PlayStation
Final Fantasy Tactics
| Graphics: Sound: Gameplay: Overall: |
8.28 8.45 8.40 8.42 |
| Votes: | 88 |
| Reviews: | 1 |
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| Reviewer: Elouj | Date: Jul 7, 2011 |
| This is the first tactics style game I ever played, and it remains the best I've ever played. Based in medieval setting with a monarchy, wars, and an influential church much like how the Catholic church loomed in Europe during the middle ages. It has a rich and driving story. Unlike many games it does not have a loser main character becomes cool type plot, instead the plot is epic from start to finish.
Graphics: 8 It uses isometric sprites, however their animation system is very flexible and can animate a wide range of characters in a multitude of ways, resulting in every human character in the game being able to do everything from basic combat to complicated dances, hand gestures, facial expressions, and other complex full body movement. In addition to 3D textured environment models, also all of the actual spacial relations are in 3D, which plays a big role on ranged attacks. Sound: 10 It has impeccable music which dynamically reflects what is happening on screen, the most intense, amazing, and immersive musical experience I've had in a game, was in this game. When a blow is struck, when you're surrounded, when someone dies, when you're losing, or winning, the music reflects this immediately, and smoothly. Now for sound effects, it utilizes the ambient sounds of the PlayStation itself for perfect sound effects. Sadly that results in some emulators not being able to reproduce it since the sounds are not on the CD. The satisfying cry of pain when you kill your enemy or the disconcerting sound of your compatriot in the throes of death, to the horrific wail of a banshee, to the sound of sword on steel, to the whistling wind as an arrow is loosed, or the sickening thud when a body falls from a great height, or a bullet hitting flesh. In short, the sound effects, and music are impeccable, they always match the circumstance with magnificent precision. Gameplay: 10 The most advanced, complex, yet intuitive tactics style gameplay I've ever experienced. You can recruit and name characters at any time and customize them immensely. With their cross class system you could have a blackmage/lancer that can catch bullets, use martial arts, and can fly. Or a monk that can cast nearly every spell in the game, preemptively strike anyone that attacks him, attack twice every turn, and teleport. You select your job, a secondary action set (such as black magic), a reaction ability (such as counter, or bladegrasp), a passive ability (such as two swords, or half mp cost), and a movement ability. (such as teleport, or fly.) And every time you perform an action you gain job points toward your class and related classes. Using that you can learn skills. It also has an advanced Zodiac system that along with the character's courage, faith, and gender, affect everything they do. Resulting in very interesting and emergent gameplay. In addition to a very in depth and interesting plot, there are also well thought out side quests, and secret characters. Also you can send some of your troops to go on dispatches and they return and give a report as well as an artifact or something, which is a very good way to get JP. Instead of turns, the fastest unit moves first, and if it's fast enough, most often. So each round plays out differently. Overall: 9 I very much wanted to give this game a 10, but I think some would find the graphics less impressive than some, despite the fact that this was an early PS1 game. All in all, this game is in my top 5 games of all time, the graphics are expressive, with impeccable audio, and gameplay that ties it all together for one of the most immersive, exciting, and fun games I've ever played. If you love tactics games this is likely to be the crowning jewel of your collection, if you hate tactics games, this might be the only one you like. This game's expressive visuals, immersive music, in depth plot, and fun gameplay sets it several steps above pretty much all the other Final Fantasy games, and most games in general. This game is such a diamond that it makes other diamonds look like the rough in comparison. |
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