NSFCD Olympics: Review

[Rius]

NSFCD Olympics: NSFCD Review

(logo coming)

Board Member: Mackormoses

Greetings, denizens of NSFCD! Welcome to the Contest Thread for NSFCD Review!

With your mastery of English, write a professional review of a game that provides both clarity and an objective perspective. To the winner, 100 competition points. All users who participate in this contest are guaranteed to be awarded at least 15 points. See the Contest Rules for further details.

Everyone wants to be a critic, so the NSFCD Olympics has brought that opportunity to you. In the media industries, reviews steer the creative direction of production companies and development teams; games in particular will may have noted concerns from reviews address in sequels. Game reviews are as much a part of Nsider's history as Sagedom and Power On, but seldom are these masterpieces appreciated. We pay tribute to this significant game changer, the review.

Some advice for this contest:
1. Choose a game you're comfortable with. Whether you like the game or not, if you know the game and feel you can safely point out the high and low points of the game, go with it.
2. This is a contest of skill. I don't mean to scare anyone off, but this contest means to evaluate the abilities of the entrants. A creative idea will only get you so far. Your ability to write is most important.
3. Use a scoring system. While the most important part is the review itself, a score at the end is a nice way to tie everything together; however, a score that is inconsistent with the review could do more harm than good.
4. Write objectively. Again, it does not matter whether the review is positive or negative, but it does need to be objective.

Contest Rules

1. Eligibility - User must have registered for the NSFCD Olympics.

2. Deadline - All Contest Entries must be submitted by Thursday, June 24, 2010 at 11:59 PM CST.

3. Submission - Each User is permitted to submit One (1) Review to the NSFCD Chairman. Reviews must be submitted via PM. Reviews are not to be posted in the Contest Thread until the Review has been scored and notification has been sent to User. It is up to the User to decide whether to receive input from fellow Competitors; however, no discussion, feedback, or review on potential Reviews is allowed in the Contest Thread.

3. Judging - Each entry will be judged on a scale of 20 Points. The score breakdown is as follows:

• 50% (10 Points) - Composition
• 25% (5 Points) - Grammar/Spelling
• 25% (5 Points) - Originality/Creativity

The User's Competition Score will be the Contest Score multiplied by 5. Example: A submission receives a score of 10 Points, the User will be awarded 50 Points in the General Competition. The individual(s) with the highest score will receive the maximum Score of 100 Points.

4. Winner Notification - The Winner(s) of the Competition will be officially announced no later than Saturday, June 26, 2010 at 11:59 PM CST.

5. Prizes - All participating Users will receive points based on the scale presented in the Judging section.

6. General Conditions - All Forum Rules and General Conditions of the NSFCD Olympics apply. Each Entry must also meet the following requirements:

• Reviews must be in digital format. Only online reviews will be eligible. No print submissions will be accepted for entry into this Contest.
• The review, in its entirety, must be a single work of original material created by the Contest entrant. By entering the Contest, entrant represents, acknowledges, and warrants that the submitted entry is an original work created solely by the entrant, that the entry does not infringe on the copyrights, trademarks, moral rights, rights of privacy/publicity or intellectual property rights of any person or entity, and that no other party has any right, title, claim, or interest in the entry.
• Reviews must not, in the sole and unfettered discretion of the Chairman, contain obscene, provocative, defamatory, sexually explicit, or otherwise objectionable or inappropriate content.

[Rius]

Winners and such.

[The Riddler]

Since the main thread says Light won, I suppose I can post.

Final Fantasy IV is considered by many to be one of the greatest titles in the Final Fantasy franchise. Its plot progression, twists,  character development, music, and battle style have convinced people, including myself, to buy and own four separate releases of the title. It is even one of three games in the franchise to earn its own sequel - The After Years. It can easily be considered a revolutionary title in the RPG genre.

As I mentioned above, Final Fantasy IV has been released four times in the United States. There was Final Fantasy II (FFIV Easy Type) on the Super Nintendo, it was part of Final Fantasy Chronicles on the PS1, it was ported to Gameboy Advance, and it was remade entirely for the DS with new graphics. Arguably the best version of the game is the Gameboy Advance release, and as such I will be reviewing that version.

Story - 9.5/10:
   The lead character of the game is Cecil Harvey, Dark Knight and Captain of the Red Wings for the Kingdom of Baron. He is a powerful Knight, and dearly devoted to his King. The King seems to be changing, however, and Cecil takes notice. He becomes remorseful for his deeds under order of the King and he begins to question his liege's motives.
   When Cecil calmly approaches the King, he is accused of treason, is stripped of his rank and banished from the Kingdom with one final task. Kain Highwind, leader of Baron's Dragoons and Cecil's best friend, joins Cecil on this task. Rosa Farrell, White Mage of the same Kingdom and secret-though-requited love interest of Cecil visits the Dark Knight at night as he rests up and begs him to stay safe.
   Cecil and Kain set out on the King's mission, only to find that it is a vile act he has bestowed upon them. Soon they are attacked by the worlds last Summoner, a young green haired girl named Rydia. In her attack on them, she levels an entire mountain.

That's just the beginning of the game. From there it becomes a quest of redemption for Cecil. Throughout his journey he encounters thousands of monsters, and forms a posse of companions. Love, betrayal, sacrifice, anger, and self-discovery themes fill this game, as well as many others. Through its humor, its tragedy, and its sheer amount of human emotion, this games story keeps the player hooked. The only reason this doesn't get a 10/10 is that some story elements were cut due to space. In the DS version of the game, you learn a bit more back story to Cecil and Kain.


Gameplay - 9.5/10:
   Throughout most of the game you will be wandering the over world grinding for experience. This isn't a big deal, as most RPG players are used to the grinding to level up, but a first time player may find it tedious. For the most part, as you level through the game, non-boss monsters won't be a huge issue difficulty-wise. Every now and then you'll find a monster that is stronger than you were prepared for.
The first boss fight you will encounter has a trick to it: Only attack when it's solid, or you get hurt. This trick helps you to get an idea of what is to come. Very few times does a boss come without a catch. This makes for an interesting gameplay experience, as you may have to challenge a boss more than once to finally defeat it. There will be times you will want to throw your controller against the wall, for example, at one point the game you will fight a number of small dolls called Calcas and Brinas. If you fail to kill all of them within a certain amount of time, regardless of the number left, a giant Calcabrina will take their place.
   Now, with the Gameboy Advance version of this game, new features were implemented. For starters, every character's unique ability was returned to them. Difficulties were ramped up and characters weren't as strong. The most interesting new feature of the GBA title is the end-game ability to reuse previous characters and the new dungeon. Though the DS version's difficulty is even higher and the graphics are changed, this simple new feature alone puts the GBA version ahead of the DS version.
   The only reason this game does not receive a 10/10 is that in the GBA version, there is sometimes lag during battles and when flying airships. This is easily ignored, however.

Controls - 10/10
    I'm almost forced to give a perfect score here, since the controls are very straightforward. Four directional movement with the D-Pad, menu navigation, it's all pretty basic stuff.
Graphics - 10/10
   Since it is a port of a Super Nintendo title, I will not take points from this for being in old-style graphics. I will however give it a perfect score in comparison to the SNES title. This is because the GBA version of the game enhances the original's graphics immensely. It has more colors, more detailed sprites, and is generally much brighter. Every character has a unique artwork and the backdrops are beautiful. Each weapon has it's own individual sprite. The world splits when the Titan Summon uses it's attack. Even small details such as the propellers on an airship and fires burning show the amount of work put into this game. Everything is pure beauty in this game.

Music/Sound - 11/10
   Nobuo Uematsu, unsurprisingly, wrote the music for this game masterfully. The music always fit's the mood of the scene. The battle themes and the army-style Red Wings theme are intense, when tragedy strikes an emotional tune plays, and when you rest in a tent or in an inn a lullaby will play. The harp in many of the songs is particularly beautiful, especially when played by Edward in the Melody of Lute. The hazard tone and rushed music will make you panic to get through an area quickly, perfectly making you feel the scene as if it were real.
   The sounds are pretty simple but effective. Every sword clash, every punch, every dart thrown; they all have their own sounds. Explosions, fire burning, waves crashing and wind blowing all make scenes flow well.
   This would be a 10/10 in it's own right, but the music and sounds were enhanced for the GBA version from the original title, so I gave it an extra point.

Replay Value - 6/10
   Unfortunately, as with most RPGs, this game lacks much replay value. Once you've done everything; all side quests, collecting all weapons and summons; you don't find much of a reason to replay it. The GBA version does not feature a New Game Plus mode, nor do any versions before it. The DS version does, however. Since this is the third iteration of the game, it could be considered a replay just starting this game fresh. In all honesty though, this game is such a refreshing experience, just replaying for reminiscence could work for you.

Overall - 10/10
   This game, to me, is the epitome of perfection in an RPG. One could really feel connected to the characters, the plot is moving, the music is entrancing, and the progression can be intense. Although replay value is lacking, this is pretty standard in RPG titles. Certainly a game you should look into trying, if you can't find the GBA version there are three others you can find.



Why to pick this one over the other three?

The SNES version has lower graphical quality, is generally easier, character specific abilities are missing, has more story elements cut out, and it's script is censored.

The PS1 version includes most of what is missing in the SNES version, but can feel very sluggish due to the PS1's power. The bonus in this version is CGI cut scenes in the beginning of the game.

The GBA version has updated graphics, music, includes some but not all of the missing story elements, includes all of the character specific abilities, and is retranslated for accuracy. Furthermore, the ability to reuse old character at the end of the game is a huge selling point.

The DS version includes all of the above with three dimensional graphics, but removes the ability to change party members in favor of the ability to change abilities.