Welcome message from author
This document is posted to help you gain knowledge. Please leave a comment to let me know what you think about it! Share it to your friends and learn new things together.
Transcript
Previews ReviewsDiablo III
Final Fantasy XIII
MLB 09 The Show
Resident Evil 5
page 9
page 11
page 6
Reviews FeaturesMLB 09 The Show
History of LucasArts
Adventure Games
Resident Evil 5
Final FantasyThrough the Years
page 6
page 13
page 3
page 8
The History of
Adventure Games
3
It all started in 1987, when George Lucas’ gaming studio, then known simply as Lucasfilm Games, released Maniac Mansion for the Commodore 64. It was an adventure game, meaning that obstacles were solved with thinking and interacting with your environment, as opposed to simply destroying everything in your path.
Maniac Mansion was not totally the first of its kind. Other adventure games had preceded it, most notably games from Sierra, considered at the time the king of the genre.
What made Maniac Mansion different was a set of verbs located on the bottom of the screen. A player could click on a
verb, and then click on an object for instant interaction. Before this, most inputs were entirely typed. So while opening a door in an older game would require the player to walk to the door, then type “open door”, this new point-and-click system allowed the player to simply click on the word “open”, click on the door, and then the deed was done.
The game also won over fans with its quirky humor, and overall lighter tone. Death was impossible. A player’s only opponent was himself. If he couldn’t solve a puzzle, he couldn’t advance the game.
Maniac Mansion was created on the then new SCUMM system, which allowed for easy porting, and soon enough the game hit
multiple platforms, including the PC and Nintendo Entertainment System. Its success meant that follow-ups were inevitable.
Immediate successors, like 1988’s Zak McKraken and the Alien Mindbenders, and 1989’s
FEATURE
4
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade: The Graphic Adventure, were very similar to Maniac Mansion. 1990’s LOOM would be a bigger departure, featuring a musical input system for many of its puzzles. Around this time, Lucasfilm Games changed its name to LucasArts.
The next big hit came with 1990’s The Secret of Monkey Island. The game was created by Ron Gilbert, who took his inspiration from the Disneyland ride Pirates of the Caribbean.
The game featured sharply written and hilarious dialogue. The verb based input system first seen in Maniac Mansion was trimmed down, removing many of the unnecessary verbs. This made for a more simple experience.
It was immediately followed the next year by Monkey Island 2: LeChuck’s Revenge. The game was similar to its predecessor in many ways, but bigger, and maybe even funnier, if it could be believed. MI2’s epic and hilarious quest is still considered
by some to be the finest example of the genre.
Lucas icon Indiana Jones would get another adventure game, this time an original story, called Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis. The game, released in 1992, featured many of the inventions created in the Monkey Island games, while interweaving it into a classic Indy tale.
Fate of Atlantis was also one of the first games to eventually include voice work., although the game was orignally released without it. Many consider it the best Indy story that isn’t a movie.
After the more serious Fate of Atlantis, LucasArts returned to humor for their next few games. Maniac Mansion: Day of the Tentacle, released in 1993, was the first and only sequel to Maniac Mansion. The game saw a return to the mansion made famous in MM, while incorporating a time travelling element that introduced dimension-transcending puzzles.
It was also the first LucasArts adventure game to be designed from the very beginning as a voice acted game.
1993 also saw the release of Sam and Max Hit the Road, a game based off of the offbeat comic series by Steve Purcell. It featured some of LucasArt’s funniest dialogue yet, and dropped the old verb input system for a more intuitive one where actions were represented by different graphics.
In 1994, Tim Schafer, who had previously worked on the Monkey Island games and Day of the Tentacle, created his first game. Full Throttle was an adventure game about a gang of bikers, most notably their leader, Ben.
It was a more serious affair than most of its predecessors, but still had the trademark LucasArts charm and humor.
It was also one of the first LucasArts adventure games to utulize pre-rendered 3D graphics, though the majority of the game still featured the 2D The famous duo, Sam and Max, strike a pose.
5
sprite work that had made the company famous.
1995’s The Dig, however, traded humor for suspense. The game took place on a seemingly barren, alien world. Some of the most famous minds in the entertainment industry worked on the game, including science fiction author Orson Scott Card, who wrote the game’s dialogue, and Steven Spielberg, who came up with the story idea.
Meanwhile, fans had been clamoring for another installment in the Monkey Island series, and in 1997, they got The Curse of Monkey Island. Though Ron Gilbert had since left the company, the game still retained the series’ signature humor, now with beautiful artwork that resembled a living painting.
The game would be the last to use the SCUMM engine, since LucasArt’s next effort would be their first 3D game.
That game was Grim Fandango, released in 1998. Grim Fandango was considered a masterpiece of the genre. Thanks to project head Tim Schafer’s incredible imagination, the game could be as serious as The Dig one moment, than as bone-splittingly funny as Monkey Island the next. The game took place in a version of the Spanish underworld modeled after film noir.
Even in a year when huge hits like Half-Life, Metal Gear Solid, and The Legend of Zelda: The Ocarina of Time came out, many considered Grim Fandango to
be the best game of 1998. The game is now a cult classic.
Unfortunately, its sales were disappointing. The game was followed by 2000’s Escape from Monkey Island, which used the same 3D engine as Grim Fandango. The game was reviewed favorably, but it was also a financial flop. Planned sequels for Full Throttle and Sam and Max were eventually
cancelled, and the genre so many had loved seemed dead forever.
When people think of LucasArts today, they’re likely to think of a company that churns out as many half-assed Star Wars games as possible a year. There used to be a time when LucasArts was synonymous with excellence. These were the years of LucasArts adventure games.
The beauty of The Curse of Monkey Island.
Manny, the hero of Grim Fandango.
Resident Evil 5 will feel familiar to anyone who played Resident Evil 4. The over-the-shoulder camera returns, and you still shoot the heads off of anything that, well, has a head. The game controls almost identically to its predecessor, featuring the same stop-and-shoot gameplay. Enemies, infected with the same disease, Las Plagas, from RE4, act and react very similarly. They’ll run right up to you, and then stop to give you a few seconds to fill them with lead.
So what’s changed? Most noticeably is the addition of a partner. Throughout the entire game, you’ll be fighting alongside Sheva, a local girl with the exact same skill set as your character, Chris. In single player mode, this simply gives you an AI partner that, unfortunately, requires a fair share of babysitting. Sheva has decent enough aim, but she has a tendency to blow through all of her ammo as soon as she picks some up. This is problematic considering that ammo scarcity is one of the few elements still remaining from the original Resident Evil.
You’ll also have to manage her inventory for her, on top of your own. Each character has
a three by three slot inventory box, which is accessed with the simple press of a button. Items like guns, ammo, grenades, and healing herbs will each take up a slot. The problem comes when combining items, notably the red and green herbs that need to be combined for maximum healing effect. Sheva just doesn’t know how to do it, so you’ll
often find yourself juggling your inventory between your own and Sheva’s in order to mix her herbs for her.
Co-op, a series first, is a different story. A friend can play as Sheva throughout the entire campaign, either locally or through Xbox Live or the Playstation Network. Playing with a buddy takes
RESIDENT EVIL 5Evil returns. Should you?
6
REVIEWS
Manny, the hero of Grim Fandango.
The game is best played in co-op.
Some foes can kill you in one hit.
the AI babysitting out of the equation, and makes for an overall better experience. If possible, co-op is the best way to play RE5.
The plot revolves around hero Chris Redfield, now working for the anti-bio-terrorism group BSAA, travelling to Africa in order to investigate a local threat. He also searchs for his former partner, Jill Valentine, who was earlier presumed dead. He’s immediately joined by Sheva, another BSAA member, whose motivations are less clear.
The story moves the action along well enough, but it can be predictable and generic. The dialogue leaves a bit to be desired, especially after the umpteenth “partners have to stick together” moment. Series
villain Wesker makes his return, featuring the wardrobe and bullet dodging of Neo, and the dull voice and clichéd villain motivations of Mr. Smith. It’s not too often you still see something ripping of The Matrix.
Resident Evil 5 is not a scary game. Like RE4, the game can be tense during near-death moments, but the inclusion of a partner, and the ability to simply run away and gain some distance, alleviates the tension. Bizarrely, the game is more difficult in the beginning than it is towards the end. This is due to weapons that escalate in strength and power, but enemies that do not. In fact, most enemies remain the same throughout the entire game, up until the end, when your foes finally get the smarts to trade
their hatchets and crossbows for automatic rifles.
The graphics are fantastic. Character models look sharp and crisp, and the lighting, especially in the game’s earlier outdoor levels, is among the medium’s best. Environments become a bit less interesting about midway through the game, when the swamps and villages of Africa are traded for more generic caves and industrial complexes.
Overall, Resident Evil 5 is a fun action game with a bit of an identity crisis. It retains enough of its roots to keep it from becoming an all-out-action title, but discards enough of them to not really be considered survival horror anymore. The final product is a game that’s fun, but ultimately forgettable.
7
REVIEWS
These zombies can ride motorcycles.
MLB 09 THE SHOWSteal the show.This game has everything but the peanuts and hotdogs. Well, at least everything that a baseball fan could want from a baseball game. As expected, you pick any of your favorite MLB teams to play, and play in any of the MLB fields. Each member of your roster will look amazingly like his real-life counterpart. Even the managers and umpires look great.
The mechanics are simple, which probably explains why they work so well. Pitching is done with a traditional three click meter, and batting is done with a single button press. Don’t take that to mean that the game is easy. The foundation is simple, but mastering any aspect of the game, especially hitting, will take some learning of proper timing, and a good sense of knowing what is appropriate for any given situation.
Adding to the realism are some of the best animations seen in a sports game. Each dive, swing, and pitch manages to look unique. You won’t notice too many repeating animations.
The game comes with many expected modes, including Season play and the sim-like Manager mode. The best mode by far is Road to the Show, where you create a single player for a single position, then play
his baseball career. I created a starting pitcher, and after not doing so well in spring training, I went to AA baseball. After a season with strong stats, I got promoted to AAA baseball. Eventually, you’ll get promoted to the majors.
In Road to the Show, you only ever play moments of the game your character is involved with. If you’re a first baseman, you’ll
only play through your at bats and any moments when you need to field the ball. A pitcher will only play the innings in which he’s used.
After each outing, you earn points based on how well you performed.
MLB 09 The Show is the perfect baseball package, and casts a large shadow over its competition.
8
These zombies can ride motorcycles.
Homeruns are hard and satisfying to hit.
As close as the real thing.
HELL STRIKES BACK!
Diablo fans were beginning to think that Blizzard had forgotten about them. It has been almost nine years since Diablo II was released to critical and commercial success. In the meantime, Blizzard struck gold with World of Warcraft, and had seemingly lost interest in their other IPs.
The Diablo faithful had their hopes crushed again when Blizzard announced Starcraft II, seemingly dashing any chance of a Diablo III announcement anytime soon. All hope had seemed to be lost.
But then it happened anyways, right when people were least expecting it. Diablo III was announced, and it looked to be further along in development than anyone could have hoped for.
Diablo popularized the point-and-click, hack-and-slash sub-genre. Now the originator and king of the franchise is poised to return.
Gameplay looks very much like what Diablo fans are familiar with. Everything is displayed in an isometric view, with large
orbs representing health and mana affixed to each side of the screen. The biggest difference is that everything is in 3D. It should be expected, but still, seeing Diablo finally make it to 3D is a treat for fans.
The barbarian class, straight from Diablo 2, makes a return, bringing his straight-to-the-point hack-and-slash play style with him. Of course, with new physics engines, he can now knock enemies off of cliffs, or crash a statue down onto unsuspecting foes. Enviroment damage seems to play a big role.
9
PREVIEW
The witchdoctor was the first new class to be unveiled. He bears similarities to Diablo II’s necromancer, having the ability to summon monsters to do his fighting for him. He can also call in a zombie wall to block and damage his enemies, a clear successor to the necromancer’s bone wall.
The last known class is the wizard. The wizard will be able to attack with elemental damage from projectiles and other attacks. The wizard also has an ability which casts a shell around the player, which then deflects any enemy projectiles shot into it.
While classes used to be gender specific in previous Diablo
games, players will be able to choose a gender for their character, no matter what the class, in Diablo III.
At least two more classes are planned for the game, but it is expected that one will be a ranged specialist, like the amazon from Diablo II. It is also expected that another will be a buffing class, like Diablo II’s paladin. Still, perhaps the new classes will be entirely unique.
The inventory system is also seeing a change. Items no longer take up space in your inventory relative to their size. Each item is broken down into one of three size categories, then put in a respective bag, where every item only takes up one slot.
This streamlined system is inspired by World of Warcraft’s inventory system, albeit a bit more complex. This new system will dispose of the stress that used to be assosciated with inventory management.
Little is known about the story at this point, other than that it takes place 20 years after the events of Diablo II, and that series favorite Decard Cane will be returning.
Diablo III currently has no release date, and knowing Blizzard’s record, it’s best to assume that it’s coming later rather sooner. Still, hungry fans are ready to fight the forces of hell once again. Blizzard seems more than happy to oblige.
10
Thebarbarian can hurt foes just by screaming really angrily.
Ever since Final Fantasy VI first brought steam punk inspired magitech robots to the show, the series has been inching closer and closer to a more sci-fi setting. Now, with Final Fantasy XIII, we have elemental monsters that can turn into motorcycles.
FFXIII takes place in the city of Cocoon, a vibrant, colorful, futuristic looking paradise. The city even floats above the rest of the world below it, known as Pulse, thanks to the power
of a crystal. PSICOM, an army in Cocoon, is created to protect the floating paradise from those corrupted by Pulse. Now Lightning, a former soldier of PSICOM, has been chosen by the gods who made Cocoon to destroy their city.
Some of these themes are instantly recognizable. Crystals have been a series mainstay since the first installment, and the idea of a former soldier taking on his old army was done in Final Fantasy VII. What is
vastly different in FFXIII is the battle system.
The fight system is similar to the Active Time Battle system used in numerous installments in the series, but radically different. Each character has a time gauge, and when filled up, certain actions can be performed.
However, the time gauge is now separated into sections, with each section representing a bar. Certain actions take more bars to fill up than others. You’ll also
11
PREVIEW
Lightning, the protagonist of Final Fantasy XIII.
be able to chain smaller actions in a single turn.
For example, a really strong spell may take up the entire meter. However, a player can also use a whole meter to unleash a combo of weaker attacks and spells. The combo and meter system sounds similar to Square’s Playstation RPG, Chrono Cross.
Battles will once again take place outside of real-time. Characters walk around an area, and combat is only initiated once the player comes in contact with an enemy. Although this system has been used in countless RPGs, this will be the first time that battles in a Final Fantasy will not be either completely random or completely real-time.
In this game, the transition to battle is not seamless, as it was in Final Fantasy XII. Instead, there is a short transition to the battle mode.
Battles are animated beautifully. Each attack seems to flow seamlessly to the next. The game’s makers were inspired to create real-time battles that looked as good as the pre-rendered ones in Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children. While that may be a lofty goal, FFXIII’s battles certainly are stunning to look at.
Lightning will, of course, not be fighting alone. Two other characters can join her party at anytime. One such character is Snow Villiers, a blonde haired man who’s the leader of a local resistance group.
Another is Sazh Katzroy, an afro wearing man with dual pistols and a baby chic chocobo. The last currently known character is Oerba Dia Vanille, a young girl who wields a futuristic looking bow.
Final Fantasy XIII will be released for both the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 in the states. When this announcement was made, it was seen as a huge blow to Sony’s already dwindling list of software exclusives. It is still unkown if the 360 version of the game will need to be run on multiple disks.
Expectations are high for the game, as they are with any installment in the series, but the
long wait since 2006’s Final Fantasy XII is only increasing the hype. Square-Enix has promised a 2009 Japanese release date for the game, but considering usual localization times, do not expect FFXIII to hit the States until sometime in 2010.
12
Lightning, the protagonist of Final Fantasy XIII.
The battle screen.
FINAL FANTASYDespite some mild successes, software developer Square was nearing bankruptcy in 1987. When Hironubu Sakaguchi started development on a fantasy role-playing game, he was well aware that it could easily be the company’s, and his, final game. He named the game Final Fantasy.
Compared to today’s large development teams, only seven people worked on Final Fantasy. This included future series standards Yoshitaka Amano, character designer, and Nobuo Uematsu, music composer.
Unlike the platformers and action games that made up most of the NES library at the time, Final Fantasy was a more tactical RPG, where actions were chosen through a menu, and heroes and enemies took turns fighting in random encounters. The formula had proven successful with other games, like Japanese favorite Dragon Quest, but the genre had still not found much mainstream success.
Players created a party of four heroes from the game’s offset. They were able to create characters from a number of classes, including the Warrior, the Black Mage, the White Mage, the Red Mage, the Thief, and the Monk. This gave the player then uncommon choice in creating their
heroes, and the many different possible combinations made multiple play-throughs more enjoyable. Many would create balanced parties of various different classes, while some would simply make a party of four Monks.
By today’s standards, the plot is relatively simple. Your party, the Warriors of Light, wandered the world in search of bosses named the Elemental Fiends, in order to restore light to the four elemental crystals. While the player got to assign names and classes to their party, personality amongst the player characters was largely absent. Your party remained silent throughout the game.
Since its original release on the NES in 1987, the game has been rereleased numerous times. In total, the game has sold almost two million.
FINAL FANTASY FIRSTSFinal Fantasy II was the first game in the series to feature chocobos and a character named Cid.
Final Fantasy III marked the first appaerance of moogles and summons.
Airships were first seen in the original Final Fantasy.
13
FINAL FANTASY IISakaguchi would again take the helm for Final Fantasy II, released in 1988, only a year after the first game. Gameplay was similar. Players still wandered a large over-world map, fighting monsters in random encounters. The biggest changes came in terms of the narrative. While the original Final Fantasy featured silent protagonists, the characters of Final Fantasy II had predetermined names and personalities, and would interact with the other characters in the game.
The system of leveling characters was also different. While in traditional RPGs a player is awarded experience points at the end of a battle for leveling, FFII tried a new system were individual stats and spells
were raised depending on how often they were used in battle. To increase magic ability, you simply had to use magic in battle. The system was unique, but easily exploited, since players would engage in fights with low leveled monsters just so they can attack and heal themselves to raise their stats. This would be the only Final Fantasy to use this unique leveling system.
Like its predecessor, FFII would be rereleased numerous times, often bundled with the original Final Fantasy. The game would not be released in the States until the first such bundle, Final Fantasy Origins, was released in 2003.
FINAL FANTASY IIIFor those that dismissed Final Fantasy II’s more bizarre additions to the franchise, Final Fantasy III was viewed as a return to form. The protagonists were largely uncharacterized, and the leveling system was once again centered on experience points. The largest addition to the series was the job system. Unlike in the original Final Fantasy, all four characters started out as a generic class called Onion Knight.
As the game progressed, more classes, now called jobs, would become available. Players were allowed
to change a characters job on the fly, allowing for an unprecedented amount of party customization.
The plot was once again fairly simple, with crystals once more serving as the story’s focal point. The game was released in Japan in 1990, but never made it to the States until the game was remade for the Nintendo DS in 2006. The remake not only upgraded the game’s graphics, but added new story elements, along with naming and characterizing the game’s protagonists.
FINAL FANTASY IVFinal Fantasy IV was to be the first game in the series to be released on the Super Nintendo, and by extension the first game to not be released on the NES. Many were expecting the graphical upgrade the series received, but they were surprised by FFIV’s largely character driven plot. Cecil, a Dark Knight of the Baron Empire, begins to question his role as a soldier when his orders become more and more brutal. Eventually, Cecil embarks on a quest to stop the evil that he once served.
Like in FFII, every character had a predetermined name and personality. For the first time, every character also had a set class. However, the biggest
new addition was the Active Time Battle system, more commonly called the ATB system. While previous games used a more strict turn-based system in battles, every character in Final Fantasy IV had their own time meter, when once filled allowed them to perform an action. This quickened the pace of battles.
The game was released in Japan and the US in 1991. However, since it was only the second game in the series to be released in the US at the time, it was titled Final Fantasy II in the states. This would mark the beginning of a bizarre numbering system that confuses some to this day. The game also saw a remake, featuring new 3D graphics, for the Nintendo DS in 2008.
14
FINAL FANTASY VIf Final Fantasy IV was Final Fantasy II’s sequel, then Final Fantasy V was the successor to Final Fantasy III. The game
saw the return of the job system, this time with more jobs, and with
more incentives to train in as many classes as
possible.
The game also had a plot centered on crystals,
though this time every character was named and characterized, with Bartz
leading the group on a quest to, what else, save the world. Graphically, the game was very similar to Final Fantasy IV, with smaller sprites used to represent characters in towns, dungeons, and the world map, while larger sprites were used for the characters in battle. The ATB system also returned, this time with the bar representing each character’s turn being made visible.
Although originally released in Japan in 1992, FFV didn’t make it over to the States until it was released on the PlayStation in 1999. The game was a part of a package with Final Fantasy VI titled Final Fantasy Anthology.
FINAL FANTASY VIFinal Fantasy VI was a significant graphical upgrade from its Super Nintendo brothers. Character sprites were larger and more expressive, and all towns saw significant attention to graphical detail when compared to previous entries.
FFVI features the largest cast of any Final Fantasy. Each party member had unique abilities, such as Locke’s ability to steal items from enemies, or Sabin’s ability to input Street Fighter style fighting moves via blitz commands. However, about midway through the game, each character was also able to learn magic by equipping items called magicite. Only one magicite could be equipped at a time, but if a character gains enough experience with one magicite equipped, he will permanently learn magic
spells from the magicite. Similar systems would be used in future games in the series.
While the series was always known for its music, FFVI may be composer Nobuo Uematsu’s most praised score. Much of the game’s music was inspired by opera. Every character had a distinct and memorable theme. Perhaps the game’s most memorable part came when players were forced to play a role in an opera.
FFVI was originally released in the U.S. as Final Fantasy III, since it was at the time only the third game in the series to be brought over to the States. Future rereleases of the game brought the title back up to Final Fantasy VI.
Spin OffsFinal Fantasy Tactics, a turbased tactics gamed, was re-leased for the PlayStation shortly after Final Fantasy VII. Its popu-larity has spawned two sequels for Nintendo handheld plat-forms, as well as a PSP remake of the original.
Kingdom Hearts was created as an action RPG combining the worlds of Final Fantasy and Disney. It has spawned numerous sequels and has proven to be a top level franchice in its own right.
15
FINAL FANTASY VIISome people may still debate that Final Fantasy VII is the series’ most overrated installment, but they cannot deny that it is certainly the most popular. FFVII was the first game in the series released on the PlayStation, and by extension, a non-Nintendo platform. Square took advantage of the then state-of-the-art hardware to create a stunningly beautiful game, filled with pre-rendered backgrounds and CG cinematics.
Besides the shift to 3D, not much changed. The series still used the ATB battle system introduced in Final Fantasy IV, and enemy encounters were still triggered randomly. The party size was brought down to three, and each party member could be uniquely equipped with materia, items that allowed the use of certain skills and spells. Unlike magicite from FFVI, materia leveled
up independently of the character it was equipped to, and could be swapped to another character at any time with no penalty.
The games antagonist, Sephiroth, has become one of gaming’s most memorable villains. His signature platinum hair and alternate moniker, the One-Winged Angel, are forever etched into the annals of gaming history. It didn’t hurt that Nobuo Uematsu created a trademark theme for the character, featuring Latin chants, which remains one of his most popular.
The game was released in the States as Final Fantasy VII, finally bringing the series’ numbering back up with Japan. Its popularity would ensure that no other Final Fantasy game would ever miss the U.S. again.
FINAL FANTASY VIIIWith Final Fantasy VII’s immense popularity, Final Fantasy VIII may have been the most anticipated entry in the series ever. However, people hoping for more of FFVII would be disappointed, as FFVIII was wholly a game of its own.
While the ATB system returned, and the party size was still at three, little was the same. Instead of materia, magic was drawn manually from enemies, and then added to a characters stock where it could be cast later.
Magic could also be junctioned to a character’s abilities, which had a greater effect on a characters strength and growth than traditional levels.
The system was complex and vast, and a little overwhelming for some, but those that understood it loved tinkering with its seemingly infinite depth.
The game upped the ante on FFVII’s graphical achievements, featuring character models that better resembled the human form, as opposed to FFVII’s exaggerated models. The game’s CG was also noticably improved, with the game’s opening cinematic still fondly remembered by many as a major achievement for the industry.
FFVIII could not match the popularity of its predecessor, but it still performed well. The series’ future was secured.
FINAL FANTASY IXWhile the series had been going towards a more realistic and sci-fi tone with recent installments, Final Fantasy IX brought the series back to its fantasy roots. In fact, the game was such a thematic departure from the other PlayStation Final Fantasies that Square originally wanted to leave the game out of the proper chronology, naming the game Final Fantasy Gaiden instead.
The game would eventually get its number, and was announced on the same day as Final Fantasy X and Final Fantasy XI. Many gamers overlooked this late entry to the then aging PlayStation library.
Final Fantasy IX was more than a thematic shift to the series’ roots. The party size was brought back up to four, and character models were once again more exaggerated as opposed to the realistic shapes seen in Final Fantasy VIII. Each character once again had a predetermined class, though they could only learn certain moves depending on what weapons and armors they equipped, a system similar to the magicite system from Final Fantasy VI.
FFIX was once again a top seller, but like FFVIII, could not match the sales of its predecessors. Consumers, it seemed, were eager to see what came next.
16
FINAL FANTASY XGamers were expecting a lot from Final Fantasy X, and they would not be disappointed. The biggest change was the absence of the ATB battle system, which was finally replaced.
The new system was the Conditional Turn-Based Battle system, or CTB. The CTB system showed players a list of character portraits that showed when each character would take their turn. This system allowed players to plan multiple moves in advance.
Also gone was the world map. Instead, players traveled a single, linear world. Easy backtracking was only available later in the game, with the help of an airship.
The party size was brought back down to three, but for the first time ever players were able to exchange characters mid-battle with no consequences. One of the biggest additions was voice acting. While players
had been clamoring for it for years, the results were mixed. The acting quality would work on some scenes, but be unusually awkward in others. This culminated in the now infamous “laughing scene”, where the games two protagonists exchanged horrible, forced laughter.
Leveling was once again no longer a simple job of gaining experience. Players had to navigate an intricate Sphere Grid, where abilities were raised and skills were learned depending on how players traversed the dense puzzle. As with most deep leveling systems, some loved it, while other found it too confusing.
The game was a big hit on the PlayStation 2, and people were eagerly anticipating the next single player installment in the series. It wouldn’t come for another five years.
FINAL FANTASY XIFinal Fantasy XI was the first multi-platform release for the series, debuting on PC, the PlayStation 2, and later the Xbox 360. The game was a massive multiplayer online RPG, or MMORPG. With the change in genre came many changes for the series. Battles were real-time for the first time ever, and party sizes depended on how many friends you could get to join you.
Players would get quests, traverse dungeons with friends, and acquire loot and gear to power up their character. The departure was off-putting for many series fans, and the game never caught on to the degree that
other games in the series did. It didn’t help matters when World of Warcraft, far and away the genre’s most popular game, was released not long after FFXI, which was far more consumer friendly compared to FFXI’s time consuming gameplay.
FFXI still has an active community today, and expansion packs and updates are still frequently created for the game. It has been rumored that another Final Fantasy MMORPG is in the works, but it is unknown if it will once again be a numbered installment in the series.
FINAL FANTASY XIIFinal Fantasy XII was a bizarre combination of old and new. Once again, the game was a single player experience, but battles still played out in real-time. The new battle system was called the Active Dimension Battle system. Like in the ATB system, players had a bar that filled when they were allowed to perform an action. The difference was that the player was allowed to move around the battlefield while this bar filled up.
Gambits, small bits of programming assigned to allies, were also introduced. With gambits, players could program a partner to heal anyone who’s HP was under 30%, or to cast
Thunder on all airborne enemies. Abilities were learned on the license board, a system similar to FFX’s sphere grid. All of these systems were unique and deep. Once again, some traditional fans were turned off, but others embraced the changes, claiming they were not as big a departure from the series as some made them out to be.
The game was a critical and commercial success, but gamers would once again be forced to wait for years for the next entry in the series. The sequel, Final Fantasy XIII, is due out in Japan sometime this year.
17
NEXT ISSUE
Related Documents
