REVIEW: Final Fantasy III 1990 Famicom
Screenshot
By: Square
Type: RPG
Players: 1
Difficulty: Too Hard

 

LONG TERM INTEREST:

Hour

Day

Week

Mnth

Year

5

5

5

5

3

NINTENDO LAND'S SCORE:

Graphics

Sound

Playabl.

Lastabl.

OVERALL
98%

96%

99%

100%

97%

   Finally someone has decided to make a good game. However, they still messed up somewhere. Final Fantasy III was the first Final Fantasy to sell one million copies, and that's pretty bad. Final Fantasy II had the theory of Dragon Ball Z: every battle, Siyans get stronger (although it's really if they get knocked out, they'll get stronger afterwards), making that easy. This game is just plain hard, and if anyone ever gets to level 99, they must not have a life like me. The last boss has the HP of Cephka, but, in the NES RPG era, that was a lot of HP.     

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See, look what they me into. I get to battle four stupid Goblins.

    One day, a group of four idiots decide that they can take a stroll in that mysterious, easy cave (in which you don't see). They're so stupid to fall into that hole adjacent to numerous skeletons, and now they have to find a way out, and this you see. One speaks this, and they make four steps, and no matter what, you get caught. You don't know how many Goblins show up, you just know they come. You slash them off easily, as if you really have a choice (if your command is Fight/Guard/Run/Item, you see what I mean). Now you can explore.

      What do you do? Find treasure! After that an massive level gaining to about 5 or 7, you stop and get a drink of water, and you're healed! But wait, what about the other room that's there for no apparent reason? You go in there, and are distracted on the way in. Who's this? Land Turtle, the first boss! Now, the effects of the Famicom's percussion shines. You don't need to waste anything, you just repeatedly hit him until his dies and you laugh at him. After that, you get the crystal, new jobs, and a trip back home, and back in the cave for goods. You are granted an airship by the ghost Cid (and it's called "Airship" literally). The rest of the world(s) are up to you.

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As you can see, I knew nothing of Japanese then. Now, I can tell you an idiotic Land Turtle tried to defeat me at, um, level 5 or something.

    You've chosen the best time to mess up. You have your Gil, and what's this? I've never heard of "C"... Well, that's a job currency. After battles, you gain C to allow a job change, and like currencies, you'll lose them afterwards. However, with Dexterity level ups, the C you need is cheaper! And, as in FF2, you get to use two weapons, and that makes you stronger (even the White Magus can use two weapons), and Chocobo Forests exist (in FF2, there was one location, and you needed keywords, and you had to find him, but he is invisible)! Even that won't ease the difficulty, however, this game will have every boss kill you. There is even a time where you have to be minimized and fight an ugly rat. So, if you don't use any of that treasure from the beginning, and Blizza-ra (and Blizzard), you'll survive. However, there's another battle in Salonia where you fight Phoenix, and you need to be in the thousands, and have all Dragon Knights (Dragoons).

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Well, this isn't really a screen shot, but there are all the jobs I am too lazy to list. The Lard Chocobo, however, is in this game.

     Another good thing has occurred, and that is the numerous weapons and magic (because in FF2, even Ultima was weak) exist and are good, but one thing differs this from other FFs and this is why it's hard: airships can't fly over mountains. I know that doesn't sound worryful, but there's only one thing close to that, and that can jump over narrow strips of mountains. And even worse, airships don't prevent fights, enemies attack you in the air, and the only helpful thing besides you is that cannon that deducts 300 HP to each enemy, as if that helps.

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It's the Cracking Kraken.

     Final Fantasy III just makes you want to turn around and go play FF2 sometimes. This game, however, is really addictive, no matter how annoying it grows to be. Final Fantasy III does share it's sad scenes, and "Oh no" scenes, people die here too. I think FF3 started the whole "There's another world out there" idea for FF. The first world can only be escaped via Cid's second airship, the Enterprise. The second world is sunken too, that's where that sad scene comes in. Then, the Enterprise gets jacked by some idiot with a crystal you never get, and now the Enterprise gets blown up in Salonia, and scholars, after killing Phoenix, grants you the fastest ship, Nautilus. After that, you find more scholars who say you can have the Invincible, it's like the Big Whale, and can jump over mountains, narrow ones anyway.

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The "Invincible", just about the best airship to exist.

     Truthfully, FF3 is quite a different game. People follow you as seen in Dragon Quest, but you'll lose them because they either die, test your strength by fighting you, or plain leave. FF3 has an assortment of price ranges, and no matter what, you need to get this game. This has the graphics of FF4 on 8-bit (FF4 was supposed to be 8-bit too, but Nintendo persuaded Square to make it on the Super Famicom), and the jobs of Final Fantasy V, without the plot that has. Just do buy this game if you see it worth $70.

-Squire Nomad, eating cornbread 98%

[Key to the reviewing system]