Here's what IGN said:

"...Important as this game may be in the annals of videogame history, it has been re-released and remade so many times (and in better ways at cheaper costs) that much of the original's spirit seems to have left the project..."

Without actually having played the game, I get that same feeling, although the graphics are a bit brighter and I heard that the tunes are good. I'd almost be tempted to purchase one for nostalgia, if it wasn't for the fact that a)it's too expensive and b)you can't play it on your TV!

cheers,

-avatar!

Definitely no for this and FFII, although I've never played FFII and it has one of my favorite FF themes (Rebel Army Theme).  I just don't think neither really are worth buying since I know I'll never play them.  I even think if they dropped the price I'd never buy them since I passed on Dawn of Souls for really cheap more than once.

Having an...ahem...chance to try it out, I have to agree. It's still the same FF that we saw three times in the US before (or at least the GBA one). And I've read complaints they it's even EASIER than that one too.

The graphics ARE nice. They have a very 3d-in-2d look, as it were. The sprites are nice and large and detailed. But....it's still FF.

-Joshua

Nope. Played the first one too many times and I think that 2 is the second weakest FF game. If I hadn't played them, I'd be all over this but with the PS1 releases and Dawn of Souls, I imagine anyone who hasn't played them at this stage just doesn't want to.

Agreed on the first one, but can't imagine anyone finding any game in the series WORSE than FF2.  Man, that game is just abysmal.

Agreed, but I'm curious to what is worse than FFII?

Edit: FFXII?

Why no love for FF2? I never played the game, but am curious as to why the animosity...

cheers,

-avatar!

For me, a lot of it has to do with the level up system... in the original and Origins package you can "fool" the system into giving you stat ups pretty quickly yet it robs the player of any sense of accomplishment. However in Dawn of Souls and beyond SE fixed the glitches so now you can't abuse the system. So, going from being able to cheat the system to not being able to it just doesn't make it seem worth the time and energy to play it again just to "play fair."

I'm sure getting a spell to lvl 16 fairly is real fun...

FF2 has those awful rooms you walk into and they're completely empty. Rather than the characters peeking in and realising there's nothing there, they seem to teleport into the middle of the room to make sure you get a random battle or two on the way out. That and the dull characters who switched way before I could ever get to like them killed it for me.

As for what's worse, well, it's just a personal opinion of course but I found 3 to be the most dull of all the FFs. Barely a character to be found and the game seemed to think that the system additions might take the place of a plot. For me, they didn't. I just found it a real struggle to find any motivation to get through it. I bought the prettied-up DS version in the hope that I'd discover what I missed first time out (as the first time, I played it on an emulator and that's not the best condition) but, as lovely as it looked, the game just didn't grab me.

As for XII, I haven't played it. Oddly enough it's listed in Edge's top 100 games special as something like number 8, which I found to be bizarre. Is it good?

FFXII is really a love it or hate is game - I'd suggest trying it out before buying it. The *worst* thing you can do is buy it on a blind whim without a point of reference like I did.

As for my experence with FFXII, I wouldn't recommend it... but that's my opinion. I returned it to EB a week after I bought it and traded the strategy guide to my friend for a bunch of old PS1 strategy guides for games I own and do like.

As the crazy collector completist person I am, I picked it up, and it's been my "play this while drifting off to sleep" game the last few nights.

Had this come out in lieu of Dawn of Souls, I'd probably be playing it at full alertness. 

I mean, don't get me wrong, the graphics are leaps and bounds better than of the 16-color-sprite previous versions.

The music is pretty much directly from the PS1 version, with the exception of a few newly remixed boss battle tracks.

There's also a new bonus dungeon that's timed or something... It's supposed to be the only challenging part of the game.

If I get there I'll report, but like the other stuff I've purchased lately, it'll probably go right onto the shelf after the new latest greatest thing comes around. (I think it's already come around, and is sitting on my desk, this Dungeon Maker thinger.)

Agreed on trying FFXII before you buy it.  Personally I think it's the best thing to happen to JRPGs since... well, ever, being that it trims most of the bullsh*t out of the system.  That said, they probably shouldn't have made it an FF game because it isn't really like the others and it makes a lot of FF fanboys and girls whine.

Or it just indicates how willing Square is to slap "Final Fantasy" on whatever it can get its' hands on. Whatever works...*shrug*

Name an FF game that doesn't have fanboys and girls whining all over it.

True, but why stop at FF? Xenogears' fans can be pretty defensive as well.

I'll be skipping the PSP ports of FF1 and FF2.  They're overpriced and I already have them for PSX and GBA anyway, neither of which I was motivated to play very much of.  As for FFXII, I'm in the "it's complete crap" camp (save for the OST which I really like), so I'd recommend skipping it.

I wasn't a big fan of FFXII either. I thought the battle system was interesting and the game world certainly had a lot of potential but both the plot and characters were paper-thin. I lost interest in the story about ten hours in and only played through it for the music (and the pretty FMV).

As for FF1, I don't own a PSP but even if I did, I'd pass. I have a version on the GBA and that's all I really need. It's not like the game has really stood the test of time (despite how nostalgic I can be).

And Vagrant Story, too. Almost any Square franchise.

I honestly shouldn't talk. I loved both games, but I do acknowledge the rampant amount of idiots out there who'll jump at the chance to defend them.

True... there are a lot of idiot video game fans out there in general.  One of the things I love about this place is that we're all (mostly) mature enough to accept that different people have different tastes when it comes to games and music and things don't devolve into what I see at Gamefaqs or Neogaf.  *shudders*  People are allowed to like different things!  Except of course for the classic and flawless game Illbleed.  No one is allowed to speak badly about that. 

And this is different from other Square games how?

Touche.

Exactly, that's why enjoy this environment so much

"Almost any Square franchise."

Not Internal section

Sorry, I have nothing useful to contribute about any Final Fantasy game considering the last I seriously played (and that turned me off of most of them) was II for the SNES.  I just started V on me wee Game Boy, and while it has got a certain charm about it... its... well.  Its not BAD by any means, I mean, its enjoyable enough I think of playing it, but EVERY time I've played, its put me to sleep!  I don't mean in the figurative sense, I mean I actually went to sleep seven or eight times after playing it for an hour!  I hope age isn't catching up with me...