least favorite of all of the Final Fantasy games that came out on the Playstation 1. FF1 doesn't really have any main character at all, but has a battle system similar to FF4 (2 in the US for the SNES). FF2 on the other hand has a main character but the way the game plays (both on the field and in battle) is a little strange. On the field, when you talk to somebody, when it comes to important events in the game or whatever, you have a menu of stuff to choose to say. However, as you progress through the game, you get more stuff to say. The point here is that it kind of sucks to have a limited amount of conversation subjects and have to actually find more as the game progresses. The battle system for this game is like FF10 (only you don't get to choose what to raise up for your stats) and you don't have any level system at all. it's like the first game. the reason why I give this game a overall rating of 4 stars is because RPGs that were made in the NES days are really difficult and don't have much storyline and subplots in the games (like Dragon Warrior), and only have to do a few important things (probably 10 or 15 all together) before fighting the final boss. these games were mostly just to level your character up, got do some things, fight some bosses, level up some more, do other things, level up some more, fight the final boss. plus these games are way too short, because in those days, games didn't have a lot of juice (memory) to put in a long game so you can probably beat the game in 10 hours or more. I am so happy that I got to join in on the RPG train around the time of the Genesis/Super NES to the PSone era to a few from this era (PS2, GC, Xbox) because you can do a lot more with these type of RPGs since they can take longer to beat. I am not saying that FF1 and 2 are horrible games, they just aren't as great as the 16 bit, 32 bit and 128 bit eras.
This game isn't that important to have in your Final Fantasy collection. however if you like the ancient old school RPGs from the NES era, this is recommended. If you are a starter on RPGs, this is definitly not a good start.
Date: 2005-12-01
The beginning of an era...
I wasnt going to write a review at first. After all, with 60+ reviews, I figured that pretty much everything has aleady been said. But then I started reading some of them...
The fact that so MANY people compare the graphics of this game to that of FF VII appalls me. Come on, people, we are talking about a difference of about 10 years in release dates (and in the video game world, that may as well be a century!) and a system difference of 3+ generations, depending on what you include. Comparing 8 bit games to 128 bit games is like comparing apples...and cats. This game was not released because of it's new and innovating approach to video games and it's impressive graphics. It was re-released because it is a part of Final Fantasy, and RPG, history. For those who complain that Square didn't update the graphics enough for the PS1 release...what would be the point of re-releasing the classic if didn't look the same? Gamecube made few changes to the Zelda's they released on the promo disc, and nobody bashed them for it (when in fact, I personally hated playing that version...the controls didn't work very well for me on the GC). In fact, the discs instantaneously became a collector's item (hype has died down by now) where they were selling for over $100 on Ebay!
Ok. I am done with my mini tirade. The truth is though, I loved this game. I loved this original game when it came out on NES, I bought a new (refurbished) NES system just to play the game again about 10 years later, and I played through it again when it was released in the Origins collection. The fact that FF II was included was just a bonus. In just those few years, it made leaps and bounds in the way of graphics and story-telling. It, too, has it's flaws, but the important thing is that the game hooks you regardless. And the fact that these two games can still stand the test of time after the pile of systems, and hordes of games that have come out over the years...well in my opinion, that makes them worlds beyond anything that is out there today.
Date: 2005-10-17
Oldy but Goody
It was really nice to be able to once again be able to play the one game where all the new ff age was started. By all means much less hiped up like the newer versions, but still holds the player to the end.
Date: 2005-08-02
The one That Started it All
Once upon a time, a little company called Square was about to just plain DIE. At the end of it's rope, they looked at the somewhat confusing popularity of a game called Dragon Quest, and said, ''Well, let's see if we can do this one better. No, wait, let's see if we can do this four or five better. What have we got to lose?''
The rest is history, as the single most enduring franchise in gaming history was born.
Final Fantasy. So named because if it hadn't taken the gaming world-- at least the gaming world in Japan-- by storm, there would be no more Square
Graphics 9
For both games the graphics had a major upgrade, compared to the Nintendo. Each of the characters are shown with great detail, they even have art work you can get while going through the game, along with the monsters you come across. The towns have a new look to them also, with each of the npc's with great detail too. The detail they put into the background was really amazing compared to the older one. Being able to tell where the towns are and the game not freezing up on you is a great upgrade. The magic has been well designed too. Some of the stronger magic's glint the entire screen and even some of the older Final Fantasies have better magic than most of the newer ones. Why you ask, because I said so and that's all there is to it.
The monsters are more of a wide variety also, even though you will run into the same enemy just different colors its good to be able to tell which a stronger version is. The land seems to be detailed well too, because they are true colors instead of just random colors the system can handle. They even have really great videos in the beginning of each game, with the characters talking in the FF II beginning that was something even I wasn't ready for. It is just amazing seeing how much the graphics have improved since 87 makes me feel like an old person watching these amazing games grow up too.
Game play 10
A ten you say, well it shouldn't surprise you, because not only do these games have great stories, graphics, all of those good things, without game play it would just seem like a book. For Final Fantasy the battles are like they used to be, you go, they go, you go again, but it is nowhere near as slow as it use to be. But unlike Final Fantasy II, FF has the leveling system, which you should be used to. On the older version you could only get to level 50, but on this one you can reach higher, not that its necessary or anything. Instead of learning magic, or having a weapon to learn magic, in both games you have to buy it from stores they have in each town. They have two different kinds of magic's white, which is the curative magic, and black which is more of an elemental damage magic. While having those stores the magic goes with two different characters, the white and black mage. But wait there is more, there is an additional mage that can learn both magic's, and that mage is titled the red mage. Not only do you have these wonderful magic's to buy but, they have levels too, so as you increase your level in the game you can increase your magic level, to do more damage to enemies you encounter.
Another set of characters is the monk, whom goes against everything, unlike a warrior this type of character can have better attack and defense without having any items equipped to them. The warrior is one of the most basic characters which are one of the best. He can equip any item and still be strong. Along with these is a thief, whom you can have run from enemies. But they have nowhere near the attack of the warrior, all they seem good for is luck and their speed, but with that luck and speed they can help you escape from battles easier. When you advance farther in the game you can have these characters upgrade, which will make there stats go up a large amount. There is a little mini game you can play on a boat which you get later, where you try to get the numbers to go in order they are all mismatched. The name of it is the tile game, and if you are short on money all you have to do is beat the records they have on their little hall of fame thingy and you can get a lot of money in return for beating a simple time limit.
In the beginning of FF II you notice there are four different characters running from their town which has been set on fire, they are the four main characters you see. The first one I will mention is Firion he was orphaned at a young age, he was adopted by the parents of Maria and Leon, and he grew up with them and considers them his real family. Maria is Leon's sister, Leon goes a separate path at the beginning of the game and you are to track him down. The last one is Gus, he was a childhood friend of the three and he tends to use his muscles more than he does his brain, he is one of the strongest of the group, but he isn't very bright. Unlike FF this game has actual characters to fit a story line, which can be a good thing but, if you have a game with no names you get to change it to what you see fit, unlike some of the other FF's that have names for the characters so there is no reason to change there given name.
In FF II as I mentioned earlier there are no levels you just kind of gain more status as you move on with the game. But like FF there is the same kind of magic, you buy it and you can equip it to anybody in this game really. But there are not separate classes in this game so it goes with who gets it first keeps it. They all have their own sort of weapons though. The battling isn't much different than any other FF except you don't get any experience at the end of the battle. But your characters attributes also increase like they would, even though there are no visible mastery points. There are links between the actions taken and the stats raised aren't quite as clear. One thing that both games do share in common and I think should be in most Final Fantasies is that there are memo files you can save, which is like saving the actual game except you can save it wherever you want and you can start your game over from there, but it only stays on your game while it is on. If you reset your Playstation the memo file will be erased which can be a bummer, but oh well.
Sound 10
The sound is really great in this game, it's mostly all the soundtrack but hey as long as you got good music who needs noises from the characters right? The soundtrack on FF is better than of FF II in my opinion, but that is because I have played through FF more than FF II. The best thing about these soundtracks is when you own them and you just listen to them, it reminds you of the areas you where at in the game, and that just shows you how powerful music can be. The voice acting on the FF II video was really good, their voices seemed to match the movement of their lips pretty well, but other than that the rest of the noises where ok. Except for the magic, some of the noises definitely let you know something cool is going to happen. Other than that you just need to go buy the soundtrack it's worth it.
Graphics 9
Game play 10
Sound 10
Overall 10
This is a really great game and if you don't have it I highly suggest that you go out and buy it. It is released for the Playstation so it shouldn't be too hard to find. If you can go and buy the soundtrack along with the game. The game play is one of the key factors to this game and should keep you occupied for a while. So enjoy the game and I hope you enjoyed reading.
Date: 2005-06-03
A Weak Fantasy AND How To Fix the Load Time Problem
I've noticed a couple people complain about the load times (especially during battles). There's a quick and easy fix for PS2 owners: In the main menu under the PS1 Driver, there's a setup option for "Fast Loading". When you turn that on, the game will load as fast as the original cartridge did. Problem solved.
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And now for the games: I wasn't too impressed. Technically, FF1 and FF2 are good games. The graphics were upgraded from the 1980's 8-bit Nintendo to 16-bit Wonderswan graphics (think portable Super Nintendo). You choose your characters, and then you go out and fight monsters, again and again (random battles). And so the games, technically, are well-made.
But that alone is not enough for me. I play mainly for the story, and I need a good solid story to make all those random battles worthwhile, but both FF1 & 2 are extremely sparse on story. You spend 5 hours of game, for about 5 minutes of story. Sparse.
I finished both games, but there came a certain point where I was bored, no longer having fun, and playing just to finish the game. A chore. I can think of better 8-bit RPG/Adventure games I'd rather play & better recommend: Atari's Adventure, Activison's Pitfall, Activision's Hero, Sid Meier's Pirates, (all available in various retro-compilations).
I kept FF Anthology and FF Chronicles, but sold FF Origins. It just didn't impress me. Interesting history lesson, but not worth keeping.
Final Fantasy Origins Final Fantasy I & II Remastered Editions Reviews Page: 5 of 10 Prev<< 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Next>>
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