Final Fantasy III Part 1: Back to the Basics

Hello everybody, and welcome to the next chapter of Final Fantasy World Tour! This time around, we are playing Final Fantasy III.

For the uninitiated, Final Fantasy III is not to be confused with Final Fantasy VI, the one that stars Terra and Locke on the Super Nintendo. The original FF3 was released in 1990 on the Famicom (the Japanese equivalent of the NES). It was only in Japanese. Much like the original FF2, FF3 likely did not arrive here because FF4 was already in production for the SNES and to be released shortly after, and since FF1 came to the US in 1990, there wasn't much point to release it. Video game production must have been expensive considering cartridges and translation. Makes me appreciate how easy it is to publish a game these days (not to say it’s gotten any cheaper considering the staff and production values, but that’s for a different discussion).

FF3 was eventually remade and re-released for a plethora of consoles, including the DS , PSP, iOS, and Android. I tried playing the fan translation a long time ago but eventually stopped to play other games. It wasn't until later when I bought it for the DS that I fell in love with the game. In my opinion, it has everything FF1 has but taken to the next level. In sticking with my tradition of playing the original version of each game, I will be playing the Famicom version of FF3. Many thanks to whoever fan translated this game for our enjoyment.  I will update this when I find more info, but for now, let’s get started. I’ve been dying to play this game since I started the tour last year!

The Prologue

We’ve been upgraded to two prologue screens!

Looks like we have crystals again. I knew there was something missing from FF2.

Orphans, the cheap source of RPG hero labor for generations!

When I open up a new game, I’m greeted with one of my worst nightmares in RPGs.

I’m so bad at naming characters. Let me take a moment to think this over…

Once I finish naming my party members, I am immediately thrown down a dark chasm (like any normal Saturday evening!).

You know, I have a similar reaction when I fall into pits in the other games I play!

My heroes take a few steps forward while bickering at each other when I am thrown right into the first battle (and in typical old-school fashion, there is no tutorial in sight!).

Ladies and gentlemen, introducing our four heroes for FF3--The Belmont family! You may recognize them from the Castlevania series! Richter has been changed to Rikter to fit the name in the game. My runner up party consisted of FF villains, but that may have been confusing.

As you may have noticed, our party looks identical. In fact, they play identically too. Each character can only fight, use an item, or run away from battle. We’ll discuss the game play system as more of the game opens up, but for now, let’s enjoy the cookie cutter action. The battles flow quicker than they do in FF2. There are less messages flying across the screen. The first fight is straightforward, and the goblins don’t stand a chance!

Everybody gained one level after the very first battle. Not bad!

The game finally gives me free reign to play, so I immediately open my menu to see what’s available.

Final Fantasy III doesn't just use orphan labor. It’s the official employer of onion children.

As usual, I’ll put a treasure haul at the end of each section. It’s fun to look back and see all the riches I collect throughout these games.

Treasure makes our RPG world go round!

As I approach a strange rock and a wall, the game declares its contempt for my intelligence.

Not sure what to do. Maybe I should phone a friend!

I walk across the broken wall and find another rock. It makes the screen shake, but nothing exciting happens. When I pick up a second Leather Shield, I take a look at the equipment menu.

Wonder how much damage Simon can do with TWO shields...

You can tell they’re kids. Look at Rikter and Julius’s mouths! Were they eating popsicles before adventuring?

After grabbing some more treasure, I open up the inventory to see a beautiful thing:

Gone are the days where 3 Potions would take up 3 item slots!

I play with the buttons on the controller and find out that the select button changes who is walking in front. I’m partial to blue, so Rikter will be our walker.

Seems safe.

Recovery spring!

While treasure hunting, I fight more battles and notice that whenever I select an enemy, a number appears over it. It’s nice to see which targets I have selected instead of relying completely on my memory.

Experience points! I'm so glad to see you again! FF2 did horrible things to you...horrible...

As I fight more battles, I’m also happy to report that when I kill a target, my other party members will automatically adjust their target. That means no more air swatting!

Before I know it, I’ve finally reached the altar of the Wind Crystal. Let’s watch what happens...

Unfortunately, once again, the tools I used to capture footage in the previous games have failed me. I have now switched to the XSplit Broadcaster, which is a good tool to use for streaming. After streaming to my TwitchTV page, I transfer it over to YouTube. It’s not very high quality, but at least there’s no watermark at the bottom right of the screen, and it cuts down on how long it takes for my videos to upload to YouTube. I’m going to continue to investigate to see if I can improve the quality, but since we’re working with NES games right now, I’m not very concerned right now. In fact, it makes it sound even more like an old game! Any additional suggestions are appreciated of course.

The boss battle is straightforward, and other than the round where pretty much everybody misses, not much happens. The game treats us to some opening music and credits, where I’m pretty sure the game originally lists Nasir, Sakaguchi, and Uematsu for programming, design, and music composition. Instead, we get to find out who fan translated the game. I have mixed feelings about this, because although credit for translation is needed, credit also needs to be given to the original designers of the game. They'll probably be listed in the end game credit as well. During this sequence, I appreciate the return of one of the iconic Final Fantasy songs, and I’m moving on out of the Altar Cave!

It's so bright outside! The music is fantastic! Click here for a link to the song.

Thanks FF3! I'll be back momentarily!

Altar Cave Treasure Haul: 2 Leather Shields, 3 Potions, and 2 SouthWinds (ice attack item).

Back for Seconds

An hour and a half later, I continue my game and investigate the “powers” that the Crystal mentioned.

If only getting a job in real life were this easy. I only need 8 Capacity to change jobs.

This is the first Final Fantasy game with the changeable job system (the first game's class system was more traditional in the line of you stuck with one class and graduated to a better class as you progressed) You’ll see that this game is quite flexible as we get down to business. Now I’ll be right back after making a few quick adjustments.

That's alarming! Has anyone else been told this when they applied for their current jobs?

Kids sure grow up fast!

For the uninitiated, here is a summary of my current classes: The Fighter is a traditional RPG tank. He wears heavy armor and can use a variety of weaponry. He can't use magic but makes it for it in power and defense. The Monk is a martial artist. He can't take damage as well as the Fighter, but he packs quite a punch and can use his fists or nunchucks! The Red Wizard is a hybrid of sorts. He can use Black Magic (attack) and White Magic (healing and support), along with a variety of weapons and armor. He's not as good a wizard as the Black and White Wizards, and he's not as good of a fighter as the Fighter, but he's a perfect blend when you need variety.

Thinking about my awful experience with using multiple weapons in FF2, I wonder if I can equip multiple weapons in FF3 without losing all of my accuracy. Editor's note: It's great!

I step back inside to see if there’s anything I missed on my way out and realize that the entrance does not match the exit. Is there something else to be seen?

WHOA MAMA! What a haul! But this makes me wonder: Why did our heroes walk straight to the pile of skulls instead of get the treasure on their first run?

Oops! I forgot to heal before coming back!

That answers my question. Trevor hits like a truck with two weapons equipped!

Altar Cave Treasure Haul 2: Sleep spell, 2 Long Swords, Nunchuck, and Copper Ring.

Before walking back out of the entrance (I’m not going down that hole again!), I put on my brand new nunchuck but find that Rickter’s attack drops. I’ll wait to see if I can get a second nunchuck before switching to them.  I try to give Julius one of the Long Swords, but he is unable to equip it. I also give Julius the Sleep spell. Let’s take  a quick look at the Magic menu.

After playing around with it, I learned that swap lets me trade magic with my party members, and item allows me to unequip the spell (meaning that spells are not permanently equipped!). This will be useful if Julius changes to a non-magic class. Finally, just like in FF1, we have returned to MP charges and 8 levels of magic instead of universal MP.

Coming next time! Final Fantasy III Part 2: The Great Outdoors and the Spooky Quest!

Thanks for reading, and leave your comments below!