I thoroughly enjoyed Final Fantasy IV

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 Not too long ago I made a post where I went through my thoughts on the first three Final Fantasy games since I've been going through that series bit by bit. About a week ago I finished Final Fantasy IV, and this is the point in this franchise where they warrant their own seperate posts per game.
Before I get started I want to say that I'm going to try to keep this as spoiler free as possible. I know that some people might read this who are still planning to play these games and I don't want to ruin the fun for them obviously. 
I already enjoyed the first three games quite a lot. Especially II even though that seems to be a very disliked entry. And I think I'm getting to the point where I can safely say that I'm going to enjoy most games in this franchise. If not all of them. But first let's get into my thoughts on FF4!


A big elephant in the room is how much bigger this game is compared to the first three. It took me well over twice the time to finish this one. And it was definitely for the better because Final Fantasy 4 feels much more fleshed out than the previous games. 
Let me start with the combat and gameplay mechanics because a lot has changed here. For starters they chose to sacrifice the freedom you have in terms of job configuration in favour of having a more cohesive story. Which I think was the right choice but I'll get more into that later. Then the combat itself has gone through a big overhaul. It has become a kind of blend between real time and turn based. Which means that when it's your turn to do something, you have to move fast or else your opponent will get the jump on you. This definitely takes some time to get used to but once I figured out how to work with this type of combat I had a great time with it. It keeps you on your toes which turn based RPGs don't often do. Keep in mind that I played the pixel remaster. Which I've heard does make this a bit more accessible in comparison to the originals.
The story in this game is a LOT more in depth than it was in the previous games. This is also the main reason this game takes so much longer. It actually takes the time to tell you a proper story whereas previously it felt like the games would kind of rush you through it. The story itself is really good by the way. I won't go too in depth on it because I want to prevent spoilers but it's very character-driven and dramatic. There is a really fun cast of characters that you'll get to know as well. I enjoyed it a lot, and it is easily my favourite story of the series so far. 

I've heard a lot of people say that this game is the ideal entry point into the series. And I can definitely see why because it is the first game that really feels like it matches the reputation that Final Fantasy has as a franchise. 
I do have to say that I'm glad that I started right at the beginning though. The first three games still had a lot to put on the table for me to experience and I still had a good time with them. With that being said though, I think a lot of people will agree with me when I say that they don't really hold a candle to Final Fantasy IV. 
I had a great time with Final Fantasy IV and it has made me all the more excited to play the last two pixel remasters, the rest of the mainline titles and all the other malarkey that this franchise has to offer.

With that I'm going to call it a post. Right now I'm playing something else as I don't like playing the same franchise back to back, but I'm definitely planning on getting to Final Fantasy V soon and of course I will once again post my thoughts when I finish that game.

Bring 'em to the pit!

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