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Final Fantasy V Advance Review (continued)
More User Submitted Final Fantasy V Advance Reviews
Date: 2008-02-10
4.5; Got lots of free time?
I first played Final Fantasy V when it was released with VI with Anthology for the Playstation. Being one of the few installments that didn't get a stateside release (along with III which is here on the DS), a lot of people loved playing V mainly for the gameplay since storywise they're just wasn't anything there. While it does feel like they're releasing the games over and over for money, most can't even find the original Anthology release anyway so we have V being released separately which is a good game in its own right but it might not be as well-rounded as VI or the later installments.
Story: Same ol' really but here it goes: King Tycoon is off to the Wind Shrine to check on the Wind crystal which he fears is in danger. Princess Lenna follows him only to be blocked by a massive meteor that hits the ground. Meeting traveller Bartz as well as Galuf, an old man with amnesia, the 3 travel to the Wind Shrine and with the help of Faris the pirate, have to save the world and protect the crystals from evil.
Graphics: Nothing that stellar really but this is a Gameboy Advance title so it's easier to forgive. The graphics look more cleaner but don't expect major overhauls to the graphics to make them more advanced or impressive, they're just more...polished. Character portraits as always have Amano's artwork which is always a welcome though it's kind of odd, but not distracting, to have characters with certain features like Faris' grey hair in portrait to have purple hair in game. But it's always been like that so whatever.
Sound/Music: V's soundtrack is sandwiched inbetween IV and VI, the latter being arguably his finest soundtrack. V's is also impressive with memorable tunes and melodies and some well-known ones like Dear Friends or Battle on the Big Bridge but on the other hand, other tracks are just iffy. They're nice and all but there was never a moment during IV or VI where a bad song suddenly showed up when you entered a new area but in V it's more like it's good music then all of a sudden "hey, this theme's cool".
Gameplay: Unlike IV and VI which had specific classes, in V you can be anybody and the fun comes from mix and matching. Instead of only bringing out certain characters because they're more useful in battle, you can customize your character however you want. Sure you can be a Thief and rob enemies but what if you want to Cure as well? No problem: just learn White Magic, be a Thief and put White Magic in ability menu and poof, now you can nab helpful stuff along with curing your party. Some classes are incredibly useful and even fun to use while others are just quirky and you'd probably only use them for completion purposes.
The Anthology release was fun though frustrating to play since levelling up was kind of a must with many times needing to level up your characters in order to not get slaughtered and the GBA one is just as tough though it's slightly more lenient let's say. Just toughen up your characters and you'll be fine. Also, there's not a lot story wise to the game since it's basically crystals in trouble, warriors come together to stop evil with a touch of character development now and then (i.e: characters waking up in the middle of the night to have a monologue). It's not the most deepest RPG storywise and aside from Lenna and maybe Faris, the characters are not as endearing as a Rydia or Kain.
I'd recommend V since it's an addicting game to master Job classes though for a more well-rounded game with story and characters, seek VI out but when you're finished with that, by all means give V a go.
Date: 2007-07-10
The wonderful and amusing translation makes FFV Advance the best release of FFV to date
In keeping with their tradition of re-releasing their SNES Final Fantasy games on the GBA, Nintendo has repackaged Final Fantasy V. The result is nothing short of spectacular, as Final Fantasy V Advance turns out to be the best version of FFV to date. The main reason being that the game has been re-translated and augmented so that the script is now very tongue in cheek and full of humor. Pop culture references are abounding, and game makes fun of its rather simplistic and cliché storyline. The result is a fresh and witty take on what was originally a simplistic and unoriginal story.
For players unfamiliar with the rest of Final Fantasy V, it can be quickly summarized as follows: The emphasis of the game is not on story, but on fighting. The game requires the player to spend more time leveling up and building up abilities than it does the player reading text and figuring out puzzles. As a result, the game is actually somewhat easy, since the player will most likely "over level" their party in order to have a team of characters to their liking. Beyond the emphasis on leveling, anyone can see why the game originally had a rather unoriginal and overall boring story. Thankfully, the aforementioned "script update" has helped remedy this issue greatly.
As for the game's combat, Square has added 4 new jobs that the player can acquire, but three are only accessible towards the end of the game (and the last after the game is beaten). Still, the new jobs do add some variety to game play as well as replay value. The jobs themselves are not "overly powered" as some players might be lead to think, and in comparison, the original 15 jobs can be more powerful than the new 4 if used properly. Still, the new jobs do make life easier when it comes to leveling up thanks to the abilities that they introduce to the game. Ultimately, the new jobs add some needed additions for players who have already beaten FFV in the past.
As for other additions to the game, the most noticeable are that the game has more colorful and better-drawn graphics. The soundtrack has been remixed, and is now far superior to the original SNES game. The game also has an optional 30-room dungeon and a boss survival mode for players seeking more action after the game is over. Suffice to say, the additional content easily plays on the game's emphasis on combat and not on story telling. Other additions to the game include a bestiary, so that players can look up the stats of the monsters that have been defeated. In addition, the game has a music player mode for those who enjoy the music of Final Fantasy V.
The only drawback on Final Fantasy V Advance is that some players will find the new content to be "not enough". Where as the original Final Fantasy V could be completed at about level 36-50, the additional content can be beaten at 50-60, depending on how much time the player has invested into the job system (and how much outside assistance they utilize.) Still, with the new translation, FFV Advance is a worthwhile experience, even for players who have already played FFV in the past.
Date: 2007-06-08
awright gimme five!!
FF5 will always hold a special place in my heart as the red headed stepchild of the series. In this updated version there are even more reasons to let it out of the basement! First off they added something which I thoroughly enjoy! Portraits. This may not seem like much but now you get to see why Galuf gets ragged so much about being old! Oddly enough he doesnt have brown hair and beard in his portrait...but thats ok we love his sprite anyway! There is much better character interaction, and the party actually seems to have developed a sort of personality. Bartz cracks Groany jokes that will make you slap your forhead. In fact there is even a very bizarre Red Lobster reference in the game... You will fall in love with Gilgamesh all over again as he incompetantly tries to thwart you repeatedly throughout the adventure. Farris is not quite so rediculously cliche as a pirate, but still cliche enough to make sense and be loveable, and her portrait helped you understand how the characters found her foxy a little more than the purple haired creature you were familiar with. X-Death is still the lamest bad guy of any FF game, but its almost kind of endeering in a way...and yes he still harnesses the ultimate power to become a....tree at the end.
The class system is left more or less unscathed but for the addition of a few new ones which are dumb at best. Canoner was not somethign any of us were waiting for ff to add. Necromancer has never been the MO of the FFs and the bizarre weather oracley person just kills your party most of the time. Nice guys! It makes you wonder why they didnt throw in some FF staples that were missing. It might have been nice to have a paladin or something remotely FF thrown in there, but whatever, thats small potatoes...
Its still a blacksheap but you will find the game much more playable now, and the characters dont simply clam up half way through the game like they did before! Go grab this one and get your party full of monks ready to wreak some havoc!!
Date: 2007-05-09
Good Follow -up to FFIV!
This game is great fun. I like the ability to change the job function in this game. It gives each character more diveristy and all become stronger quicker this way! The graphics are about the same as FFIV an before but, thats to be expected and thats what I've alwayed loved about these games. I'm 30 years old and this brings me back to when I was younger playin on nintendo 64 and Nintendo.
:two thumbs up:
Date: 2007-04-03
Last installment
This is the last installment of the Final Fantasy games for the Gameboy Advance. And as far as how good it is, it's Final Fantasy. There should be no worries there.
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