I stated this in my SNES SoM review, that SoM is my favorite game of all time. So I was very excited for this remake.
Then it came out. And you know what? It plays exactly the same way as the original with some QoL tweaks. I won't repeat what I said in that review. Which is why I am confused as to why people who say they like the original's gameplay, but hate the remake's gameplay. It's the exact same. Maybe it just highlights the originals flaws a bit more? Doesn't matter, it plays the same with some improvements. For example, they add shortcut buttons to make the combat faster. Use to be you had to pause the game mid-combat and navigate through menus to choose a recovery item or a spell or a weapon to use. Now, you just assign that spell/item to a button, and you're good to go. It's not perfect, but it helps make the combat keep pace.
Story is basically a copy/past of the original translation with some slight tweaks. For example, Popoi in some translations is considered a boy, in others Popoi is considered a girl. In Japanese, they are neutral. They kept them as neutral in this version, which I think fits better for a sprite. I still refer to Popoi as a he, though.
So...using that as a springboard, this is where the remake starts to suffer. They added voice acting which is...ho boy. It's not great. Most of the voices themselves sound fine, but the acting is a mess. I feel part of that is due to the original script being very very dated, and I feel the other part of that is due to bad directing. People like to harp on the actors being bad, but being within the industry a lot of the time it's just bad direction, limited recording time/budget, and just saying "good enough" and using whatever. I'm not saying that is the case here, but it feels that way.
But here's the interesting thing. This game adds some extra scenes at the Inns that are decently acted. Scenes that were not in the original game. It helps flesh out the characters more, making them a bit more likable. But the point being that these scenes are mostly decently acted and fun. This is what leads me to believe that the original's script may have contributed to this game's voice acting being pretty bad.
The other glaring issue is the graphics. Personally, I don't think they are bad. They're fine...but in comparison to the original? They're bland. The original has gorgeous sprites that are bursting with color and charm. These graphics? They're colorful, but...also not? It's hard to explain. People say it looks like a cheap phone game, which I think was the original intent. They released Adventures of Mana, which is another remake of Final Fantasy Adventure but for mobile phones, a few years prior. The graphics are the same. AoM's graphics were praised, but that was for mobile standards at the time. SoM's remake was for standard platforms (and Vita), so people were expecting more. Also, they have no lip syncing. No mouth flaps at all. So the graphics fall flat, but they aren't bad. Just...flat.
The music? The remake's music is WORSE. Some remake songs are either fine, or HORRID. Which is weird because the amount of remixes or arrangements for the original you find online are usually really good. I have no idea how they botched it up, but at least they give you the option to use the original sound track.
From what I remember, the dungeons are in-tact and not changed...except the last one. In the original, the last dungeon has different areas you have to fight through, but they were usually big sprawling areas. In the remake? The areas are there, but each room is its own screen. Meaning every time you enter an archway it needs to load the next area. I have no idea why they did this, but it slows down the pacing of this dungeon. This dungeon is suppose to be a gauntlet, making you think quick, choosing whether to fight or flee. But this version is just...boring with too many loading screens.
So given how much I complained, why did I give this game 4 stars? Because it still plays like the original with gameplay improvements, you can turn off the voice acting, and switch the soundtrack to the original. This game, gameplay wise, is technically superior to the original. So I like it. But the rest was botched. I don't feel the same "magic" that I do with the original.
But is the game good? Yes. Are the remade things in this game good? Mostly meh. So just turn them off/switch them to the original. However, I will still recommend the original with the re-translation patch than this one. But this one isn't as bad as people make it out to be.
Then it came out. And you know what? It plays exactly the same way as the original with some QoL tweaks. I won't repeat what I said in that review. Which is why I am confused as to why people who say they like the original's gameplay, but hate the remake's gameplay. It's the exact same. Maybe it just highlights the originals flaws a bit more? Doesn't matter, it plays the same with some improvements. For example, they add shortcut buttons to make the combat faster. Use to be you had to pause the game mid-combat and navigate through menus to choose a recovery item or a spell or a weapon to use. Now, you just assign that spell/item to a button, and you're good to go. It's not perfect, but it helps make the combat keep pace.
Story is basically a copy/past of the original translation with some slight tweaks. For example, Popoi in some translations is considered a boy, in others Popoi is considered a girl. In Japanese, they are neutral. They kept them as neutral in this version, which I think fits better for a sprite. I still refer to Popoi as a he, though.
So...using that as a springboard, this is where the remake starts to suffer. They added voice acting which is...ho boy. It's not great. Most of the voices themselves sound fine, but the acting is a mess. I feel part of that is due to the original script being very very dated, and I feel the other part of that is due to bad directing. People like to harp on the actors being bad, but being within the industry a lot of the time it's just bad direction, limited recording time/budget, and just saying "good enough" and using whatever. I'm not saying that is the case here, but it feels that way.
But here's the interesting thing. This game adds some extra scenes at the Inns that are decently acted. Scenes that were not in the original game. It helps flesh out the characters more, making them a bit more likable. But the point being that these scenes are mostly decently acted and fun. This is what leads me to believe that the original's script may have contributed to this game's voice acting being pretty bad.
The other glaring issue is the graphics. Personally, I don't think they are bad. They're fine...but in comparison to the original? They're bland. The original has gorgeous sprites that are bursting with color and charm. These graphics? They're colorful, but...also not? It's hard to explain. People say it looks like a cheap phone game, which I think was the original intent. They released Adventures of Mana, which is another remake of Final Fantasy Adventure but for mobile phones, a few years prior. The graphics are the same. AoM's graphics were praised, but that was for mobile standards at the time. SoM's remake was for standard platforms (and Vita), so people were expecting more. Also, they have no lip syncing. No mouth flaps at all. So the graphics fall flat, but they aren't bad. Just...flat.
The music? The remake's music is WORSE. Some remake songs are either fine, or HORRID. Which is weird because the amount of remixes or arrangements for the original you find online are usually really good. I have no idea how they botched it up, but at least they give you the option to use the original sound track.
From what I remember, the dungeons are in-tact and not changed...except the last one. In the original, the last dungeon has different areas you have to fight through, but they were usually big sprawling areas. In the remake? The areas are there, but each room is its own screen. Meaning every time you enter an archway it needs to load the next area. I have no idea why they did this, but it slows down the pacing of this dungeon. This dungeon is suppose to be a gauntlet, making you think quick, choosing whether to fight or flee. But this version is just...boring with too many loading screens.
So given how much I complained, why did I give this game 4 stars? Because it still plays like the original with gameplay improvements, you can turn off the voice acting, and switch the soundtrack to the original. This game, gameplay wise, is technically superior to the original. So I like it. But the rest was botched. I don't feel the same "magic" that I do with the original.
But is the game good? Yes. Are the remade things in this game good? Mostly meh. So just turn them off/switch them to the original. However, I will still recommend the original with the re-translation patch than this one. But this one isn't as bad as people make it out to be.