Final Fantasy Tactics Advance

"Pure Tactical Fun..."

Foreword: Being a fan of the original Tactics title that was released several years ago, I eagerly awaited the triumphant return of the massively popular series that not only was my first real strategy title, but also my first defining moment when I was playing games. Beating something of that caliber was a great honor for me, especially at that time when I wasn't exactly good at tactical RPG games to begin with. You can honestly imagine my excitement when I heard about the possibility of a handheld entrée to the series, as just the ability to be able to play a portable tactics game of good quality to begin with was actually a good venture in its own right. Back when the game was released, tactical games were kind of limited at best, and Square Soft couldn't have actually picked a better overall time frame to release this game, as the market was just about ready to return to its overall roots. That being said, Final Fantasy Tactics Advance is an excellent game driven by an imaginative plot that never slows down for a second, something that basically enticed me from the beginning from RPG games as a whole. Being a tactics game also gives the game a plethora of unique advantages when it comes to pulling the story along, as with the overabundance of missions that populate the game, you can just about actually imagine what you could ascertain from it all. Finally, as I stated before, this game is primarily driven by missions that you can accept from the local town, and as you complete these missions, you have the ability to populate your ever growing clan. Now I hope you seriously get something from this review, as I truly hope to give you a clear, almost life-like image of what to expect from this game.

Story: 10/10
No words can describe such an emotionally driven, enthralling story that puts such an emphasis on what course you actually take throughout this game, as even as you accept the menial missions that sometimes pop up, there's always something that is added in to flesh-out the epic, something that actually makes it worth your while to want and put your scarce time into finishing a long, drawn out mission that possibly could be just as rewarding as a regular mission if you take the time to truly appreciate the small little touches that populate it. I can't tell you how many times I'd be wanting to do more, as with my sometimes rough schedule, it can be truly hard to spare a substantial amount of time to play the actual game. The one thing I can truly say though is that with every moment that I was playing the game, I felt a rewarding feeling that few games can actually emulate, something that most games that come out every now and then fail to put an actual emphasis on. I tended to love the actual character development that goes on throughout the game, as the developers chose to push it to such an amazing extent that by the time you are done enjoying it you actually feel a partial attachment to some bits of data that don't even exist, and that's something that I wish I could receive more when I choose to experience a game.

The story revolves around the epic of a young boy named Marche, who after reading a strange book on a snowy day with some friends, finds himself to wake up to a whole new world, a world of massive wonder and excitement. This world very much models that of a video game entitled Final Fantasy(Can you see the additives) and with that Marche finds himself surrounded by a host of unlikely creatures, creatures that he actually saw in the book! After insulting a Bangaa (A resident of the world) he finds himself engaging what could possibly be his first true fight. Thankfully, he is quickly befriended by a young Moogle by the name of Montblanc. Soon after, he finds himself in a struggle of epic proportions that weaves such a twisting tale. Will he ever find his friends? Will he ever return home? Will he want to return home? These questions and more will be answered as you go throughout this amazingly written game.

Game play: 8/10
As I said before, being a tactics game gives Final Fantasy Tactics Advance a plethora of unique advantages, but what I purposely left out was the fact that they aren't only there to help along the story. Sure, they provide a strong base for which a story can be written, but when it is all put into perspective, you see that it gives the game so many more abilities that a normal game just couldn't accomplish. We all know that a game can have the best story in the world, but if the game play is abysmal, then that story is thrown out to the wind. Face it, if you wanted to read an excellent story, you could just go out to the local book store and pick up a novel, no, you definitely buy a game for its ability to hold it's gamer to the game. Now don't get me wrong, story is a very important aspect of it all, but behind every good game, you must separate between important aspects and other aspects. Both hold an important portion of the game, but game play is what is mainly looked at, that and the graphical aspect of it all.

Final Fantasy Tactics Advance makes leaps and bounds in the actual game play section, as few games that I have played focus on what this game has decided to take its focal point at. Being a tactics game, you really don't actually move your character from location to location. I personally don't really like the fact that they chose to try and work around this feature, but in the end it all works out as this game has an excellently organized menu system that is not only easy to navigate, but actually provides much more information than most games as a whole choose to give in much more obscure formats. Now going back to the tactical part of this game, missions are accepted from the local pub of the city, which may or may not be a controversial section to complain about. Both rumors and other small sections are also available for your own benefit, as by reading through some of the current rumors you can add extra missions to your screen that couldn't be obtained otherwise. Once a mission is accepted, you must to the certain area in which it is located, and try and complete it through a battle. Now the one thing I like is that there is usually an overabundance of missions that can be accepted, and this massively adds to the potential replay value that this game has to offer. On the missions note, there are over 300 missions in this game, and that's absolutely over and above what anyone could have expected from this game. Missions can range from a short period of time to completion, or in most cases can take upwards of 30-45 minutes just to pass. This makes this game load a of fun, as well as greatly adding to the life expectancy of which this game will stay in your game boy. For that fact, I'd be surprised if you actually managed to complete all 300 without getting bored of it, as after a while it can get slightly repetitive. The main game lasts about 20 missions, with a little more sprinkled in if your persistent enough to complete this game from front to back.

Now with that being said, this game boasts an amazingly detailed class system that truly adds to an amazing experience. There are a variety of races to choose from when planning your clan, and depending on which you choose you can then further specify which job you want that clan member to actually specialize in. There are a multitude of jobs that each race has to offer, and you'll find that some jobs are actually specific to that race. To further that, you'll find that some of the jobs couldn't be better suited for that particular race, as just looking at the stat gains you get from that class; you see that they fit that particular person perfectly. Now if there's anything at all that has previously made tactics game fans in general angry, the first thing that would come to my mind would be that if you switched jobs, you'd lose your skill set for that job. FFTA circumvents that point by adding in an ingenious system that actually makes you learn skills from the weapon that you choose to use. This not only plain out rocks, but it allows for such a great level of customization in a character that I wish other tactics games could emulate to its core. With that in mind, by learning certain skills, you can actually unlock even more jobs for your character's use.

Battles are carried out upon a land grid that almost looks as if your characters were moving upon land. I tended to absolutely love this fact, as by just looking at the raw amount of detail that was put into the landscape; I can see that nothing was missed. If you wish to attack an enemy, you can either choose to attack with a physical attack in terms of a physical character, or a magic attack with something like a black mage. The one thing that I truly like about battles is the ratio from character to monster basically is even in most cases, which really makes me actually happy as it adds to the fairness of difficulty. Aside from that, I have no true qualms about this, as it seems to perfectly match what it should every time.

Graphics: 8/10
One thing that I can truly say about the graphics of FFTA is that they are magnificent in terms of game boy quality. No detail is truly missed when you go about the landscape, as even in battle there are a multitude of character portraits that accompany them on the screen. The one thing that I like in particular is that they chose to use a more anime style of portrait, which further ads to your viewing enjoyment. Totema, the games summons, are absolutely magnificent as they enter the screen to use their powerful finishers. They sort of remind me of some of the game's previous summons, but by making a new cast, they add to the game's overall depth. Every detail in the Totema is completely finished, as they appear almost life like.

Spells are just as good, as they tend to go screen wide upon gaining access to the most powerful variants of the particular spell. Series mainstays such a blizzaga and firaga make a return, as well as some of the others such as gravity, slow, stop, ect. I tended to like them all as they appeared on screen, as they were presented in such a way that you can only stop and gaze upon their utter magnificence.

Music: 10/10
This game boasts a fully orchestrated symphony of music that never fails to put such an emphasis on which to what you hear. I can honestly say right now that this game was truly a labor of love, as everything was so magnificently done that you would never take a second guess to which what you were hearing. Now no game is perfect, and I can say that some of the battle music does get a tad bit repetitive in the fact that the same battle music basically plays at every battle aside from story events. Other than that little qualm, you would never really have any true problems with this game's wondrous track. I honestly wish more games would pay more attention to this aspect, as it truly enriches the overall experience as you play through the game.

Difficulty: 7/10
This game can be painfully hard at times, but by putting everything into a true perspective, you see that if you put enough effort into leveling up and getting better skills, no real problems can bother you. Besides, the game's summons system basically is broken, as even one summon can clear an entire map. Bosses may still survive, but all you have to do is simply overwhelm him with your strongest character. The main reason that some may call this game hard is the totema battles, but aside from the last couple, none should be that hard as long as you have the law system on your side.

Speaking of laws, they are the rules in which you have to follow in order to stay out of jail or occur a fine. About maybe half-way through the main story, you get the ability to use anti law cards, which can seriously screw around with your opponents under the right circumstances. If you use them right, you can make this game a snap.

Replay: 5/10
If you still have the mental sanity to replay this game after you've completed all 300 hundred missions, then I can seriously commend you on your patience skills. Things that can be redone include choosing a different clan; doing missions a different way, using different weapons, ect. I found that your options are truly limitless, and that can go a long way when determining this category that most games fall by the way-side with.

Family Friendly: 5/10
There are pubs in this game, so whether or not you wish for your children to view such an environment is your call alone. I don't think it's too bad, but then again I really didn't make that big a deal out of it since it's not really a big thing, it's just a subtle little additive. If you're that unsure, then I suggest you play the game first, and then see if you would allow something like that for your children.

Buy/Rent: Buy
This shouldn't really even be a question in your mind by the time your done reading this. This game can take hundreds of hours to complete, and add that to the fact that there is so much replay value crammed into this cartridge, you really should own it.
Final Impressions: This game is truly an excellent addition for any serious game's library. The amount of pure perfection that was put into this title is downright astounding. If you haven't bothered to play this epic, then I strongly urge you with all of my heart, soul, and mind.

Score Bracket

Story: 10/10
A truly astounding plot that never fails at anything it does. Truly revolutional in everything it does.

Game Play: 8/10
Fully done to perfection, this part boasts such a broad aspect of raw customization that I was truly happy by the time I was done. Clan aspect is very well done.

Graphics: 8/10
No detail was spared in the creation of this game. Truly a work of love.

Music: 10/10
Excellently accomplished in every respect. Fully ochestrated, which is honestly a very good addative.

Difficulty: 7/10
Not that hard, while still giving a decent challenge to all. Peaks in difficulty towards the end of the game.

Family Friendly: 5/10
Your true call on whether or not you should let your child play this. I suggest you play it first, and then make the call.

Replay: 5/10
If your still mentally sane, then I commend you XD. Honestly, there's so much extra to do throghout the game, I am on my second play through, so that can truly say I like the game.

Buy/Rent: Buy
Fully worth the price of admission. FFTA will take a long time to beat .

My Personal Score:10/10
Best tactical game on the gba, no doubt at all. Probably one of the best games ever to grace the screen of a console.

See ya later .

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 03/05/07