Breath of Fire IV - PS1

I've played this game for around 6 months, I think, and it was such a terrific experience that I'm still thinking about it.

As you can see I as lucky enough to grab this beauty for PS1, not a Platinum version (which I don't know if it exists), but like the others I played it in my PS2.

I have this love for JRPG that transcends me!

I did a first attempt at playing the game back at early 2000s around when the game came out, I think in 2001. It was not cheap! But then I bought others and forget about it...But it was always at the back of my mind that I should play it until the very end!

And so I did it a couple of years ago (it's always confusing making years math at the beginning of a new year). And what an experience it was!

As you can read on the back besides the enhancements for the gameplay and graphics the story is as common as it can be.

But the magic about the Japanese RPGs is that they always manage to turn each story unique.

Our main character is Ryu, whom we find in a crater...all naked. The Princess (damsel in distress...or not) rescues him and brings him along in the search for her older sister who was kidnapped.

And so the story goes.

If you know the BoF series you know the main character can always turn into a dragon. And there are more dragons.

Besides Ryu and Princess Nina we also meet Cray, who defends the Princess and her sister (whom he's in love with), Ershin who is like an armor that speaks kind of fun (she's the Yoda in the troop) but seems to have some one inside, Scias the talking ninja-dog who remains silent most of the time, Ursula that works for the military in search for Ryu but in the end she turns to our friends side, and finally, Fou-Lu that is the other half of Ryu. They are like a unique soul scattered into two bodies.

One thing during the game is that will be able, as Ryu, to transform into dragons spirits that you will meet during the game.

You can play as any character because you see max 3 people of your party and sometimes you must have some specific character on the front to be able to perform some actions. You can re-arrage all of this in the menu all the time (while not in combat mode).

About the combats. They are in turns, not real-time but it's not strategical like other JRPGs. But if it's in turns of course you have some kind of strategy associated to it. Like choosing the characters to put on the front and the others to put on the back and when to heal other character or call some dragon to help you in the battle.

About the graphics is your common PS1 3D graphics where you can use your R/L buttons to turn the camera 360 (in 4 turns) and you see each zone as individual from the others but there is no long or eternal 'loading' screens between the areas.

The scenarios are not that rich as the FF IX's but they are quite good and I must say that the characters design and graphics are better then FF IX ones.

Everytime you exit some city or specific area you see the world map view and you can travel between the points you already visited.

But you have to pay attention to some '?' marks that appear in the middle of the ride that can guide you to specific zones to find new items or even get items or doing something needed to get the story going.

Other thing common in BoF games are the fishing spots (which are needed to get something done to get the story going too!) and are good to take some time off the battles and just relax while playing the mini-game to get the fish. You have like a collection of fishes to collect that you can only fish in specific spots.

The story has some highs and some lows. You get to play it from the Fou-Lu perspective and you get to understand he's not that of a bad guy.
And I must say I almost lost it when 'something' happens to Ershin... that moment made me love the game! Or, of course, when you get to Princess Nina sister and...I will not spoil it to you all, but if what happen to Ershin did touch my heart this moment was near it.

I also have the Breath of Fire III for PSP, which I got way later than the IV (don't ask why because I don't know too...PSP was way after PS1), but I have yet to play it. But I hope it is so good or even better than this.



I treasure each moment I played this game. Is one of those that you love for it all, not for some parts.

Final Fantasy IX - PS1

If you are a gamer and especially if you like RPGs you must know the Squaresoft series: Final Fantasy.

So in this post I'm talking about the IX game in the series.

I got the game in the Platinum edition for PS1 even if I don't have the console, but my PS2 has retro-compatibility so I can play games for the previous console.

You cannot say by the pictures but the case is big! It has 4 CDs!

You can not only imagine how big the game is but also what the tecnology got from going from CDs to DVDs.

Now more into the game...

Many say that the great and most beautiful game in the series is FF VII (which I'm playing on my PSP).

I'll be talking about the Cloud and friends game in future post, but from what I've played from both I can understand the feelings so many people have for VII but I must say that IX is as good as it and it might be my favourite Final Fantasy game.

We start with Vivi. The Mage in the game.

He's a strange figure but you almost fall in love with him in at the very beginning!

You get to look around the kingdom's town with Vivi learning to look for many objects hidden all over the scenario and also learning how to play the card game (Tetra Master) that works like a mini-game throughout the entire game.

And talking about the scenarios...They are simply breath taking!

I know they were made for a 32bits concole but they truly are one of the most detailed and beautiful scenarios you get to see in a game for PS1 and even for PS2 consoles!

They look like they were hand painted.

After walking around the city you get to enter the castle where a party is taking place.

A traveling theater is performing there but they are not your normal actors people. They intend to kidnap the Princess Garnet!

The thing is that in the middle of it the Princess herself wants to be kidnapped!

One of my favourite scenes occurs during the theater presentation in which you have to simulate a fight and you have to press the right buttons when they appear on the screen. I know this happens a lot in the games, even more in the current games (quick time events) but it is so into context and well made that I repeated the scene a lot of times. Even more because the better you perform the better the audience cheers and you get more money.

You can see that this game is all about the little details.

After this there is trouble all around to make the theater troup flies off the castle in one piece along side with the Princess.

The 'Rusty' comes along too. He is the Princess guard chiefe but he's a failure.

That's when we get to know better the main character of the game: Zidane.

Also we get to know the rest of the theater crew when the ship they were traveling crashes into Evil Forest.

Zidane, the Princess, 'Rusty' and Vivi go into the forest and get in trouble and they are helped by one of Zidane friends which ends up being 'stoned' in the forest.


That made me sad...and if I'm that touch at so early in the game I cannot imagine how it will be in the end!

After that keep their journey together.

I already went into Ice Cave where we meet some evil mage birds that want to stop us. But I did it! And now I'm in some town where we found out that they send weird packages to the Castle.

Something is going on...

The battles work like the other FF games, with ATB bars that need to get filled in order for us to attack.

But if in ither FF games I usually don't like the battles soundtrack but this one I like a lot!

Besides this you get to interact with other FF commons like Choccobos and Moggles. The Moggles are important in the game because it's through them you can save the progress and learn some tips about the game. Also we get to deliever some mail they send to each other. I still have to understand what we must do so.

I know I'm just at the beginning of the journey but I'm already touched by the game.

This might be one of my favourite FF or probably my favourite.

I'll keep you informed about my next adventures.

Good games!