/vr/ - Retro Games

[Anonymous No.4271965]

I want to play through the first 6 final fantasy games.
I know that there are remakes (or something like that) of the first 3 (?) games for the GBA.
What versions of the games should I play? I'm looking on the FF wiki and it seems almost all of them have had some sort of updated re-release onto like 5 platforms.

[Anonymous No.4271971]

Steam. If it isn't there, PSP.

[Anonymous No.4271974]

NES and SNES

[Anonymous No.4271978]

Just try them and see which version you like, they're easy enough to emulate

[Anonymous No.4271982]

WSC or PS1 for 1 and 2. It fixes problems in the Famicom versions without altering the game too much.

[Anonymous No.4271983]

>>4271971
>steam FF games
>III and VI have 3d graphics
>V and VI have updated graphics with smooth edges and shit, plus mixed reviews
miss me with that shit.

[Anonymous No.4271986]

>>4271982
What about Dawn of Souls?

[Anonymous No.4271989]

>>4271986
Changes the games too much.

[Anonymous No.4271991]

FF1 - PS1 (or PSP if you don't mind that it has a completely different magic system)

FF2 - PSP

FF3 - NES + https://www.romhacking.net/translations/2701/

FF4 - PSP

FF5 - GBA + https://www.romhacking.net/hacks/563/

[Anonymous No.4271993]

>>4271986
Makes FF1 a lot easier, but does add some neat bonus content. FF2 isn't changed too much, though they did some weird stuff (Like buffing Teleport into the most powerful instadeath spell).

[Anonymous No.4271994]

>>4271989
I figured as much.
In that case, what are the best overall PS1 and SNES emulators?

[Anonymous No.4271996]

>>4271991

FF6 - GBA + https://www.romhacking.net/hacks/657/

and

https://www.romhacking.net/hacks/765/

[Anonymous No.4271997]

>>4271991
how do i use those little addons with a ROM of the game?

[Anonymous No.4272002]

>>4271994
For 2D PS1 games always go with Mednafen.
For SNES Higan.

[Anonymous No.4272003]

>>4271997

Get Lunar IPS from http://fusoya.eludevisibility.org/lips/

[Anonymous No.4272004]

>>4271991
>bout ~75% of the text was taken straight from the DS remake, while the other ~25% was simply translated from the original Japanese text, while trying to make sure the tone of the text matches that of the material that was used from Square Enix’s DS remake of Final Fantasy III.
Is this a joke?

[Anonymous No.4272009]

>>4272003
and then what?
im dumb with this kinda stuff

[Anonymous No.4272012]

>>4272004

nope

http://www.romhacking.net/forum/index.php?topic=22231.0

>How I will approach this is that I will compare the scripts between the original Japanese Famicom version and the official DS remake. The text from the DS version will be used ONLY IF THE LINE WAS FROM THE ORIGINAL FAMICOM VERSION, and if not, then the lines will be retranslated myself. However, in instances where I use the DS remake's line, if the line features censorship (such as small references to religion that were removed from the DS localization), then I will uncensor those lines. Ultimately, the new script will be an accurate translation of the original Final Fantasy III for the Famicom/NES, and since I'm using Kea's MMC5 mapper patch, I won't have to worry about free space at all, so I can make the text as wordy and meaningful as possible.

[Anonymous No.4272020]

>>4272009

http://fantasyanime.com/patching#lunarips

[Anonymous No.4272023]

>>4272020
thanks

[Anonymous No.4272126]

>>4271982

Seconded. FF Origins fixes some of the bugs in the original games, and doesn't change much else. It removes some equipment penalties from FF2 as well, and although I disagree with this move, it's probably not going to impact your gameplay experience in a negative way.

>>4271986
>Dawn of Souls

It's a heavily casualized version of the games with an insanely ramped up random encounter rate. Nothing about completing this version of the games seems rewarding, because they're just too damn easy.

The PSP releases are based on Dawn of Souls, so they're not any better.


Regarding the rest of the series: Play the original versions, preferably with any bugfix patches if you can track them down. I'd recommend the PS1 version (Chronicles) of FF4. FF4 has such a long history of alternate versions and re-releases, and I think the PS1 version is probably the best compromise for English speakers. Other games? Just play the original versions. Their respective ports add nothing of value.

A rule of thumb to keep in mind with Square-Enix ports and remakes: They are universally garbage. SE puts little effort into porting and re-localizing its major IPs, often outsourcing the work to shitty start-up studios in other countries. Please do not support this practice or you can expect to see more of the same in future releases.

[Anonymous No.4272129]

>>4271994
>what are the best overall PS1 and SNES emulators

PS1 doesn't entirely matter. Just use what works, often ePSXe, pSXfin, Xebra or PCSX-Reloaded. Cycle accuracy with PS1 games is overkill, and your system probably can't even handle it.

For SNES, snes9x is fine and won't fry your CPU.

Disregard Mednafen and Retroarch shills.

[Anonymous No.4272150]

>>4272129
>and your system probably can't even handle it.
I played FF1 with Mednafen on my mobile 2 GHz C2D.
Higan Balanced also ran fine.

[Anonymous No.4272497]

>>4272126
The FF5 ports improved inventory management by adding character switching with the shoulder buttons.

[Anonymous No.4272523]

>>4271965
>IV
No real need to bother with it, as PSP is GBA's but improved and with more content. DS/PC isn't a bad choice either.

>V
GBA is the same as mobile/PC for the most part. It trades the original music for not so questionable graphics.

>VI
I like Ted Woolsey Uncensored more, you can find that for SNES. GBA isn't a bad choice though. Stay away from steam, it's a shitty way to experience it first time.

[Anonymous No.4272527]

>>4272523
V PC fixed sword slap.

[Anonymous No.4272536]

nes or ps1 for I.
psp version of II is probably the most balanced one, but it's such a polarizing game that it's okay if you give it up.
dunno how to treat III and it's remake, but they are both good games.
IV has so many remakes.
the 3d version has some actual difficulty to it, but i don't like how it looks.
the complete collection is more like the originals, and comes with the after years if you feel like that.

[Anonymous No.4272541]

>>4272523
it's a shame about the steam version of VI.
despite the way it looks, it did fix some things, like being able to do stuff with other characters while cyan charges bushido.

[Anonymous No.4272543]

>>4272497
>The FF5 ports improved inventory management by adding character switching with the shoulder buttons.

Which isn't that useful in practice. I don't recall frequently needing to reequip my entire party at once, or ever being that frustrated at the few milliseconds it takes to cancel out of one character's equipment menu and switch to another's. I'd rather play the original game than settle for a shitty new translation with shoehorned bonus content created by TOSE.

[Anonymous No.4272554]

>>4272126
>A rule of thumb to keep in mind with Square-Enix ports and remakes: They are universally garbage. SE puts little effort into porting and re-localizing its major IPs, often outsourcing the work to shitty start-up studios in other countries. Please do not support this practice or you can expect to see more of the same in future releases.

This is true, but there are diamonds in the rough, for example VI did get a ton of bugfixing and uncensoring GBA onward (though 100% of that can be done by patching and GBA needs a patch to uncensor the beating anyway, TWUE was already mentioned).

Straight ports from Square are almost always shit though, I agree with you.

.>>4272527
Worth mentioning, this is probably the first bugfix that hasn't been created anywhere else. If it's worth it or not is up to you though, because this is an ability few actually use.

[Anonymous No.4272559]

>>4272536
>psp version of II is probably the most balanced one

You mean the most casual. Stats never decrease, and mages can wield swords, shields and heavy armor while casting magic with no penalty. The game was intended to be more like D&D, but plebs complained about magic penalties and TOSE stripped them out. They also made skill and spell levels increase at double their original rate.

[Anonymous No.4272563]

>FFI
>FFII
Play both on the PSP. People will say that they're both "casualized" among other things but they're honestly the most enjoyable games to play without shitty, dated mechanics and bugs getting in your way. These versions are Dawn of Souls (the GBA port/remaster) with updated graphics and audio along with all the bonus content.

>FFIII
The PSP version. See above for anyone that calls it casual. It's the DS version with higher resolution graphics and without the touchscreen interface the PC version keeps.

>FFIV
The Complete Collection OR the Steam version for both the original game and The After Years. The Complete Collection is based on the GBA version with the DS version's soundtrack, a cleaned up script, updated graphics and all the bonus content.

The 3D versions don't let you switch party members at the end game but truth be told, Edward, Cid and the other characters that you couldn't bring back into your party at endgame are all horribly balanced. The only worthwhile characters are Yang and Palom, honestly. The party switching mechanic is also horribly clunky and would have been 100% if it were accessible at any save point or on the overworld (like in VII). The 3D version's huge improvement in gameplay also more than make up for its lack of the added endgame content (that the Complete Collection retains from the GBA release).

[Anonymous No.4272574]

>FFV
>FFVI
Play the GBA version with the graphics and audio restoration patches. Don't want to waste time patching things/too lazy to really look for a pre-patched ROM or you're too much of an autist and can still see the degraded graphics/audio quality? Then just play the Steam versions for both. If you're not that lazy, maybe you can even get rid of the bilinear filter which honestly improves the look of the game quite a bit.

The horrible touchscreen menus still remain on the Steam version, though.

[Anonymous No.4272581]

I forgot to mention in >>4272574, like with FFI, II and IV, the Steam versions of FFV and FFVI are based on the GBA releases so you have all the added content and script improvements without the downgrade in audio and visual quality that came with the GBA's hardware limitations. There's some censorship in FFVI's Steam version but it's really nothing you'll miss unless it's pointed out to you.

[Anonymous No.4272583]

>>4272554
>for example VI did get a ton of bugfixing and uncensoring

But it also got a completely new translation, presumably by O. Smith, which takes the same if not more liberties than the Woolsey translation. Censored or not, it's still not the same game that came out in Japan. No, I don't propose wasting your time with a fan translation, either. They're not as accurate as they claim to be, and those goofballs have worse English high school dropouts.

>GBA extra content
All of which is incredibly shoehorned.
>Look guys, we added half-assed sprite rips from other FF games!

[Anonymous No.4272607]

>>4272563
>updated graphics
Downgraded washed out graphics designed only to be legible (note: legible, not pretty) on a non-backlit GBA. If you want improved graphics, go with the WSC or PS1 version, as this is what the GBA's graphics were ultimately based on (before being subsequently slaughtered)

>PSP
The sprites are disproportionately scaled, and apparently with different filters. It's like half a dozen different artists re-rendered the sprites in different resolutions and then carelessly shoved them into the game's assets. But that's right on par with the quality of other SE ports.

>People will say that they're both "casualized"
Because they are. There is literally no challenge anymore. Characters level up at 4x their original rate and gain absurd stat boosts, and every spell and equipment upgrade is dirt cheap.

[Anonymous No.4273159]

>>4271965
Go full grognard and play the NES/SNES originals.
The GBA/PSP remakes of FF1 and FF2 are fine, I think one of them completely changes the magic system to be like later games though so you might want to avoid them for your first playthrough.
The DS/PSP/Steam remake of FF3 is *super* different from what I hear but I haven't played it yet. I really liked the NES version though and don't think it really needs modernizing.
FF4's SNES localization removed a sizable chunk of content; not just referring to the heavy script edits but also multiple spells and character combat features were removed. The GBA has no such cuts, but all three GBA ports have worse music and palettes. There are attempts to bring the palettes and music back to SNES standard but whether they succeed at doing that is subjective. I don't know of any SNES patches that restore all the removed content without also changing a bunch of other shit so if there's any game to play the GBA rerelease of this one has the most going for it. Haven't played the DS/PSP/Steam release.
FFV and VI add a bit of extra content on GBA but share similar issues with sound and palettes as IV. Go with whatever your gut tells you to do. Whatever you do, though, do NOT play the iOS/Steam ports they are TERRIBLE and extremely low quality. Like seriously fuck that anon who told you to pick Steam first, look at this shit it's like it was made in RPG Maker XP.

Really you can't go too wrong with any port (besides the iOS/Steam versions of V and VI as mentioned), they're all good games except Final Fantasy II but even II is enjoyable if you're in the right mood.

[Anonymous No.4273160]

>>4272559
>Stats never decrease
They barely decreased to begin with. It was never a relevant mechanic and just scares people who don't know the details about it.
>mages can wield swords, shields and heavy armor while casting magic with no penalty
Mages could wield swords and shields in the original version to, provided they unequip them before casting. It was just an extra step that was unneeded. Magic penalty on armor still exists.
>They also made skill and spell levels increase at double their original rate.
And also removed the bug that made it so unused actions caused skills to increase. The GBA/PSP system is less exploitable.

[Anonymous No.4273174]

Play NES FF1 then forget the rest.

[Anonymous No.4273192]

>>4273160
>They barely decreased to begin with
Wrong. Persistently raising any given stat causes the opposing diametrical stat to decrease often. Go on and train Frioniel as a warrior / white mage archetype and see how much INT he has by the end of the game. I'm guessing he'll have all of 1 point.

>Mages could wield swords and shields in the original version to, provided they unequip them before casting
>provided they unequip
This looks rather specious. Are you referring to removing their equipment from within the main menu screen, or removing equipment during battle? Because you certainly can't do the latter to the extent necessary to cull all penalties. Characters have two general-purpose item slots you can place any item in, and only your weapon and / or shield can be dropped into these two slots during combat. You certainly can't remove head armor, body armor or gloves.

>And also removed the bug that made it so unused actions caused skills to increase
Which is not a point. Cheating was never necessary to complete the game, and you can't very well posit that everybody cheats.

[Anonymous No.4273204]

>>4271965
>What versions of the games should I play?
The originals. If you want to play the games then play the games that actually mattered, not pale imitations of them.

[Anonymous No.4273226]

>>4273192
>Go on and train Frioniel as a warrior / white mage archetype and see how much INT he has by the end of the game. I'm guessing he'll have all of 1 point.
I did. He has 8 intelligence from his starting value of 10. I also have Guy as white mage that has 7 strength from his starting value of 15.
>Are you referring to removing their equipment from within the main menu screen, or removing equipment during battle? Because you certainly can't do the latter to the extent necessary to cull all penalties.
This is true, but armor still has magic penalty in the GBA/PSP versions anyway. They only removed magic penalty from weapons so that you no longer need to toss them into the equip menu whenever you cast a spell.
>Which is not a point. Cheating was never necessary to complete the game, and you can't very well posit that everybody cheats.
You will "cheat" unintentionally in the original versions. Any commands that aren't used before a battle ends will still add to your stats, including those used by the enemy.

[Anonymous No.4273937]

>>4271991
>>4271996
Why FF5 and FF6 on GBA? SNES version is graphically superior in every aspect
For the translation issues there's also romhacks

[Anonymous No.4273957]

>>4272536
Why did I read that as twincest?

[Anonymous No.4273980]

>>4273160
>Mages could wield swords and shields in the original version to, provided they unequip them before casting. It was just an extra step that was unneeded. Magic penalty on armor still exists.
Wait, what? I'm planning to play FF2(PSP) after FFIV. There's an invisible magic penalty on equipment?

>>4273957
Because the font is shit. I did too.

[Anonymous No.4274068]

>>4273980
>There's an invisible magic penalty on equipment?

Heavy equipment penalizes stats, namely intelligence, spirit and evasion. The penalties were largely removed from later release, except the evasion penalties.

Early FF games were largely based around D&D classes and their restrictions. Why would a mage go around decked in heavy armor and wielding a sword? It's hard to imagine them having the necessary dexterity left to perform complex gestures to call upon spells.

But then a bunch of kiddies retroactively decided to play FF2 and then complained that it wasn't an A-mashing simulator like the rest of the series, so lots of gameplay mechanics got casualized in future releases.

[Anonymous No.4274090]

>>4274068
The general complaint was less that the penalties were there and more that the game never tells you they exist.

[Anonymous No.4274114]

>>4274090

I don't think that was the extent of the complaints. People just wanted them gone, and that's what TOSE did. There was no reason to remove them.

Evasion penalties are easy to verify, but the original Famicom version didn't update the displays for intelligence or spirit, probably due to an oversight. (Both FF1 and 2 were extensively bugged and had missing or incomplete features.)

[Anonymous No.4274196]

>>4271965
FF1 is fine on either versions. The PSP version if you want a clear cut, smooth experience that's closer to the later games with extra goodies, the NES originals if you don't mind bugs and have some added "difficulty".The GBA versions are fine but you get some grossly high encounter rates so much that you get way too overpowered by the end of the game that it becomes far too easy by the end.

The steam versions of FFIII is arguably better than the DS version but the NES version is playable as well.

I'd recommend playing the Steam version of FFIV since it's a considerable update like III's port.

FFV and FFVI are great on SNES. The PSP versions are actually quite ugly in comparison despite the smoother looking sprites since they made these as a port for phones rather.

unless you're a masochist, II is skippable

[Anonymous No.4274226]

>>4271989
Yeah, for the better.

>>4271994
The GBA games are good remakes.
It's just the fucking /vr/ contrarian thinking that for some reason hates convenience towards the player.
Tedium isn't good.

[Anonymous No.4276373]

>>4274068
>Why would a mage go around decked in heavy armor and wielding a sword? It's hard to imagine them having the necessary dexterity left to perform complex gestures to call upon spells.
I get that, but if the game never tells me that heavy armor on a mage will affect anything, I'll just naturally prioritize my mages' defense over evasion (which is the only thing I'll assume to be affected).

Is a Firion Paladin (white mage + knight) build even possible with that penalty in mind?

I'm honestly really excited to play FF2 with its job molding system, I'm just a little worried about fucking up my characters.

[Anonymous No.4276423]

>>4276373
I believe there's three kinds of spells that don't care about magic penalty. Spells that are used outside of combat, spells used against an enemy that's weak to it, and spells being cast from an item. Any other kind of spell will get butchered by magic penalty.

[Anonymous No.4276461]

>>4276423
So the magic penalty works as a kind of debuff. That's a lot more lenient. I thought it was more of an ongoing thing. Like a heavy armor knight's INT/spirit wouldn't increase at the same rate as a staff user.

[Anonymous No.4276469]

>>4274068
>Why would a mage go around decked in heavy armor and wielding a sword? It's hard to imagine them having the necessary dexterity left to perform complex gestures to call upon spells.

In Tales of Maj'Eyal you can do this, but the catch is the fatigue from them causes you to use way more Mana to cast than the actual cost. Fatigue and a Strength cost is something on nearly every armor but those designed for mages (robes etc.).

It's a good balance between being able to do everything and there being a reason for such a practice to be uncommon.

[Anonymous No.4276479]

>>4276469
That sounds pretty cool. The effect is almost analogous. To get the same amount of output in FF2 you'll have to spend more MP/cast the spell more than once.

[Anonymous No.4276486]

>>4274196
>The steam versions of FFIII

has a save corrupting bug

[Anonymous No.4276770]

>>4271965
FF1 get the PSP version.
FF2,3 Doesn't worth it.
FF4,5,6 PSX version
Or get whatever device you have that can run it.

[Anonymous No.4276778]

>>4272129
>Retroarch shills
Why?
Retroarch is just frontend.

[Anonymous No.4277079]

>>4276778
Shitty meme. FF threads about best ports have been shitpostland for a long time now.

[Anonymous No.4278657]

>>4272126
Yeah, I'll take updated locs if it means changes to gameplay anyway

[Anonymous No.4278684]

>>4271983
>V and VI have updated graphics with smooth edges and shit
That is how they are supposed to look like.

[Anonymous No.4279074]

>>4278684
>implying

[Anonymous No.4279115]

>>4278684
If this is how the devs intended for FF to look then I'm glad they were too limited to do it in the SNES era.

[Anonymous No.4279128]

>>4279115
Tfw classic square actually was strictly rpg maker tier.

[Anonymous No.4279152]

>>4279115
For FF6 remake Square-Enix hired sprite artist that worked on the original.

[Anonymous No.4279615]

>>4279115
With the filter removed, it really doesn't look half bad. I like that the bigger sprites let them lean closer to the original designs (like Relm) and the portraits are all quite nice.

The real killer is the terrible UI.