Final Fantasy IV Review

By PocketGamer.co.uk Published 9 June, 2006

More heartless cruelty.

Version tested: GameBoy Advance

Every good fairytale starts with heartless cruelty - a small child orphaned, a princess sent into the woods to be killed - and the Final Fantasy games follow much the same formula. But in the case of Final Fantasy IV Advance, the twist of the knife is even more brutal.

Starting out as the Dark Knight Cecil, you're sent by your King to forcibly take a magical water crystal from a nearby town. When, on your return, you question his increasingly violent tactics, you're stripped of the command of your prized Red Wing airship squadron and ordered on a mundane mission to deliver a ring to the village of Mist.

But you've been double-crossed. It's actually a bomb, and the resulting inferno kills all but one of the town's inhabitants. Turning over a new leaf in Mist, you hook up with that sole survivor, a young summoner called Rydia, and set out on your adventure. At rock bottom, your quest for redemption has begun.

Be warned, it's going take plenty of time and skill to get there. Final Fantasy IV Advance only offers up its charms over many hours of play, and you'll be doing well to complete it within 30.

You'll encounter many more companions though as you travel through this long, thoroughly engrossing tale, which packs plenty of twists and turns. From friends-turned-enemies to brave bards and precocious, mischievous novice wizard twins, they all have an important role to play. As well as being important for the story progression, each character also brings special attributes to the battles you'll face. For, as you travel through underground tunnels, mountain passes, deserts and forests, you'll constantly trigger random battles.

'Final Fantasy IV' Screenshot 1

Every region has its own selection of monsters and foes that Cecil, together with the companions in his group at the time, must overcome. With a battle started, each character takes it in turns to make their moves, with the order sorted by an individual's attack speed. The specific choice of the attack - some characters are best at physical assault, while others in your team will be most effective either with offensive spells or defensive magic - is down to you.

The battle continues like this until one side is defeated. Victory increases your experience points and accumulated money, with the cash (called gils) being accepted in any towns you enter in return for better armour, weapons and other items.

And it's this combination of the freedom and skill you'll need in choosing battle tactics (do you scan the enemy first, for instance, to find out their weaknesses, even if it means not attacking them for a turn?), combined with the slowly unfolding plot, which will keep you wanting and playing more.

Of course, if you prefer fast moving action games, Final Fantasy IV Advance, with its simple-yet-cute graphics, often annoyingly random encounters and sometimes confusing geographical hints - you can easily get lost trying to figure out where to go next - probably isn't for you.

But for everybody else, even those who may have played it before on the SNES or PlayStation (this version has upgraded graphics, better translation and some new unlockable features), there's a depth of enjoyment to Final Fantasy IV Advance - even pathos - that few other games can match. Get it and it will stay in your GBA or DS for weeks, if not months.

8 / 10

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Comments (24) Latest comment 5 years ago

Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • too_cool_craig #1 6 years ago

    hmmmm

  • Zero_ #2 6 years ago

    I've heard from hardcore Final Fantasy IV fans that, it's not as good as the SNES or Playstation version for whatever reason. What are the major changes from the SNES and Playstation versions apart from graphics and sound?

  • RedPanda #3 6 years ago

    Post deleted at 14:31:59 28-01-2012

  • Cappy #4 6 years ago

    I've heard from hardcore Final Fantasy IV fans that, it's not as good as the SNES or Playstation version for whatever reason. What are the major changes from the SNES and Playstation versions apart from graphics and sound?

    They wouldn't be hardcore fans if they could do something as simple as admitting the game is alright.

    No doubt one of them will be enraged enough to make an exhaustive list of the differences. Keep an eye on Gamefaqs.

  • brn #5 6 years ago

    so... better than _____ then?

  • itamae #6 6 years ago

    I think I'll be getting this for my next train ride. Trains and pocket FFs are an ideal combination.

    Although I guess I'll have to read some additional reviews first, this one wasn't very informative I'm afraid.

  • MadMirko #7 6 years ago

    @Zero_

    As a fan of the series' past (they lost me after VI), I can tell you it plays not as smooth as the SNES version, but is a lot better than the Playstation version.

    It has a few slowdowns, f.ex. when using impressive magic in combat, which makes it less smoth than SNES FFIV.

    It does not have enormous loading times, and transitions from combat to world map and back, and from menu screen and back are almost instant, instead of again loading from the disk.

    I can't really comment about the translation and dialogues, as the other versions were played quite some time ago.

    So: It is the very good FF game it ever was, and with its new save anywhere anytime feature well suited to portable gaming.

  • #8 6 years ago

    it's a buy

  • DarthCheesiest #9 6 years ago

    I was certain I had played this on the SNES, but looking at the screenshots palom and porom are in your party and I remember them to be extremely hard bosses.

  • Sorb #10 6 years ago

    By PocketGamer.co.uk?

  • lambtron #11 6 years ago

    Story wise this is defo one of the best FF games. (I've played 1,2,3,4,7,8,9,10). Some day I will get round to 5 and 6...

  • MadMirko #12 6 years ago

    Nope, random battles are as I remember them. I actually think that half the fun of FF comes from battles, so I don't mind, but that's just me.

    Random encounters are frequent and really random. There is no guarantee that you won't be attacked again after as much as a single step. On the other hand, you might roam around for a long time unmolested. It's random.
    Edited by 1 at 09/06/06 @ 09:14

  • Kuma #13 6 years ago

    The last FF for SNES would be ace. FF6 i think it was in the states, that would be cool. And Chrono Trigger as FluffyTucker righlty says.

  • Daryoon #14 6 years ago

    It's a little buggy for some reason, but it's not off-putting.

    The battles, however, may well be, as IV the lodged between the Job-fests of III and V, with characters who have predefined skillsets. Back in those days it was very much "odd-numbered FF = better system, even numbered = better story"

  • The_Aardvark #15 6 years ago

    What a crappy review. It doesn't explain what makes the game different to other final fantasy's how the mechanics work or in fact anything at all. All it does is explain the absolute basics of a JRPG over 800 words with not a single spark of wit.

    Eurogamer, ask for your money back!

  • chemicalcaveman #16 6 years ago

    I might wait and get it on the virtural console, with FF1,2,4,5 and 6

  • Walshicus #17 6 years ago

    Right, 8/10 for FFIV? C'mon. The *BEST* Final Fantasy game, numero VI I can see being worth 8/10. FFIV's a 6/10 or a 7/10 tops.

    I hate when glaringly terrible dialogue doesn't get in the way of giving certain O-RPGs high scores. >:(

  • Mr_Whacker #18 6 years ago

    Yeah, who is pocket gamer? If you won't even put your name on your reviews then why should I trust it? Don't hide behind free advertising.

  • #19 6 years ago

    "The last FF for SNES would be ace. FF6 i think it was in the states, that would be cool."

    Ya.. that one is coming to GBA. FF4-6 for GBA, FF3 on DS (1-2 already out for GBA).

  • #20 6 years ago

    "Yeah, who is pocket gamer? If you won't even put your name on your reviews then why should I trust it? Don't hide behind free advertising."

    His name is on the pocketgamer website. GET HIM

  • kentmonkey #21 6 years ago

    That was an absolutely dreadful review. No qualms about the score or any drivel like that, just the review was absolutely awful and I couldn't even be bothered to read through to the end.

    Is it just me or does 'pocketgamer' sound like that sort of bloke who stands at the bar drinking his pint, whilst having his hand in his pocket playing with his 'stress balls' whilst looking at the blonde german guy over on the pool table with the very tight fitting white muscle top.......just me then!
    Edited by 1 at 09/06/06 @ 19:42

  • #22 6 years ago

    huh

  • geek-chic #23 6 years ago

    This is really tempting but FFIII is going to be the best FF of 2006...next to FFXII

  • Galvanizer #24 6 years ago

    Waits for FFVI.

  • yagisencho #25 6 years ago

    I got this over the holidays, but have only recently begun playing it. I missed the SNES wave (was in college at the time), so this is my first time through. So far, it seems like a fine RPG that I can play on my GBA. Random encounters are a bit annoying, but that's par for the course in Square games. I wish they'd released it on the DS though...the GBA sound chip is complete garbage.

  • Genji #26 6 years ago

    Reviewers without personality FTW!

  • dk_rare #27 6 years ago

    Final Fantasy is good and all, but Chrono Trigger is boss!

  • paul_haine #28 5 years ago

    I really wanted to like this. I wanted to like this, and then I'd go on to FF3 on the DS and FF5 and FF6 on the GBA and like them as well, and then I could consider myself a bit hardcore. But...the random battles in this just drove me around the bend - you can't explore outside at all because every 3 or 4 seconds you run into yet another fight, and they're not even particularly interesting fights. Meh.