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Final Fantasy Dimensions |OT| FFV's Job System returns! (Try before you buy!)
- Thread starter Goli
- Start date
I gave the prologue a try last night on my ipad. It looks OK and the music is quite nice. Sorta weird that it's letterboxed though, I've never seen that on an iOS jrpg before. It's as if they did this for future easy porting to the PSP or something. Anyway, unfortunately the dpad control is awful. It keeps overshooting where I want to go. And why is it so cumbersome to talk to NPCs? I wish they did it like Chaos Rings where there was an onscreen button to talk to NPCs.
Anyway, the game is alright but definitely nothing special. I'll wait for a port to a system with buttons, or an iOS update that fixes the control scheme PLUS a price cut.
Anyway, the game is alright but definitely nothing special. I'll wait for a port to a system with buttons, or an iOS update that fixes the control scheme PLUS a price cut.
You can talk to NPCs by walking toward them or just by tapping anywhere on the screen. This isn't super effective with the default control scheme, but if you use "slide" or "fix" then it works great. Just tap anywhere with your other hand to interact with whatever's in front of you.
I beat the first chapter. The boss is really easy if you have the magic bomb fusion ability. As for the Job level cap, the cap is quite low. I reached it about halfway through the chapter for the warrior, monk, white mage and black mage.
EDIT : It also seem it will be a lot like FF2 and FFIV story wise...
EDIT : It also seem it will be a lot like FF2 and FFIV story wise...
So I think I'll post a quick explanation of the job system since that's probably the selling point of the game 
After the prologue you acquire crystal shards which grant you jobs like in FFV. The system adds new twist to the FF5 job system.
Jobs level is raised by getting AP after battle. When your job level up, you increase that character proficiency at this job and you also learn new abilities. Like FF5 you can mix match abilities from one job to another by equipping skills and commands from other jobs. There is a twist now though. You can actually acquire more slots (up to 2) by leveling up a job and thus can equip more skills. Some skills can require many slots though. For instance, the black/white/red magic command require 2 slots each.
What is also new is that job levels are capped. Maximum job level for a job is 20 and in the first chapter you start with a cap of 3 for each job. To raise this cap you must spend JP. 1 JP increases the level cap for a job by 1. JP are acquired by progressing through the plot. After major events you will get a message saying your party acquired X JP. Moreover, chapters have job levels cap on top of the JP system. As such even if you have enough JP, you might not be able to raise a job level until you progress through the story.
Each character has his own JP pool and you can spend on the jobs you want. JP are thus limited. In the original game, there was a rare item (Mog coin) you could acquire in challenge dungeons and as a very rare drop that you could trade for 3JP in the last chapter. I've yet to come across some for now so we'll have to see if they are still in.
"Advanced" jobs are also restricted to specific party members. The reason is that your 8 heroes are split across two teams and they don't travel together for a plot reason. *SPOILER*
. As such, some jobs are restricted to the team that finds them. We'll have to see if all of the characters can use all of the jobs once the two team meets up later on.
EDIT : Oh and you don't need to buy LV 1 Black/White magic as you automatically have all of them as soon as you can switch jobs. You need to buy the other spells for the next levels though
After the prologue you acquire crystal shards which grant you jobs like in FFV. The system adds new twist to the FF5 job system.
Jobs level is raised by getting AP after battle. When your job level up, you increase that character proficiency at this job and you also learn new abilities. Like FF5 you can mix match abilities from one job to another by equipping skills and commands from other jobs. There is a twist now though. You can actually acquire more slots (up to 2) by leveling up a job and thus can equip more skills. Some skills can require many slots though. For instance, the black/white/red magic command require 2 slots each.
What is also new is that job levels are capped. Maximum job level for a job is 20 and in the first chapter you start with a cap of 3 for each job. To raise this cap you must spend JP. 1 JP increases the level cap for a job by 1. JP are acquired by progressing through the plot. After major events you will get a message saying your party acquired X JP. Moreover, chapters have job levels cap on top of the JP system. As such even if you have enough JP, you might not be able to raise a job level until you progress through the story.
Each character has his own JP pool and you can spend on the jobs you want. JP are thus limited. In the original game, there was a rare item (Mog coin) you could acquire in challenge dungeons and as a very rare drop that you could trade for 3JP in the last chapter. I've yet to come across some for now so we'll have to see if they are still in.
"Advanced" jobs are also restricted to specific party members. The reason is that your 8 heroes are split across two teams and they don't travel together for a plot reason. *SPOILER*
A team is in the world of light, the other in the world of darkness
EDIT : Oh and you don't need to buy LV 1 Black/White magic as you automatically have all of them as soon as you can switch jobs. You need to buy the other spells for the next levels though
transience
Member
I'm a bit into the first chapter -- the first town after you get your first jobs.
I'm a little disappointed by where the game seems to be going. I know it's not new news, but the fact that you split into two teams makes me a little unhappy. Chapter 1 starts basically where the prologue starts, just from a different angle, so it feels like going backwards after the climactic way the prologue ended. I want to build four guys, not eight, and I'm just waiting for them to throw in some reused dungeons. I'm also oddly overwhelmed by all the choice and am having some internal struggles with what to pick since I like the auto-battle so much. It's not so good if you're running a three mage party. Also, two of your first four guys have some built in job level skills (like White Lv2) but, as far as I can tell, you have to start from the beginning if you want to use them in that class.
Right now I'm just using my characters in the jobs that fit their personalities, so Sol is a Warrior, Aigis is a Monk, etc. Still liking the game (more than this post lets on), but starting to see things that are bumming me out a little.
edit: also, you level your classes *fast* in this. I think I maxed Warrior in about 10-15 minutes. There's also four mage classes to start and only three physical (one being a Thief), so it's kinda hard to get a good balance when you've got five guys. Oh well, Monk with Counter it is!
I'm a little disappointed by where the game seems to be going. I know it's not new news, but the fact that you split into two teams makes me a little unhappy. Chapter 1 starts basically where the prologue starts, just from a different angle, so it feels like going backwards after the climactic way the prologue ended. I want to build four guys, not eight, and I'm just waiting for them to throw in some reused dungeons. I'm also oddly overwhelmed by all the choice and am having some internal struggles with what to pick since I like the auto-battle so much. It's not so good if you're running a three mage party. Also, two of your first four guys have some built in job level skills (like White Lv2) but, as far as I can tell, you have to start from the beginning if you want to use them in that class.
Right now I'm just using my characters in the jobs that fit their personalities, so Sol is a Warrior, Aigis is a Monk, etc. Still liking the game (more than this post lets on), but starting to see things that are bumming me out a little.
edit: also, you level your classes *fast* in this. I think I maxed Warrior in about 10-15 minutes. There's also four mage classes to start and only three physical (one being a Thief), so it's kinda hard to get a good balance when you've got five guys. Oh well, Monk with Counter it is!
So people "sacrifice" themselves left and right?
Pretty much. And there are also elemental fiends similar to FFIV.
minor effort
Banned
I'm trying to decide which I want to play it on, iPhone or iPad.
On the iPhone the graphics are actually easier to digest, since the poor filtering/smoothing on the sprites is less noticeable. And the virtual d-pad is easier to use because the dead zone on the iPad one is large enough to fit my entire thumbprint in.
On the other hand, menu buttons are easier to push on the larger iPad screen.
This doesn't have iCloud saves, does it?
On the iPhone the graphics are actually easier to digest, since the poor filtering/smoothing on the sprites is less noticeable. And the virtual d-pad is easier to use because the dead zone on the iPad one is large enough to fit my entire thumbprint in.
On the other hand, menu buttons are easier to push on the larger iPad screen.
This doesn't have iCloud saves, does it?
I don't like it so far. Graphics look generic to me; I think they'd have been better off going with actual pixel art for everything. The font is uber-generic too, and the writing is generic. Music is alright, I suppose (anyone know who composed it?).
Anyway, almost everything about this feels generic, like they took the Final Fantasy Creation Kit and threw a bunch of pieces together and shat out a game that looks like FF but doesn't have the soul of FF. I've only played the prologue, so I'll give it a little more time before I write it off for good, but my initial impression is that this doesn't stand up to the SNES era of FF, and if you're going to make an FF tribute with graphics that aspire to be from that era (but fall short IMO), you need to at least match the quality of the games from that era.
I will say, as someone who hates virtual d-pads, this one is pretty nicely implemented.
Anyway, just first impressions, don't come at me with a stake, etc. etc.
Anyway, almost everything about this feels generic, like they took the Final Fantasy Creation Kit and threw a bunch of pieces together and shat out a game that looks like FF but doesn't have the soul of FF. I've only played the prologue, so I'll give it a little more time before I write it off for good, but my initial impression is that this doesn't stand up to the SNES era of FF, and if you're going to make an FF tribute with graphics that aspire to be from that era (but fall short IMO), you need to at least match the quality of the games from that era.
I will say, as someone who hates virtual d-pads, this one is pretty nicely implemented.
Anyway, just first impressions, don't come at me with a stake, etc. etc.
Naoshi Mizuta.
Fair impressions, but expecting this game to be anything like the SNES games in quality was expecting way too much haha.
There's no way they were going to match the quality of games from that era with a game put together in the mobile division. FF4, 5, 6 all had the major backing of Squaresoft because they were first-tier projects for the company. It's just not realistic to expect anything like that with this game, honestly.
I just can't believe how ugly it looks compared to the FFIV collection which was also 30$. I'm currently messing around with jobs outside of the town that
.
Do we know if the FFIV TAY people worked on this? I already had 3 fights where you can't win and the TAY sure loved these kind of battles.
worships dragoons
Do we know if the FFIV TAY people worked on this? I already had 3 fights where you can't win and the TAY sure loved these kind of battles.
transience
Member
I believe I saw Matrix's name when it booted up, so yes. They're pretty much to go-to for 2d rehashes.
They're not doing Bravely Default, are they?
They're not doing Bravely Default, are they?
Not realistic maybe, but that doesn't make this OK. Especially for this price. Mobile is just as important as anything else nowadays - they shouldn't be given a free pass for shoveling out crap just because it's for a cell phone, you know? If they want to charge $5 I can maybe look the other way, but $30 for this? Hell no.
I don't agree with you that it's crap, though. It's just not first-tier quality. Perhaps it's not worth the price they're asking, but I don't think it's bad at all. And I've paid far more for games I hated, so I'm happy to pay for something that's at least enjoyable to me.
Well Matrix did the FF3 and 4 DS remakes too.
BD is being done by Silicon Studios who apparently did 3D Dot Game Heroes.
chickdigger802
Banned
I would agree with this... usually. But with so much great stuff coming out all the time, spending 'premium price' on mediocrity is a bit out of my league for now.
it's just so weird that... idk...
If people want a good classic jrpg style game for ios check out Ash 1-2.
I dunno, the graphic style looks kinda off. Is the gameplay/soundtrack pretty good?
minor effort
Banned
I've been trying it on both iPhone and iPad, and it seems slightly easier to use the smaller dpad on the iPhone, but you're right. And the tradeoff is that it's much easier to push the wrong button in battle menus on the iPhone.
I know I've been a bit of a broken record with my negativity over virtual d-pads and controls, but when even a simple 2D JRPG is a nightmare to control I'm not going to be brimming with confidence in them anytime soon.
That's fair - crap is a little harsh. But I tend to run black/white on games like this. IMO, either do it right or don't do it at all.
I decided to give the game a try on Android, and I really have to say, the game controls much better on my Galaxy Nexus's smaller screen than on my iPad's, like I suspected. I have to reach too far with my thumbs on the iPad to be comfortable for a long period of time. I haven't actually put money down toward the game yet on either platform, since I didn't have time to actually play last night, but now I'm kinda leaning toward Android if SE will take my money (never used the SE Market before). The only real downside is that the battle interface is much easier to use on the larger screen.
Zaraki_Kenpachi
Member
How did you play it on android? Did you download from the japanese store or something?
chickdigger802
Banned
Gameplay is fine. Soundtrack is great if you dig piano.
Story is probably some of the best of this gen for the genre, no joke.
AuthenticM
Member
Somebody needs to do a proper Let's Play of this game. The videos I've seen so far don't do it justice. edit: meaning that I've yet to forge an opinion on whether the game is good or not.
Zaraki_Kenpachi
Member
Haha. Good grief...
Ash? Really? Hm, that's intriguing.
Finished Prologue, and played Chapter 1 until I'm outside the mountains on the way to Liene Castle.
Gotta say, I'm really digging it. Story is intriguing so far, nothing to call just yet but the game just oozes the charm of the SNES games. And after I got the first set of jobs, everything became much more interesting. It's really neat that SMN was among the first set, it's usually a later job. I also discovered a fusion ability called Magic Bomb which was really cool.
Presentation wise, I don't get the complaints. So far, the game looks fine. Music is honestly beautiful. I think out of all the composers still under SE full-time Mizuta is the best. I also have no problems with the controls either, I switched to the pad being on the screen the whole time and have no problems.
I will say that 30 bucks is probably still too much for this game, because there's no way this game cost much at all to make. Still, if it's successful, it'll probably make SE a shit ton of money. And honestly, if by the end I had a good time and it ends up resembling the quality of the SNES games even half, then I would deem it money well spent.
Can't wait to play more, get more jobs, and see where the story goes from here. Also
Gotta say, I'm really digging it. Story is intriguing so far, nothing to call just yet but the game just oozes the charm of the SNES games. And after I got the first set of jobs, everything became much more interesting. It's really neat that SMN was among the first set, it's usually a later job. I also discovered a fusion ability called Magic Bomb which was really cool.
Presentation wise, I don't get the complaints. So far, the game looks fine. Music is honestly beautiful. I think out of all the composers still under SE full-time Mizuta is the best. I also have no problems with the controls either, I switched to the pad being on the screen the whole time and have no problems.
I will say that 30 bucks is probably still too much for this game, because there's no way this game cost much at all to make. Still, if it's successful, it'll probably make SE a shit ton of money. And honestly, if by the end I had a good time and it ends up resembling the quality of the SNES games even half, then I would deem it money well spent.
Can't wait to play more, get more jobs, and see where the story goes from here. Also
EVIL CID
lol so FFIV style then.
transience
Member
I'm at the beginning of chapter 2. I'm kinda mad that JP is character-specific instead of class-specific. I want to grind a little but I can't since I have to use classes I don't want to train them in.
BocoDragon
or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Realize This Assgrab is Delicious
Yeah this is kind of the sad reality for a lot of people who wish certain series were "made the way they were used to". They simply won't be AA+ projects in this day and age, so how could they ever measure up to the old school greats?
Seems like it is a find them deal.
I managed to buy the game through the SE Market just fine, so I'm playing on my Galaxy Nexus instead of my iPad. Truth be told, with the screen size, I find the controls to be just fine for movement. If it's like this on the iPhone, I'm surprised anybody had any complaints. I don't even feel like I have that much worse control than with a dpad in a 2D RPG like this. It was another story entirely on the larger iPad screen, of course!
At any rate, I'm in chapter 1 still and I'm having a good time. The music is just so incredible. I love Mizuta so much, and I wish he got more projects at SE. Balance-wise, it seems way better than After Years, and dungeon design also seems dramatically better, which is great. I hope to unlock the job system soon, and see whether the strange limitations I've heard about end up bothering me or not.
At any rate, I'm in chapter 1 still and I'm having a good time. The music is just so incredible. I love Mizuta so much, and I wish he got more projects at SE.
Balance-wise, it seems way better than After Years, and dungeon design also seems dramatically better, which is great. I hope to unlock the job system soon, and see whether the strange limitations I've heard about end up bothering me or not.