Fainaru fantajî IV

I should have known when I first saw this game in 8th Grade that Final Fantasy was going to be a great series for a long time. How could I have know though? This was Final Fantasy II (in Japan it was IV). I guess I figured you could only have one "final" fantasy, and the fact that there was a second was overachieving in the first place.

What game are we on now? Ten? They're all good and this was the first Final Fantasy to catch my attention. The story is as gripping as a video game plot needs to be. The characters are diverse and dynamic. Your party members grow and changes as the story progresses and the writers aren't afraid to kill off some really good ones. There are many interesting weapons, items, spells, caves and enemies. Best of all, the battles are fun and not an annoyance.

The game does show age but the graphics are really pretty and I remember they were exceptionally beautiful and he music was awesome at the time this came out for the Super Nintendo. You can find this one for PlayStation now AND it's coupled with what many call "The greatest Role Playing Game of all time" ChronoTrigger. It's a bargain.

Once again, the Final Fantasy series holds true to form and comes out with an astounding video game focusing on Magic and Hit Points and discovering weapons and hidden treasure. This game does a fabulous job of making the player understand Cecil's internal conflicts, and how all of the other characters relate to him. The various characters rotating in and out of the main plot is very well done. The return of familiar spells and effects is embraced as well. All in all, this is a worth-your-time game. Plus, it is here that Cid makes his debut (at least for the American series...).

Final Fantasy II is probably the best RPG in existence. I've played it through numerous times and it has been an exciting adventure every time. The story is truly one to be recognized. Cecil, a dark knight, betrays his country once he feels that it's direction has turned more towards evil. During his quest to retaliate, he must face trials that bring him to learn that his ties between the ultimate evil and the ultimate good are more than he could have ever imagined. An excellent cast of characters and a musical score that is absolutely fantastic. A story that should be told again and again. Should be a movie by now.

In 1991, a little known company gaming company known as Square(soft) in Japan released the fourth segment of it's Final Fantasy series. Little did they know (or maybe they did) where it would lead them.

I would call Final Fantasy IV the "sleeper hit" of the series. It was considered by the few who got their hands on it back in the early 90's their "favorite video game ever". It had rave reviews, and started to garner a cult-like rpg gamer following. And of course, in every aspect, it deserved it.

Hironobu Sakaguchi did a wonderful job in giving depth, for what can be disputed as the first time, to a video game rpg character. The main character of this video game "Cecil" starts out as a "bad guy" with a conscience. Of course, this may be considered cliche nowadays, but back in 1991, it was quite revolutionary. Cecil's predicament, although it may not be original, is a moving one.

Cecil, the dark knight, is the captain of the Red Wings, the Kingdom of Baron's "air force". His story starts with the war mongering of his liege in search for the all-powerful Crystals, which's purposes are shrouded in mystery. After a battle in the mage town of Mysidia, Cecil, torn between his duty and his guilt, confronts his King asking him why he is on this blood-thirsty conquest, and he is promptly banished from the Kingdom on an errand with his Dragoon friend Kain, to make up for this mistake. One must ask, will Cecil ever stand up to his liege and confront his inner demons? Here is where this epic adventure begins.

Following this neat intro, we are introduced to a vast array of different characters that Cecil encounters in his quest; to name a few, Rosa, Rydia, Yang, Palom, Porom, Tellah, and the first of the famous "Cid" characters in the Final Fantasy series. There is a HUGE world to explore (for a 1991 rpg) with many different terrains (even the moon), many different and interesting antagonists (Golbez, the Four fiends), and a mass of evil monsters to be destroyed.

Nubuo Uematsu shines with his inspiring music in this game. This was his first opportunity to show his composing skills and develop a full and rich soundtrack. I was amazed, when this game first came out, at how "orchestrated" a video game can sound...It is no surprise now that Nubuo is now a highly acclaimed composer, both in and out of video game music. If you are a fan, give this soundtrack a listen...These are his roots.

All in all, I give Final Fantasy IV a very biased 5 stars...Although it is reasonably disputed that Final Fantasy 6 and 7 are better overall games, this one will hold a place in my heart. It was the funder of 6...it shaped the things to come.

Final Fantasy 1,2, & 3 are ok games I guess, but FF4 is the first one in the series to actually be good. There is an actual story, real character motivation, and a real RPG element gameplay.

The issue for me is that this game (along with pretty much JRPGs of the 90's) is super grind heavy. You pretty much have to spent a lot of time just battling, and these turn based battle systems are really boring and the worst parts of some JRPGs. It gets to a point where enemies become so strong you have no choice to spend time just walking around engaging in these boring turn based battles.

Anyways, play it on a SNES Emulator and just speed up the battles.

8/10