I forgot to mention this in the video: Even though I enjoyed Soul of Rebirth's narrative, I don't think it's worth getting to if you don't enjoy the core gameplay of the base game. I would instead play the Pixel Remaster of II, and then watch the cutscenes of SoR on RUclips if you REALLY want to know the plot.
Just beat FF2 for the first time in two decades. I always thought so little of it as a child, but going through it again I can really appreciate what it was aiming for. I actually quiet enjoyed the key message system in the PR, they highlight the messages that will get responses. It helps flesh out the NPCs.
I’ve played a ton of JRPGs, but I’ve never touched any of the early FF games (except for the DS remake of IV, which I never finished), until I got my hands on the PR of the first six games. And while FFII isn’t my favorite, it’s pretty high up there, definitely in the top 3. When I first found out they didn’t have traditional levels and instead stats were leveled up *directly* via actions taken during combat, it absolutely blew my mind. Square was this galaxy brained all the way back in 1988?? How come I’ve never seen any other games try to refine this leveling system? Sure, it’s not implemented perfectly, but the idea behind it is so creative and interesting, and there’s so much a modern game could do with that. It’s like the job system in other games but a little slower-paced and with more direct player control over character stats and growths. I could plan out my builds for each of the characters and then gently nudge them closer and closer to perfection with every battle. It felt like planting a seed and watering it every day so it grows bigger and bigger over the course of the game. I loved it! It absolutely breaks my heart that the gameplay is viewed so negatively by so many people, because I would love to see it come back!
Personally love FFII. I've never been deterred by its grindiness but I can understand why some folks are. I've always loved how easy to break the game is. Enjoyed the review quite a bit, felt pretty honest.
Glad you enjoyed it! I definitely had a better time than I was expecting, but it just goes to show that you often need to check out something for yourself, rather than judge a game based on it's reputation!
The way I’m playing on Switch has me grinding between destinations, and that seems to be working out. Like spamming lesser used spells, so they’re powerful when I do need them.
I love FFII. I love the fact that it tried a bunch of new things. I would love to see a modern retelling of it, especially with how dark it is at times. Also absolutely love the overworld and battle music
i love Final Fantasy ii. I think I own or have owned every version released in the US. I pre-ordered Final Fantasy Origins primarily for it. I had the GBA version, I have the PSP version, the Pixel Remaster, the original Steam release, and one or two mobile phone versions. Its either my fourth or fifth favorite game in the main series depending on my mood (I've played everything but the MMOs, the first part of VII Remake and XVI) . I love the rebellion against eil empire cliche and Final Fantasy Legend/Saga II was the first Squaresoft JRPG I played so I have a very old soft spot for the stat growth system.
I love this game, it took what FF1 established and updated it (for better or worse depending on who you ask). I love the leveling system, how it takes the idea of classes and allows for you to make each character in your own image. My only issue with it is that everyone ends up as a fighter/ranger, white mage or a Holy/Flare spammer since all the other attack spells suck. The story is an ambitious jump from the first game, going from adventurous and lighthearted to dark and atmospheric. The music is also great, though I have a strong preference to the Origins soundtrack. I love the PR soundtrack too, but I feel that it's a bit too orchestral and bombastic for how somber this game is (the main battle, final battle, and final dungeon themes being good examples of this). I wish that the dungeon selection was stronger; there are no terrible dungeons like the Ice Cavern or arguably Marsh Cave, but there is nothing on par with Mt. Gulg or Eureka. This is a really solid game, but your mileage depends on whether or not you feel that the game is a bit grindy, or if the leveling system is stupid.
This is a fair review! I actually like FF2 a lot and i even first played it on an NES emulator (fan translation with bugfixes that keep game as intended otherwise), and it's nice to see someone come at it with an open mind and give some fair criticism without just parroting all the "black sheep" talking points. I would have it in the upper middle range of my personal FF rankings, so i agree that it's good and innovative, while not being in my top tier of FFs either; but i feel the mob hatred it gets is very weird and unearned. FF2 is just a weird little game and that's kind of what i love about it, and if you play along to its weirdness and embrace its systems, you may end up enjoying the ride! And for the love of Bahamut, don't feel like you have to spend hours hitting yourself just cause you can. That's not how the system is designed to be played, and of course the game will be unenjoyable if you do that... By the way, thank you for not even mentioning that tired talking point on your review!
FFII deserves to be remembered because of the many staples it introduced, such as a more in-depth story, a magic meter rather than the spell charge system of the original game and DnD, and a bunch of now staple monsters like Malboros and Behemoths. But it shoots itself in the foot by implementing the awful leveling system with no traditional experience growth. It was very ambitious and forward-thinking with modern RPGs using a similar system, but it was very unpolished in II. And then there are the dungeons which are full of dead ends and last fucking forever.
I just finished the pixel remaster. It will be many years before I play it again. My main gripes: Dungeons: for the reasons covered in this video. Pacing: I actually had to look up what I’m supposed to do multiple times. I’ve played through every mainline game and this is the only I’ve needed to resort to a players guide. (Skill issue maybe) Great video, btw!
I'm in the minority opinion but I really enjoy Final Fantasy II. I didn't play it until I was a young adult and had learned about Final Fantasy Origins back in '04-'05. I was on a kick to beat all the numbered Final Fantasy titles at the time and while I distinctly recall liking Final Fantasy I well enough it was Final Fantasy II that really grabbed my attention. I find the fact that you can break the game and it allows for a myriad of party configurations net positives. The dungeon layout is brutal but considering Final Fantasy for the NES shipped with a map then I figured playing Final Fantasy II with maps was an authentic experience. I've since beaten the game for the PS1, PSP, NES, and Pixel Remaster on PS4 and am currently going through it again on the NES without using the exploits to shortcut the grind. I haven't felt the need to grind unless I just wanted to level up some new spells a bit. There was another person that commented on the leveling algorithm for spells/weapons and I think it's extremely helpful for new players to know about this. The encounter rate is high enough that you really shouldn't have to grind excessively to progress through the majority of the game. Out of the NES trilogy, I enjoy this one the most by far. Honestly, I wish this game was given a proper remake. I find the story engaging and Nobuo Uematsu was on fire with the soundtrack. It's a top 5 Final Fantasy for me.
I did not like the whole leveling up system in this game. I originally went into this with no guide and had no clue that magic was obtained by buying & using the tombs. Didn't like the weapon leveling either. Thanks to your video, I learned that there was bonus content to explore. Great review!
0:05 should say "since its release [in the West in the 2000s]," as it was very well received in Japan and even did better than the first FF. This is not just in terms of player base, but Famitsu and others gave it great praise too.
I love FFII, everyone dies here and there. the game mechanic is fun and addictive, imo this is how FFVIII should have done, because silly triple triad RNG rules ruined everything. SoR is a perfect stage for MinWu and the gang to shine (again)! oh, and pandemonium theme song is super awesome! def my top 3 of FF series.
What a great video, love when the algorithm introduces me to amazing creators such as yourself! For me, I find myself enjoying FF2 much more than other people for the story, which is sadly overlooked as discussions about the game tend to be hyper-focused on how bad the gameplay is. But this right here really is the birthplace of so many character tropes, dynamics and story beats that define the series to this day! It’s truly not given the credit it deserves for that part. I love how you highlighted a sentiment i’ve had for years about it! And you provided lots of good insight Subbed :)
The 1st time really I played through the game at first i did think the way you lvled up was annoying and tedious but i got used to it. Kinda dont mind it for magic just cause its cool to see the progression of the spells getting stronger via the visuals. I definitely remember that cutscene with the airships. That was awesome. I agree, not a fan of the secret word thing. I got pretty close to beating the game but in order to fight leon you had to land in this castle/dungeon with your airship and my ship WOULDNT LAND and so i got frustrated and quit. Ill come back to once i beat ff9....and 16
The psx version is allright. You just have to adapt to it's system. Yeah it's buggy and incomplete, but most systems today were inspired by it. Think New Vegas. Your character in the base game is going to be experienced at what he/she does. With FF2 you just designate your characters as a specific class, and play the game. Magic grinding doesn't even suck when you do this.
You nailed it. The high encounter rate is killer. The GBA character art is so ugly! Also it was so annoying that every time I lost one of the many 4th character sprites, you lose all the armor that was on that character! What a waste of your hard earned gil.
FF2 is an interesting case. If you're looking at this from the perspective of a Final Fantasy hardcore fan, this game is jank and confusing. HOWEVER, I'm also a fan of a little series called the SaGa games, which have very similar mechanics to and are heavily inspired by FF2. Heck, one of the main people behind the SaGa games, Akitoshi Kawazu, played a big part in developing this game's leveling system. After playing through those games, I gained a new appreciation for this game and what it tried to do. Whether or not it succeeded is up for debate, but looking at this less as Final Fantasy 2 and more as a SaGa 0 certainly changed my perspective.
I couldn't get the theme song of ff2 out of my head for days after platinuming it. The song thats playing at 2:10 also I hate the modern text style in PR, i HAVE to switch it to classic
The only problem with the leveling system in FF2 is that the max level for each skill and spell is 16 when the game acutally only expects a max level of 8-10. I'm really baffled of how many people reviewed the game withtout ever bothering to understand how the system works. The skill/spell EXP you gain at the end of battle is calculated as : monster's rank minus the actual skill/spell level + number of uses during battle + 2. That means that once the skill/spell's level is more than 2 levels above the monster's rank you get no EXP at all unless you use the skill/spell many times in the same battle, which almost never happens naturally. The highest monster rank in the game is 7, so skills/spells level won't raise beyond level 10 unless you cheese the system, which is useless because because level 10 skills/spells are more than enough to complete the game. Spell/skill levels raise very quickly when used against a higher ranked monster, and raising every single skills/spells to level 8-9 is much easier than raising any skill/spell to level to lvl 11. Basically the things you have to keep in mind when playing FF2 are : The game doesn't want you to grind. The game wants you to switch weapons often and use a great variety of spells. Once you get that it is really smooth sailing
@@cactusman07pim Technological inovations are not nessesarily relaterad to game mechanical improvements. Thinking the two have to corrolate would fall under technological determinism, and you do not want to end up over in that quagmire :p
@@tobiaslundqvist3209 Let´s turn Tactics Ogre: Reborn in a table top game to get rid of technological innovations. Chess will be Tactics Ogre: Reborn with outdated mechanics.
@@cactusman07pim Haha yeah i see what you mean, no what I am opposed to is simply the wording in outdated it is more interesting discussing the bad mechaics and why they are bad. I just find the time and tech solves game mechanical problems too common and simplistic, not to say it is not a factor it definitely is. Im sorry if I came of a little harsh :p. I am not the best wordsmith and I do agree with the analysis overall, super interesting video :) And man I really like this game but it can be suuuper annoying at times.
Excellent video, glad the channel was in my feed. I think the dungeon design of this game is atrocious, and the biggest reason I wouldn't ever want to finish this game or recommend it. Like you said, it makes you not want to explore them and that's sort of a big deal when it's such a large part of the game. I also think you're being way too generous to the battle system. Assuming you're not exploiting it to gain levels fast (I personally feel that if the defense of a mechanic is "you don't have to engage with the mechanic as intended" then that's actually a damnation) you have to really grind to get weapons and spells to a decent level, especially spells. It makes me want to just focus on what I had at the start of the game, leaning later techniques such as Ultima never organically feel useful. There's way too many tools you just can't feasibly experiment with them all *unless* you do the exploit, and at that point we basically have stripped the core battle mechanic away. I think I use to want to cut it more slack for being unique and logical like you pointed out, but the system has been done better since. The Saga games take the best ideas of FF2 and really clean them up to something that feels useable. I'm personally only familiar with Romancing Saga 3, but any positives that FF2 could have RS3 just does better. Obviously with the years worth of time between them, that's not a hard knock on FF2, but if the question is if Final Fantasy 2 is worth playing in 2023, I think the existence of alternatives to it's core ideas makes the answer a "no" Looking forward to thoughts on 3 and 10 if you decide to get that far
Thanks for watching, and I really appreciate this comment! I agree, I didn't spend enough time talking about the specific gripes people have with the gameplay/leveling system. Super exploitable, not very fleshed out, totally agree. Though I haven't gotten very far in the Pixel Remaster version, from what I've played and from what I hear, the gameplay is a bit more approachable. Especially with the console releases adding all the QOL cheats, it's almost certainly the way to go as far as gameplay is concerned. I'd say the answer can be yes or no depending on what you're wanting to get out of it. If you want to play a "fun" Final Fantasy game, then I'd also so no haha. Tons of glaring issues, and overall, doesn't hold up as well as MOST of the other games in the series. If you have a desire (like me) to see the grass roots of the series, experience the first "real" Final Fantasy story, and see how the series has grown, developed and learned from mistakes, then YES; definitely worth your time. I forgot to mention this in the video: Even though I enjoyed Soul of Rebirth's narrative, I don't think it's worth getting to if you don't enjoy the core gameplay of the base game. I would instead play the Pixel Remaster of II, and then watch the cutscenes of SoR on RUclips if you REALLY want to know the plot. And YES! I do plan on getting to those games. Actually, the next game I will review on the channel will be The Final Fantasy Legend (Makai Toushi SaGa) on the WonderSwan! I've always wanted to jump into the SaGa series, and given the fact that it started as a Final Fantasy spin-off makes it the perfect opportunity to play it next in this review series!
>recommends the pixel slop ngmi GBA versions are better by the way, they have super dungeons and super bosses: Omega, Shinryu, Gilgamesh, etc. They are way more complete than pixel slop.
Is it pretty bad? I've been debating to buy the whole collection as it's only $40 at my local places. I'm a fanboy for the OG's and PSX PS2 games. I think I even found out something new in my recent run of vi on psx. If you don't check your rages when gau returns, but instead just keep fighting, you'll notice you got every rage from every monster you fought while gau was gone. It doesn't work if you check gau in the sub-menu when he gets back. I don't know if that's new or not, but it sure made veldt grinding for all 255 easy.
@@cyberius100 No they ain't the extra dungeons in FF1 were the most fun part of it I speak from experience. You never got to experience them so lol I feel bad for you brother they improve FF1 a lot. They are nonsensical alternate dimensions because you are traveling to Chaos. It even adds to the metaphysics of the game & its lore. But you missed out lmfao.
Tbh I think the psp ports of 1/2/4 are my least favourite, especially in terms of style. Instead of looking like hand-crafted pixels, it winds up looking like a cheap mobile title that is using stock RPG maker assets (ignoring the fact that 1/2 were ported to mobile)
I sincerely don't understand what game is being reviewed here. I mean what's the point of modding a game into a Frankenstein Hodgepodge and then reviewing your weird concoction?
I encourage you to watch the video! I played the PSP version with updated music. It's a retrospective of FFII, so I also touch on the GBA post game content so that viewers can get an idea of what FFII has been throughout the years. "Frankenstein hodgepodge" is not what I'd call the version of the game I played. It is, simply put, the PSP version. The only thing I changed for my personal enjoyment was the swapped music from the Pixel Remaster
Appreciate the honesty! I'd say the novelty of seeing the first "real" Final Fantasy story unfold is the best part of the experience. That, and the music!
I forgot to mention this in the video: Even though I enjoyed Soul of Rebirth's narrative, I don't think it's worth getting to if you don't enjoy the core gameplay of the base game. I would instead play the Pixel Remaster of II, and then watch the cutscenes of SoR on RUclips if you REALLY want to know the plot.
Just beat FF2 for the first time in two decades. I always thought so little of it as a child, but going through it again I can really appreciate what it was aiming for.
I actually quiet enjoyed the key message system in the PR, they highlight the messages that will get responses. It helps flesh out the NPCs.
I’ve played a ton of JRPGs, but I’ve never touched any of the early FF games (except for the DS remake of IV, which I never finished), until I got my hands on the PR of the first six games. And while FFII isn’t my favorite, it’s pretty high up there, definitely in the top 3. When I first found out they didn’t have traditional levels and instead stats were leveled up *directly* via actions taken during combat, it absolutely blew my mind. Square was this galaxy brained all the way back in 1988?? How come I’ve never seen any other games try to refine this leveling system? Sure, it’s not implemented perfectly, but the idea behind it is so creative and interesting, and there’s so much a modern game could do with that. It’s like the job system in other games but a little slower-paced and with more direct player control over character stats and growths. I could plan out my builds for each of the characters and then gently nudge them closer and closer to perfection with every battle. It felt like planting a seed and watering it every day so it grows bigger and bigger over the course of the game. I loved it! It absolutely breaks my heart that the gameplay is viewed so negatively by so many people, because I would love to see it come back!
Personally love FFII. I've never been deterred by its grindiness but I can understand why some folks are. I've always loved how easy to break the game is.
Enjoyed the review quite a bit, felt pretty honest.
Glad you enjoyed it! I definitely had a better time than I was expecting, but it just goes to show that you often need to check out something for yourself, rather than judge a game based on it's reputation!
The way I’m playing on Switch has me grinding between destinations, and that seems to be working out.
Like spamming lesser used spells, so they’re powerful when I do need them.
I love FFII. I love the fact that it tried a bunch of new things. I would love to see a modern retelling of it, especially with how dark it is at times.
Also absolutely love the overworld and battle music
Once you get swap, there is no grind ;)
i love Final Fantasy ii. I think I own or have owned every version released in the US. I pre-ordered Final Fantasy Origins primarily for it. I had the GBA version, I have the PSP version, the Pixel Remaster, the original Steam release, and one or two mobile phone versions. Its either my fourth or fifth favorite game in the main series depending on my mood (I've played everything but the MMOs, the first part of VII Remake and XVI) .
I love the rebellion against eil empire cliche and Final Fantasy Legend/Saga II was the first Squaresoft JRPG I played so I have a very old soft spot for the stat growth system.
I love this game, it took what FF1 established and updated it (for better or worse depending on who you ask). I love the leveling system, how it takes the idea of classes and allows for you to make each character in your own image. My only issue with it is that everyone ends up as a fighter/ranger, white mage or a Holy/Flare spammer since all the other attack spells suck. The story is an ambitious jump from the first game, going from adventurous and lighthearted to dark and atmospheric. The music is also great, though I have a strong preference to the Origins soundtrack. I love the PR soundtrack too, but I feel that it's a bit too orchestral and bombastic for how somber this game is (the main battle, final battle, and final dungeon themes being good examples of this). I wish that the dungeon selection was stronger; there are no terrible dungeons like the Ice Cavern or arguably Marsh Cave, but there is nothing on par with Mt. Gulg or Eureka. This is a really solid game, but your mileage depends on whether or not you feel that the game is a bit grindy, or if the leveling system is stupid.
To me this is like my top 3 pixel favorite FF game after 4 and 6. This game is that good.
Definitely underrated!
I agree, it's the first game I completed on the pixel remaster collection
This is a fair review! I actually like FF2 a lot and i even first played it on an NES emulator (fan translation with bugfixes that keep game as intended otherwise), and it's nice to see someone come at it with an open mind and give some fair criticism without just parroting all the "black sheep" talking points. I would have it in the upper middle range of my personal FF rankings, so i agree that it's good and innovative, while not being in my top tier of FFs either; but i feel the mob hatred it gets is very weird and unearned.
FF2 is just a weird little game and that's kind of what i love about it, and if you play along to its weirdness and embrace its systems, you may end up enjoying the ride!
And for the love of Bahamut, don't feel like you have to spend hours hitting yourself just cause you can. That's not how the system is designed to be played, and of course the game will be unenjoyable if you do that... By the way, thank you for not even mentioning that tired talking point on your review!
Thank you for helping me finalize my decision to give FF2 another chance 15 years after my initial try
FFII deserves to be remembered because of the many staples it introduced, such as a more in-depth story, a magic meter rather than the spell charge system of the original game and DnD, and a bunch of now staple monsters like Malboros and Behemoths. But it shoots itself in the foot by implementing the awful leveling system with no traditional experience growth. It was very ambitious and forward-thinking with modern RPGs using a similar system, but it was very unpolished in II. And then there are the dungeons which are full of dead ends and last fucking forever.
I just finished the pixel remaster. It will be many years before I play it again. My main gripes:
Dungeons: for the reasons covered in this video.
Pacing: I actually had to look up what I’m supposed to do multiple times. I’ve played through every mainline game and this is the only I’ve needed to resort to a players guide. (Skill issue maybe)
Great video, btw!
This is a good look at one of the most disliked final fantasy games, good job.
I'm in the minority opinion but I really enjoy Final Fantasy II. I didn't play it until I was a young adult and had learned about Final Fantasy Origins back in '04-'05. I was on a kick to beat all the numbered Final Fantasy titles at the time and while I distinctly recall liking Final Fantasy I well enough it was Final Fantasy II that really grabbed my attention. I find the fact that you can break the game and it allows for a myriad of party configurations net positives. The dungeon layout is brutal but considering Final Fantasy for the NES shipped with a map then I figured playing Final Fantasy II with maps was an authentic experience.
I've since beaten the game for the PS1, PSP, NES, and Pixel Remaster on PS4 and am currently going through it again on the NES without using the exploits to shortcut the grind. I haven't felt the need to grind unless I just wanted to level up some new spells a bit. There was another person that commented on the leveling algorithm for spells/weapons and I think it's extremely helpful for new players to know about this. The encounter rate is high enough that you really shouldn't have to grind excessively to progress through the majority of the game.
Out of the NES trilogy, I enjoy this one the most by far. Honestly, I wish this game was given a proper remake. I find the story engaging and Nobuo Uematsu was on fire with the soundtrack. It's a top 5 Final Fantasy for me.
I did not like the whole leveling up system in this game. I originally went into this with no guide and had no clue that magic was obtained by buying & using the tombs. Didn't like the weapon leveling either. Thanks to your video, I learned that there was bonus content to explore. Great review!
I'm happy you enjoyed the video!
0:05 should say "since its release [in the West in the 2000s]," as it was very well received in Japan and even did better than the first FF. This is not just in terms of player base, but Famitsu and others gave it great praise too.
I love FFII, everyone dies here and there.
the game mechanic is fun and addictive, imo this is how FFVIII should have done,
because silly triple triad RNG rules ruined everything.
SoR is a perfect stage for MinWu and the gang to shine (again)!
oh, and pandemonium theme song is super awesome!
def my top 3 of FF series.
What a great video, love when the algorithm introduces me to amazing creators such as yourself! For me, I find myself enjoying FF2 much more than other people for the story, which is sadly overlooked as discussions about the game tend to be hyper-focused on how bad the gameplay is. But this right here really is the birthplace of so many character tropes, dynamics and story beats that define the series to this day! It’s truly not given the credit it deserves for that part. I love how you highlighted a sentiment i’ve had for years about it! And you provided lots of good insight
Subbed :)
Aw, thank you so much for this comment! I'm glad you enjoyed the video!
im done with 5. i hope 2 is just a fun!
Aand subbed, great content.
Much appreciated!
@@overleveledgames Holy fast response!
The 1st time really I played through the game at first i did think the way you lvled up was annoying and tedious but i got used to it. Kinda dont mind it for magic just cause its cool to see the progression of the spells getting stronger via the visuals. I definitely remember that cutscene with the airships. That was awesome. I agree, not a fan of the secret word thing. I got pretty close to beating the game but in order to fight leon you had to land in this castle/dungeon with your airship and my ship WOULDNT LAND and so i got frustrated and quit. Ill come back to once i beat ff9....and 16
RIP your first playthrough haha If you do get a chance to pick it up again, I highly recommend the PR version!
Either play the Pixel Remaster or the FFII with the FFII restored patch/hack that fixes some bugs. Its a good game. I don't care what anyone says.
Or play the original on SNES like a true warrior of light
@@proggz39 o . o That's FFIV :D
The psx version is allright. You just have to adapt to it's system. Yeah it's buggy and incomplete, but most systems today were inspired by it. Think New Vegas. Your character in the base game is going to be experienced at what he/she does. With FF2 you just designate your characters as a specific class, and play the game. Magic grinding doesn't even suck when you do this.
You nailed it. The high encounter rate is killer. The GBA character art is so ugly! Also it was so annoying that every time I lost one of the many 4th character sprites, you lose all the armor that was on that character! What a waste of your hard earned gil.
Think I may play through this on the Wii virtual console in 240p on the Trinitron.
FF2 is an interesting case. If you're looking at this from the perspective of a Final Fantasy hardcore fan, this game is jank and confusing. HOWEVER, I'm also a fan of a little series called the SaGa games, which have very similar mechanics to and are heavily inspired by FF2. Heck, one of the main people behind the SaGa games, Akitoshi Kawazu, played a big part in developing this game's leveling system. After playing through those games, I gained a new appreciation for this game and what it tried to do. Whether or not it succeeded is up for debate, but looking at this less as Final Fantasy 2 and more as a SaGa 0 certainly changed my perspective.
I couldn't get the theme song of ff2 out of my head for days after platinuming it. The song thats playing at 2:10 also I hate the modern text style in PR, i HAVE to switch it to classic
Good points!
The only problem with the leveling system in FF2 is that the max level for each skill and spell is 16 when the game acutally only expects a max level of 8-10. I'm really baffled of how many people reviewed the game withtout ever bothering to understand how the system works.
The skill/spell EXP you gain at the end of battle is calculated as : monster's rank minus the actual skill/spell level + number of uses during battle + 2. That means that once the skill/spell's level is more than 2 levels above the monster's rank you get no EXP at all unless you use the skill/spell many times in the same battle, which almost never happens naturally. The highest monster rank in the game is 7, so skills/spells level won't raise beyond level 10 unless you cheese the system, which is useless because because level 10 skills/spells are more than enough to complete the game. Spell/skill levels raise very quickly when used against a higher ranked monster, and raising every single skills/spells to level 8-9 is much easier than raising any skill/spell to level to lvl 11.
Basically the things you have to keep in mind when playing FF2 are :
The game doesn't want you to grind.
The game wants you to switch weapons often and use a great variety of spells.
Once you get that it is really smooth sailing
I enjoyed FF2 PRM
Is this a trick question? FF2 is awesome
Maybe the rest of the world wasn't ready for it.
I hope their mods do a traditional level up system in FF2.
Imagine saying chess has outdated mechanics.
It has. If you compare a game of chess with a game of Tactics Ogre: Reborn, it´s safe to claim chess has outdated mechanics.
@@cactusman07pim Technological inovations are not nessesarily relaterad to game mechanical improvements. Thinking the two have to corrolate would fall under technological determinism, and you do not want to end up over in that quagmire :p
@@tobiaslundqvist3209 Let´s turn Tactics Ogre: Reborn in a table top game to get rid of technological innovations. Chess will be Tactics Ogre: Reborn with outdated mechanics.
@@cactusman07pim Haha yeah i see what you mean, no what I am opposed to is simply the wording in outdated it is more interesting discussing the bad mechaics and why they are bad. I just find the time and tech solves game mechanical problems too common and simplistic, not to say it is not a factor it definitely is. Im sorry if I came of a little harsh :p.
I am not the best wordsmith and I do agree with the analysis overall, super interesting video :)
And man I really like this game but it can be suuuper annoying at times.
Final Fantasy 2 is interesting, but it's more of a mark in history rather than a fun game that I recommend people to play.
Excellent video, glad the channel was in my feed.
I think the dungeon design of this game is atrocious, and the biggest reason I wouldn't ever want to finish this game or recommend it. Like you said, it makes you not want to explore them and that's sort of a big deal when it's such a large part of the game.
I also think you're being way too generous to the battle system. Assuming you're not exploiting it to gain levels fast (I personally feel that if the defense of a mechanic is "you don't have to engage with the mechanic as intended" then that's actually a damnation) you have to really grind to get weapons and spells to a decent level, especially spells. It makes me want to just focus on what I had at the start of the game, leaning later techniques such as Ultima never organically feel useful. There's way too many tools you just can't feasibly experiment with them all *unless* you do the exploit, and at that point we basically have stripped the core battle mechanic away.
I think I use to want to cut it more slack for being unique and logical like you pointed out, but the system has been done better since. The Saga games take the best ideas of FF2 and really clean them up to something that feels useable. I'm personally only familiar with Romancing Saga 3, but any positives that FF2 could have RS3 just does better. Obviously with the years worth of time between them, that's not a hard knock on FF2, but if the question is if Final Fantasy 2 is worth playing in 2023, I think the existence of alternatives to it's core ideas makes the answer a "no"
Looking forward to thoughts on 3 and 10 if you decide to get that far
Thanks for watching, and I really appreciate this comment! I agree, I didn't spend enough time talking about the specific gripes people have with the gameplay/leveling system. Super exploitable, not very fleshed out, totally agree. Though I haven't gotten very far in the Pixel Remaster version, from what I've played and from what I hear, the gameplay is a bit more approachable. Especially with the console releases adding all the QOL cheats, it's almost certainly the way to go as far as gameplay is concerned.
I'd say the answer can be yes or no depending on what you're wanting to get out of it.
If you want to play a "fun" Final Fantasy game, then I'd also so no haha. Tons of glaring issues, and overall, doesn't hold up as well as MOST of the other games in the series.
If you have a desire (like me) to see the grass roots of the series, experience the first "real" Final Fantasy story, and see how the series has grown, developed and learned from mistakes, then YES; definitely worth your time.
I forgot to mention this in the video: Even though I enjoyed Soul of Rebirth's narrative, I don't think it's worth getting to if you don't enjoy the core gameplay of the base game. I would instead play the Pixel Remaster of II, and then watch the cutscenes of SoR on RUclips if you REALLY want to know the plot.
And YES! I do plan on getting to those games. Actually, the next game I will review on the channel will be The Final Fantasy Legend (Makai Toushi SaGa) on the WonderSwan! I've always wanted to jump into the SaGa series, and given the fact that it started as a Final Fantasy spin-off makes it the perfect opportunity to play it next in this review series!
@@overleveledgames I only ever played about 5 hours of Final Fantasy Legends years ago, so I'm definitely looking forward to seeing that
>recommends the pixel slop
ngmi
GBA versions are better by the way, they have super dungeons and super bosses: Omega, Shinryu, Gilgamesh, etc. They are way more complete than pixel slop.
Is it pretty bad? I've been debating to buy the whole collection as it's only $40 at my local places. I'm a fanboy for the OG's and PSX PS2 games. I think I even found out something new in my recent run of vi on psx. If you don't check your rages when gau returns, but instead just keep fighting, you'll notice you got every rage from every monster you fought while gau was gone. It doesn't work if you check gau in the sub-menu when he gets back. I don't know if that's new or not, but it sure made veldt grinding for all 255 easy.
@@SaanMigwelldon't just use an emulator, unless you are one of spergs that has to buy things: just buy the inferior (content wise) pixel remaster.
@@ElDrHouse2010ableism much?
Extra dungeons are overrated
@@cyberius100 No they ain't the extra dungeons in FF1 were the most fun part of it I speak from experience. You never got to experience them so lol I feel bad for you brother they improve FF1 a lot.
They are nonsensical alternate dimensions because you are traveling to Chaos. It even adds to the metaphysics of the game & its lore. But you missed out lmfao.
D...did you call the Highwind... the c...cummy ship?
👀
Tbh I think the psp ports of 1/2/4 are my least favourite, especially in terms of style. Instead of looking like hand-crafted pixels, it winds up looking like a cheap mobile title that is using stock RPG maker assets (ignoring the fact that 1/2 were ported to mobile)
I sincerely don't understand what game is being reviewed here. I mean what's the point of modding a game into a Frankenstein Hodgepodge and then reviewing your weird concoction?
I encourage you to watch the video! I played the PSP version with updated music. It's a retrospective of FFII, so I also touch on the GBA post game content so that viewers can get an idea of what FFII has been throughout the years.
"Frankenstein hodgepodge" is not what I'd call the version of the game I played. It is, simply put, the PSP version. The only thing I changed for my personal enjoyment was the swapped music from the Pixel Remaster
He changed the music bro, calm down 💀
IMHO not really and I won't even play the PIXEL remaster of it on the PS4 later this week.
Appreciate the honesty! I'd say the novelty of seeing the first "real" Final Fantasy story unfold is the best part of the experience. That, and the music!