FF6 GBA

[Velorath]

He's right about the game sucking donkey cock, though.

I enjoyed it at the time, but I don't think I could go back through and play any of the FF games again (excpet Tactics).

[dusematic]

The entire game was based on summoning.  Attacks and magic were worthless.  Fighting all but the very weakest enemies in the game calls for a summoning.  The summons are cool the first 100 times, but there's no way to shorten them like in a lot of games (even back in Legend of Dragoon you could shorten summons sequences).  I spent 30 hours playing the game and I'd say at least a 1/3 of that times was waiting for summons and slow disc loading between every screen. 

Wrong, the entire game was based around junctioning.  If you were constantly summoning you just sucked at the game.

Neg.  It's impossible to suck at FF8 because it simply isn't challenging enough.  I treated junctioning in my brief review (which was meant primarily for someone who had never played), but maxing out your strength with junctioned spells doesn't make your physical attacks effective.  Likewise maxing out magic doesn't make your magical attacks effective.  Consequently summoning GF's is the only sane option unless you like 4 minute random encounters.  Obviously I still junctioned anyway, but that's because I wanted to believe anything I did in the game mattered (it didn't).  The only useful things to junction were HP and speed.  But hey, maybe you're right and I just couldn't wrap my poor old brain around the intricacies of the FF8 combat mechanics.  The alrger issue is, the whole system sucks.  Even if drawing magic and junctioning it to strength or whatever did wonders, it's still lame as hell to sit there and siphon magic from the same creature 500 times.

[Velorath]

Consequently summoning GF's is the only sane option unless you like 4 minute random encounters.

Again, sorry you sucked at the game.  Using summons takes longer due to the long animations.  Properly junctioning your party members made random encounters go by quicker.  FFVIII has plenty of actual faults, which is why I understand that a lot of people didn't like it.  In this case though, it's your fault that you didn't bother to learn the system that combat is based around.

[schild]

The only reason to play 8 was for that stupid fucking card game. Tetra Master or whatever.

[Velorath]

The only reason to play 8 was for that stupid fucking card game. Tetra Master or whatever.

That's one more reason than I can come up with for playing IX.

[Simond]

The only reason to play 8 was for that stupid fucking card game. Tetra Master or whatever.

That's one more reason than I can come up with for playing IX.

IX was better than VIII by several light-years, but I've already implied as much in this thread.

[Chimpy]

Consequently summoning GF's is the only sane option unless you like 4 minute random encounters.

Again, sorry you sucked at the game.  Using summons takes longer due to the long animations.  Properly junctioning your party members made random encounters go by quicker.  FFVIII has plenty of actual faults, which is why I understand that a lot of people didn't like it.  In this case though, it's your fault that you didn't bother to learn the system that combat is based around.

Holding down SELECT cut the animations down to about the speed of a normal "spell cast".

I enjoyed FF8 for what it was, it was not stellar, but it was an interesting attempt at changing the mechanics of the game in another direction and overall I had fun.

I personally found FFVII lacking compared to the early games I played on the SNES, but you can't talk badly about VII or the nerd rage tidal wave will get you.

[schild]

VII was shit compared to VI. See, that was easy.

[Chimpy]

VII was shit compared to VI. See, that was easy.

You don't count.

[trias_e]

-deleted-

[Yegolev]

I submit that comparing FFVII and FFVI directly isn't terribly fair and is weighted by personal preferences.  7 had a great atmosphere and did some super things with the presentation, although those are not apparent in the 21st century unless you remember Ye Olde Days.  I'd still say 6 was better by some margin.

Now 8, the combat wasn't horrible but it did not do enough to distract me from the biggest problem I had with the game, that being the characters and the paint-eating-retard story.  It's far more ridiculous than the one from 7.  The school actually flies?  They all grew up together but somehow forgot?  Monsters from the moon?  What?  Sakaguchi should have been flogged with that script.

[ahoythematey]

If I remember rightly, the game explains the memory loss as a side-effect of using the Guardian Forces.

I liked 8, but the story just completely fell apart.  Tried to do too much, and was not written well.

[Velorath]

The only reason to play 8 was for that stupid fucking card game. Tetra Master or whatever.

That's one more reason than I can come up with for playing IX.

IX was better than VIII by several light-years, but I've already implied as much in this thread.

IX was dull and forgettable aside from ViVi, and the character design was utter crap.  Steiner had what looked like eyelashes drawn on with eyeliner.  Garnet and Zidane both looked like they were 9 years old, making any romance between them feel really creepy.  Just crap.  That was the beginning of the end of FF for me.

[cmlancas]

You're missing out if you don't play X and XII. It's not like they are the best games of the bunch, but they are certainly good enough to be played. I'm sure you can pick them up in the $20 bargain bin at any EBStop nowadays.

[dusematic]

Here's a review that pretty much sums up FF8:  http://www.netjak.com/Reviews/vintage/ff8.htm

In relevant part:

"In Final Fantasy 8, Square introduced the junction system to customize your characters. While I give credit to Square for trying something new that probably looked like a good idea on paper, in practice the flaws with the system become apparent immediately. To get it to work you first need to equip a summoning monster, which in this game is called a Guardian Force. This is because every battle command, with the exception of attack, is only available through GF junctioning. Anyway, after equipping the GF, you then equip the Draw command, which allows you to draw magic spells from your enemies. After you draw those magic spells, you then attach them to your hit points or attack or whatever stat you feel like increasing. See, great idea on paper. But realize that whenever you want to draw magic in battle, you are basically giving the bad guy a free shot at you. And your stats go down whenever you use magic. So try not to become too dependent on magic.


Oh, wait, but you won’t be depending on magic! Magic in Final Fantasy 8 has all the effectiveness of a mosquito bite on an elephant. Without magic, you would normally turn to your weapons to knock the living daylights out of your attackers, but in Final Fantasy 8; the weapons have the effectiveness of a mosquito bite on a whale. Want to try winning a fight depending solely on your weapons and magic? Good luck, buddy boy, you’re in for a long fight. All right, I lied: Weapons and magic work just fine in the beginning of the game. But after the first couple of missions, they quickly become useless. The only way to get in and out of a battle is to make use of your Guardian Forces, but unfortunately, while your GFs are useful in slaughtering the baddies by the dozen, they have super long animations that can’t be skipped over. Another Final Fantasy 7 complaint, but at least FF7 didn’t have you relying on summons to fight your battles for you. And you could get up and grab a cup of coffee while the pretty summon animations flashed across your screen. This is not the case in FF8. In FF8, when you summon a GF, you get to sit there pounding your buttons to increase the strength of the GF. It’s a lose/lose situation as the battles always take forever.

Let me read your thoughts for a moment: To increase the speed at which the battles go by, you’re thinking of using the age-old RPG solution: Leveling up. A good idea in theory, yes. But little do you know that every enemy in Final Fantasy 8 has levels parallel to Squall’s. This means that whenever Squall gains a level, every bad guy in the game also goes up a level. Think of the way the bosses got more powerful as Alex got more powerful in Lunar, and you have the idea, except Squall’s levels affect EVERY enemy. So you can power up all you like, but the rule is if it gave you fits in the beginning, it’ll give you fits right until the bitter end. Oh, and while still on the subject of battles, why don’t I mention that you no longer get paid for winning battles? Nope, instead you get a regular paycheck according to what SeeD level Squall is currently at. You can increase SeeD levels by taking tests that come with the tutorial. Get the point here: Combat is USELESS. There’s no point. Fortunately, early in the game, you get a magic lamp with a Guardian Force called Diablos, who provides you with an ability to avoid battles.

The weapons system has also been revamped for the worse. First, you get no armor besides the suit you were born in. I don’t agree with that change, but I don’t disagree with it, since it saves cash. As for the weapons themselves, instead of buying entirely new weapons you now get to purchase upgrades. As you travel across the world you find and collect magazines that contain descriptions of your next weapon and what parts you need to get it customized. Then you set out to collect them without the slightest hint of where these parts may lie. As you’ll find out, they often lie (rarely may I add) waiting in the bloody remains of some ultra-powerful enemy who will likely wipe out your entire party before your first turn."


And FF9 was my favorite FF on the playstation.  Went back to more of an oldschool feel. 

[Hayduke]

Now 8, the combat wasn't horrible but it did not do enough to distract me from the biggest problem I had with the game, that being the characters and the paint-eating-retard story.  It's far more ridiculous than the one from 7.  The school actually flies?  They all grew up together but somehow forgot?  Monsters from the moon?  What?  Sakaguchi should have been flogged with that script.

I'm a little shocked that anyone still remembers the story in 8.

[Selby]

This thread makes me glad that I skipped out on FF after 7.  My college roommate used to worship it and I HATED it because of that.  Glad to see I didn't miss much.  Although I see Dragon Quest heading down this road and it makes me sad.

[dusematic]

9 and 12 are solid.  That's basically it after 7.

[Phildo]

I don't think he played the same FF8 as I did... some of the spells in that were ridiculously useful, like the one that grants you instant use of your limit breaks, or temporary invincibility.

And I liked 8 & 9.

And I think 7 is way overrated.

Go FF4!

[Merusk]

7 gets lots of love because of the huge ta-tas on Tifa, and the age of its fanbois when it came out.  That it was a decent game helps it out as well, but never overlook the power of the boobz.

[Simond]

Plus it was the first FF released in Europe.

[schild]

Plus it was the first FF released in Europe.

That doesn't make it better.

[Strazos]

It was just an epic game for its time. Also, first FF on PSX.


Even now, it has its moments.

[Kitsune]

7 was a good game.  It had a very flexible advancement mechanic in the materia, pleasant minigames, good combat without too much in the way of random encounters, and decent story and characters.  As far as I'm concerned, 7 did nothing wrong and I'd buy it if they put out a high def version for the PS3, no question.

6 was better.  Not so flexible in the character growth, but in exchange the characters were much more distinct in how they played.  The story felt more epic, the characters were more interesting.  Kefka was such a son of a bitch that you really wanted to kick his ass, unlike Sephiroth, who despite his genocidal ways never came across as exciting enough to get angry at.  I'd lunge at the chance to buy a remixed 6 on any system.  Putting it on GBA annoys me, though; I'd much rather they put it on DS and made use of the higher resolution.

8 went straight downhill, I never played 9, 10 just came across as okay, 11 involved smashing my testicles with a splintered board with rusty nails in it, and never played 12.

[dusematic]

9 is probably the closest you'll ever get to a FF6 remake.  It's also Hironobu Sakaguchi's favorite FF.  I put 9 right behind 6.  They clearly went back to FF6 for inspiration, and it shows in a solid game.

[Velorath]

You're missing out if you don't play X and XII. It's not like they are the best games of the bunch, but they are certainly good enough to be played. I'm sure you can pick them up in the $20 bargain bin at any EBStop nowadays.

X was decent.  I liked that it didn't exactly have a happy ending.  In fact part of the reason I've never really played X-2 is because I thought it was best to just leave things as they were at the end of X.  XII... I've made my feelings known about it here, and I'd rather not get into it again.

[cmlancas]

Haven't finished XII yet and I like this thread; please be sure to post your spoilers so I can't see them :)  Thanks.


Did people really like the grid in XII for your characters? I much, much preferred the sphere grid in X. (I think I've posted that earlier in this thread)

[Yegolev]

I liked the Sphere Grid better than License Points; Sphere Grid reminds me of the system in Digital Devil Saga.  The LP system was kind of lame because I felt the amount of work to get the LP and subsequently figure out where to spend them didn't match up with the payoff.  Basically, the LP grid gave me nothing but some upgrades (like allowing Remedy to be Super Awesome) and otherwise was just a cockblock to keep me from my equipment or a spoiler that showed me the equipment that I missed out on.

Also equipment management in FFXII was generally more difficult than it should have been.  If you force me to swap equipment based on what I am fighting, can't you give me at least one alternate-set mechanism as found in Diablo II?  No, instead when I wanted to change equipment I had to manually do everything using a non-optimal menu system.

Those are my only two complaints about FFXII, which make it at worst #2 behind either FFIV or FFVI, depending.

[bhodi]

the LP system was "ok", but it was offset by the terrific combat system -- world combat and gambits.

[Phildo]

I miss plain, old fashioned leveling up unique characters.  Screw this interchangeable bullshit.