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Although the bonus contents are nice to have, they can get very dry (especially FF 4, 5, in FF 1 they were fine, I am not yet at the point in FF6) since you are just in a big dungeon for about 10...hours? I would rather see more locations at the late stage of the game instead. I mean - for instance - more locations for FF V GBA after getting to the third world. About the same for FF IV (Cave of Trials was fine, though). Extra characters and jobs are always welcome, but for FF V I would have welcomed it if they would be aviable WAY earlier, so I can actually have a total different playthrough to early accessible jobs at the GBA.
FF I - Didn't like it, but I didn't either for the PSX version years ago. For me, there isn't anything good in it for modern terms, while FF 4-6 still hold a specific level of charme in them for me. They can be still counted as sth special, even to nowadays standards.
FF 2 - Didn't play at GBA. The PSX version wasn't great for me, either.

Now, if I would have to decide if I should go with the GBA versions for FF 4, 5 and 6 - For FF 4, go for the DS version, it is way more polished, or at least the PSP version. You might even think about getting the SNES or PSX version (just read a few additional lines). For FF 5, you can get it if you like to have some new jobs and superbosses, but that's it. Let's take away the necromonger class, you just get it when you killed everything else anyways. I recommend getting the PSX version of SNES version (RPGe fan-translation to English).
For FF VI, you can surely stick with the GBA version.

Reasoning: Sry, but really, FF 4 & 5 GBA suck hard. Mostly because their loveless translation. I can see funny or dramatic scenes in those games by recalling the old versions. But I am not touched by the new translations. It is a shame that I cannot laugh my ass off when bartz is doing something extremly weird. That I cannot get touched by dramatic scenes in FF IV because this fucking translations are just that bad.
Though, you might miss the bestiaries then, which are nice to have, but for what do we have CON?

For FFIV I recommend getting the DS version if you own a NDS.

FF V's translation by RPGe (SNES) really rocks. I really hate the devs of the GBA port for removing the sequence when killing a rock-enemy with a soft, I just love that sequence. It purely rocks.

For FF 6, this is antoher story. So far I am at the floating continent, but the localization is really great, some espers are added and can be gotten even before beating the game once/in WoR.
I can laugh about the funny scenes which are very well translated. Not sure if this localization might be even the best of all FF6 editions.

Note: I am always speaking about the Eng localization as it is what I do use for those games - Somehow I prefer English over German when it comes down to handheld games.

What do you think about? Am I the only one thinking this way about the localization?

I've played FFI and FFII on the NES, as well as the SNES versions of FFIV, FFV, and FFVI, and I do prefer the GBA versions - but they're not necessarily better as much as they have that extra bit of stuff to do and the graphics are greatly improved from the older games.

For FFI, the classes are more balanced and there's actually a use for many of the higher-level spells with the bonus bosses and changed MP system. The bonus dungeons are a bit dull to get through, but the bosses of the dungeons are challenging and fun.

FFII for the GBA compared to the NES version is a godsend. Unless you've played the NES version, you'd have no idea how absurdly difficult it was. The GBA version not only brought the difficulty down but made levelling attributes and abilities much faster, reducing the need for hours and hours of grinding. The Rebirth of Souls bonus dungeon was also pretty fun.

FFIV is one where the graphic difference is very noticable. The Lunar Trials were fun, but what I most liked about the GBA version is being able to switch your party members - the SNES and DS versions don't have nearly enough Spoony for me. The ATB system did get glitchy though, for better and worse: your party would often get two turns in a row or the enemy side's actions would end up delayed, but abilities that required time to charge (most notably Kain's Jump) wound up being delayed as well.

FFV doesn't have much in the way of changes, since almost all of the bonus content is only available once you've beaten the main game. I did prefer the translations of the GBA version to the RPGe translation, especially Ghido's attitude towards Bartz and some of the early lines in the game ("Oh, my stars and comets! HE'S A SHE!"). The bonus dungeon was a little mundane, but I did enjoy the new Jobs (!Finisher is an absolute game-breaker).

FFVI did a good job at getting rid of a lot of the bugs in the game such as Evade and Vanish/Doom. The Dragons' Den is my favourite of the Advance version bonus dungeons, since you can unlock it before beating the main game and has a lot of great equipment for the entire party.

I loved the GBA versions, since for most of them the gameplay's nearly identical and the improved graphics and additional content add to the experience.

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Thank you for taking the time to read this sign. This sign loves you.

> bestiaries

Aww, I remember the days when I would create my own bestiaries. I had this piece of paper where I listed the name and HP of every single enemy in Super Mario RPG, taking care to acquire Psychopath as early as possible so as to miss getting the HP from the minimum number of enemies (Terrapin, Bowser, and Hammer Bro. only).

Anyway...

For FFV, I think I still prefer the RPGe translation. With it, I took the story seriously, and while I appreciate the humor of the GBA translation, I enjoyed the serious feel more, and I still disagree with a number of the name translations. Though fewer than in the PSX version.

That said, I'm interested in seeing the extra content in FFIV, FFV, and FFVI. That extra content would be the biggest reason for me to play through these games again.

Quote

I really hate the devs of the GBA port for removing the sequence when killing a rock-enemy with a soft, I just love that sequence. It purely rocks.

What is this?

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current games (2024-02-19):
Fairy Fencer F ADF
Pokémon Perfect Crystal

finished so far this year:
Gato Roboto
drowning, drowning
New Super Mario Bros.
TMNT 3: Radical Rescue

tabled: Lost Ruins

Dont have a vid here, myabe someone can record it the next time he/she is plyaing FF V SNES. Simple use a soft at a rock-type enemy such as statues.

Oh, you mean the animation where it looks like puffs of smoke?

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current games (2024-02-19):
Fairy Fencer F ADF
Pokémon Perfect Crystal

finished so far this year:
Gato Roboto
drowning, drowning
New Super Mario Bros.
TMNT 3: Radical Rescue

tabled: Lost Ruins

Personally, I think they ruined the DS version with the new ability system they added. It wasn't the same game, in my opinion. It was more of a FFIV-3...

Honestly, I enjoyed the GBA versions of FFIV, FFV and FFVI. I own all three and enjoy the extra content (even if it DOES deviate away from the originals). As much as I like doing a straight port, I can play the originals on their respective systems (well, except for FFV >< ).

Also, "Bartz" will FOREVER be BUTZ to me

This post is dedicated to Seymour "Butz" Klauser.

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kame, tortue, tortuga, schildkröte, tartaruga, turtle

"Arthur Dent?"
"Yes."
"Arthur Philip Dent?"
"Yes."
"You're a total knee biter."

I have to say I was quite impressed with the GBA remakes of FFI and FFIV.
Can't really say about the FV and FFVI for I have not played the originals, but I rather liked them as well.

And yes, I do know the extras can be sometimes tiring, but hey, that is why they are extras and not the main story...

But I didn't like FFII, GBA wise or NES wise, for I think the growth system is somewhat... amiss, I think I prefer being a good old-fashion leveler.

This post has been edited by G. R. Martins on 26th May 2012 14:26

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"Each hopes to learn who may be counted as friend, and who as foe. But such things are not so easily read. Easier rid yourself of those whose loyalty is uncertain, and install others to rule in their stead." - Wiegraf Folles

Hey, here's another topic for me to necro on a Saturday evening in which my whole family is already asleep.

In general, I think most of the remakes bring something new to the table that's welcome, but at the same time, Square hasn't been able to get away with an absolutely perfect upgrade in any of their remakes (at least not to my recollection at this moment).

Even so, though, I can't think of a remake that I've played that I don't now prefer to the original - or its remake predecessor. I prefer the GBA version of Final Fantasy I to ever picking up the NES or PSX versions again. The PSP Final Fantasy IV collection is now my favorite version. War of the Lions, especially when you lose the slowdown that hampered the original WotL, blows the original PSX away (okay, I can't say I love playing it on a touchscreen, but it's still a better version).

The only exceptions I can think of to that off the top of my head are for versions I haven't played: I don't like the look of V and VI on mobile devices, and I still don't think I like playing games by touch in general. I haven't tried those versions because of those reasons and because I don't think they bring enough new to the table to surpass the GBA versions. If someone wants to gift me some iTunes gift cards, I'll be happy willing reluctant but not totally averse to give them a go.

This post has been edited by Rangers51 on 11th January 2015 03:27

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"To create something great, you need the means to make a lot of really bad crap." - Kevin Kelly

Why aren't you shopping AmaCoN?

I've mostly just played GBA ports, and for FFs I & II, I feel it made the games actually playable. I didn't grow up with an NES in the house, so other than a Warlords II and Where in the World Is Carmen Sandiego?, I didn't really start gaming until Windows 95 was a thing. As such, I find a great many NES games suffer from just not having good controls compared to anything later. I don't know too much about NES I & II mechanics, just that trying to progress through them is bloody difficult.

For V and VI, I really like the ports. I liked the RPGe translation of V infinitely more than the PSX rendition of it, but I never thought the story was all that good to begin with, so the humor introduced in the GBA port was a real welcome thing for me. As for VI, I honestly miss me some Vanish + Dooming, but the game is more interesting without it (at least for lazy people like me), and aside from breaking Bad Breath &etc. with the Imp Immunity Bug, I felt it was a fine job all around. The bonus dungeon, like so many dungeons in so many games (I'm looking at you, Grandia) was far longer than it needed to be, but interesting regardless, and I liked the boss. The Soul Shrine seems to me mainly to be a source for further copies of otherwise unique game-breaking items, which I'm okay with as a post-game thing.

I want naught to do with the mobile version of either of those two, though, specifically because I just don't want to have to look at those graphics for an entire run.

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I shall now return to my cave

FFI and FFII - I prefer the PSP versions since they are same as the GBA versions but with improved graphics, audio on par with the PSX version, and even more extra content. The GBA/PSP versions of these games are easier than their earlier versions, which is a good thing in FFII's case since it was not very fun originally with its unforgiving difficulty. FFI may be a bit too easy in the main game but the bonus content is where the challenge lies; the PSX (and Wonderswan) version is more faithful to the original game's difficulty.

FFIV - the PSP Complete Collection is preferred for the same reasons as the above. The ability to choose between the SNES and DS audio versions was nice, and having Interlude and After Years in the same package in a consistent style was also really nice (although those parts aren't nearly as good as the original story). As far as the DS version (and derivatives) goes, it is a very different experience than the original, being a full-on remake and not just a port with enhanced graphics and as such I consider it a separate entity.

FFV - GBA version is my preferred version, especially with the sound restoration hack that brings back some of the sound quality from the SFC original (well, at least as much as the GBA's two 8-bit PCM channels can muster...). The GBA version's translation is definitely my favorite one for various reasons, and the new battle backgrounds are nicer looking than the original versions, and the extra jobs are fun.

FFVI - It's a tossup between SNES and GBA for me. The GBA version is pretty good with the sound and color restoration hacks and has extra content and bugfixes, and I feel that Tom Slattery's translation for Advance was an improvement over Ted Woolsey's translation for the original. However, the SNES version still has better sound quality than the GBA restored sound patch, and the newer translation has mostly been backported to SNES by the Relocalization Project patch (which includes a bunch of bugfix hacks). The extra content was less fun than the other Advance games as well, so I tend to not worry about the lack of that content when playing the SNES version. The only things I'd really miss were the Cactaur esper for it's +2 speed growth, eliminating the need to keep Odin around, and being able to obtain extra Ragnarok swords by stealing from the third tier of the final battle, therefore making the Ragnarok esper vs Ragnarok sword choice much easier to make.

The sound quality is what hurts the GBA versions more than anything, even with the sound restoration patches. GBA just simply doesn't have the audio capability of the SNES or PlayStation (much less a PSP), so it will sound worse in almost every case.

Quote (Rangers51 @ 10th January 2015 21:27)

Even so, though, I can't think of a remake that I've played that I don't now prefer to the original - or its remake predecessor. I prefer the GBA version of Final Fantasy I to ever picking up the NES or PSX versions again.

I'm not sure why I said this back at the time, because I already had the PSP versions of I and II when I made that post - really, just like FF4, the PSP versions are great because they take the GBA versions and make them even a little prettier and easier to pick up. Harder to emulate, of course, but why do I care? I have a PSP.

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"To create something great, you need the means to make a lot of really bad crap." - Kevin Kelly

Why aren't you shopping AmaCoN?

Quote (Rangers51 @ 20th September 2016 13:11)

Harder to emulate, of course, but why do I care? I have a PSP.

I second this. I already have a PSP-3000 with CFW set up so it's trivial for me the play those games on the real hardware. Though PPSSPP has probably progressed to the point where those games would run in it without issues, if you wanted to play on a bigger screen.

Quote (Shadow Monroe @ 20th September 2016 00:14)

FFVI - It's a tossup between SNES and GBA for me. The GBA version is pretty good with the sound and color restoration hacks and has extra content and bugfixes, and I feel that Tom Slattery's translation for Advance was an improvement over Ted Woolsey's translation for the original.

I think they took a lot of the fun out of the translation with the GBA version. There might've been a few improvements, but those improvements are not worth losing some of the famous (or infamous) Woolseyan lines.

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Praise Be To Helix!