Final Fantasy IV is one of the most important installment in the Final Fantasy series; it was the first Final Fantasy game that featured a fully realized story, fleshed out characters and it introduced the ATB system which was used for the next 5 mainline games in the row. Basically, Final Fantasy IV was a new beginning for the series.
However, being pioneering doesn't mean timeless.
The story in Final Fantasy IV is amazing... for the time it came out; I mean, it's still interesting, but the writing is very weak at times, there are so many fakeouts, tropes or straight up dumb plot twists, and the last few hours feel completely out of place. It's a somewhat captivating but deeply flawed story, unfortunately.
The characters are quite... forgettable? They get in and out of the party so fast that I couldn't get emotionally attached to them at all and their story arcs feel rushed. Surprisingly, I really liked the protagonist, and the story has some decent character moments in general.
The gameplay is quite similar to Final Fantasy VI's but the UI is just worse.
Also, despite the game's flaws, the music is quite good.
Unlike Final Fantasy VI and Chrono Trigger though, the pixelated graphics in Final Fantasy IV look stale.
Lastly, most areas - particularly the dungeons - are dull and the towns look very similar to each other.

Pros:
+ Engaging plot
+ Combat system still holds up to a certain degree
+ Nice music

Cons:
- Underwhelming narrative and characters
- Unresponsive User Interface
- Outdated visuals
- Bland areas and boring dungeons

Narrative: 3/10
Gameplay: 4/10
Content: ?/10
Characters: 4/10
Music: 7/10
Graphics/Audio: ?/10

Final Rating: 4/10
- Weak -
Final Fantasy IV is a great example of a game that was groundbreaking when it came out but has since been surpassed in every way.
I appreciate Final Fantasy IV for everything it has done to the series, however, I can't help but see it as a "relic" from the past.

Do I recommend it?:
I'd recommend it only to people who want to get deeper into the series and experience the origins of what Final Fantasy has become since then.

Final Fantasy IV is a huge leap forward for the series, narratively. Does the story land? Maybe not. But the attempt at telling a more nuanced story with an ensemble cast is a step towards the PS golden era of FF that is interesting to see form here.

The ATB system is something I found to be rather pointless in later entries, but here it works very well. Battles are fast paced, and you really need to use every second efficiently as the timers apply pressure in the later battles.

Narratively, I was surprised at the attempt at a more adult tone here. Cecil is a great lead, and the revolving door cast is generally pretty compelling, though I much prefer being able to stick with a party and develop them across the course of a game. Not knowing whether or not your teammate is about to face a scripted death discourages investing in your party, and I'm glad they did away with this in later entries.

Overall, FF IV is a noted leap forward for the franchise, and one that places in the upper tiers of Final Fantasy games.

The first out of the big boy Final Fantasy games, with a heavier focus on the story and giving you a "proper" cast again. You get to follow Cecil and his party trying to figure out what's up with the crystals, while chasing/escaping this evil Golbez dude. It's fine, it's fun enough. But most of it is really boring, and it has awfully boring plot twists as well.

SPOILER REVIEW BELOW

The gameplay's nice. The ATB brings a nice flow to the battle, which became a mainstay of FF, and there's enough mechanically to separate the members of your party into neat roles. What's not so nice is how they're always rotating your party (similar to what FF2 did), except they are usually worse (unlike FF2).

The story and characters are what really bug me. They're fine, but just fine. Given FF3's awful excuse for a plot, this being better isn't that much of an accomplishment. I personally didn't like the characters, not because they're bad, but the way the plot progresses makes them feel like bumbling fools. Nothing about them is bad, they're just... so boring.

Cecil is a waste of a concept. The entire game I was waiting for him to just... do something. Even when he gets his "character development", nothing really changes and he never says anything meaningful. It's like I'm playing as cardboard.

The rest of the party are mostly boring people, except for Kain which is downright awful. I've been doing the FFs completely blind, and I was frankly surprised he has a fanbase at all. Does nothing, jobs several times, gets brainwashed several times, and cries every time. This guy gives Dragoons a terrible name.

The plot itself is fine. It's serviceable even if boring, with the very last part of the last act being only somewhat impressive with the twist of going to the moon, but it's accompanied by saying "Golbez was a good guy actually he was just brainwashed like everyone in this game ECKSDEE" and then he just... flops over and dies. And I'm supposed to feel sad/surprised about this.

This game made me feel like eating a McDonald's hamburger.
It's not bad. But you could've made a meal with the ingredients instead, and because of that now I feel frustrated for expecting something.

Game Review - originally written by ???

You’ve got to wonder what the hell Squaresoft was thinking when releasing this. I mean, is Final Fantasy IV on Playstation in any kind of short supply or anything? Is there an overwhelming demand in Japan to go and play a watered-down version of a game they’ve played twice over… on the go? This game truly doesn’t even compare with actual remakes like FF1 and FF2, and even Makaitoushi SaGa. It’s just a port of a years-old game, done very badly. Just listen to the music and try not to cry. I’m serious.

Game Review - originally written by Spinner 8

Final Fantasy IV was released here in the States as Final Fantasy II, and was the game to firmly establish Square as an RPG force to be reckoned with. Sadly though, the release was plagued by censors, edits, and a pretty godawful translation. Later Squaresoft rereleased FFIV in the States for Playstation as part of Final Fantasy Chronicles, complete, uncensored, and retranslated. Making an SNES translation kind of unnecessary in this day and age. But honestly, before that came along, how else were you supposed to check out the super-cool Programmer's Room? That's right.

You play the part of Cecil, commander of the Baron's airship fleet, known as the Red Wings. You've served your king faithfully over the years, but recently he's been acting weird and demanding that you retrieve the Crystals from all over the world, and by using any means necessary. Cecil questions the king's judgement and is stripped of his command. What follows is a pretty nifty (and kinda weird) tale of good vs. evil, with some love and loss thrown into the mix. Granted, it's not the first FF game to have a decent plot, but it's the first to be a good game along with that.

FFIV was the last truly traditional Final Fantasy game, with all the characters learning specific skills when they reached a certain level. Just like Dragon Quest! These days the game may not look like much (admit it, the graphics aren't too hot except for all the cool Mode7 stuff), but the gameplay is engaging, and the story keeps you playing. And the soundtrack is pretty sexy as well.

Now, I want to acknowledge my bias going into this review. While this is my first time playing this version of Final Fantasy IV, this was not my first time with Final Fantasy IV. I played the DS remake of the game years ago, and this is where my bias comes in. Final Fantasy IV was the first Final Fantasy I ever played, and I absolutely loved it. At the current moment, with the Final Fantasies I’ve played (I, III, IV, VI, and VII), Final Fantasy IV is my favorite Final Fantasy. I had the urge to finally go and replay Final Fantasy IV, especially cause I really wanted to give it a proper review. Instead of the DS version, I was given a patched version of the SNES version, which is meant to make it more like the original Japanese release, from what I hear, the western release of Final Fantasy IV is ridiculously easier in comparison. Even though my original experience with Final Fantasy IV is the DS version, I’d say with confidence that I love the SNES version just as much.
Now, before I get into the actual content of Final Fantasy IV itself, I really want to compare a certain aspect of my experience with the DS version, and the experience I had with the SNES version. Particularly, and most obviously, the difficulty. I don’t know how best to describe why this is the case, even with the patch that made the SNES Final Fantasy IV have the original difficulty, the DS version of the game was noticeably much harder. This can best be seen when comparing the hours it took me to beat the game. When I played Final Fantasy IV DS, it took me a total of around 45 hours to beat the game, while the Final Fantasy IV SNES took me only about 21 hours, less than half of the time total. I think that may be in part to Final Fantasy IV DS being a somewhat slower game, but I also remember long bouts of grinding, sometimes all my time in a day was spent level grinding. When it comes to this, I can see myself more likely replaying the SNES version than the DS version, the difficulty is more manageable, and I can beat the game in less than half the time. Another minor thing that differentiates Final Fantasy IV DS and Final Fantasy IV SNES is that the inventory in the DS version is unlimited, while the SNES version isn’t. While that is, of course, limiting, it wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be, the inventory was generally manageable throughout the entire game. I know there’s a way to store items, but I never needed it.
Now onto the actual game proper, god I absolutely love Final Fantasy IV. To what I know, Final Fantasy IV was the first Final Fantasy game to introduce the Active Time Battle system. An alteration to turned based combat where enemies and the characters you play as all have a set amount of time before they can act, instead of acting specifically in turns. Especially in the case of Final Fantasy IV, there’s a really good sense of tension with Active Time Battle. You can do your best to prepare for attacks that enemies can throw at you, but since you don’t know when enemies are going to attack, you don’t know how much time you have to prepare. And for harder battles, it can be really tense. The one thing I miss when comparing Final Fantasy IV SNES to the DS version is the lack of a noticeable meter to know when your characters can act. It seems like there is one in the game, as pressing a certain button (I’m honestly not confident to which button it is) switches showing the health to a meter that fills to 100%. While that itself would be a “noticeable meter”, I can’t see myself ever using it specifically as seeing the health is so much more important.
Final Fantasy IV is also the first Final Fantasy to really try and focus on its story. I mean, prior Final Fantasies did have stories, but none have properly focused on them as much as Final Fantasy IV did. It truly feels like I’m playing a proper cast of characters, and especially due to Final Fantasy IV being the first I’ve played of the series, I find the all rather memorable. I really love the sort of underdog story that Final Fantasy IV has, as the villains always seem to be ten steps ahead of the main cast. I love Cecil’s journey as the main character, and how that is impacted in the actual gameplay of the game itself. Even further, while it may frustrate some, I love how party composition is constantly changing throughout the game. Characters join and leave the party over and over, and many sacrifice themselves in order to allow the party a way forward. There’s a powerful struggle in the story of Final Fantasy IV, which I really adore. Final Fantasy IV is not too unique of a story, but it’s executed amazingly, I feel.
On top of it all, I really love the differences that come with each playable character. To me at least, Final Fantasy IV is where a lot of the major RPG classes really get solidified. Rydia has always been one of my favorite characters in the game. Searching for all her summons, and fighting powerful bosses to obtain them, it’s really fun. It really allows to make Rydia particularly one of the most powerful characters. From what I remember, Final Fantasy IV is the first of the Final Fantasy games to use a proper MP system, instead of spell slots, and as well, characters learn spells through level up instead of buying them in stores. With how party composition changes over time, it really allows you to try out all of the major characters throughout the game, which I really appreciate. In later titles like Final Fantasies VI and VII, while I love the main cast of both games, I never utilized all of them and stuck with the ones I like. Final Fantasy IV on the other made me feel like I properly tried out every single playable character, especially since many have noticeably different playstyles.
Yet again, while the first version of Final Fantasy IV that I did play was the DS version, I still love this version of Final Fantasy IV just the same. It’s still the first Final Fantasy I ever played, so even though it’s noticeably easier, and it has a different art style, it’s still the game that I love to bits. It’s hard to imagine that any future Final Fantasy game that I play will ever beat my love for Final Fantasy IV, it’s definitely a nostalgia bias for sure, but that’s fine. I can definitely see myself replaying this version of Final Fantasy IV multiple times in the future, it’s just that good to me.

This is almost like a shell of a Final Fantasy game to me in many ways. That's not meant to be quite as harsh as it sounds, but it really does feel like more of a tribute to the series rather than a foundational installment in it. In so many ways it perfectly understands the basic things that make the series great. Good soundtrack, a lot of strong cinematic moments, great use of said music to elevate certain scenes, forward-thinking game design. Plenty of elements that Final Fantasy is renowned for are here, yet the game overall lacks that spark that makes entries stand out.

A lot of it comes down to the story to be honest. If I had been playing the games in order, I would be worried that they were already running ideas by the time they made this game lol. That really sucks for a series that is constantly pushing in interesting directions! FF4 has a fairly basic and inoffensive plot but makes it much more insufferable with a LOT of dumb story decisions. There are like 6 different fakeout deaths in that series, each one getting more and more meaningless than the one before. What was even the point of having these happen if you reverse them minutes later? Are these supposed to be emotionally impactful? Why even reverse them when they aren't going to have any meaningful impact on the story or gameplay going forward? I try not to let this stuff sink games for me but it undermines basically every "serious" story moment in the game. Even past that these dumb rug pulls extend to many other plot elements. Just when you think something is resolved, it gets brought back as another macguffin to chase around. It feels like a thin veil of padding placed on a story without much of a strong central focus. While FF2 was also a basic story, at least it was competent? FF4 is all over the place and it annoyed me to no end. I can see how people respect a lot of the semi-novel things this game did with the focus on characters and cinematic moments that the previous games didn't have. But it's all kind of moot to me when the story being told is something I'd write in like elementary school.

Despite all of that...the gameplay is a lot of fun! I definitely had some frustrations at points but it does a really great job of making dungeons actually fun, the perfect mix of linear paths with branches that don't punish you too much for exploring. I really enjoyed how rewarding the loot in each dungeon was as well, I wish more FF games outright gave you good weapons/armor in exchange for fighting bosses in the final dungeon because that was really neat. Overall just feels way more balanced and carefully designed than any of the NES games.

I don't think the gameplay was enough to make up for the insanely bad story but I would still say the game is fine overall. It's just like a textbook example of an incompetent story. It's not like it's repulsive or offensive or anything to me it just kind of fails on every level and is slightly redeemed by fun gameplay.

Game equivalent of this essay

A significant step up from the previous three Famicom FF games, Sakaguchi had attempted the whole character-driven narrative thing in Final Fantasy II, but with new and improved hardware it was time to try again. While still rough around the edges, the fourth Final Fantasy game is a much greater success in this regard.

Proper exposition is given this time, with main character Cecil questioning his loyalties to his king after being ordered to use force stealing a crystal from innocents. The player is also introduced early to the ongoing love triangle between Cecil's lover, Rosa, and his friend, Kain, who enviously also vies for her affection. FF4 does a good job of setting the stage early in just a few short scenes, impressive for a 1991 video game.

Kain's dragoon design is still the iconic one used today, and he functions as one of gaming's earliest anti-heroes, changing allegiance more than once. In fact, many party members come and go (12 in total!) with Cecil being the only constant. The party size has even been increased to 5 at once to accommodate the sizable cast. Gone are the days of Final Fantasy being a Dungeons and Dragons style dungeon-crawling RPG with customizable party classes/jobs. Now, the party comes and goes as the story dictates, for better or for worse.

Spoiler Paragraph Below
The cardinal storytelling sin and most frequent criticism of Final Fantasy IV is its comical overuse of the fake death trope. Characters seemingly die in fiery explosions or sea serpent's mouths several times throughout the story, only to reappear later, sometimes bedridden, but other times completely fine. The second and arguably worse storytelling sin is FF4's overuse of mind-control as a plot device. It's cheap and unsatisfying to learn that Kain was actually being mind-controlled by the main villain, Golbez, only to learn much later that Golbez is ALSO being mind-controlled by the spooky real villain, Zemus, all the way from the moon. It's okay for characters to just be bad guys, they don't all need to be influenced by some eldritch unholy entity, Kain and Golbez would've been much more compelling characters if they truly were acting of their own volition.
Spoilers End Here

While the narrative may be the main selling point, the primary mechanical innovation of FF4 is the new Active-Time Battle (ATB) system. For those unfamiliar, characters can take their turn as soon as their ATB gauge fills up, at different speeds for different characters. There are mixed opinions on this, but it did a good job of separating Final Fantasy from Dragon Quest and was a clever way to make use of the speed stat.

Other nitpicks are fairly minor, it would be a nice change of pace if Rosa was treated as anything more than a damsel in distress, but maybe that's asking a lot of a '91 game. Worth mentioning is the music being a big step up from previous entries, Nobuo Uematsu is one of gaming's all-time great composers, and witnessing his work freed from the shackles of the primitive NES sound chip is great to see and a promising sign of things to come.

The oldest FF I'd actually consider recommending to play, Final Fantasy IV is no doubt an iconic game, to the point it can feel generic. Really though, this is because it set a new standard to follow in RPG's formative years, an important stepping stone on the SNES which would later be home to some of the best JRPGs ever made.

3.0/5.0

Played Final Fantasy IV Namingway Edition, to keep original feel as much as possible, since US "Final Fantasy II" release cut a lot of stuff out of the game
I'm... very torn how to judge this game. On one hand, it's a definite improvement from last three games. On another hand, it is bland, especially gameplay wise, until it isn't.
Let's start with the good stuff: story. Characters are more fleshed out than ever, I have actually started to remember them: Cecil, Kain, Rosa, Yang, Edward, Rydia, that brat ninja prince, who is attracted to summoner... ok, i definitely remember Golbez, a constant threat and obstacle to our heroes. He has the same feeling as Leon or Emperor from FF II, but more. FF IV is a story-driven game, with a lot of cutscenes not only for our main party, but also supporting characters. It comes with a linear structure for 10 or 15 hours, but you get a lot more variety in the second part. The story is full of tropes and clichés, some of them are so pointless it begins to be ridiculous.
Gameplay... I am 50/50 on it. ATB felt a little weird at the beginning, but I came to both love it and hate it. No more time to sit and think what to do with bosses, it is a dynamic battle and you must think quickly. Enemies spawn rate is really weird here: it's either 1–2 steps or half the map, it happens quite often to point out. The game starts easy and with almost zero variety or something interesting. Yeah, we have some interesting moments: Cecil transition, Four Fiends fights, Lugae. But for good 15 hours I felt like the game played itself and I was watching rather than playing. Minimum variety between characters, I can't choose what to do with them, almost always they are equipped with optimal gear without my influence. It changes rather suddenly once I have to go to the Sealed Cave and can visit Feymarch/Sylph Cave. This is the point when you REALLY need to start playing to your character's fullest. Even the hard portions of Tower of Zot and Tower of Babil were not so hard on you as some enemies in the Underworld caves. A lot of gimmicky enemies and bosses in the second part, some are good, some are annoying. The final dungeon is very long, but since we have midpoints with saves, I don't mind much. I don't know how, but Zeromus was not as menacing as some optional bosses. Or I just played it save by spamming healing spells nonstop.
Graphics... are ok. Textures are what show that FF IV was meant to be a Famicom game first. But then they use Mode 7 for some spells and map and it suddenly looks great. Good to see that some bosses have animation, wish to see more in the future.
Can't comment on music much, I like it in every entry. Boss theme and Four Fiends theme are great.
I wish I could rank any game in the series anything rather than 3/5. The first game isn't bad for lower scores, the second and third have some issues, so I can't rank them higher, and this one, despite more flashed out story... isn't interesting enough to be great.

I first played this after playing V and VI, and I didn't think much of it. Re-playing it after I, II and III on the Famicom it's easier to see what the game does right. This is the first Final Fantasy, in my opinion, that really crafts a story with characters that you can follow with strong narrative peaks and troughs. I genuinely teared up a little when the prologue theme plays before the final battle- when all your allies throughout the game come to your aid.

Mechanically, this is the first game to use the ATB (Active Time Battle) that would become standard for the next 5 games. It doesn't feel quite perfect here, but the combat still feels smooth and fun compared to its predecessors. It feels a real shame that they walked back from the complexities of the Job system in III. You basically have no agency over how your party grows and develops- the only direction is up, more levels, better gear. In the original release you don't even get to choose your party composition, and are stuck with a fixed set of 5 characters for the end of the game. It's a crime that my beautiful Edward has to sit out the finale while the odious Edge and Kain are stinking up my party.

I'd still think this were an overall improvement over Final Fantasy III if not for one more thing. Caves & Mountains. Almost every dungeon in the game- and there are many- is a variation on a cave or a mountain. The technology & the talent are there to create beautiful environments, but someone decided there would be no cool cog dungeons, dense jungles, ruined libraries or heck, even a sewer. Instead we get brown caves, blue caves, red caves and silver caves.

while it is prettier and sounds better than the last three games, final fantasy IV fails to improve the gameplay. most combat still boils down to "attack the monster and heal when you need to". it actually takes a step back from the prior three games in that there is a complete lack of character customization. i have a strong dislike of the new real-time battle system. it adds unnecessary stress into what should be a tactical experience and arbitrarily punishes you if an enemy attack happens to hit the wrong party member before your mage decides its okay to cast a heal spell now.