Final Fantasy IV is a game I'd been looking forward to reviewing, and not just because it'd give me an excuse to dust off my DS after a year, but mostly because of my history with the series. Final Fantasy IV (or II if you're an American) was the first RPG that I ever beat, and I have wistful memories of being holed up in my bedroom in the summer of 1992 with virtually no experience playing RPGs (let alone JRPGs, but that's all there were back then anyway), trying to bludgeon my way through this game when all my previous experiences at video games had involved shooting things. It was the first game I'd played that had depth, an engaging storyline, and also managed to make me a bit misty-eyed at a few key points.This brings me to a crossroads, because there are inevitably people who have played the original version, and people who haven't. Let's start with the people who have. If you've already played and beaten the original, and have a taste for nostalgia, you won't be doing yourself a disservice by buying this game. It's the same Final Fantasy IV with a new 3d engine which adds to the experience rather than detracts, and some occasional voice acting thrown in to boot. The graphics are pretty, but not earth-shattering, and rate of Nintendo 64 quality (It's a DS - what do you expect?). The voice acting is good - it's not MGS4 quality, but it's a touch above what you'd find on Saturday morning cartoons, and these days that gets a gold star. And then there's the music. All the old tracks are in there, slightly touched up and polished, but still the originals. You won't find any remixes here, which is a good thing.
The DS controls are tastefully done, with the developers not bending over backwards to make some silly and superfluous use of the second screen and touch controls. Instead, they've used it almost entirely as a map system which definitely makes life easier, and provides a few extra goals to strive for. If you successfully explore every last nook and cranny of a dungeon, you'll be rewarded with an item or two to make your life a little easier. I found myself trying to do this unconsciously, though the game can be a little finicky about what "exploring" means. There's still a dungeon or two that I have to go back to if I want to complete this bonus quest because of some random pixel somewhere that the game refuses to register as having been explored, but overall it's a nice addition.
The storyline is exactly the same, but with slightly better translations, though a few old holdouts still remain (spoony bard, anyone?). Overall, it's a more accurate experience as a few aspects of the plot that were taken out of the original American release are put back in, and as Nintendo's old censorship policy no longer applies, things are referred to by their proper names. In the original release, anything referring to prayer or religion was omitted, and here it's back in full force, which is to say hardly at all (thank you, Nintendo). The original American release was also slightly dumbed down because apparently Nintendo of America didn't think that SNES gamers had the cognitive ability or patience to play slightly complex games, so a few character abilities were removed and some of the difficulty was nerfed. All of the removed abilities have been restored in this release, though not having played the original Japanese version of Final Fantasy IV, I can't speak on any changes to the difficulty.
I've had a longstanding history with the Final Fantasy series, and FF IV remains my favorite of the bunch to this day. When Final Fantasy VII came out I was excited, but that was mainly because it gave me an RPG to put into my brand-spanking new PlayStation. The story was good, but I couldn't help feeling that the series may be shifting into an unhealthy new direction, and lo and behold I was right. That was the last Final Fantasy game I ever played, as each new version added more over-the-top plots, settings, and increasingly androgynous, pubescent characters that I was supposed to give two shits about but just couldn't, or what I call the "animization" of the series. Final Fantasy IV is a game that's deep enough to keep you engaged, but simple enough to avoid being overburdened with message and pretension. Beyond that, it's pretty enough to be easy on the eyes and pleasing to look at, but the graphics are still primitive enough that the game can't use them as an excuse for shoddy gameplay. Not to say there aren't a few hints of what's to come for the series in Final Fantasy IV, but the characters have nuance to them that sets them apart. For example, Cecil is still a wishy-washy pussy, while Edward is just a pussy.Being a fan of the original version I realize that I'm biased in this review. If you're already a fan of the original game, you owe it to yourself to pick up this well-done remake. If you've never played it, then you'll find an above average JRPG that's worth your time if you're into that sort of thing. Of course, if you're not into that sort of thing, I can hardly blame you.
