role-playing

Okay, so I thought that Square would enhance the actual game insome way or at least stick cinemas in at different places. I expecteda whole new gaming experience.

And I got one.

Sure, they didn't put in anything new, but taht can be just as good as bad. Playing the original Final Fantasy VI felt great...I just wish the music had been enhanced (especially for FFV). But let's take a more detailed look at it all.

Final Fantasy V

Square never released FFV here in the U.S. of A., and so the only way I've ever played it was on a translated ROM for my computer. A fairly difficult-to-beat game with lots of fun and surprises. This is where Final Fantasy Tactics' famous job-system got its start. This is where the Summoned Monsters and Guardian Forces came around for the first time. (Okay, so I laughed at them when I saw them in this game, but hey, they would've been awesome when the game was first released!) The challenge is medium to intense, the graphics are okay (enough to keep you entertained), and the story is fairly humorous, but definitely interesting. But music is where Final Fantasy V truly excels. The inclusion of the Final Fantasy Prelude (also known as the Crystal Song) and the Final Fantasy Anthem (played at the Elder Tree during the ending and during the credits of FF7 and FF8) bring the game to life and immerse you in the (for lack of a better word) WEIRD world of Final Fantasy V. Total rating on a scale of 1 to 10: 8.

Final Fantasy VI

Released in the USA as Final Fantasy III, the original was voted the best RPG of the year in its time. The remake does not disappoint. Would Final Fantasy Anthology sell without this one included? NO -- WAY. The level of improvement graphically and musically over FFV is amazing! The Anthology also includes opening and ending cinemas rendered with Square's best techniques, the same techniques that will be used for the Final Fantasy Movie. Overall rating on a scale of 1 to 10: 9.

In conclusion, this title is well worth the money to buy, but I do suggest you rent first to make sure you can put up with the out-of-date graphics, etc...

"Follow your dream always, and your regrets will be few." ~~Jacob Seth Kuntzman

The major con is the almost unbearable loading time of the menu screens and saving, both of which were disturbingly faster on the old Super Nintendo (or at least it seems to my mind). Battle load times are also a bit on the long side, and since you'll be battling enormous hordes of monsters plan to spend a lot of time watching that pretty fade over and over and over again.

On the pro side, this game includes some extra features that are amusing. Nothing spectacular, mind you - just stuff you can look at once you're done with the game. Also, there are full motion videos (beware: low quality ahead, unfortunately). The mere fact that your dusty old SNES cartridge probably doesn't work anymore is probably the main pro: You can play this on your Playstation or, if thats broken too, on your Playstation 2!

Now, I should note one important thing: In my humble opinion, Final Fantasy V is Square's worst game on the Super Nintendo. Both IV and VI are superior in graphics, sound and gameplay. The one advantage V has is its unique class system, which is obviously a precursor to that in Final Fantasy Tactics and makes the game much more enjoyable than it otherwise would be. The sound track is, quite frankly, atrocious. The battle music is so bad and repetitive you will probably want to keep your volume turned down low or even muted. I'm a huge fan of the music in IV and VI - I even tried to order the CD's when I bought the games - but this is just downright awful. Plot is reasonable, as is game length, fortuantely - two redeeming factors that make the music somewhat excusable.

Bottom line: 4 out of 5 stars because of Final Fantasy V and horrid load times for absolutely everything. Buy this package to play through FF VI again with movies and extra features on a modern platform. Don't buy it to play Final Fantasy V, because you'll be disappointed if you've played ANY of the other games after IV (!). If you've got a decent PC and an emulator, you should strongly consider looking at V before you purchase this title, if that is your main motivation for doing so. Also, if you started the series with FF VII you might not find this to be as enjoyable an experience after being spoiled by the graphics in later installments. Fans of VI looking to replay the game should definately have a look, but don't expect to see anything you haven't seen before (Mr. Thou is waiting for you, just go buy it, you know you want to!).

I have played this game and I hate it!! Instead of just killing people and blowing up tanks, you have to walk around and find stuff; and when you do fight, you engage one enemy at a time take turns fighting, how stupid is that?!! NOBODY take turns figting in real life. Also, why does Final Fantasy and a bunch of other RPGs take place in Medieval Times? Why is it all ogre and dragon slaying? I also don't like FF's mixture of Medieval and modern technology. You should just play a game where you're surrounded by enemies and all you do is obliterate them. I'm basically talking about games like Halo, MechAssault, Turok 2:Seeds of Evil, and Star Wars:Shadows of the Empire; those are the great games!! Also, none of those games are a part of the Playstation monopoly, infact, none of those games are available for PSX or PS2. All RPGs suck as a matter of fact!! Stick to first/third person shooter games, they're much better because you kill and destroy minus the long storys and searching for crap. I made some good choices in my life, those are purposely buying a Sega Genesis so I can play Sonic and Ren and Stimpy:Stimpy's Invention but not FF. The other is purposely buying an N64 so I can play Star Wars:Shadows of the Empire and Turok 2:Seeds of Evil but not FF. The last is purposely buying an XBOX so I could play Halo and MechAssault but not FF. Boycott this garbage, you won't be sorry!!