I've been training around Elfhein to earn enough money for the magic I need. The latest weapons and armour have been bought, but magic's taking longer, as there are two of each magic shop in this area.
There's a grave in this area, proclaiming "here lies Link". A nice reference to the game's Zelda roots – the comparisons are clear, and as a big fan of the Zelda series, I'm fond of this alternative approach to fantasy gaming.
I'm going to explore the castle next.
Sunday 15 June 2008
Final Fantasy I – Shipping (with ships)
The pirates were easy to defeat as it transpires. Nine of them, but all very weak indeed. No trouble for my party, even without the use of an Inn. And I got a ship for my good work!
Back in the Inn, it seems the fellow who was blocking it eventually moves away. Not sure if this was the case before fighting the pirates. I suspect it probably was.
Anyway, ship in hand, I headed for the starting town, Cornelia, mostly to take advantage of the low, low prices. Also, I've noticed I have a Beastiary, keeping track of all the monsters I've defeated. Embracing my OCD, I've headed back to the Chaos Shrine. I didn't spend much time there before, so I suspect I'm missing some monsters. Paid off, too, since my team reached level 11.
Afterwards, I explored the seas, training as I went. After reaching level 13, I explored one of the new ports, finding lots of new magic. It's getting expensive now, and even the few magic spells I chose (mostly healing ones and bigger attack spells) has cleared my funds. A shame, since I was hoping for new weapons. Back to the sea to earn cash, I suppose.
Back in the Inn, it seems the fellow who was blocking it eventually moves away. Not sure if this was the case before fighting the pirates. I suspect it probably was.
Anyway, ship in hand, I headed for the starting town, Cornelia, mostly to take advantage of the low, low prices. Also, I've noticed I have a Beastiary, keeping track of all the monsters I've defeated. Embracing my OCD, I've headed back to the Chaos Shrine. I didn't spend much time there before, so I suspect I'm missing some monsters. Paid off, too, since my team reached level 11.
Afterwards, I explored the seas, training as I went. After reaching level 13, I explored one of the new ports, finding lots of new magic. It's getting expensive now, and even the few magic spells I chose (mostly healing ones and bigger attack spells) has cleared my funds. A shame, since I was hoping for new weapons. Back to the sea to earn cash, I suppose.
Final Fantasy I – Travelling to Prakova
Significant events since my last post:
Crossed the bridge, and was treated to the opening credits. Turns out the game so far was a prologue for the story proper.
Met Matoya the witch who's lost a crystal eye. Side-quest!
My team reached level 10.
Reached Prakova, and invested in shields, armour and other defensive items for my team, who have taken to dying a lot now that Gigas Worms have turned up.
After some training, bought new weapons and magic as well. When I've played RPGs in the past, I've obsessively bought as much equipment and magic as I can, not moving on until I've got the lot. So far, though, I've not seen myself using magic much in FFI, so I've got a few useful spells (particularly Blizzard and Blindna) this time, but I'm not going overboard.
Saved in Prakova, ready for the next challenge.
Comments so far? I like the difficulty curve. The monsters surrounding Parkova are an awful lot harder than the ones near Cornelia. Levelling up is far more entertaining here, too, with a more varied range of monsters.
One negative factor, though, is that a man is blocking the way to the Inn. Seems I need to fight a scripted battle first. That's not too problematic in and of itself, but it is an issue when I want to get some standard training done. Vok's MP isn't looking good, so I can but hope that this upcoming battle (against pirates, apparently) won't require his services. Likewise, Sherko's only got a few more Cures in her. Let's hope Desh and Blank can walk this battle, with their All New Awesome Swords.
Crossed the bridge, and was treated to the opening credits. Turns out the game so far was a prologue for the story proper.
Met Matoya the witch who's lost a crystal eye. Side-quest!
My team reached level 10.
Reached Prakova, and invested in shields, armour and other defensive items for my team, who have taken to dying a lot now that Gigas Worms have turned up.
After some training, bought new weapons and magic as well. When I've played RPGs in the past, I've obsessively bought as much equipment and magic as I can, not moving on until I've got the lot. So far, though, I've not seen myself using magic much in FFI, so I've got a few useful spells (particularly Blizzard and Blindna) this time, but I'm not going overboard.
Saved in Prakova, ready for the next challenge.
Comments so far? I like the difficulty curve. The monsters surrounding Parkova are an awful lot harder than the ones near Cornelia. Levelling up is far more entertaining here, too, with a more varied range of monsters.
One negative factor, though, is that a man is blocking the way to the Inn. Seems I need to fight a scripted battle first. That's not too problematic in and of itself, but it is an issue when I want to get some standard training done. Vok's MP isn't looking good, so I can but hope that this upcoming battle (against pirates, apparently) won't require his services. Likewise, Sherko's only got a few more Cures in her. Let's hope Desh and Blank can walk this battle, with their All New Awesome Swords.
Friday 13 June 2008
Final Fantasy I – The Chaos Shrine
First dungeon! Completed this relatively quickly. Level 5 might actually be a bit higher than necessary, but properly using two strong fighters and two magic users was a big help. Growing very fond of Sherko, both for Cure and her strength with normal attacks (since I bought her a hammer). Zok's useless if he's not using magic, and although he has high MP, it's rarely worth using magic in normal fights, so he only pulls his weight in boss battles.
Still, I saved Sarah, the King built me a bridge, Sarah gave me a lute, and my team hit Level 6. Good start.
Still, I saved Sarah, the King built me a bridge, Sarah gave me a lute, and my team hit Level 6. Good start.
Levelling Up
I quite like levelling up. Handy, really, since I'm dedicating my time to RPGs.
Pokémon was my first encounter with experience points, back in the late nineties. Pokémon remains my favourite franchies to date, and I think that has a lot to do with the appeal of Final Fantasy in the first place.
There's something about dedicating time to repetitive training that's very rewarding as your team grows stronger. In Pokémon, a lot of the emphasis is on making the most of a limited team – it can only contain a limited number of monsters, with a limited amount of moves and items, and by now, a limited amount of stat increases.
Final Fantasy, being a mostly single-player endeavour, seems to be much more generous with its magic, weapons and stat increases. The emphasis appears to be more on strengthening your team until you can defeat the toughest monsters in the game.
In FFI, I'm not fond of the fact that MP and HP aren't increased when you level up. To take advantage of these upgrades, you first have to heal. This costs, unlike the free Pokémon Centres, which is quite an irritation for a miserly skinflint like me.
That said, it's taken me no time at all to reach level five with the full team, so it's very generous with its increases.
Pokémon was my first encounter with experience points, back in the late nineties. Pokémon remains my favourite franchies to date, and I think that has a lot to do with the appeal of Final Fantasy in the first place.
There's something about dedicating time to repetitive training that's very rewarding as your team grows stronger. In Pokémon, a lot of the emphasis is on making the most of a limited team – it can only contain a limited number of monsters, with a limited amount of moves and items, and by now, a limited amount of stat increases.
Final Fantasy, being a mostly single-player endeavour, seems to be much more generous with its magic, weapons and stat increases. The emphasis appears to be more on strengthening your team until you can defeat the toughest monsters in the game.
In FFI, I'm not fond of the fact that MP and HP aren't increased when you level up. To take advantage of these upgrades, you first have to heal. This costs, unlike the free Pokémon Centres, which is quite an irritation for a miserly skinflint like me.
That said, it's taken me no time at all to reach level five with the full team, so it's very generous with its increases.
Final Fantasy I – The Beginning
So, Final Fantasy I. This is where it all began, on the NES. I'm playing the GBA version – Dawn of Souls. Apparently, it's significantly easier than the original. This is no bad thing for me. Wonder what seasoned FF fans make of it.
I'm starting with a team of Warrior, Thief, White Mage and Black Mage, as they're the default. They are named Desh, Blank, Sherko and Zok, which are automated names from the game.
Let's begin! Alright, seems that the world's rubbish, but there's a prophecy that four crystal-holding awesome folk will turn up. Oh, and they have – they're my four characters. Lovely.
Two seconds in, and I've already got a quest – rescue Sarah, the king's daughter. He's offered me a bridge if I manage it, the generous fellow.
Having bought spells and weapons, it's time for my first bout of levelling up ...
I'm starting with a team of Warrior, Thief, White Mage and Black Mage, as they're the default. They are named Desh, Blank, Sherko and Zok, which are automated names from the game.
Let's begin! Alright, seems that the world's rubbish, but there's a prophecy that four crystal-holding awesome folk will turn up. Oh, and they have – they're my four characters. Lovely.
Two seconds in, and I've already got a quest – rescue Sarah, the king's daughter. He's offered me a bridge if I manage it, the generous fellow.
Having bought spells and weapons, it's time for my first bout of levelling up ...
Introduction
Hello there! My name is Iceduck, and I like computer games. I've played a bit of Final Fantasy over the years, but not extensively - I've never completed one.
So, I've decided to work my way through the series, completing them all in order. That is my quest, and that is the purpose of this blog.
Hopefully, this'll be of interest to someone - maybe hardcore Final Fantasy fans who are interested in knowing what an outsider makes of the series. On a personal note, I'm perfectly open-minded, and very keen to embrace this universe.
Let's go!
So, I've decided to work my way through the series, completing them all in order. That is my quest, and that is the purpose of this blog.
Hopefully, this'll be of interest to someone - maybe hardcore Final Fantasy fans who are interested in knowing what an outsider makes of the series. On a personal note, I'm perfectly open-minded, and very keen to embrace this universe.
Let's go!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)