Blast from the past

Since Final Fantasy Anthology is a compilation of two games, to make things easier I have decided to review them individually to better get an understanding of the whole package.

Final Fantasy V
The title that many fans of Squaresoft's popular series may really want to take a very close look at is Final Fantasy V. As a title that wasn't released in the states until now many gamers have been patently awaiting this "gap" in the Final Fantasy series lineup.

The backbone of any really great RPG is the story line, and Final Fantasy V even in it's old age proves that any amount of graphical shine is nothing in comparison to a wonderful story. The story revolves around a connection between falling meteorites and their relationship to four crystals which represent the escence of life. The game puts you in the place of a lone traveler (to whom you must give a name) who finds himself having a close encounter with a meteor and that kicks off his quest. Almost right off the bat you have three of your characters with the fourth joining soon after, when all things are said and done you will have taken control of five different characters. For the most part the story remains solid throughout the various worlds, but some lame attempts at humor seems sometimes out of place and is not really humorous.

One unique aspect of the series is the new "job" system. After certain event's you will get some crystal shards which will open things up to new jobs. The jobs vary form the classic black mage or knight to the more exotic dancer or mime. After each battle you will get ABP which will unlock new abilities for the present job, which opens up for some customized fun when you make a knight capable of performing black magic.

The graphics show their age but what can you expect from a game that was released eight years ago. The game will give some younger gamers a renewed appreciation for what sort of graphics are available to us now. Squaresoft has added rendered cinemas to the game which are nice but are a little short. Still even in it's age there is still a wide variety of monsters and the lay out in castles and dungeons are creative and unique. The sound and music will make long time fans of the series very pleased in all it's 16 bit glory. The sound effects are pretty bare bones but the trademark Final Fantasy music will make you pleased including the plucked harp theme and the cheesy victory music (complete with bad dancing).

The control is a breeze to work through. From picking which job is the right job to picking which spell to pulverize your enemies with it is all done is now classic Active Time Battle fights. The only problem with the control is a classic 2D RPG horror. When a town's person is standing right in front of where you want to go. Aside form this small impossible to escape flaw the control is dead on.

As a title that wasn't brought to the states FF fans will flock to Anthology just to play this title and it's well worth it. It's just a shame that it took so long to bring this one stateside.


Final Fantasy VI
The last FF title to be released on a Nintendo system is also quite possibly the best in the series. Even now it is very hard to find a Super Nintendo copy of Final Fantasy VI, and is a very nice way to round out the Anthology.

Just as the story in Final Fantasy V was great, American gamers were blessed with possibly an even better one a few years ago with Final Fantasy VI. For those of you whom aren't familiar the story revolves around the war of the Magi which has killed the existence of magic on the planet and a mysterious girl who somehow posses the power of magic. The story has several plot twists to keep you on the edge of your seat and a diabolical villain to keep you fighting on to the very end.

The game really has a very wide cast of characters. One thing that may please most gamers is that there really isn't one main character.What that means to the player is that you can make any combination of a four person party in contrast to always having the main character in your party at all times. The problem with having such a wide range of characters is that they are a little unbalenced . While some characters are extremely useful others are almost useless and will almost see no battle unless forced to. This can also cause a problem with the story as some characters are almost always pushed in the back seat of the story when you really want to learn more about them.

The graphics are actually not that bad if you have chosen to play through Final Fantasy V first. While by no means up to todays standards the colorful graphics still manage to hold their own to a certain extent. The new rendered cinemas also rival those that appeared in FFVIII although not nearly as abundant. The sound is also not going to turn any heads but the sharp stiring music will put you in the perfect mood to go out exploring while remaining on your couch.

The control is also pretty much the same as the control in Final Fantasy V. It is easy to flip through the many pages of spells to find the one you want, and the item screen can be totally shifted to fit your needs.

This is a game that some of us may have already played through, but by all means it is an adventure that is well worth a second look. If not for the new rendered cinemas then for the sheer joy of having wasted another 30 plus hours.


The whole package
It is possible to pick up the complete set for around 40 dollars and it is well worth it for such a massive set of two great titles. Rest assured it will take around 60 or more hours before both quests are completed and it's hard to find a better waste of two and a half days. You also get a free musical disk with it too. The disk while it doesn't have the same spark with out the game is still a nice thank you from Squaresoft for buying the product.