Final Fantasy IV was my first real dive into RPGs and story games. My neighbor had it on the SNES, and I tried to play it as often as possible. I was bad at it. I hated combat; I just wanted to explore and enjoy the story. But, being a mid 90's video game, you need some difficulty. Apparently, America had the easy type, but I never found it easy. I eventually got my own copy with Final Fantasy Chronicles, which is the best purchase I've ever made. FFIV AND Chrono Trigger! HEFL YEAH! In 2015, I bought the game, again, for Steam (via Humble Bumble, if I recall). I really liked all the jazz Matrix Software added to it and wanted it on my computer. For so long now, I've had it in my top three Final Fantasy games. But does it belong there? Since I've wanted to reevaluate my game preferences, let's find out!
For the record, I'll be playing the Steam/DS version. I wanted to play the PS1 version, but the added scenes, 3D graphics, and Liam O'Brien swayed me.
"The Redwings" plays, and the game starts with a fleet of airships, The Baron Red Wings, returning home. Two soldiers are talking to their commander about their last mission. Neither of them feels right. Their Dark Knight Commander, Cecil Harvey, tells them not to question the King. Even though he reprobates his subordinates, Biggs and Wedge, he, himself, is unsure of his actions. We flashback to the group raiding a small village, Mysidia, and cutting down the mages who didn't even defend themselves. All of this just for a crystal? Suddenly, we're attacked by monsters in the sky!
The first fight of the game, which happens in every version, is against two Floating Eyes. The game gives you a Red Fang to take both of them out at the same time, but that's boring. I physically attacked both of them! It's slightly more boring, but I'm a hoarder! It's a simple fight regardless of how you do it.
"The Might of Baron" plays, which is my professional wrestler's entrance theme because it's so amazing, as the fleet lands in Baron, and Cecil reports the mission to the King. Along the way, he meets Baigan, the Captain of the...something in Baron. Baigan escorts Cecil but senses something is wrong with him. He tells our Dark Knight to wait outside the throne room and enters. He warns King Baron of potential treason before calling in Cecil. Once inside, Cecil hands over the Water Crystal they gained for Mysidia and is dismissed. Before he leaves, Cecil turns around to ask his liege if that was necessary. Upset at being questioned, both the King and Barigan scold Cecil. The King goes so far as to strip Cecil of his role over the Red Wings. To earn back his job, he commands Cecil to deliver a package "on the morrow" to the village of Myst. A voice is heard coming to Cecil's aid, and in walks Kain, commander of the Dragoons! He doesn't know what happened, but he does know Cecil is a good man. For questioning the King, Kain is told he must accompany Cecil as punishment. They are dismissed.
Outside the throne room, Cecil apologizes for getting his long time friend involved. Kain thinks nothing of it and is confident that the two most powerful knights in Baron will regain their roles soon. A flashback is seen of the two men fresh off a sparring match. Cecil won because Kain was distracted, but they quickly go to a rematch. The two go their separate ways, and we now have control over Cecil!
Throughout the castle, we talk to soldiers. Some quietly wonder what happened to the King while a few others love his new ruthlessness. Just south of where we parted with Kain is a room with five exits. Down the stairs takes us to the Black Mage Room, where they discuss powerful magics for the King, and the White Mage Room, where we learn of Rosa. Rosa is Cecil's beloved, and she started learning the ways of white magic to support him. Is she the reason white mages are usually fragile women? Back on the first floor, the right exit takes us to the airship docks. There is nothing there now except people telling us about their eccentric boss. We can't exit out the front, so let's go to our room on the left. En route, we're stopped by Rosa. "Theme of Love" plays during this scene. She's worried about us, but Cecil tries to remain stoic. Rosa tells us she'll come to Cecil's room later. Back outside, we can head to the dungeon and get yelling at/warned by a few surviving Mysidians. As we approach our personnel tower, the eccentric boss, Cid, shows up. Cid is the head engineer of the Redwings. He tells us he has a funny feeling about the King and laments that he has to build a new, much more powerful, airship. They don't talk long, as both have to go to work. Inside the door Cid came from are the Redwing soldiers. Some are healing up from the battle, and others are drinking away their remorse. Enter the tower and talk to the rabbit boy, Namingway. In older versions of the game, he's how you rename characters if you want. In the Steam version, though, you can't rename people. This causes him to have an existential crisis and rethink his life. Throughout the game, we'll meet up with him to see where he's at. I love the call back to a forgettable, but fun, character. I'm glad they didn't just throw him out.
That night, Rosa visits Cecil in his chambers. For some reason, Cecil didn't take off his armor before crawling onto his bed. Rosa senses something is amiss with her beau and asks, but Cecil is cagey. She manages to egg it out of him, and he reveals the PTSD he's dealing with. Cecil feels an immense regret over killing the defenseless mages. He remarks that his Dark Knight armor has sucked the light of his heart. Rosa, though, ever the loving, knows Cecil "is a good man" and still believes in him. She warns him to be careful in the mission tomorrow and leaves to let Cecil sleep. In the morning, Cecil and Kain reconvene. Like the badasses they are, they get a ceremonial farewell from the knights. "Final Fantasy Overture" plays as the camera cuts the impressive architecture of Castle Baron and its picturesque surroundings. We gain a little backstory on the world, the crystals, and the monsters appearing with more frequency.
When we regain control, we're on the world map. This won my Most Nostalgic Award during the FFMC month. Explore Baron Town to find various items, stock up on potions, and get warned by Rosa's mom. We can also talk to Cid's family, but he's fast asleep from the long hours the King has him working. Don't forget to speak to the dancer girl as a reward. The weapons and armor shop is locked up, so head west to Myst Cave.
Fun fact, I died on my way there. Since when can birds petrify you this early?
One of the reasons I love the Steam version is the internal monologues we get from characters in the menu. Both men remark about how the air feels strange but not adversarial. They also know of the Myst monster. Inside the cave, we see Namingway. He's changed his name to Mapingway and asks us to chart all the dungeons in the world! To do so, we just have to walk around the places we'll be and explore everything! I was going to do that anyway, and I love rewards, so let's do it! The rest of the dungeon is your average turn-based combat, but please remember this gave came out in 1991. Your average turn-based combat didn't exist yet because FFIV created it. This was the mold from which most RPGs are build from. The ATB was designed here. The agility/speed stat got its relevancy here. On behalf of Square, "You're Welcome!" All the mobs die in one hit, but it is easy to be swarmed when you're against six creatures, low on HP, and slowed. FFIV isn't playing around. In time, after you've gotten 100 percent on the map, we reach the exit. Along the way, we heard a disembodied voice telling us to leave. It talks to us again and gives us a chance to turn back. We say no, and the first boss fight happens.
Myst Dragon can be difficult if you don't want to read. It's a fairly typical fight, but it can shroud itself in mist. Doing so prevents us from attacking it, and she counters our misses with a teamwide breath attack. Defend or wait out the clock before restarting your assault. Cecil does a lot of damage, so consider having Kain be the chemist he's never wanted to be. In time, we'll slay a dragon and exit to the world map.
There's a village in the distance, but we don't get to explore. As soon as Cecil steps into town, the package the King gave us explodes. From it comes an army of Bombs, which are sentient in the Final Fantasy universe. They quickly devastate the town, killing everyone inside. But we hear crying from somewhere far off. Tracking it down leads us to a girl crying because her mother's dragon was defeated. Apparently, this means she is slain alongside it. Cecil and Kain know they are responsible, and the girl hears them approach. Kain tells Cecil that the King must have wanted to kill everyone in town. Both men don't like the idea of it. Kain, though, suggests following through on the plan and slaying the girl. Cecil gets in his way and refuses to let his friend commit such an act. Kain smiles, which we can see, and is happy they're on the same page. The two of them immediately come to terms with their treacherous ideas and plan to overthrow the King. But to do so, they'll need the aid of other nations as well as the girl before them. Rosa should also join them, and Cecil thinks Kain for thinking about her. Kain says that he didn't mention her for him. They go to bring the green haired girl with them, but she refuses.
To protect herself, she summons Titan against us! Titan causes the town to be ripped in two and creates a massive valley. It's a mountain range on the map, though, which always annoyed me. This action results in Cecil and the girl being separated from Kain. Cecil wakes up, picks up the unconscious girl, and takes her somewhere safe. That somewhere is the desert village of Kaipo. He heads to the inn and lets her rest. She wakes up for a moment but says nothing. Cecil says that no amount of apologies will make up for his actions and asks for her name. She's unwilling to cooperate, so they go to sleep. That night, knights from Baron wake them up, demeaning the girl to be killed. The King did plan to eradicate all of Myst. Cecil doesn't allow them, and a fight breaks out. I can't believe they made a battle background just for this battle! The care they put into this was top notch! It's an easy fight. Take out the commander in the back before the last night for additional exp and gold. This also sends the grunt knights into disarray. The girl sees how Cecil protected her and tells him her name is Rydia.
In the morning, they wake up and explore the town. The townsfolk tell them about Anna and Tellah. Anna ran away one day because her father didn't approve of her boyfriend. One person tells us about a woman who got lost in the desert. When we find that woman, we see it is Rosa. She's become ill with Desert Sickness, which can only be cured by a Sand Ruby found in Damcyan. We now have a destination. We also find Mapping way in this house, who's dropped his cartography tools. Because of this, he needs a new lifestyle. He's changed his name again to Livingway, and he's just gonna vibe.
To reach Damcyan, we need to go through a long tunnel to the north. As we enter and explore a bit, we see a man blocking our path. He takes notice of Cecil's Dark Knight armor and Rydia's summon abilities. He warns of a monster blocking the exit but thinks the three of them can defeat it. We take him on, and Tellah, the Sage, joins the group. He's a red mage but without the physical prowess. Interestingly, his stats can go down when he levels up. This is because he's a very old man who's losing his physical power. For a game from 1991, this was a fun little tidbit. The Underground Waterway is filled with monsters weak to Lightning. Toads are weak to Ice, by the way. The only thing to worry about are the Tiny Mages. They steal your caster's MP if not killed by a spell, but they're fragile. Nothing down here is too dangerous, except frogs, but there are a lot of fights. Each section has its own map, so you can get four or five rewards for completion. Along the way, Tellah introduces us to the save points. It's save from monsters, so they rest there. Cecil and Tellah talk about Anna and Rosa and connect that they both have something in Damcyan and should hurry. When they wake up, we keep walking through the long dungeon. Recent FF games can't compare to the difficulty of older ones. But that's a good thing because this kinda sucks. I did get Cecil almost to level 20, so that's fun.
After we've found new gear for Cecil and jumped down a waterfall, we fight the Octomammath! It's a giant octopus that's here for some reason. It's not particularly strong if you tented on the world map portion of the dungeon, but it takes a while to kill. In the SNES version, you see its legs slowly die as you deal damage to it. Here, though, it's a bit anticlimactic. It's weak to Dark and Lightning. Rydia didn't do much damage, so I used her for her healing powers while the men did the hard work. Once it's down, we can now head to Damcyan! But we'll find out what's there...
... tomorrow!
This is going to be another lengthy write-up, isn't it? Oh, dear. I really should stop playing games I love. This might be the last FF game, though!
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