FFI-II: Dawn of Souls Remake (GET IT!!!)
Posted: 2005-01-17 02:47am
Okay. I eat, drink, sleep and breathe Final Fantasy, so maybe I'm a little biased here. For those of you who've played the Origins remake you might be expecting a direct port of that, sans cinematics. Well, at least I was, but being a rabid, unrepentant fanwhore I had to get it anyway.
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The graphics are pretty much indistinguishable from the PS1 version, but the graphics aren't the reason you'll be looking toward this game in the first place. They're a definate step up from the orignal NES versions, but I must say the revamped sytems, extras and ABUNDANT Easter eggs make DoS worthwhile. I'm going to gloss over this stuff in a very broad manner, because I'm taking my time getting all the extra crap. So far, new features in FFI include:
MP: The D&Desque "so many spells of a certain level per day" system has been replaced by a more traditional mana pool system. On one hand, you won't be spending the same amount on a tiny spell like Poisona as you would on an important spell like Blizzara, but on the other you won't have an exclusive stock of Flares and Holys to draw upon late in the game. Now casting Holys will take away your ability to cast more than a few cures. The upshot is the game now has ethers, and you can by them at stores. I was okay with the old system personally, but I don't have any real complaints here.
"Easy Mode": If you've played the original NES version, you probably thought it was confusing, time-consuming, frustrating, and an all-around pain in the ass. While they toned it down in the Origins remake that version also included a "normal" mode (which was pretty much on par with the original). This version does NOT have the normal mode, which may be a minus for those looking for a challenge. However, if you found the original too tough to play, you should breeze right through this one.
Discarding Spells: This was also in FFO, but it bears mentioning as well. Since a character can only learn 3/4 spells per level, you're gonna need the best combination possible. While the spell shops now have an explanation of the spell's function (something that was NOT in the orignal), actual experimentation is the only way to determine which spells are awesome and which ones suck gigantic donkey balls. Another advantage to discarding spells you've learned is that you can drop spells that lose their usefullness late in the game (the Level 1 healing and elemental spells for instance).
EXTRAS GALORE: This sells it, right here. There are enough gigantic perks and Easter eggs in this remake to make it worth getting. And the four new dungeons chalk full of new monsters, weapons, equipment and items give this game tremendous replay value neither of the previous versions had.
To sum that up as briefly as possible, there's a new dungeon for every element, and those dungeons become available after you defeat the appropriate Fiend and revive the appropriate crystal. These dungeons are randomly generated, so they're different every time you go in. Also, there are monsters and bosses inside that don't appear in the main game world (many of which are from later in the series! ^_^). Also inside are EXTREMELY valuable weapons, armor and items, even some special class-specific gear!
I haven't played FFII much yet, and am waiting to clear FFI first. However, I've played it long enough to notice some VERY important things:
They fixed it!: That's right! FFII, which was barely playable previously is now downright enjoyable. No more of this converse stat growth crap, and now it's possible to have a black mage that doesn't suck at fighting! You also get little gagues that show how far your combat and magic skills are progressing. My only real problem with this is that once you've leveled-up a spell, you can't opt to cast the lower-level version of that spell. This makes for a lot of wasted MP and overkill. It's not a major problem now though, as your casters can fight instead of casting when they really shouldn't. Add in-game tutorials and a vastly elaborated story and you have a game that looks very promising. If you hated FFII before, give this one a second chance, you'll be pleasantly surprised.
Well, that's my humble review of the thing that's sucking my spare time into a nerdgasmic black hole of awesomeness and fun. Get it. Play it. Enjoy it.
___
The graphics are pretty much indistinguishable from the PS1 version, but the graphics aren't the reason you'll be looking toward this game in the first place. They're a definate step up from the orignal NES versions, but I must say the revamped sytems, extras and ABUNDANT Easter eggs make DoS worthwhile. I'm going to gloss over this stuff in a very broad manner, because I'm taking my time getting all the extra crap. So far, new features in FFI include:
MP: The D&Desque "so many spells of a certain level per day" system has been replaced by a more traditional mana pool system. On one hand, you won't be spending the same amount on a tiny spell like Poisona as you would on an important spell like Blizzara, but on the other you won't have an exclusive stock of Flares and Holys to draw upon late in the game. Now casting Holys will take away your ability to cast more than a few cures. The upshot is the game now has ethers, and you can by them at stores. I was okay with the old system personally, but I don't have any real complaints here.
"Easy Mode": If you've played the original NES version, you probably thought it was confusing, time-consuming, frustrating, and an all-around pain in the ass. While they toned it down in the Origins remake that version also included a "normal" mode (which was pretty much on par with the original). This version does NOT have the normal mode, which may be a minus for those looking for a challenge. However, if you found the original too tough to play, you should breeze right through this one.
Discarding Spells: This was also in FFO, but it bears mentioning as well. Since a character can only learn 3/4 spells per level, you're gonna need the best combination possible. While the spell shops now have an explanation of the spell's function (something that was NOT in the orignal), actual experimentation is the only way to determine which spells are awesome and which ones suck gigantic donkey balls. Another advantage to discarding spells you've learned is that you can drop spells that lose their usefullness late in the game (the Level 1 healing and elemental spells for instance).
EXTRAS GALORE: This sells it, right here. There are enough gigantic perks and Easter eggs in this remake to make it worth getting. And the four new dungeons chalk full of new monsters, weapons, equipment and items give this game tremendous replay value neither of the previous versions had.
To sum that up as briefly as possible, there's a new dungeon for every element, and those dungeons become available after you defeat the appropriate Fiend and revive the appropriate crystal. These dungeons are randomly generated, so they're different every time you go in. Also, there are monsters and bosses inside that don't appear in the main game world (many of which are from later in the series! ^_^). Also inside are EXTREMELY valuable weapons, armor and items, even some special class-specific gear!
I haven't played FFII much yet, and am waiting to clear FFI first. However, I've played it long enough to notice some VERY important things:
They fixed it!: That's right! FFII, which was barely playable previously is now downright enjoyable. No more of this converse stat growth crap, and now it's possible to have a black mage that doesn't suck at fighting! You also get little gagues that show how far your combat and magic skills are progressing. My only real problem with this is that once you've leveled-up a spell, you can't opt to cast the lower-level version of that spell. This makes for a lot of wasted MP and overkill. It's not a major problem now though, as your casters can fight instead of casting when they really shouldn't. Add in-game tutorials and a vastly elaborated story and you have a game that looks very promising. If you hated FFII before, give this one a second chance, you'll be pleasantly surprised.
Well, that's my humble review of the thing that's sucking my spare time into a nerdgasmic black hole of awesomeness and fun. Get it. Play it. Enjoy it.