The four warriors arrive in the town of Coneria. A fighter, a stalwart bastion of might, goes before the adventuring group to thwart evil with steel and shield. A thief: nimble in his dexterity, though not as brawny with the blade; he can avoid harm and escape from battle to live another day. A black mage, privy to the attacking magical arts, destroying his foes at whim, but he himself is physically vulnerable due to his fragile stature. A white mage, a benevolent magician whose healing words can help her group stand against the trials ahead of them. (wait, hold on, was this just the 100th post? yay us)

Shod with equipment to avail them in their journey, they seek the king who enlists them to seek and destroy the evil Garland, a kidnapper of the princess. After whetting their fighting spirit, the party of adventurers journey north to the evil dwelling of their nemesis. Past delves and valleys, past the rocky way and the deepest forests, trudging through swamp and field: the enemy’s castle appears: Temple of Chaos. A hard battle fought, and outnumbering him, Garland is slain, freeing the princess for the kingdom’s sake. In his arrogance and pride, he falls, underestimating the four friends. Princess saved, day is won, everybody’s happy and after this daunting feat, the titles screen appears for The Final Fantasy.

I think this is our first video game review or post so bask, this is only the beginning. For 1987, this was a crazy change of pace for Nintendo Entertainment System owners. No more running, jumping and chucking fireballs. (sorry, Mario), but now with Final Fantasy, health is a numerical value and blighting villains comes by way of ‘set and forget’ or in other words, tell your group your plan of attack and then watch them try their best at it on their own; less reflexes, more intellect; turn-based style. Gameplay here is a different animal: requires a little more planning than normal, but anyone can leave their Nintendo Entertainment System with a more adventurous attitude.

Graphics for 1987 were picturesque, though only 8-bit. Take a look yourself with some sweet-action screenshots…

They eventually re-released this game a few more times with better graphics, but we’re not reviewing those versions today. Pretty nifty pixels, uh?

Okay, how about some sound effects and music.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E7A3xpCStfs

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jTx5V8hVsbk

If I recall correctly, there are 4 channels of music; and then set to stereo making it 8-bits total. I can so jam out to this stuff, thanks, Nobuo Uematsu.

Story? Probably no more riveting than this post, however, it leads the player well to the next objective. It also leaves plenty of room for one’s imagination. This also leads to re-playability. After going through a few other games, you’ll want to come back from sheer nostalgia alone, but hey, why not turn new magical moments into magical memories. Top that all off with a buddy. Doing anything with other people that you know can make anything more enjoyable. And just when you thought this fantasy was final… they made a sequel. /facepalm