Square Enix has released an iPad version of its iOS-exclusive role-playing game Chaos Rings, and has dropped the price of every other game in its App Store catalog to mark the occasion.
Chaos Rings for iPad ($15.99) supports the device’s 1024×768 HD resolution, and features richer graphics and more detailed textures than the previous release for the iPhone and iPod Touch.
FingerGaming’s Tucker Dean gave the iPhone version of Chaos Rings 4.5 out of 5 stars in his review, describing it as an experience that “delivers the classic gameplay of your favorite JRPGs in pocket form, and makes very few sacrifices in the process.”
To promote Chaos Rings’ iPad debut, Square Enix is holding a catalog-wide sale, making many of its most popular apps — including Song Summoner and Final Fantasy — a few dollars cheaper. During the two-week sale, the publisher’s accelerometer-controlled action title Sliding Heroes will be available as a free download.
Square Enix announced at E3 that it will bring its 16-bit action-RPG Secret of Mana and genre-defining strategy-RPG Final Fantasy Tactics to the App Store later this year.
Secret of Mana, originally released for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System in 1993, put players in control of a ragtag group of heroes out to save the world-balancing Mana Tree from destruction.
Secret of Mana was unique among action-RPGs in that it allowed up to three players to play simultaneously. Square Enix has issued no word as to whether multiplayer will feature in the upcoming iPhone version, or if the game is indeed a straight port, remake, or all-new entry in the Mana series.
Final Fantasy Tactics: The War of the Lions features complex strategic gameplay and a character class system that allows players to build and customize troops to take on enemy armies.
The iPhone version of Final Fantasy Tactics carries the “War of the Lions” subtitle introduced in the 2007 PSP remake of the game, and is likely to include the PSP edition’s added features and reworked localization.
Final Fantasy Tactics: The War of the Lions will premiere in the App Store on September 15th, 2010. Secret of Mana is expected to arrive in “2010.”
In this weekly feature, FingerGaming rounds up the top-grossing iPhone and iPod Touch applications, as current that day on the iTunes App Store. This week’s top titles are:
EA’s Monopoly finishes as this week’s highest-grossing game in the App Store, boosted by a recent television advertisement highlighting popular iPhone titles. Square Enix’s former chart leader Final Fantasy drops to second place, while Backflip Studios’ physics puzzler Ragdoll Blaster 2 takes third in its debut week.
Activision’s Call of Duty: World at War Zombies holds steady at fourth place, though Gameloft’s competing title Brothers in Arms 2 has fallen out of the top ten after a strong performance last week. Plants vs. Zombies also sees a drop in popularity after placing third last week, and finishes behind Triniti’s app compilation All-in-1 Gamebox and PopCap’s Bejeweled 2 in today’s chart results.
EA’s Rock Band moves up to eighth place this week, as Gameloft’s recently released iPhone version of the classic 3D platformer Rayman 2 closes out today’s chart.
In this weekly feature, FingerGaming rounds up the top-grossing iPhone and iPod Touch applications, as current that day on the iTunes App Store. This week’s top titles are:
PopCap’s Plants vs. Zombies ends its two-week run as the App Store’s biggest-grossing game title this week. Square Enix’s port of Final Fantasy rises to the top of the charts in its first week of release, as EA’s Monopoly climbs up to second place after recently being featured in an iPhone television advertisement.
Activision’s Call of Duty: World at War Zombies overtakes Gameloft’s recently released Brothers in Arms 2 in today’s sales rankings. Triniti’s compilation All-in-1 Gamebox follows at sixth place, while Bejeweled 2 remains a steady seller at seventh.
Newtoy’s Words With Friends, Final Fantasy II, and EA’s Rock Band close out this week’s results, pushing former chart contenders The Sims 3 and Tetris out of the top ten.
I have fond memories of finishing the original NES version of Final Fantasy. I played through the Dawn of Souls remake for the Game Boy Advance as recently as last year. Suffice to say, I enjoy the game a lot.
The source material holds up surprisingly well, I’ve found. Despite being more than 20 years old, the original Final Fantasy remains very playable. It’s very well-paced, it keeps up a satisfying sense of progression throughout, and it contains very few points where the player is left wondering what to do, especially when compared to other games of its vintage.
In terms of visuals and content, the iPhone and iPod Touch version of Final Fantasy is largely identical to the Anniversary Edition remake released for the PlayStation Portable. This particular version has its quirks — the challenge level has taken a significant hit, and the shift in graphic style is questionable — but it otherwise remains a solid recreation of the original Final Fantasy experience.
Unfortunately, Final Fantasy arrives in the App Store with all the grace and splendor of a bad mobile phone port. The controls are inconsistent. The framerate jerks and stutters unpredictably. Worst of all, a major oversight in the overhauled battle interface destroys the game’s key sense of pacing.
I’ve railed against the virtual d-pad approach to iPhone control interfaces before, and it’s as flaky as ever in Final Fantasy. Many of your presses on the pad will not register, and you’ll spend a lot of time tapping non-responsive parts of the ornate design before you get a feel for which portions actually make your character move.
Menus have their own unique share of problems. Square Enix has redesigned every menu screen in Final Fantasy to use the iPhone’s touch screen, but the result is actually much less accurate and convenient than the original cursor-based system.
In any menu, there’s always a slight, irritating delay between touching an option and the game recognizing your input. It’s especially noticeable in the new shop interface, which no longer allows players to see which characters benefit from available weapons and armor at a glance, without individually selecting each item.
The new battle interface is what hurts Final Fantasy the most, however. In theory, the new system should be more convenient — players can now tap the “Fight” command and then tap directly on the targeted enemy, rather than guide a cursor to complete both actions.
While this comes in handy for the occasional fights that require strategy, your characters often square off against much weaker creatures. You’ll want to get the vast majority of battles over with as quickly as possible, in other words, especially since a large chunk of your playtime will be spent grinding for experience.
In earlier remakes of Final Fantasy — including the PSP version — players could simply hold down the “confirm” button to automatically tell each party member to attack in rapid succession.
In the iPhone version, this is not possible. Even when your level 50 party members are confronting a gang of weakling imps, you’ll need to issue individual fight commands — a minimum of eight screen taps per turn. Factor in a split-second input delay for each command, and you end up with a lot of wasted time over the course of the game.
I still enjoy Final Fantasy’s core content a lot. The storyline is classic stuff, the dialog is well-translated, and the process of leveling up your characters and outfitting them with more powerful equipment will always be fun. Ultimately, though, the iPhone version’s flaws just make the experience more frustrating than it should be.
Square Enix has launched its classic console RPGs Final Fantasy ($8.99) and Final Fantasy II ($8.99) for the iPhone and iPod Touch.
Originally released for Nintendo’s 8-bit Famicom in the late ’80s, the first two entries in the Final Fantasy series redefined expectations for the RPG genre. Final Fantasy allows players to construct their own custom character parties, while Final Fantasy II places great focus on narrative and character development.
Both games feature updated graphics and bonus content from the previously released Anniversary Edition remakes for the PlayStation Portable. The new iPhone editions also boast an all-new gameplay interface, enabling players to sort through menus and target enemies in battle using the iPhone’s touch screen.
Developer: Square Enix
Price: $8.99
Version Reviewed: 1.0
Graphics / Sound Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Game Controls Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Gameplay Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
iPhone Integration Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
User Interface Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
Re-use / Replay Value Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
Overall Rating: 3.83 out of 5 stars
It doesn’t get much more classic than the original Final Fantasy game. First conceived as Square’s last (i.e., “final) game, they planned to make it a great one…but Final Fantasy ended up doing much more than saving them from bankruptcy. Released in Japan for the NES in 1987, Final Fantasy has since spawned a massive series of spin-offs, sequels, and remakes. Some years back, Square Enix created remakes of the original two games for the PSP.
Now, Square Enix has ported those PSP versions of Final Fantasy and Final Fantasy II to the iPhone. The translation is a mostly smooth one, and the games are chock-full of nostalgia. If you’re not a dedicated fan of the series, however, you’ll want to think about this purchase—Final Fantasy might have been revolutionary at the time, but it hasn’t aged perfectly. That’s not to say that it’s a bad game—it’s not—but this is a decidedly old-fashioned RPG. If that appeals to you, well, read on!
The Port
I suspect that many of you already know if you like Final Fantasy or not, and are more concerned with the quality of the port itself. Thankfully, this seems to be pretty solid. First and foremost among the iPhone-sensitive features: auto-save! Get interrupted, close the app at any time…Final Fantasy will save your progress, so long as you’re not in battle. It’s a godsend, and makes the game great for pick-up-and-play.
When you’re travelling, a large, translucent D-pad takes residence in the bottom-left of the screen. It takes some getting used to and obscures the screen a bit too much, but you soon learn to deal with it. The bottom-right contains either a “dash”/action button, or a mini-box with your party’s info, depending on if you’re in a town or similar environment, or the world map. Tapping the mini-box brings up the menu, allowing you to do things like equip weapons or use items. (In a town-like environment, you let go of the D-pad to summon the mini-box instead of the dash button.)
The interface is a bit clunky, but it’s still workable. I do wish the menu text was larger. One minor shift is that in battle, you chose from a series of icons rather than text-based menu options. I suppose that’s supposed to compensate for our fat thumbs.
As for the game itself, almost everything is the same, except for the drastically reduced difficulty compared to the original release. The additional “Soul of Chaos” and “Labyrinth of Time” dungeons are also included. So, overall: the port is well done. It’s not perfect, but nor does it interfere with the experience, unless you want to suffer through the old version’s unforgiving nature. (There’s a Wii VC port for that, I believe!) I’d worry about the battery drain if anything…long RPG sessions aren’t suited to mobile gaming, though Final Fantasy doesn’t seem to be a huge battery hog.
The Game Itself
Final Fantasy is definitely a game of its era. When the game opens, you chose your four party members and assign them classes. You have six to chose from: Black Mage, White Mage, Red Mage, Fighter, Thief, and Monk. The black and white mages are pretty straightforward magic powerhouses, while the fighter, thief, and monk all focus on physical attributes; the red mage is a bit of a hybrid. Once you’ve created your party, it’s time to save the world.
The plot might have been revolutionary when Final Fantasy was released, but its age shows now. Your four Light Warriors must face dungeons and forests, pirates and witches, evil Elemental Fiends and eventually Chaos himself. And guess what? It’s all been prophesied. There’s no characterization, and while the storyline is epic in the true sense of the word, it’s obviously a vehicle for advancing the game.
Battle consists of mostly random encounters, which take place on the (enormous) world map. It’s a very simple affair. You never need to do anything more than chose a monster to target and pick between attacking and using magic. Unfortunately, the need to tap once on the Attack icon and once on the target monster slows the otherwise fast battle mechanic down, but it’s still the same simple, turn-based affair that old RPGs are known for.
Actually, “old RPG” is really the only way to describe this game. The graphics, though updated, still have a definite retro feel; strategy takes a backseat, and you spend a lot of time in random encounters. The world is wide open, and despite the linear plot, it’s easy to get lost in it. (Fancy things like “quest logs” don’t have a place here!) If it’s old-school you want, here’s the game to get. It’s worth mentioning that the difficulty is radically different from the original release; the ability to save anywhere is a godsend, and levelling up takes much less time. Random encounters have also been reduced, and it seems to be an easier ride on the whole. That’s fine with me: the iPhone is a mobile platform, after all.
The Final Verdict
So, what can you expect from this port? Final Fantasy is a prime example of old-school gaming, so if you’re not willing to invest time in grinding and wandering around, you won’t enjoy it. But Final Fantasy is still a classic experience that can be enjoyed even by those who have never touched the series before. Despite its lack of modern bells and whistles, it’s is a solid port of a piece of history, and it exemplifies what RPGs used to be. If you like classic gaming at all—or if you’re simply interested in starting—this Final Fantasy port should satisfy.
A few weeks/months back, Square-Enix announced that Final Fantasy 1 & 2 would be coming to the iPhone. Being a Final Fantasy fan, I got all excited, but knew that I would explode unless I pushed such news out of my head. After checking out Square’s Facebook page this morning though, my excitement was renewed because of two new screenshots.
Unfortunately, the release date is still under wraps by the marketing team, but we will certainly know soon enough. Until then, enjoy the new screens!
There it is — video proof that Square Enix’s classic console RPGs Final Fantasy and Final Fantasy II are coming to the iPhone “soon.”
Last we heard, the “Anniversary Edition” PSP remakes of the first two entries of the Final Fantasy franchise were due for an App Store release. The new iPhone versions of Final Fantasy I and II will will feature all-new gameplay interfaces optimized for touch screens.
A small selection of new screenshots can be viewed in the gallery below.
The hype machine started churning back in January when Square Enix announced iPhone ports of Final Fantasy and Final Fantasy II. The announcement was an exciting one, certainly; it’s hard to get more classic than the original FF titles! Back then, we only had a few screenshots to salivate over, but now we have quite a few additional screenshots, a trailer…and a promise that they’re “coming soon.” Now you can feast your eyes on the live gameplay shown in the trailer while we wait anxiously for the actual games to hit the App Store. (Chocobos anyone?) Rest assured, we’ll be following these two titles closely.
Gaming industry veteran and Final Fantasy series creator Hironobu Sakaguchi announced that Mistwalker will soon release its first title for the iPhone and iPod Touch.
Mistwalker, a development studio headed by Sakaguchi, is best known for its Xbox 360 RPGs Blue Dragon and Lost Odyssey. The company has also co-developed two Nintendo DS spinoffs in the Blue Dragon franchise, and is currently working on an unnamed console game, according to Sakaguchi.
No details regarding Mistwalker’s upcoming iPhone project have yet been revealed, though Sakaguchi promises that the title will debut in the App Store “soon.”
Stumble Upon
Del.icio.us
Buzz
The Port
The Game Itself
