Final Fantasy IV is known as Final Fantasy II for its initial USA release (as the original Final Fantasy II and Final Fantasy III had not been released outside Japan at the time.). It is a role-playing video game (RPG) developed and published by Square (now Square Enix) for the Super Nintendo Entertainment/Super Famicom. Released in 1991, it is the fourth installment of the Final Fantasy series.
This was the first RPG I played. I never liked it at first because I never understood the constant random battles. But once I got the concept, it grew on me.
The Story
You play as Cecil, a dark knight, as he tries to stop the evil sorcerer Golbez from seizing a 4 powerful elemental crystals for planning on destroying the world. He is joined in this quest by 11 other allies.
The Graphics and Sound
The game world is vibrant and colorful despite this game coming out fairly early on in the SNES’ lifespan. The developers took great care to give plenty of detail to every sprite, especially on the menu screen. The sprites in battle look poor though in comparison to the later coming Final Fantasy 3 (FF6 really).
The music and sound effects are excellent. This RPG has a definitely memorable soundtrack that I would listen to outside of the game.
The Gameplay
In this role-playing game (RPG), each character has his or her unique class and special abilities. There are 12 playable characters, but the game only allows you to use 5 specific characters in the end.
The random battles occur way too damn frequently. Every classic old-school RPG seems to be like this.
The controls are easy and responsive. The items and equipment seem limitless and battles really can be good fun. There are quite a few sidequests that may just be worth it.
The replay value is good. You may want to come back to it awhile after you beat it once to get all of the sidequests and secrets.
My Verdict
Final Fantasy IV is a great game and I recommend this game to anyone that loves retro games or classic RPGs. Though the graphics are going to be lacking by today's standards, this game will offer most people an overall enjoyable experience.
Play it on the Super Nintendo/Super Famicom or play it on a damn good emulator. Play it with good audio speakers to enjoy the music.
Let's keep on gaming in the free world!
