Final Fantasy V

"Great, but not amazing FF entry"

Although this is still a good game that FF fans will love, it's probably the weakest game in the main series. The highlights of the series are all here:

Innovative gameplay: The Job system here, though a little unrefined, can be a lot of fun to play around with, and allows a lot more freedom than previous titles to mold your characters in various ways. If you've only played the more recent FF titles, where the ability to mix and match skills is a gimme, you'll appreciate the challenging but rewarding strategies of combining appropriate jobs and skills in this game. This gameplay was more innovative to the series than most Americans realize: the job system was essentially redone in FF6 as the esper system and FF7 as the materia system. Also, the Active Time Battle Gauge has reappeared in most subsequent FF games in one form or another.

Imaginative, interactive environment: The worlds in FF5 are constantly shifting and changing, and the dungeons are full of worthy puzzles. There are some cool places to see, such as a magical forest, a flying mechanical city, and an ancient pyramid with booby traps ala Indiana Jones.

Deep, epic quest: FF games are to video games what Star Wars is to movies, and this game is no exception. Young heroes-to-be, wise mentors, goofy sidekick helpers, a dark, sinister force, and an ancient, classic battle spanning centuries make this a textbook example of the 'Hero's Journey.'

Despite all the essentials of an RPG classic, however, this game makes a weak showing in some of the most important aspects. The characters, both good and bad, seem reletively dull and uninspired. The character development, which usually gets better with every new game, actually seems to take a step back from the game's predecessor, FF4, and the main characters have little personality or insight. The supporting cast is no better-sure, there's the endearing moogles, but the dwarves and dragons come off as the tired cliches they are, and the pirates are downright cheesy and annoying. The gameplay is unrefined; the job system requires too many hours of dedication to master, and there are a lot of 'filler' skills (useless abilities that only serve to get in the way of you mastering a job) that will frustrate the player a little. The normally wonderful music of Nobuo Uematsu is pretty boring and lame for the first part of the game, with a few exceptions (such as the fight theme for the big bridge.) Halfway through the game, it does get better and more otherworldly, which helps make up for the lack of character development (which basically stops at this point,) but overall, the music lacks the granduer of the other FF games. Lastly, the graphics don't seem to have improved since FF4, and the game that followed this, FF6, almost feels like a next-gen system in comparison.

The bottom line-there is no such thing as a bad FF game. This is still a great game that will provide fun and hold your interest for a long time. You could try and download the ROM for it, but they are reportedly plauged with problems, as is the later anthology version (on the plus side, used copies of the anthology version are usually very cheap, and will play on your PS2.) Your best bet is the GBA version; however, if you are forced to choose between this or FF4 or FF6 advance, I reccomend either of those two over this, FF6 in particular. As far as the 16-bit generation goes, this game just doesn't stack up to the game before it and the game after it.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 07/19/07