Back in 1997, Squaresoft and Nintendo had a falling out over creative ideas. While Nintendo stuck with cartridges, Squaresoft decided to move onto Sony's Playstation to help lower development costs. A relationship over 10 years old dissolved, but both companies still went on to produce classic games.
Six years later, Squaresoft merged with the Enix Corporation (becoming Square-Enix). Though Squaresoft released several mediocre spin-offs for Nintendo's Game Boy Advance (similar to what Rare do), they finally returned to Nintendo with Final Fantasy: Crystal Chronicles for the Gamecube. It wasn't long before a wealth of Square-Enix games was available for Nintendo consoles.
More Remakes For Nintendo
Final Fantasy I-VI had all been on a Nintendo console before, though after the merge they all reappeared on the GBA, with the exception of Final Fantasy III. This had never been released outside of Japan, but this was to get a Nintendo DS makeover in 2006, gaining fairly positive reviews. Now the fourth entry has received the same treatment, which has taken everything from Final Fantasy III and improved upon it in everyway.
Final Fantasy IV follows the story of Cecil, a dark knight working for the Baron King, who has started to attack neighbouring villages and castles for their crystals. Cecil questions his King's motives, eventually deciding to fight against him. As the story unfolds a more sinister plot is revealed, with Cecil and his friends taking on a lot more than they think.
How Does Final Fantasy IV Play?
Final Fantasy III was special in the way that it didn't ease the player into it - they were thrown straight into the battle, no tutorial or explanation. It was not a game for amateurs. FFIV takes a step back, letting the player get the feel of fighting before it begins.
That's not to say it isn't a challenge - quite the contrary. Beyond the initial easy part, FFIV almost reaches the difficulty of Final Fantasy III.
The fighting keeps the Active Time Battle (ATB) from the original, though this makes the battle slower compared to FFIII. There are options to increase or decrease the battle speed, but this maybe for those with experience with the ATB - while the fighting maybe slower, that does not mean it isn't fast paced.
The main factor FFIV has over FFIII is the availability of two very important items in the Final Fantasy universe - Phoenix Downs and Ethers. Ethers were not available in FFIII and Phoenix Downs were very hard to come by, but now they are available in the shops (ethers aren't always there). This addition decreases the game's difficulty, but only just.
A Worthy Remake of Final Fantasy IV?
In terms of graphics, FFIV is more or less a carbon copy of FFIII. Minor adjustments have been made, but the small CGI segments prove that Square-Enix is still the best at producing computer animation. The game includes voice acting, though this is relatively weak compared to previous Square-Enix work.
The soundtrack, on the other hand, is as brilliant as ever, bringing back fond memories of Nobuo Uematsu's other scores (Final Fantasy VII especially).
The major fault with FFIV is its under use of the DS' capabilities. The touch screen is hardly utilized, a disappointment considering how useful it could have been for battles and the menu screens. Pokemon Diamond/Pearl used the touch screen rather well for battles, so there was no reason to ignore this feature.
These little quirks, however, do not let down the game too much. It's the gameplay and the engaging story that makes this game a gem. It maybe another remake, but this still a classic and a welcome addition to the DS catalogue.
9/10
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