FInal Fantasy IV: The After Years

Well, on to my next stop in the FF Series Playthrough. As I mentioned before, now that I'm done with the 16-bit era, I'm going to go back to play any sequels or side games. Where does that leave me? I find myself downloading the brand new title: Final Fantasy IV: The After Years.

I'm excited about this, because After Years is a new title that I'd never had the chance to play before. I've long been a FF4 fan, and seeing an official sequel to that game is certainly welcome.

This title is only available in the US through direct download on the Nintendo Wii. It seems that SE has decided to take a "manga approach" and release the game in episodes. So I've recently downloaded the entire game. (All $32 worth...)

The game is done up in the style of the original SNES game, so we're talking old-school music and graphics. Sounds like just the game for me :)

I'll start it in the days the come, and i'll probably make one post-per-chapter.

FFII: Soul of Rebirth - Final Review

Here is my take on the bonus quest to Final Fantasy II: Soul of Rebirth.

This sequel is very very short. That being said, it's not for the timid. It's extremely hardcore, and only those with a deep love for Final Fantasy, and who have mastered the original game will find it enjoyable.

In the beginning the characters are way too weak for their environment. Assuming you can reach the town, you finally get the chance to rest and level everyone up enough to press forward.

One could probably play through this chapter in a few hours if they were lucky. However, I spent about 5 hours total getting all of the party members up to snuff enough so I could defeat Ultima Weapon and gain access to that legendary magic.

Once I had achieved that, the rest of the game was a cakewalk.

The monsters that are planted through out the castle have a very religious and gothic feel to them. I liked that. Also the idea of their being an Light and Dark Emperor added a bit of color to the original game. It was fun to see what happened to some of the beloved characters in the original title, after they met their end.

As far as the graphics and the music, not much has changed from the original versions found in Dawn of Souls.

I played through this title over the course of a weekend, and found it a nice change from some of the longer and more epic story-driven titles. It was a nice trip down memory-lane, with a few neat twists thrown in for fun.

Difficulty 9/10

Story 7/10

Originality 7/10

Soundtrack 7/10

Fun 7/10

Graphics (considering time of release) 7/10

FInal Fantasy II - Soul of Rebirth

Well, as I stated earlier, once I finished all of the games from the 16-bit era instead of rushing right off to FFVII, I was going to deviate a bit and check out some of the sequels and side games that have come out in the series.

In 2004, Square Enix released a combo game for the Gameboy Advance titled: Final Fantasy I & II: Dawn of Souls.

This game was portable version of the Final Fantasy Origins title for the Playstation with an updated translation and a few art and palette enhancements. On top of that, there was now some new content added to each game.

For Final Fantasy I, there was a new bonus dungeon added.... blah.

But for Final Fantasy II there was something else entirely.... Yay!

A short side-story called the Soul of Rebirth.

Soul of Rebirth is basically just a really big, and extremely difficult extra dungeon, but it tells the story of those characters who died during the original game.

Now, before I begin I should mention that in the Origins version and the Dawn of Souls version, some of the characters have different names. This is because of bad translations in the early release. For example, Mindu (as he was known in the Origins release) is now called Minwu.

Gareth, however has a completely different name: Ricard.

Despite these differences, they are indeed the same characters.

To unlock the Soul of Rebirth you must first complete the original Final Fantasy II.

If you've forgotten what happened in the original game, you might want to read some of my FFII playthrough before continuing....

When you start the quest, Minwu wakes up after sacrificing himself to help Firion and the party obtain the Ultima magic.

At first, he is confused. Knowing that he died; he doesn't understand where he is or what is going on. Eventually he realizes that he is dead, but is trapped somewhere in the afterlife.

While exploring, he meets up with Scott, Josef, and Ricard. The four of them agree that there must be some unfinished business and they agree to team up to explore this strange afterworld and find out why fate has brought them all together again.

Eventually, they reach an otherworldly town founded by the departed souls from their world.

The town gives the party a chance to rest and stock up on equipment before continuing their journey.

There are two paths out of town, one leads to a place called the Chamber of the Seal. In this temple Minwu learns there is a second tomb of Ultima here in the afterlife, and if he is able to defeat the Ultima Weapon, he too can learn this ancient and powerful spell.

The second path, leads to a celestial palace much like Pandaemonium. This castle is inhabited with various devils and demon-like creatures.

It is here that the party can win some epic treasures, however many of them are guarded by monsters with names as legendary as say.... Lucifer... wow.

Eventually, the party reaches the top of the castle to see a familiar face. The Emperor!

However, this time he looks quite different.

He explains that when he was slain by Firion and the heros back on earth, his soul has split into two parts. The Dark Emperor, that Firion and company must defeat, and the kind, gentle, Light Emperor that stands before Minwu now.

He says that he has created this castle in the heavens, and sent Minwu here so that he could be forgiven. If the party agrees to forgive him, they can live here in the afterlife for all eternity.

As the party ponders this sudden turn of events, it becomes clear that the Emperor is attempting to trick them. While it's true, he has indeed been split into two forms. This "Light Emperor" is just as evil and his demonic counterpart. In fact, for the "Emperor" to be destroyed, both the Dark and Light Emperor will need to be slain.

So it is revealed that while Firion and his team did battle with the final Emperor on earth, Minwu and his departed companions defeated the Light Emperor here in the afterlife. Together, it was the work of both teams that finally brought peace the world, and an end to Emperor's evil reign.

FInal Fantasy VI - Final Review

Well, here is my final review for the RPG masterpiece known as Final Fantasy VI.

This title has been the staple of 16-bit RPGs for years. It is impossible to talk of early entries in the Final Fantasy series without mentioning this game. Everything is included here, and might I add, it was done RIGHT.

The characters are memorable, and unique. The storyline is filled with twists and turns, and theres never a dull moment. It's packed with memorable heroes, magic, legend, freedom fighting rebels, an evil empire, and a completely insane ultimate villain.

Of all the previous FF games, this one is most like FF4 in terms of character development. There are no pre-set jobs, but to an extent, you can mold each character as you see fit. Close observers will notice several familiar themes, however. Sabin could most definitely be called a monk, while here is no doubt that Strago is a Blue Mage. However, the characters role in the party is never in the main focus of the game. A good player can use almost any character combination and be successful. In fact, that's part of the strategy and fun of it all.

The music in this title is arguably the best in the series. The various motifs and style used in the score for this game are memorable. In Japan, music from this game is often taught in some college classes due to its articulate nature and classical style. It's something that should really be heard first hand. The opera piece: Aria Di Mezzo Caratter, is probably one of the loveliest songs I have ever heard. AND IT CAME FROM A GAME!

This was actually the first video game soundtrack that I ever purchased. It's that good... (I recommend the Final Fantasy Vi: Grand Finale CD).

While parts of the game are very linear (especially in the beginning), towards the end there is much to do and see, and you're given free reign of it all. If you are playing this title for the first time, I recommend NOT using a guide, at least at first. Exploring such a vast open game and figuring things out for yourself is half the fun.

As far as games tho, this title, at least in my opinion is legendary. It's truly an epic fantasy that I have never forgotten since the very first time I played it.

At the risk of sounding like a total FF6 fanboy, I'll stop know and give it a numerical score.

Difficulty 6/10

Story 10/10

Originality 9/10

Soundtrack 10/10

Fun 9/10

Graphics (considering time of release) 8/10

Final Fantasy VI - Rewind 8

With nothing to do but tie up some loose ends and explore, several interesting things happen to the party.

The first being, Gogo.

While exploring an odd triangle shaped island, the entire party is actually eaten by a giant worm!

In the belly of this worm they meet a very usual person, the famed Mimic: Gogo.

Gogo agrees to join the party.

Next, is mainly just tying up loose ends before the storming of Kefkas tower. Among these are:

hunting down more of the legendary beasts and dragons (see my footnote to the last entry), collecting a few random Espers, and other treasures.

Two of the more interesting side quests involve Sabin and Strago.

Sabin learns that his former master Duncan is not dead after all, but training alone in a secluded cabin. Upon discovering him, the two spar for a while. The end result is Duncan teaching Sabin the ultimate combat technique: The Bum Rush.

Strago's quest involved returning home to Thamasa and learning that a good friend and fellow blue mage has been injured in a fight with a legendary monster called Hidon. It seems that tracking and slaying this beast has been Strago life's work, but Hidon has always eluded him.

Seeing his friend on the brink of death, motivates Strago to hunt for the beast one final time.

Of course, the hunt is successful and during the fight Strago learns the incredible Blue Magic: Grand Train.

Finally, with everyone (and then some) accounted for, and all loose ends tied up, I head for Kefka's tower.

The trek up the tower is rough indeed, with the heros splitting into three groups to nagivate the various passages and tunnels along the way. During the trek the last remaining dragons are slain and a wealth of power weapons and armor are uncovered.

After several epic battles the each of the three teams finds themselves facing off with one of the legendary statues. Once the goddesses have been disposed of, the final battle with Kefka begins.

In his first form, Kefka resembles a hellish horror straight out of Dante's Inferno. After surviving the first part of the battle, Kefka appears to the party a beautiful but twisted angel.

In the end, the heros prevail and Kefka is defeated.

Following Kefka's defeat, the heroes rush to escape the tower. At first Terra seems doomed, the destruction of the goddess statues has essential severed the link between the Esper world and this world. Its that Terra may not be able to survive in this new world. However, the human side of her and the love in her heart ultimately overcome, and she ends up remaining even as the tower of Kefka crumbles around them.

The party is showed working together to find their way out of the tower before it's too late. All that is, except Shadow. The last we see of him, he is seen ordering Interceptor to stay with Relm. It is assumed that Shadow remains behind in the tower to die. One can assume that he is still haunted by the demons from his past, of which we were only afforded a few short glimpses into whenever he would dream...

Once everything is said and done, several in the group decide to remain together, while several decide to go their own separate ways. Life goes on and now begins the recovery and the reconstruction of a normal world.

***

All in all it took me over 40 hours of play time on this title.

While it would be damn-near impossible to have a 100% completion rate on this game, I did manage to teach Gau and impressive number of Rage abilities, as well as getting Strago nearly all of his blue magic.

By the time I was done, Terra, Celes, Sabin and Edgar had learned all of the spells.

Viewed all the optional cutscenes.

Every magicite piece was accounted for (or upgraded), weapons and armor were maxed out, all optional bosses defeated and not a single area untouched or unexplored.

I've played this game many times, but I've never given it as much attention or taken my time as I did with this playthrough.

It was a lovely trip down memory lane, and I found it to be very rewarding.

I'm a bit ashamed to admit it, but this time around was the first time that I actually caught on to the fact that Shadow was Relm's father...

The FMV at the end of the playstation version is also a nice touch.

Summarizing my progress in the game as I did with these rewinds, feels a little weird.

As, unlike my previous entries, I'm not chronicling every aspect of the game step by step, but rather telling the game story as a whole, but just not in as much detail.

I do find I still maintained a sense of satisfaction and completion, without the headache of having to rush to the computer after every play session.

I did mange to finish this title a lot faster than some of the previous entries.

FInal Fantasy VI - Rewind 7

Next, the party catches up with Relm in the town of Jidoor. It seems Relm has been commissioned by the local millionaire Owzer to paint a portrait for him. However, when they arrive, his place appears to be haunted.

The group discovers a painting of the former emperor that gives some clues to the location of a hidden cave, as well as a painting possessed by a demon. After defeating the demon living in the painting, the team finally locates Owzer and Relm.

With Relm in the party, they zip back over to the Tower of Fanatics and manage to snap Strago out of his trance! Seeing Relm did the trick, and he rejoins the group.

With no other real leads, the adventurers head back to check in on Terra. Not much has changed, she still has no real will to fight and while the team is trying to persuade her, Phunbaba returns to wreck the village!

The party confronts him and makes good headway but two members are blown away by Phunbaba and incapacitated. With two people missing, the odds are not looking good...

Suddenly Terra appears in Esper form to save the day. Reunited with her old friends, she rediscovers her fighting spirit and together they destroy Phunbaba once and for all.

With Terra back, the group decides to follow the only lead they have left and they go out in search for the cave detailed in the Emperor's letter they found in Owzer's house.

The Pheonix Cave is a virtual maze of traps and dead ends, but by splitting into groups, the team is eventually able to navigate their way through. There's a lot of treasure to be had in the cave, but oddly enough many of the treasure stashes seem to be empty.

Once they reach the heart of the cave, they find out why. Locke is also in the cave! The party catches up with him just as he finds the one treasure he's been looking for, the magicite of the Phoenix Esper. All this time, Locke has been dealing with the guilt of Rachel's accident. By locating this magicite, he believes he will be able to wake her from her coma.

The party rushes back to town to try. It works to an extent, Rachel does wake up, but we knos she doesn't have long to live. He tells Locke that she doesn't regret adventuring with him, and that she loves him very much. Even though Rachel passes away in the end, Locke finds the love and peace he has been long searching for...

With nearly everyone reassembled, the party goes back to check on Shadow only to find he is longer where they left him. They hear a rumor of a ninja fighting at the new Colosseum to the north and go to investigate.

Sure enough, Shadow has been seen there. It seems he has been participating the in the bloodsport trying to win a special dagger known as The Striker.

Ahh it makes sense, the party actually found that very dagger in the cave on the Veldt not far from where they found Shadow earlier.

On an odd side note, Ultros has finally settled down and been put to work as the receptionist of the Colosseum....

In attempt to lure Shadow out, the party puts the Striker up for wager and they engage Shadow in a one-on-one fight. After winning against him, Shadow agrees to join them once and for all. (Of course, I ended up giving him the dagger :D )

With no clear goals left, the team heads back towards Narshe to see what remains of the frozen Esper. On the way thru the mines they run into Mog, who is excited to see them. He rejoins the group and suggests that they go with him to recruit a new member, the infamous yeti rumored to inhabit the mines, Umaro.

After some shuffling of the ranks, the team makes their way back to the location of the frozen Esper. Again, it reacts to Terra's presence, but this time actually breaks free of his icy prison and challenges the group. Once the contest is over, the Esper Tritoch gives his powers to the party to aid them in their quest, and the way to Umaro's lair is revealed.

It doesn't take long to find the fabled sasquatch. After a few rounds of battle, Mog orders the yeti to join the party. Seemingly subservient to moogles, he agrees.

The road to Kefka's tower grows ever shorter...

****

I had lots of fun exploring and finding all of the old members.

During this part of the playthrough, there was a lot of leveling and training. A lot of things not mentioned in the story-summary there included, uncovering new magicite, battling a few of the legendary dragons, and making the most of some bad equipment. (There a little mini quest involving a cursed shield found in the phoenix cave. A terrible piece of equipment at first, but after 255 battles, the curse is broken and it becomes probably the best shield in the whole game.... you know me....)

Final Fantasy VI - Rewind 6

Celes journeys north to the town of Tzen where she reunites with Sabin. She finds him single-handedly holding up a collapsing house that is about to fall. He tells her there's a child trapped inside and begs her to run in and get him out before he loses his strength.

Celes is able to rescue the child and all ends well. Sabin joins her on her quest to locate the others. Their journey takes them to the ransacked village of Mobliz where they find Terra taking care of all of the town's children. It seems that she is the only adult left in the village. Mobliz comes under frequent attacks from the legendary monster Phunbaba. The beast arrives while the party is trying to convince Terra to join them, she rushes out to fight it, but is knocked out. Sabin and Celes manage to scare the beast away.

After she comes to, Terra reveals that she has lost the will to fight, and all she wants to do is focus on taking care of the children. Sabin and Celes agree to leave Terra in peace as they continue their journey.

Using the Serpent Trench (which is now above ground) the duo find their way to the town of Nikeah. Where they learn that a man named Gerad is planning to loot the vaults of Castle Figaro. The two catch up with Gerad, who suspiciously looks a lot like Edgar. However, when he is confronted he denies knowing them and and flees.

The party tracks Gerad and his thieves to the caves in Figaro and follow him through a secret entrance to Figaro Castle. It turns out that the machinery in the castle has become infested by some sort of beastly tentacles and has stopped functioning. The thieves flee at the sight of the tentacles and leave Gerad and the party to deal with the Tentacle Monster.

Gerad reveals himself as Edgar in disguise. His plan was to use the thieves to get back into Figaro so he could liberate the castle. He rejoins the group and together they clean out the Tentacles, restoring Figaro to it's former glory.

With Figaro Castle back into commission and Edward at their side, the party burrow their way to Kohlingen where they discover Setzer at the local tavern. He is crestfallen at the loss of his airship and does not at all seem interested in fighting. However, after a good pep-talk, he gets to his feet and tell the party to follow him. He knows the location of a second airship, and with their help he plans to retrieve it.

It is here that we learn a bit about Setzer's past. The love of his life Darill died tragically several years ago during an airship race with Setzer. Reaching the goal first, he waited for her to meet him. She never showed. He learned that she crashed during the race and was never found. In homage to her, he built this tomb to honor her memory and rebuilt a replica of her airship and sealed it away in silent tribute.

The party is successful in retrieving the Falcon and once again, the sky is the limit!

The first stop is the town of Maranda, where the party meets a young woman named Lola, who shows them love letters sent to her by her boyfriend in Mobliz. Something isn't quite right about this whole scenario as the Mobliz has been destroyed, and only Terra and the local children are left there.

The party tracks a carrier pigeon from Maranda to Mt. Zozo where they discover that a heartbroken Cyan has been sending letters to Lola, impersonating her boyfriend. He is extremely embarrassed by the whole situation, but is heartbroke to think how she would feel if she discovers he has died.

The party takes him back to Maranda where he comes clean.

Next stop: The Veldt.

As suspected, the party finds Gau has returned to his life with the feral beasts. He is elated to see his friends and rejoins them.

The party notices that the old man's house on the Veldt is still there and when they pay him a visit, they realize that the man is indeed Gau's father.

It is learned that in his insanity, the old man believed Gau to be a demon-child and tossed him on the Veldt to live with the monsters. Sabin is angered by this revelation, but Gau seems to understand that his father is not normal and expresses happiness at his father's health. In a somewhat somber tone, the party leaves to continue their search.

While inspecting the cave on the Veldt, the party comes across a wounded Shadow! It seems he survived the cataclysm, but due to one of his recent exploits, he is badly wounded. The group takes him to Thamasa to recover.

While in town, the party hears rumors of monsters inhabiting Doma castle, so naturally, that is the next stop.

The castle itself is deserted, but that night while resting within the castle walls, they learn the truth. Doma is haunted. The demons that have been tormenting Cyan's soul are on the verge of possessing him. The party must chase Cyan thru his nightmare filled dreamworld, where eventually he faces off with the demon Wrexsoul.

Once this beast is slain, Cyan is finally able to make peace with himself and his honor is restored. A new man, Cyan rejoins the party and they continue their quest for the others.

While flying around, the party see's an unusual tower and decides to investigate. The Tower of Fantatics (as it has come to be known), is the home of a group of magic-using, Kefka worshipping, wizards. One of them seeing dancing around the grounds is none-other than Strago! However, he seems to be under the influence of a power spell and does not recognize his old friends.

With nothing left to do, the party continues it's search....

***

I spent a lot of this portion of the game grinding away skills and levels.

After finding Gau I returned often to Veldt. My strategy there is twofold.

First, it's the only way to teach Gau new abilities, plus it's a good way to learn spells using magicite.

I tried to keep all of my characters within 2 levels of each other at all times.

I probably spent 4+ hours just leveling on the Veldt during this portion of the game.

Time this part of the game was played: Early to Mid-January