They say
that before you can move forward you have to look back. At least that’s the
excuse they use to get kids motivated in history class (it rarely works).
History seems to repeat itself regardless of the warnings old books supply. No
matter how rare, there are times when the repeat is one to savor: a rerun of
Lost (rarely seen!), a re-release of a classic movie in theaters, and a remake
of a rare Final Fantasy.
We’ve all
played Final Fantasy VII through X, and most of us have played the SNES
sequels. But how many gamers can say they’ve finished Final Fantasy II, which
stayed a Japanese exclusive for more than a decade? Whether you tackled it
before or have never been swept away by its intriguing story and engrossing
action, the PSP port is one to watch for when it’s released on July 24.
This
Isn’t Star Wars
…But there
is an evil empire on the loose. Without giving anything away, the game centers
on the fight to overcome an all-too-powerful force that has begun to take over
cities and villages across the world. It’s pretty grim. As with all Final
Fantasy games, there is a battle early on in the story that cannot be won.
Most fans expect that. The story continues on, so you won’t be faced with the
“game over” music following your defeat.
After that,
however, you may encounter other battles where you’ll meet the same
fate. These are not a necessary part of the story and are meant to be avoided.
You’ll pound your fist if you stumble upon one of these battles, but should be
pleased to know that players can save their progress anywhere in the game, and
at any time. Up to 20 save files may be stored on one memory stick, giving you
ample room to backup quests you fear of screwing up.
Given that
the game is over a decade old, there aren’t any voice-overs to advance the
story – just text. But the text is big, clear, and very easy to read. It’s
also well written and well translated. I haven’t noticed any spelling errors,
jumbled words, unclear sentences, etc., none of the strange words or grammar
that were a part of PSone RPGs in the 90s.
Final
Fantasy II is still an NES game, but its sound and visuals have been upgraded
to a higher level. The graphics are nearly on par with an SNES RPG, and the
sound quality is generations above the NES’s capabilities. A new CG intro has
been added to the game, and it looks fantastic running on the PSP’s high-res
screen.
In the
tradition of all Final Fantasy games, the music is instantly spellbinding.
Every song has that distinctive FF feel, with hints of the future that’ll make
you wonder, “Did this inspire the soundtrack for Final Fantasy VII?” If
you’ve listened closely over the years, you’re bound to have noticed the
parallels in each Fantasy, almost as if each score has been building to
something bigger and better while drawing pieces from the past.
Your Turn
Final
Fantasy II’s combat is a little different from the other FF games. Attacks are
turn-based but without the active time battle system employed, which means
that characters can’t attack out of order unless they have high agility.
Battle and magic classes seem to be inherent – a character is either one type
of magician or warrior, not both. Magic is not stolen or equipped, it is
learned over time by battling. But the leveling system isn’t necessarily what
you’d expect. It stresses the importance of growing stats (like attack
strength or HP) but advances them individually. You will also notice that
magician’s HP grows much slower than other characters, potentially limiting
their survival in battle.
These
differences might sound a little weird, but they’re more extreme in
description than in execution. Once you play the game and start to take on the
hundreds (if not thousands) of battles that lie ahead, Final Fantasy II will
merge into familiar territory.
Due for
release in just a couple weeks, Final Fantasy II is the strongest sun block
RPG fans can get this summer. Because once they start playing, their skin
won’t see the sun until the credits roll. Get ready to get hooked, and stay
tuned to GameZone as we bring you our full review of the game in the coming
weeks.
