GREETINGS FINAL FANTASY ENJOYERS, JRPG lovers, gamers from all around the world!
Having finally beat the evil tin can man and saved a merged world in Final Fantasy V; it is time to embark on the next iteration of the Final Fantasy series, Final Fantasy VI (FF6)!
Boy, what an absolutely phenomenal game this is.
I think this story is best experienced firsthand as it's got very interesting beats and points that shouldn't fail to entertain or immerse. The first scene of the game starts with a dark and brooding cutscene, setting the appropriate tone for this entry, quite similar to FF4. My initial impression is that it's FF2 but more expanded, but I was proven wrong early on. It also has a lot of drama and/or dramatic influences and it's very blunt about it.
Unlike the previous entry, the cast is rather large! If you do all the quests your cast should top at 13 characters I think (at least that's how many I had). Each of them is rather unique and they even have their personal backstories integrated into the story or via some sidequest when you acquire them, all neat stuff. They're all great characters, I love them all dearly :)
Rather early on you unlock quite a lot of them and you can mix and match your party however you see fit, which is great but also kind of a bog as you still need to level everyone, as the game requires multiple parties to progress sometimes.
As far as gameplay goes... Once again, FF6 departs from FF5 job system, with each character having a predetermined job specific to them.
Cross job skills are no more, and instead relics make an appearance, which are basically accessories that add abilities, statuses or enhance your already present abilities, like turning Steal to Mug or granting 100% accuracy.
Another new addition is the summon system, which now everyone has access to. Depending on the summon equipped, levelup stats are influenced and the character can unlock that summons spells. Basically everyone can be a healer now, which is neat!
Additionally, every character has their own unique mechanic such as: Terra's trance which powers her magic, Celes' runic which absorbs spells for healing or Sabin's martial arts that require button inputs. This more or less makes each character different in playstyle and how you approach the summon system.
Visuals this time have a lot more details, showing how FF6 was a late SNES era game. This time around Pixel Remaster actually has some noticeable additions: most striking being the Opera scene, completely different from the original game! It was really good!
Another yay is that character portraits are back, yet again by yours truly Amano Yoshitaka! WOO!
The game overall is very pretty and I think for any 2D JRPG the level of beauty FF6 achieved should be their baseline.
Music is great, absolutely banging in fact! A lot of the music, similar to the story, is more "fine arts" in my opinion. My favourite pieces are the Opera song, Terra's theme, Cyan's theme, Celes' theme and the train area song.
Overall, if FF4 is too old for you, FF6 is a must play if you want to at least experience the Final Fantasy series at one of its apexes.
"X Y down up!" [meteor strikes this review] I'll see you in Final Fantasy VII, soldier.
Having finally beat the evil tin can man and saved a merged world in Final Fantasy V; it is time to embark on the next iteration of the Final Fantasy series, Final Fantasy VI (FF6)!
Boy, what an absolutely phenomenal game this is.
I think this story is best experienced firsthand as it's got very interesting beats and points that shouldn't fail to entertain or immerse. The first scene of the game starts with a dark and brooding cutscene, setting the appropriate tone for this entry, quite similar to FF4. My initial impression is that it's FF2 but more expanded, but I was proven wrong early on. It also has a lot of drama and/or dramatic influences and it's very blunt about it.
Unlike the previous entry, the cast is rather large! If you do all the quests your cast should top at 13 characters I think (at least that's how many I had). Each of them is rather unique and they even have their personal backstories integrated into the story or via some sidequest when you acquire them, all neat stuff. They're all great characters, I love them all dearly :)
Rather early on you unlock quite a lot of them and you can mix and match your party however you see fit, which is great but also kind of a bog as you still need to level everyone, as the game requires multiple parties to progress sometimes.
As far as gameplay goes... Once again, FF6 departs from FF5 job system, with each character having a predetermined job specific to them.
Cross job skills are no more, and instead relics make an appearance, which are basically accessories that add abilities, statuses or enhance your already present abilities, like turning Steal to Mug or granting 100% accuracy.
Another new addition is the summon system, which now everyone has access to. Depending on the summon equipped, levelup stats are influenced and the character can unlock that summons spells. Basically everyone can be a healer now, which is neat!
Additionally, every character has their own unique mechanic such as: Terra's trance which powers her magic, Celes' runic which absorbs spells for healing or Sabin's martial arts that require button inputs. This more or less makes each character different in playstyle and how you approach the summon system.
Visuals this time have a lot more details, showing how FF6 was a late SNES era game. This time around Pixel Remaster actually has some noticeable additions: most striking being the Opera scene, completely different from the original game! It was really good!
Another yay is that character portraits are back, yet again by yours truly Amano Yoshitaka! WOO!
The game overall is very pretty and I think for any 2D JRPG the level of beauty FF6 achieved should be their baseline.
Music is great, absolutely banging in fact! A lot of the music, similar to the story, is more "fine arts" in my opinion. My favourite pieces are the Opera song, Terra's theme, Cyan's theme, Celes' theme and the train area song.
Overall, if FF4 is too old for you, FF6 is a must play if you want to at least experience the Final Fantasy series at one of its apexes.
"X Y down up!" [meteor strikes this review] I'll see you in Final Fantasy VII, soldier.