< Back    Final Fantasy VI - Review

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The 1990's were, it needs to be said, a magical time for the RPG. The advent of Super Nintendo and the genesis of, well, Sega Genesis, made it possible for players to further explore and battle their way through worlds that their 8-bit counterparts only began to introduce. Expanded memory, with some new and refreshing control dynamics, made for some of the most interactive and beloved in-game experiences ever conceived. Final Fantasy IV, Chrono Trigger, the Phantasy Star series, all of them (and more besides) became instant classics. Among the last of its ilk to be released before the torch was passed along to Sony, Final Fantasy 6 (originally released as FF3 to facilitate its western localization) remains a masterpiece to this day.

As the game begins, we learn that a thousand years have passed since the War of the Magi, a titanic battle waged between espers and humans that tore civilization asunder. The road to recovery has been paved with industry and social upheaval: steam engines and opera houses dot the landscape; soldiers are on the endless march; and days are spent in constant fear of Imperial occupation. Without warning, a strange young woman is able to cast aside the shackles of her former life and join an underground resistance movement known as the Returners, a group that is struggling for equality. Little does she suspect, however, that her actions soon become the catalyst for a chain of events that will either bring peace to a tortured world or ruination to all...

To say anything else of the overall storyline would only cheapen one of the most imaginative adventures of all time, but needless to say you'll be as easily swept away in the narrative as you would a Thomas Harris novel. It takes about as much time to learn the game's controls, as they come courtesy of the same menu-based battle system which has been the staple of Final Fantasy since the beginning. A notable addition this time around - one that Chrono Trigger would later emulate - is the Active Time Battle gauge (or ATB gauge for short), a bar of stamina that refills between a character's last command and their next command. Depending on a party member's statistics or what relics they're wearing, this period of waiting can be halved or even quartered, something that can make all the difference in the heat of a vicious encounter.

In the midst of battle, your party can use one of three different command options, as well as an ability which is unique to that one character. These abilities can be likened to the job classes of previous Final Fantasy's, such as Locke's Steal ability taking after the Thief job class, Sabin's bare fists reminiscent of the Monk job class, and so forth. This can also be regarded as a time-efficient alternative to the leveling up of one job class after another, as the abilities are preset and gain added bonuses later in the game. With a wide variety of playable characters running the gamut, certainly the most that have ever been in a Final Fantasy before or since, you can rest assured that there will be at least one character here that will either make you nostalgic or whet your appetite for destruction.

Critics of the game would contest that most of what we see in Final Fantasy 6 has been done before, and to a certain degree this is true. The turn-based engine is still present, random encounters (a seemingly unerring legacy of the FF franchise) are still the norm, and your party's quest is still caught in an endless cycle of toggling between the camp, city, and overworld screens. But where the sound and graphics have been only passable in previous entries, they ascend with leaps and bounds in FF6. No longer is the map simply a wash of pastel blues and greens. Every feature, from mountain chains to blistering deserts, are given their own tones and subtleties, making them stand out with more richer detail than ever before. And musicwise, Uematsu's compositions are nothing short of brilliant (when you make it to the Opera House, you'll understand in a heartbeat).

Plainly put, this one succeeds in every possible way an RPG can succeed, and has even been credited for introducing more adult-oriented themes such as suicide and teen pregnancy to the fantasy fold with some very endearing and heartfelt results. As well, the game's designers seem to have answered the questions of linearity and replayability far better than any other roleplaying adventure to date, as the ending ultimately depends on who you recruit back into the party during the second half of the game. Final Fantasy 6 is one of the last great bastions of adventure and good-natured fun to have survived the 16-bit era, and having been re-released on a Playstation compilation (with a second re-release slated for the GBA in February), it'll likely be around forever. If you haven't tried this one out yet, stop reading, go out, and get it. Even if you have played it before, stop reading, sit down, and play it again. It's 'that' damn good.

9 / 10