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In keeping with their tradition of re-releasing their SNES Final Fantasy games on the GBA, Nintendo has repackaged Final Fantasy V. The result is nothing short of spectacular, as Final Fantasy V Advance turns out to be the best version of FFV to date. The main reason being that the game has been re-translated and augmented so that the script is now very tongue in cheek and full of humor. Pop culture references are abounding, and game makes fun of its rather simplistic and cliché storyline. The result is a fresh and witty take on what was originally a simplistic and unoriginal story.
For players unfamiliar with the rest of Final Fantasy V, it can be quickly summarized as follows: The emphasis of the game is not on story, but on fighting. The game requires the player to spend more time leveling up and building up abilities than it does the player reading text and figuring out puzzles. As a result, the game is actually somewhat easy, since the player will most likely "over level" their party in order to have a team of characters to their liking. Beyond the emphasis on leveling, anyone can see why the game originally had a rather unoriginal and overall boring story. Thankfully, the aforementioned "script update" has helped remedy this issue greatly.
As for the game's combat, Square has added 4 new jobs that the player can acquire, but three are only accessible towards the end of the game (and the last after the game is beaten). Still, the new jobs do add some variety to game play as well as replay value. The jobs themselves are not "overly powered" as some players might be lead to think, and in comparison, the original 15 jobs can be more powerful than the new 4 if used properly. Still, the new jobs do make life easier when it comes to leveling up thanks to the abilities that they introduce to the game. Ultimately, the new jobs add some needed additions for players who have already beaten FFV in the past.
As for other additions to the game, the most noticeable are that the game has more colorful and better-drawn graphics. The soundtrack has been remixed, and is now far superior to the original SNES game. The game also has an optional 30-room dungeon and a boss survival mode for players seeking more action after the game is over. Suffice to say, the additional content easily plays on the game's emphasis on combat and not on story telling. Other additions to the game include a bestiary, so that players can look up the stats of the monsters that have been defeated. In addition, the game has a music player mode for those who enjoy the music of Final Fantasy V.
The only drawback on Final Fantasy V Advance is that some players will find the new content to be "not enough". Where as the original Final Fantasy V could be completed at about level 36-50, the additional content can be beaten at 50-60, depending on how much time the player has invested into the job system (and how much outside assistance they utilize.) Still, with the new translation, FFV Advance is a worthwhile experience, even for players who have already played FFV in the past.
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FF5 will always hold a special place in my heart as the red headed stepchild of the series. In this updated version there are even more reasons to let it out of the basement! First off they added something which I thoroughly enjoy! Portraits. This may not seem like much but now you get to see why Galuf gets ragged so much about being old! Oddly enough he doesnt have brown hair and beard in his portrait...but thats ok we love his sprite anyway! There is much better character interaction, and the party actually seems to have developed a sort of personality. Bartz cracks Groany jokes that will make you slap your forhead. In fact there is even a very bizarre Red Lobster reference in the game... You will fall in love with Gilgamesh all over again as he incompetantly tries to thwart you repeatedly throughout the adventure. Farris is not quite so rediculously cliche as a pirate, but still cliche enough to make sense and be loveable, and her portrait helped you understand how the characters found her foxy a little more than the purple haired creature you were familiar with. X-Death is still the lamest bad guy of any FF game, but its almost kind of endeering in a way...and yes he still harnesses the ultimate power to become a....tree at the end.
The class system is left more or less unscathed but for the addition of a few new ones which are dumb at best. Canoner was not somethign any of us were waiting for ff to add. Necromancer has never been the MO of the FFs and the bizarre weather oracley person just kills your party most of the time. Nice guys! It makes you wonder why they didnt throw in some FF staples that were missing. It might have been nice to have a paladin or something remotely FF thrown in there, but whatever, thats small potatoes...
Its still a blacksheap but you will find the game much more playable now, and the characters dont simply clam up half way through the game like they did before! Go grab this one and get your party full of monks ready to wreak some havoc!!
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This game is great fun. I like the ability to change the job function in this game. It gives each character more diveristy and all become stronger quicker this way! The graphics are about the same as FFIV an before but, thats to be expected and thats what I've alwayed loved about these games. I'm 30 years old and this brings me back to when I was younger playin on nintendo 64 and Nintendo.
:two thumbs up:
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This is the last installment of the Final Fantasy games for the Gameboy Advance. And as far as how good it is, it's Final Fantasy. There should be no worries there.
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Final Fantasy V is not my favorite Final Fantasy game, but it certainly is in the running. While it lacks the wonderful, in-depth story and character development of it's successor, it more than makes up for it with arguably the best gameplay in the franchise. Sure, the final villain is possibly the series lamest, but who cares? Building up your abilities via the then-revolutionary take on the job system is an absolute blast.
The only other negatives are the fact that some of the jobs are borderline completely useless. Either way though, the game is well-worth the price of admission. Highly recommended!
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