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In honor of Final Fantasy's 25th anniversary, GAF Plays: Final Fantasy games

Aeana

Member
We were talking about FF6 last night while I was in the middle of FF5, and the conversation eventually ended up with me starting FF6 while he watched. I guess I'll get back to FF5 after 6, since this is only the second time he's ever taken interest in an RPG.

Sadly, I've taken very few screenshots, so I have little to report except that I'm up to the phantom train at the moment.
 

Roubjon

Member
FF IX was really a blast to play through. It reminded me of Golden Sun (basically the only JRPG I played before) but the story was just that much bigger and the setpieces far more impressive. I was surprised how much I could enjoy a game from the PS1 era. Thanks again to the guy who recommended it to me.

I think some time in the future I'll buy FF7 or FF8 though I'm not sure since I heard negative stuff about both. Maybe going back to one of the 2D ones would be even better.

This makes me sad. But you should definitely check out FF7 and FF8. Anything negative you have heard about them can't be worse than the bad things people say about FF9.
 

Ourobolus

Banned
Beat FF2 last night! This is my first time with the Blood Sword, so damn I was surprised how quickly the Emperor went down.

Now, back to FFXIII-2 and FFI!
 

Kinyou

Member
This makes me sad. But you should definitely check out FF7 and FF8. Anything negative you have heard about them can't be worse than the bad things people say about FF9.
I forgot that my experience was a little tarnished through the bad framerate during the fights. It was only recently that I discovered that it wasn't meant to be that way. Apparently did the PS3 either a really bad job at emulating it or it had something to do with the PAL version. So when I meant" for a PS1 game" I actually meant "for a game with such a bad framerate"; I did the PS1 a little injustice there, my bad.

btw. Does maybe someone know where those issues came from? Or maybe if other ports are know to have issues as well?
 
We were talking about FF6 last night while I was in the middle of FF5, and the conversation eventually ended up with me starting FF6 while he watched. I guess I'll get back to FF5 after 6, since this is only the second time he's ever taken interest in an RPG.

Sadly, I've taken very few screenshots, so I have little to report except that I'm up to the phantom train at the moment.

Hey, this means I might actually finish FF5 before you.
 
Every now and again I pop into this thread to post a new song you guys quite possibly haven't heard so I'm just going to leave this one here.

Very nice. It's a different, but fun arrangement, and the ethereal vocals and piano are beautiful.

That also got me clicking around Yotube until I found Final Fantasy IV's Theme of Love arranged by Uyama Hiroto. It's crazy good!

Edit: Right now, I have three Final Fantasy games on my plate: VI, X, and XIII-2. I restarted my VI save since
I unwittingly let Shadow die
, but this is a great game. There are so many brilliant moments like
the famous opera scene, exploring the forest leading into the phantom train, and Setzer's backstory before getting the new airship.
I would have liked it if the characters talked to each other more, but the character development that is present is good.

X's intro was impressive, and it's story gets interesting in no time. I'm only up to Kilika Forest though. Anyway, the sphere grid seems interesting, and my favorite part of the battle system is freely changing party members on the fly. That's really cool.

And XIII-2, I just haven't started yet.
 

Entropia

No One Remembers
Finally beat FF2 today after not playing it earlier this week... onto FF7 now. I may sprinkle in some FF3 DS play as well
 

Bladenic

Member
I'm off to Mysidia in FF2. This game is so underrated. It's really fun, and I like the level up system just fine. Not to mention the iOS version is beautiful. The sprites are great, especially some of the enemy and boss ones. And finally, the music is really good too. I love the boss theme, so good. As soon as I finish this one, I'll try to finish 7 before Tales of Graces f releases. Then all I have left before I can say I beat the whole series is 5 and 6.
 

Aeana

Member
Just about to go into the sealed cave in FF6. Got my gaia gear and the chickenlip rage and will steamroll everything for a while now~
 
After the Forest of Moore, all that's left on this world is Exdeath's castle!

Or at least, that's the theory. I'm going to take advantage of several methods of money-making that are available to me here.

This one you know about:
FinalFantasyVAdvance_09-9.png


This one you might not: There's a cave near Castle Bal that contains the following dead end:
FinalFantasyVAdvance_01-12.png
FinalFantasyVAdvance_02-7.png


Normally, the next step results in an encounter with the Gil Turtle. This undead monstrosity absorbs all elements except ice (which it's weak to) and holy (which it's immune to). Beating this thing is a mark of pride in the FJF. I can damage it with requiem, but lack the defenses to keep my party members alive. The back attack certainly didn't help.
FinalFantasyVAdvance_21-9.png


Through some trickery, it's possible to get through this path without getting attacked. The doubling stops at 40960 gil.
FinalFantasyVAdvance_08-11.png


With the money to buy the things I know I'll want in the near future, it's time to head to Exdeath's castle.
FinalFantasyVAdvance_38-4.png
FinalFantasyVAdvance_41-3.png
FinalFantasyVAdvance_43-3.png
FinalFantasyVAdvance_45-3.png


Filled with lava and traps, this place is evil-looking enough to qualify as a final dungeon. The important summon Carbuncle is found here.
FinalFantasyVAdvance_53-2.png
FinalFantasyVAdvance_54-2.png


Carbuncle is one of those bosses that has two modes but doesn't tell you that a change has occurred. The first mode casts offensive magic on himself, reflecting it to the party. The second mode casts curative magic on himself and horribly destructive spells on the party. The second mode is also vulnerable to being instantly killed in a number of ways. (I went with Firaga sword last year.)
FinalFantasyVAdvance_59.png
FinalFantasyVAdvance_60-1.png
FinalFantasyVAdvance_61-2.png


Right after that, I run into an old friend.
FinalFantasyVAdvance_69-2.png
FinalFantasyVAdvance_70-2.png


Gilgamesh v4 really likes his blue magic, but is pretty straightforward, especially using the air knives, new summon, and new magic I just got all at once.
FinalFantasyVAdvance_83.png
FinalFantasyVAdvance_78.png
FinalFantasyVAdvance_79.png
FinalFantasyVAdvance_100.png


The tradition of stealing the Genji equipment continues here, but my party still has no way to do that. This form gives you a limited amount of time to grab the Genji Helm.
FinalFantasyVAdvance_107.png
FinalFantasyVAdvance_109.png
FinalFantasyVAdvance_115.png
FinalFantasyVAdvance_118.png


Next time: The big bad guy.
 

Lindsay

Dot Hacked
So I been wondering about this for awhile now since this thread started but how comes in all them older FFs even the fodder-est of monsters are way bigger an way more detailed than the party members? Was it just to keep them in line with their field sprites?


Also: that dude looks like he's straight outta Zelda 2.
 

Natetan

Member
So I been wondering about this for awhile now since this thread started but how comes in all them older FFs even the fodder-est of monsters are way bigger an way more detailed than the party members? Was it just to keep them in line with their field sprites?



Also: that dude looks like he's straight outta Zelda 2.

I think the post job change sprites in ff1 NES look AWESOME. I wish they would have used that 'nostalgia' in the later series instead of the cutesy white/black Mage chibi big headed other characters.
 

Heropon

Member
I've just beaten Garuda in FF3. I hate how the only thing you can do is jump before it attacks and land after its turn. Refia and Arc landed too soon and went straight to the graveyard.
 

Goron2000

best junior ever
I forgot that my experience was a little tarnished through the bad framerate during the fights. It was only recently that I discovered that it wasn't meant to be that way. Apparently did the PS3 either a really bad job at emulating it or it had something to do with the PAL version. So when I meant" for a PS1 game" I actually meant "for a game with such a bad framerate"; I did the PS1 a little injustice there, my bad.

btw. Does maybe someone know where those issues came from? Or maybe if other ports are know to have issues as well?

If you can i'd get a US account. i'm not 100% on this but i'm pretty sure that PAL games still run at 50hz on the PS3 which means they run at a slower rate. I use a US account anyway so again not 100%, if someone could confirm this that would be helpful.
 

Ultratech

Member
Minor FF2 Update:
-After completing the Wild Goose Chase of Ultima, most of the world get whacked by the Cyclone.
-Got Blood Sword! Final Boss never would stand a chance anyways.
-Got the Wyvern and flew up in the Cyclone. I found it kinda funny they changed up the first couple of floors for the remakes. (The original had you right outside the cyclone or something before entering the actual fortress part.)
-After lots of Royal Guard and Wood Golem genocide, the Emperor falls like a foolish fool.
-After what seems like a few minutes, (seriously, HOW long did it take the Party to get back?) we get a notice that Leon (Lion) is now calling himself Emperor. Guess we gotta go knock him down a notch or two.
-Ripper knife is OP. The 2nd slash does like 20 x # of Hits. Hilariously useful versus high Defense enemies. And does crazy good damage on its own. (It's gotta be effective vs some enemy type I imagine.)


Slightly off-topic, I found out that Alundra was created by Matrix. Also found out why the FF3 and FF4 remakes were so hard. Turns out the president LOVES hard games (which is why Alundra was as hard as it was).

I've just beaten Garuda in FF3. I hate how the only thing you can do is jump before it attacks and land after its turn. Refia and Arc landed too soon and went straight to the graveyard.

Yeah, that fight is a bitch no matter the version. Doesn't take too much to screw up even if you are doing the fight right.
 
Is FF3 DS really considered difficult? I find it easier than the Famicom version, which is already fairly easy.

That particular fight is a pain because he can cast lightning more than once per turn. Even with dragoons, it's not uncommon to instantly die on the first turn.
 

Heropon

Member
Is FF3 DS really considered difficult? I find it easier than the Famicom version, which is already fairly easy.

Until now, the monsters could gang in one party member (usually white mage Refia) and kill him/her in one turn. That wouldn't be much of a problem if there weren't so few phoenix downs. So I consider this game difficult, but maybe I'm a clumsy.

P.S: Hein was relatively easy.
 

Aeana

Member
Until now, the monsters could gang in one party member (usually white mage Refia) and kill him/her in one turn. That wouldn't be much of a problem if there weren't so few phoenix downs. So I consider this game difficult, but maybe I'm a clumsy.

Well, there's always the item duplicating trick to get more phoenix downs if you feel you need them.
 

Heropon

Member
Well, there's always the item duplicating trick to get more phoenix downs if you feel you need them.

How is that trick? I get angry when I use one of my precious phoenix downs and then the monster attacks immediately the revived member. (Stupid giant rat, Medusa, Kraken, etc.)
 

Aeana

Member
How is that trick? I get angry when I use one of my precious phoenix downs and then the monster attacks immediately the revived member. (Stupid giant rat, Medusa, Kraken, etc.)

Put the item you want to duplicate in the top left slot. In battle, select the item command, and with your cursor on the item, press up and A at the exact same time. If the weapon switch window comes up, you should be able to go back to the item screen (press B) and see that the number of items increased by one. This works for any item that's usable in battle.

EDIT: Oh, it doesn't work in the European version.
 

Heropon

Member
Put the item you want to duplicate in the top left slot. In battle, select the item command, and with your cursor on the item, press up and A at the exact same time. If the weapon switch window comes up, you should be able to go back to the item screen (press B) and see that the number of items increased by one. This works for any item that's usable in battle.

EDIT: Oh, it doesn't work in the European version.

Oh, well, it seems I can't do it, but thanks. I think I'm in the easiest part of the game, anyways.

EDIT: One of my characters will have to become a Dark Knight soon and a Ninja later, but I haven't decided which one yet. Any suggestions?

Paladin Luneth
Ranger Arc
White Mage Refia <--I suppose she isn't an option.
Red Mage Ingus <--Will black magic be useful later?
 

Entropia

No One Remembers
So, started up FF7 last night - playing it on a PS2 on an HDTV it's UGLY.

Booted it up in ePSXe on my comp with some of the filters/settings recommended earlier in the group and it looks awesome!! (Plus I can fast forward ;x)
 

Heropon

Member
You guys are so cute in your giant sprite art avatars!

Sprites are infinitely more charming than 3d models, especially oversized ones (not the pokémon black/white back ones
I hope they continue using sprites in an hypothetical 3DS pokémon game
).

I was thinking about changing my avatar everytime I change jobs in FFV, but since I'm new here I suppose it's better to continue with the same avatar.
 

Jucksalbe

Banned
Just got the water crystal jobs in FF III (Famicom). Should I switch my Fighter for a Dragoon? My current party is Fighter, Karateka, White Mage, Black Mage.
 

Aeana

Member
Just got the water crystal jobs in FF III (Famicom). Should I switch my Fighter for a Dragoon? My current party is Fighter, Karateka, White Mage, Black Mage.

There's no reason to use dragoon except at the boss fight where it's required. It's crappy otherwise.
 

Heropon

Member
I'm so grateful FF3 doesn't have as many ambushes as FF and FF2. Everytime I get one something very bad happens. Luckily, Refia survived this time so I could use Life? and not a phoenix down.
 
I should really be studying and not playing FF5. Oh well.

Preparations for Exdeath include assassinating one of my own. Challenging him with everyone at level 30 is a terrible idea, but I do want one character at that level. I also nab the spear from Gilgamesh's room.
FinalFantasyVAdvance_02-8.png
FinalFantasyVAdvance_03-12.png
FinalFantasyVAdvance_01-13.png


On the actual fight: Exdeath can do all sorts of nasty things. Reverse Polarity shuffles your rows (this party doesn't care), he casts third tier elemental magic (Hi, Carbuncle!), and uses a physical attack called Vacuum Wave that can pretty much one-shot any non-heavy armor class (Hi, Golem!). Other attacks include Zombie Breath, Earth Shaker, 100gs (dispels float), and Level 3 Flare. When his HP gets low, he'll start taking more than one action per turn.

Attempt one: I put up Golem and use Aeroga while I wait for Exdeath to cast Level 3 flare on me. It never happens. Reload!
FinalFantasyVAdvance_06-8.png
FinalFantasyVAdvance_09-10.png


Attempt two: I put up golem and do essentially nothing while I wait for Exdeath to cast Level 3 flare.
FinalFantasyVAdvance_11-7.png


That done, put up reflect and MURDER HIM. If you're more patient than I am, you can learn doom from him. I don't think it's worth the effort.
FinalFantasyVAdvance_12-9.png
FinalFantasyVAdvance_13-5.png
FinalFantasyVAdvance_18-6.png
FinalFantasyVAdvance_20-6.png


World two complete!
FinalFantasyVAdvance_26-5.png
FinalFantasyVAdvance_27-3.png


Exdeath with hyper offense is quite a different matter from the no-offense party I had in the summer. The hardest part about this run is choosing which way to mercilessly kill bosses.
 

Jucksalbe

Banned
There's no reason to use dragoon except at the boss fight where it's required. It's crappy otherwise.

Thanks, I kept my old party then. Garuda should be coming up soon, though.
One more thing:

kkWwa.png
UHhqKl.jpg


Which of these translations is actually right? The one from your playthrough seems slightly....offensive.
 

Heropon

Member
In the end I decided to change all the men to dark knights. Monsters in Falgabaad remove a lot of HP to my boys, so I think I'm not ready to go to the next cave. What should I do?
 
So I'm finally getting back into FF2 after a few busy weeks at work...

...but I have no idea what I've done.

I got to the point where the Dreadnaught took off and then I went South to a little cave full of mages, I then got teleported onto the Dreadnaught. Now I'm running around avoiding alarms and guards MGS style....I don't seem to be going anywhere and I think I'm stuck.
I can't find a guide that says I should be on this thing never mind where to go next.

Anyone able to help?
 

Natetan

Member
So I'm finally getting back into FF2 after a few busy weeks at work...

...but I have no idea what I've done.

I got to the point where the Dreadnaught took off and then I went South to a little cave full of mages, I then got teleported onto the Dreadnaught. Now I'm running around avoiding alarms and guards MGS style....I don't seem to be going anywhere and I think I'm stuck.
I can't find a guide that says I should be on this thing never mind where to go next.

Anyone able to help?

You are most likely playing the PSP version with the added content. That's not actually the dreadnaught its a bonus stage.

Get out of there, pick up the dreadnaught pass if you havent, and go down to kashuan to get the sun flame. After you get the sun flame, find a chocobo is a small forest square directly south of kashuon and take the chocobo south to the real dreadnaught
 

Ultratech

Member
FF2 Complete! A quick rundown:
-Went back to take on Leon at the castle.
-Enemies start to be real dicks here; kinda killed my "no-armor" game, since anything with over 120 Atk tends to kill you quick without spamming Blink.
-Sun Blade get! (For the dozen fights it's actually used for.)
-No boss fight, but the Emperor returns stronger than ever from Hell, somehow beating the Devil. Man, monsters in Hell must be weak as crap. Does that make my party Gods?
-Another party member gone...but Excalibur get! (Woo!)
-Funny enough, Leon is actually on par with my characters; for better or worse. (In a typical game, my guys would blow him out of the water.)
-Entered Jade...in the original game, this place BLOWS HARD. Mostly due to Abyss Worms. ("Let's spam Cyclone!")
-After more monster killing and a few ultimate weapons later, we enter Pandaemonium.
-I take on the 4 Optional Bosses to get the Genji Gear and Ribbon. Didn't actually use any of it, but I love a good fight.
-Masamune get! Hilariously OP weapon.
-We take on the Emperor...after being ambushed, he falls to the Ultimate Weapon: Blood Sword! More blood for the Blood God!
-Game Over. Beat the game in ~13 hours. (Should've been around 12hrs honestly.)

Is FF3 DS really considered difficult? I find it easier than the Famicom version, which is already fairly easy.

Eh...it's kinda weird. Early on, it's kinda sucky since monsters can screw you over if they decide to gang up on you. (Yay enemy rebalance?) Once you get towards the later part of the game, it's a non-issue most of the time.

Bosses on the hand...well, they can piss off. I think the majority of bosses after a certain point always get 2 actions per turn (some 3 or 4). Kinda makes the Garuda fight an even bigger pain on the DS version if he decides to be a dick and pull Lightning twice in a row.

Granted, it's nowhere near as hard as FFIV DS though.

Funny enough, thanks to the job rebalance, some classes get REALLY good. I was nearly in awe the first time I saw my Dragoon do like 89k+ damage to Ahriman. (Almost OHKO'd him, since he went down on the very next attack afterwards by my DK.)
 

Jucksalbe

Banned
When I stopped playing last time, I had just left the floating tree and rescued the soldiers of Argass. Next stop: Canaan!

mBLU3.png


Well, seems like I'm still missing something. So maybe I should pay a visit to Argass Castle and talk to all the soldiers I rescued.

7RLlq.png
Bm88M.png


There, that's better. It's always so nice of them that they readily hand over their family heirloom.

Nw8yK.png


And here it is: The original Midgar moment. That tiny island is the Floating Continent is was playing on up until now.

SB3yY.png
4PMwb.png


And this is the island I had to find. Took me quite some time flying around to find it.

IM6wE.png


You have to use an antidote on her, which didn't seem that obvious to me. I just pass it off as "bad translation". I was so ready to traverse another dungeon to find some very rare flower only growing right behind that super strong dragon and stuff.

UEFFb.png
wDMmy.png


After another bit of randomly flying around, I arrived at the Water Temple. No real crystal here, though.

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On to Water Cave, which is conveniently located right behind the temple. As always my companion's killed right away.

0PhbM.png
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Kraken looks a bit boring in this game. The fight's pretty straightforward, my only problem was that I forgot to heal my party before the fight.

DDxLA.png


New jobs! Time for a career change. It's seems kind of strange that she is just "giving" them to me, I wonder how that works. I changed my Monk to Karateka and kept everyone else's job.

DkddZ.png


After a big earthquake, all the sunken continents resurface (as if nothing ever happened).

h2OGL.png
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My party awakes in the town of Amur. There are some very strange people here.

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And people like to dance. You have to imagine this scene to be more like the bar scene in the opening of the Lord of the Rings. Also, I get a hint for an upcoming boss fight. Sounds like an easy fight.

wMFWk.png


But before I can get to him I have to take a detour through the sewers, because apparantly someone lives there.

NSvxU.png
SY113.png


On my way I have to rescue this group of strange men I saw before. They think of themselves as the actual four legendary heroes, they seem to be on a low-level run, though, so I helped them out with this vicious group of goblins.

CnoxD.png
hkWCg.png


And finally I found Master Splinter. He seems easy to convince, so with my new Floating Shoes I can finally be on my way to that boss (Goldur, who actually chained my ship to the dock, that bastard).

Guq6X.png
BbuTB.png


Goldur sure loves shiny things, I'm gonna kill him anyway, so I might just as well steal all his treasure. Good thing, it's all expensive stuff.

Lxwp8.png
Bsgsl.png


Yup, easy fight. Magic's pretty much worthless, though. My Black Mage dealt more damage with his physical attacks than with his magic. He will surely fondly remember this fight.

oiF52.png
PG7lj.png


So, now that I have my ship back, it's time for a break.
 
Thanks to this thread I've started playing Final Fantasy III NES on my PSP. This one, together with II, is the only mainline FF I still have to beat (or... play more than the first dungeon). I own III on the DS, but it feels like a different game entirely so it somehow wouldn't really count for me. Plus, it's such a sloooooooow game.

Anyway, I just defeated the Jinn so now I'm officially going places I haven't ever seen before. My party (Onion, Chilli, Shrimp and Potato) consists of Warrior, Monk, White Mage and Black Mage who is now a Red Mage because of that weapon only a RM can wield.

Only problem is I can't take screenshots ): I installed that plugin that was linked earlier and it says it's enabled, but when I press the music note button... nothing happens.
 

Jucksalbe

Banned
Yeah, and when I go to the recovery menu it tells me they're enabled. Does that mean I at least installed them correctly?

Yes. Are you sure you're not actually taking screenshots? It's not like it gives you any feedback when you press the note button (aside from maybe the Memory Stick access light flickering).
 
FF8 on ps3, let's go...

Holy shit the intro is still epic !

yeah, the intro was one of the better parts of the game, really started off with a bang, glad they took the cue from games like ff's 5, 6 and 7 that really hit the ground running. I didn't like how long it took ff4 to get you to the "okay this game is getting interesting" point (after village mist).
 
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