Game collections and HD remakes are commonplace now. In the past it wasn’t often that we would see our favorite previous generation titles released for newer platforms. This just wasn’t a common practice. It was even more rare to have a never before translated title be re-released on a different system. This is why Final Fantasy Anthology was a big deal. Not only did this PS1 collection include a port of Final Fantasy VI (widely considered to be the best title in the entire franchise) but it also marked the first English release of FFV (which only came out on the Super Famicom). Honestly I didn’t even care about the sixth installment because I still had a functional cartridge, but the fifth one was something special. Before that it could only be emulated. Today we’re going to take a modern look at this package. Is Final Fantasy Anthology worth owning?
As with any game collection the best way to review it is by looking at each game. Final Fantasy Anthology released on a two disc set (each disc containing a separate game) which was weird considering the fact that the rom size for reach should have been tiny given that they both came out on 16-bit cartridges originally. There are a few bonus additions such as a soundtrack, and a list of things like spells and monster lists. Both games also have a flashy new FMV intro which was kind of neat at the time. No major changes have been made to gameplay or the general designs of each game.
Final Fantasy V
This is the game, as I already mentioned, that was never released in North America. Originally Squaresoft had planned for it to come out under the name of Final Fantasy Extreme (due to the difficulty) but plans fell through and they abandoned the project. I can kind of see why, but it’s a major shame that we never got it. Final Fantasy V is one of the best RPGs of all time. Before this fans of the franchise could only play this one via a translated rom, and in the infancy of console emulation. To have an official release that we could play on console was simply incredible at the time. My little brother received this game for Christmas after it released, and it will always remind me of the jolly season because of that.
If there’s one area Final Fantasy V is weak in it’s story. You start out as a wanderer named Bartz who, along with his chocobo named Boco, is just kind of existing. One day his world is turned upside down when a meteor strikes nearby. He meets a young pink haired girl named Lenna, as well as an amnesiac old man named Galuf. Those two set out to figure out why the wind has stopped blowing, but they’re soon overwhelmed by monsters. Bartz to the rescue. The three decide to team up and travel to the shrine of the wind crystal. Along the way they encounter pirates, and the leader among them, a man named Faris, joins their plight.
From here it’s a series of minor plot twists, and eventually the quest evolves into one to save the entire world. The characters have their individual dialogue but it’s apparent from the beginning that plot isn’t a huge focus. This is a traditional turn based role playing game. It uses the active time battle system that was introduced in part IV, where a bar fills at the bottom of the screen and when it’s full you can input a command for the character. It’s pretty basic, and if you played Final Fantasy IV (II on the SNES in North America) then you already know the score.
What sets this game apart from the mix is the job system. It’s not exactly new though. Final Fantasy III also had a job system. It’s expanded tremendously here and makes much more sense. Basically you can choose the class of any of the four characters in your party, and this directly affects their combat abilities. In the beginning everyone is the same basic job of freelancer. They can equip most articles of armor and weapons, but have no special abilities. As the plot progresses you unlock new classes. And then even more. These dictate the weapons you can use, and grant a special ability as well. Jobs even have drastically different stats from one another as well.
There’s heavy aspects of customization as well, and that’s the game’s strongest card. As you gain skill points as a specific job you gain job levels and from here learning abilities relating to them. Some are simple such as the ability to equip specific weapons or armor no matter your class. Others include the basic special move of the class. This means you can have a knight that can use white magic, or a monk that can throw offensive spells at foes. The level of customization is absolutely insane, and I reveled in the sheer options afforded here. Really you can play Final Fantasy V as technically as you want to. You could have the basic party, or come up with some really unique strategies. You may be forced to do the latter because Final Fantasy V isn’t exactly easy.
Okay so how well is it emulated? Decently. The soundtrack sounds about on par with the original release. There are also no major graphical issues. It does however look like a 16-bit RPG, and on the PlayStation that might not be appealing to too many people. One thing that I did notice is the load times. They’re not excruciating by any means. There are two instances I noticed. After winning a battle the screen fades to black. It takes only a few seconds, but in the SNES version it’s instantaneous. Also saving your progress takes some time. That’s because the PS1 uses memory cards, and so it’s fair that the game has to access these. Overall this is a really good way to play Final Fantasy V even today.
Final Fantasy VI
In my experiences Final Fantasy VI is most commonly cited as the best game in the series. Yes, even moreso than FFVII. I have extensive history with this title. After all it was the first full priced game I ever purchased. $70 for an elementary school kid was a big deal in the 90s. I spent years playing it on the SNES, and still had that console hooked up when Final Fantasy Anthology came into my life. I was, and still am, especially critical of this version. After all it doesn’t have the advantage that V does. This one was already released in North America. So let’s take a look at it.
Final Fantasy VI takes a different approach than V. Story was a central focus. Here we have a more modern world that leans heavily into steampunk conventions. You begin this quest as a young girl named Terra. She has the abilities of magic. This hasn’t been a thing for centuries, and so she’s turning heads left and right. The opening sequence has Terra riding through a mountain village in special magitek armor only to discover she has been controlled by an evil empire. This girl sets out to use her powers for good and discover what’s really going on. The quest entails a significant number of characters, and an interesting struggle against an evil empire.
Honestly the plot? It’s simply amazing. It deals with themes that are surprisingly mature and explores themes like suicide and even abortion. All the while maintaining a constantly moving forward narrative with some seriously likable characters. The story in Final Fantasy VI was seriously ahead of its time. Meanwhile the original translation by Ted Woolsey remains intact. Honestly I wouldn’t have it any other way. There’s a tremendous amount of character and heart in the dialogue. The characters all feel distinct from one another, and their plights just make sense. That’s not something I can say about a lot of other Japanese RPGs.
As far as combat goes it’s pretty basic for the franchise. This game also uses the active time battle system relying on bars filling with time at the bottom of the screen to dictate when your characters can perform their attacks. What’s different here is that each character has one special move. This never changes. What does is the magic that they can use. In the beginning only a few select allies can use this special ability. Once you gain espers others can learn magic as well. The fact that they have their own special move however means that each character is distinct from one another. There are a lot of them that join you too. In the end of the game you can completely customize who you use in your party. It’s pretty neat.
Unfortunately the emulation of this game is not well. Final Fantasy VI really struggles to run here. You’ll find constant freezing hang-ups in the midst of combat. This is especially noticeable when using Sabin’s blitz attacks. Even some magical spells cause the game to freeze up. It’s crazy considering how much more powerful the PS1 is compared to the SNES. I could understand if it happened the first time, or even just occasionally. Unfortunately this is a constant problem. It’s distracting to the point that I didn’t enjoy this version of the game in Final Fantasy Anthology. On top of that there’s also loading after battles, and when saving your data on the memory card. Honestly this is the worst port of Final Fantasy VI. Absolutely don’t get this collection to play it because you will regret it.
